Crab Apples Start to Finish

Crab Apple Jelly. From flower to Jelly. That large container of apples made two pints. The color is so beautiful. Sorry the pictures of the cooked crab apples looks so yellow. The camera doesn't work well indoors.

Garden in August

Crab apples - Jelly to be made soon

Desert Rose Seed Pod

Desert Rose Trunk

Seed Saving

Some snap shots around the garden and on the balcony.
It was a beautiful day so I picked a large bucket of crab apples. They are so pretty.  The Jelly they create is a pretty pink/orange. Only down fall in crab apples is quite a few of them have little worms or holes.  It's a tedious job of cutting and sorting but the jelly is well worth it.

The Desert Rose seed pod is rare.  I have two plants grown from seed.  One is over 7 years old and the one shooting out the pod is only 3 years old.  I am very excited as it will produce 100's of seeds.  Some might even have a different color than the mother plant.

Last, I have a sunflower field with all different colors. I saved a few heads that are now drying.

Again, it was one beautiful day and I wanted to share.

Thanks for visiting.

Garden in July

Some pictures of the garden. The flowers are so beautiful.  I don't even want to grow anything else. They never fail to amaze me with there beauty. The little pink snapdragons just showed up between the lettuce one day. Incredible.

Hard Summer

We have had our share of hard times this summer.  Bobby had triple by-pass surgery a couple of weeks ago that turned our lives up-side-down.  He's healing now and summer goes on. Searching more than ever for a house with a yard.

I've kept up with the watering of the garden and a friend stopped by one day while I was at the Hospital and watered and weeded - an angel!

Some photos above.

Dahlia's - The Yellow, daisy looking Honka and the 12" White Iceberg. Planted the tubers - now just waiting.

Red Lettuce and Oak Leaf. Tasty and oh so fresh.

Zucchini - it's getting pretty big.

Spent last week working in Chicago and couldn't believe how much everything has grown in 5 days. Incredible.  It's not nice being away from home but oh the joy of seeing everything after a good rain and sun.

Garden is Growing

Growing. Peas with Hollyhocks, Red Onions, Spinach and Zucchini just sprouting out of the ground. Spent a few hours this morning weeding and watering. The spinach was harvested on Thursday for a delicious baby leaf salad.  I ate them raw and unwashed right out of the garden and you can taste the freshness.  Nothing compares. The store bought is stale in comparison.

Ocean Reef Key Largo

I am working a conference in Key Largo at a resort called Ocean Reef.  It's north of the highway that leads you to Key West and very private.  The conference ends on Friday night and I am staying on until Sunday - then flying to Boston for another one but I have two whole days to play in the sun.  Hope the rain holds out until I leave as it is in the forcast.  Right now it's beautiful out.

This island has a cat sancuary and yesterday I had the pleasure of walking into a room with over 100 of the most friendly cats you ever want to meet.  They were all attention hogs and preforming tricks to get a pet. Oh My - they make the stresses of the day just wash a way.  I didn't want to leave them. AND I'm sure they were wondering if they could of come with us.  It was almost like an orphanage where the Children behave in the best manner to be chosen.  If I didn't live so far away, I would of taken three of them home. Bonnie, Harry and Nicole. Cute cats.

Well... Off to work again - my lunch break is over.  I'll post some pics when I can.