Yeah to 98%, boooo to 50%

98% is my test score on my Broward County tree trimming exam I took on Monday for certification. YESSSS, I passed, officially a certified Broward County tree trimmer and can now apply for my Broward County Tree Trimming License (which is a'whole'nother ballpark to play in, wow).

Waahooooo!!!! :))p

Now.....50% is how many of my seeds actually sprouted. Whaaaa :(

The empty cups are the ones that didn't sprout.

Our vegetable garden is really taking off :)
Stowell's corn in the back left corner, Collard
Greens & tomatillos in the top right, Red romaine,
green romaine & Red Curly lettuce in front left,
purple peppers, cilantro & tarragon in lower right.

Marigolds as insect control throughout
the vegetable garden.

My little succulent group, ready to be planted in a
cool new planter for our new patio area.  Oh yeah
one of my yummy dragon fruits I picked this morning. 

My sole surviving 'Moon & Stars' Watermelon
Grow baby grow!!!

My sole surviving 'Black Krim' tomato
The more sun the tomatoes fruit get, the darker in
color they turn; almost like a "purple black".  They
are one of the most delicious tomatoes I have eaten!

Our little rabbiteye blueberry bush is doing quite
well.  Hoping for some delicious blueberries
this year, even if it's just a handful, lol.

This is a Butterfly Ginger, Hedychium coronarium,
hence the shape of the white flower.  It actually
smells like a gardenia flower, super sweet!
The leaves smell like spicy ginger when crushed.

The Butterfly Ginger flowers don't last very long so
enjoy them while you have them. The plant is a tuber which means they grow long hard roots (looks like
a carrot) which can easily be dug up & transplanted.
Great plant to mix into a tropical landscape!

A variety of newly transplanted orchids tied
to the Florida native Simpson Stopper tree. 

Vanda's & Dendrobiums attached to our Montgomery
Palms.  Mixed in with the orange plume flower,
a variety of heliconias & Bee Hive Ginger. 

Cattleya Green Emerald 'Orchid Queen'
Absolutely love this orchid! Smells divine!
There are two more unopened blooms
in the front right corner.

C. Green Emerald 'Orchid Queen', easy orchid to grow
with 3-4" flowers, super fragrant, gorgeous colors,
and thick waxy petals. A real show stopper!

This is how long the actually orchid is &
how small the root system it.  Here it is just starting
to grow the flower spike earlier this week.

My best friend bought this most unusual
orchid for my birthday six years ago at the
 Redlands International Orchid Festival. 
If you haven't been to the Redlands Int'
Orchid festival, it is a must go!!!  Yes, it is
drive but well worth it!  I have acquired alot of
my collection from that show!

Different angle of same orchid.  The tag has since
disappeared so if anyone knows what it is I would
love to know, lol.  It was in bloom when I brought
it home & never bloomed again until now.  In the picture above you will see that even the root system didn't grow. 
Hmmm, interesting......LOL :)

WISHING YOU ALL A MOST AWESOME WEEKEND!!!

Tree Trimming Class today, oh my!

Today was an early start as I went to the Broward County Tree Trimming I class this morning down in Davie.  It's a four hour class that takes you through all the correct procedures, terms, hands on demonstrations and a test at the end for your certification. To my surprise this class instructor, the supervisor at Coconut Creek's Department of Forestry, did a great job of being very informative while keeping it fun.  I have to be honest & say I learned alot of things I didn't know!  Knowledge is the best defense, lol!  If you click on the link here for proper tree pruning, it will take you to the Broward County site for more information.  Well folks next week we will know if I passed the test so I can apply for my licence.  Wish me luck, lol.  Have a great week ya'll!  XOXO

Hard day at work but a nice way to end it

This Wednesday I had a long and arduous day, my last meeting was at 5:30pm and lasted for about an hour.  By the end of the meeting I was mentally & physically exhausted.  There are a few places that refresh my mind & soul...the beach, a walk in nature, home in the garden...but there is one unique place that I really appreciate and love to decompress there (plus I can buy a few new goodies for the garden); The Garden Gate.  This little gem is my personal Idaho when "city life" gets the best of me, lol. I love to walk through the melange maze of plants, water features, garden ornaments/art and super cute garden gifts.  Every nook and cranny is filled with something wonderful to look at, smell and touch.  Melodic music fills the air and takes me away to another place.  By the time I have left there, I have had an attitude adjustment, I bought something for my garden and supported local business.  Ahhh, my decompression heaven!  I love it, thanks Donna!  If you don't already know about The Garden Gate, take a moment in your busy day to check it out.  It is located at the NE corner of the Citi Centre on Copans Road & Federal Highway.  :))

Fish & Frog

Water water everywhere but not a drop to drink ;)

Tillandsia Baskets, so whimsy!

Tickseed, a must have for every Florida garden

Love these weathered water urns!

Super cute ideas for a whimsical romantic garden

Guardian of the flora & fauna

Love the color and texture here :)

This Sweet Spire Salvia went home with me :)  In the foreground is a Dwarf Mussaenda, small shrub with very fragrant bright pale yellow flowers.  Does well in part sun.

Lotus water urn with lots of duck weed, hyacinth & bog plants.

Wishing everyone a lovely and peaceful weekend!
XOXO

Farmer's markets are on the rise! YEA!

Tis' the season to be thinking of farmer's markets.  Seems like each town now has a farmer's market or green market on the weekends.  There are so many reasons to go to these great events, one is because they have the most delicious goodies, wonderful handmade gifts (the holidays are right around the corner) and best of all you will be supporting your local artists, farmers and tradespeople but most of all they are so much fun!
You can check out the times and locations here in the Sun Sentinel article.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/fl-farmers-market-growth-20110922,0,4245035.story

Don't forget about Pompano's Green market starting in October 22nd on the NE corner of Atlantic Blvd & Dixie Hwy; every Saturday from 8am-1pm
http://market.pompanohistory.com/

Get out there and have some fun this weekend!

New plantings

Wednesday I planted some a second crop of seeds while donating blood to the mosquitoes, multitasking what can I say, lol.  The corn is doing really well without any help from me.  Though most of the watermelon seedlings burned from me being out of town for a couple of days & no water. Only one of the tomatillo seeds actually sprouted then died yesterday.  And I only have a handful of tomato seedlings sprouting.  Gosh I thought I would be a better vegetable gardener! :(

One lonely watermelon seedling left here.

Four watermelon seedlings

My little patch of Stowell's corn three weeks old

My second sowing of seeds for the heirloom tomatoes, carrots, onions & watermelon.

These are cuttings I started from a landscape job we did.
They will be the mother plants for more cuttings.  Five different
purlsane's, sun rose, sea oxeye daisy, queen oyster and kalanchoe.
Goodness we may end up with our own little nursery!
HAPPY PLANTINGS THIS WEEKEND!!!

Eaten alive my mosquitoes

An idea popped into my head at 5:30pm, "Hmmm, why don't I take a break from work & plant some more seeds in the vegetable garden"...well it started out fine; ok not so fine cause I had to spray the dreaded stinky mosquito spray all over...then it turned into an all out smorgasbord of myself.  It felt like I spent more time smashing and swatting those irritating insects then planting.  BUT I did get all my second sowing of seeds planted in the starter cups (to answer the post two weeks ago of whether it was still too hot to plant seeds directly in the ground; yes some of my seedlings burned out so this time I'm starting them in cups then transplanting them).  So yea for me, plhttttt for mosquitoes. ;))

Just what I thought...

Good morning bloggers,

While reading the Sun Sentinel today I came across this article in the 'lifestyle' section (http://www.sun-sentinel.com/features/home/fl-hgjuneau-garden-column-082811-20110828,0,7535261.column) and it confirms exactly what I thought....hence why I have been relocating my orchids from their confining little clay pots to the expansive area of the trees in our landscape.  With just a little observation to your environment, you can gain tremendous insight on being a better gardener.  Listen and learn from Mother Nature and you will do fine. :)

Happy Gardening my friends!

Day 9 in the vegetable garden

So here is day 9 for the little sprouts...note to self, do not use pine park mulch with seedlings, they have a tough time growing through it, works better for transplants, may have to plant some more tomato seeds today.

'Moon & Stars' Watermelon 5" high

Stowell's Corn 7" high

Strawberries I planted last year, yummy!

Vegetable Sprouts!!!

One day there is nothing and the next day...WOW...sprouts!!!  The first little sprouts to come up are the Stowell's Corn, the Isis Candy, Black from Tula & Hillbilly Potato Leaf tomatoes and 'moon & stars' watermelon.  The tomatoes are still tiny, too small to photograph, but they are there :)

This is the Stowell's Corn popping up.

My little 'Moon & Stars' watermelon.

The tall plant in the middle is a Cashew Nut Tree
or Cashew Apple.  The little patch of seedlings under it
are from one of the most delicious canteloupes we
have eaten this season!  Amazing that they sprouted since we bought
the canteloupe from the produce market!
Really interested as to how they will do.

This is my experiment area, where I do my "let see what grows".
My habit of picking things up along my day, "oooh the neighbor has
a Barbados Cherry Tree, let's see if I can grow a few of these" has
lead me to this. LOL.  So far there is a wide array of things growing in here: canteloupe
 from the produce market, thai & haden mangoes from the orchard, pineapple tops from
the market, and 'moon & stars' watermelon from seed.  There is a bunch of things
 that were planted but never grew....until all this rain dropped, now there are all
 kinds of sprouts popping up in here.  What a potpourri, hee hee!!!
If you never try, you may never know success!

Keep planting my friends...keep planting!!!
Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!