Bittersweet on the hill.

Hello friends,

 

     Despite my negligence and absence, I'm glad I still have some faithful friends that still visit! Thank you Jorge and Beth Marie.  Our spring hasn't been particularly nice. I always have such hope for a warm and joyous spring and in some ways it always disappoints! I watched  the Master's Golf event and marveled at all the azaleas and wonderful flowering bushes and whispered......our time is coming. And when it comes, it's fleeting maybe a day here or there and nothing really sustained. Today will be mostly in the 50's, windy and rainy and if you can believe, I have the wood stove going just to knock out the dampness.  Anyway.......

 

the lilac has been blooming and has been fragrant and lovely.  I'm not sure what they will be like tomorrow after the rain but will pick a few bouquets if still in bloom. I did get my trees planted and my privacy fence erected. It always takes more time than one thinks but that isn't new.  And after it was in place, then it needed to be painted white in keeping with the little garden house. My brother Paul has offered to tend to our gardening needs.....primarily the vegetable garden and I am pleased about that. I especially like the herbs; the chives are up, the parsley has reappeared from last year, the dill is reappearing and the basil plants have been hardened and are on their own. I need to talk to him about the thyme and rosemary. I bought him a Mantis - one of those small tillers that is wonderful for weeding and digging up the soil. He loves it and it helps keep things loamy and somewhat weed free. Some of you might remember that I replanted all my irises last fall.  They were just getting too thick so decided to give them more ground.  Well after replanting, I had several bushel baskets extra that I needed to make new beds for. I was temporarily planting them with the rose bushes,and daffodils, anyplace where is could get a fork in. So now I'll have to rethink new spaces for the fall.

 

     I came upon a poet and writer that I really hadn't spent a lot of time acquainting myself with - Donald Hall. It wasn't my knowledge of him that drew me to him but the titles of two of his books; "Unpacking the Boxes," and "The Painted Bed."  "The Painted Bed" is about the last years of his wife, the writer Jane Kenyon who dies at 47 of leukemia. Then I decided to had to buy "The Seasons at Eagle Pond," his purchase of his grandparents old homestead in rural New Hampshire  and his book, "Writing Well." One of the beautiful things about reading is that one reader always leads you to another. Now I'm intrigued with Jane Kenyon.

 

      So now we walk with spring and soon we'll be talking summer.  Until........Bittersweet on the Hill.

 

Hello blogging friends,

 

Happy Easter to all my friends. I'm afraid to say that it is still cool and the woodstove is still cranking away in the background.  I took a walk outside this morning and the daffodils are in full bloom. The snow drops have finished and the rest of the world is waiting for some sun and warmth.  I did splurge and buy two dogwoods and a maple and before they get planted, decided on installing a privacy fence to cut the wind from the open fields across the street. The winter kill from the winds can takeanything down so decided I'd try and protect them in some way.  So we'll see. The roses and irises did manage to survive but I must confess I bought a dozen bales of straw and just stacked them up here and there to prevent as much wind kill as possible.

 

I treated myself to some glazed orchid pots, lots of potting media, and 5 new orchids. I didn't intend to buy some additional plants just the potting soil and a few new pots but it just happened!  I've decided to move some of the orchids into cooler spaces so hopefully they'll feel happier.  I did have some very lovely orchid blooms this winter and several for the first time.  So i want to start them on a nourishment and feeding program in ample time for next year.

 

Anyway, I hope your spring holiday was a good one and wish you much sunshine and warmth.  Peace......Bittersweet

 

About a year ago, the farmer across the street died and his sister sold the fields and acreage to the veterinarian down the street. In addition to his clinic, he has a large horse farm and has picked up hundreds and hundreds of acres. He now owns land on three sides of my 15 acres. I have a stream that is the border on the back side but I own about 15 feet of land on the other side of the stream. We've had some bad winter ice storms and a lot of trees were split, splintered and damaged this year. Add to the fact that the farmers haven't taken care of the land ever since the dairy bailout, the land has become somewhat overgrown with shrubs and small trees. So Gerry has worked on clearing and cutting these past two years and now he's working behind the stream. At the moment he has a bulldozer and excavator working back there and I keep saying to my brother......we better get a survey done because I think Gerry thinks the stream is the property line. Now I know Jerry's intention is to fence the land for horses and that is quite picturesque since he has barns of horses and does a lot of breeding of horses. He has the heavy equipment going and all I can think of is I better find out where the property line is staked out. I'd hate to see the fences go up and have him find out he's just done acres of fencing and it's not on his property! Which means......I now have to survey my land. Another thousand or two blown to the wind.   I thought country life was easy.

 

I am thoroughly finished with winter. This morning we had the threat of sleet and wet precipitation but fortunately it was short lived and the temperatures are rising. It is still cool and marginal but hopefully we'll see some change in the next two weeks. I can hardly wait. I'm waiting to see how my roses and irises fared, how well my back patio held up and of course with loosing the 60 foot maple what the added sunlight does to the northeast side of the house and garage. Over the years I've had to contend with so much shade that the absence of the tree which was a huge umbrella ----will now change the growing conditions. It will be interesting to see what I will put in.

 

Anyway, I'm still listening to a cacophony of chain saws and machinery in the back pasture.....so we'll see.   

Bittersweet

 

I feel like Punxsutawney Phil! I've been hibernating but can't tell you exactly why.  Maybe it just comes with the territory - not sure how or why I can explain it but it happened. Anyway.....

The winter has been hard and long. We have about 6 or 8 inches of ugly snow on the ground - typical February. We've had several ice storms, several days of no heat/light/water, cold and nasty winds etc. They said that this winter would have more precipitation than usual and they were right.  It wasn't all snow and included lots of ice and freezing rain.

I'm thankful for the seed and flower catalogues! I'm already planning this years trees and shrubs and have added two filberts, two dogwoods maybe a magnolia and in the fall, two wisteria. The sad part is that it probably will take a few years before I see some blooms or nuts but you have to start somewhere. Right now I'm thinking about the roses and the new iris beds I planted last year. Which reminds me, I do have to order a maple tree to replace the sixty foot maple that came down in one of the ice storms. It was my favorite tree on the property when I purchased this home in 1981. It had so much symmetry and provided summer shade that kept the house cool. Keep in mind that old farm houses don't have air conditioning; they were reliant on the maple trees that surrounded the house. So the tree that provided most of the morning shade is now a three foot stump and a memory. It is amazing how empty the view looks without the maple tree; and it will very much change the plant life and what grows on that side of the house and garage.

I've been doing something different at breakfast! I'm a light breakfast eater - coffee and toast for the most part. My childhood was filled with all those good things; French toast, waffles, oatmeal etc.  Well.....my memories got the best of me at least for Sundays so I started making French toast and waffles. I have to admit I loved them both especially the Fr. toast with lots of real maple syrup. It was an absolute treat especially with fresh hot coffee.  I took it a step further when I made some fresh bread from scratch. The ingredients are really quite simple; flour, yeasts, eggs and milk. I think what made it especially good was the bread stone and the tray of water for steam under the pizza/bread stone. I was just amazed by the end product especially the crust. It was one of these tried and true recipes from "Mother Earth" magazine.

Well, I say hello to all of you. I'm looking forward to spring; the birds, the greening of the trees and the sunshine and warmth.  Have a wonderful week and peace to all.    Bittersweet

 

Hello my friends,

 

     It is the Saturday before Christmas and I'm basking in the post-storm quiet that comes after a 10 inch snow storm. Last weekend we suffered the effects of the ice storm and found ourselves without power for several days.  All I can say is thank God for the wood-stove and my mother's old Down comforters. We managed with lots of soup and whatever else was in the pantry. We did loose a 60-70 foot maple tree that thankfully fell away from the house, missed the garage as well as the blue spruce my Mom and I planted 15 years ago.  If anything had happened to that blue spruce, that would have saddened me deeply.  But I had the tree cut up and all the branches chipped into mulch for next summer. All that's left is to find a new tree for the mourning doves!!!!

 

    We're expecting another ten inches of snow Sunday into Monday and a snow/ice mix for Christmas Eve. I guess we can say we're going to have a white Christmas.

 

     I'm expecting 8 for Christmas Eve dinner and we've decided to forgo the gift exchange. We're going to share in an Angus prime ribs dinner and just enjoy the festivities around our dinner. People are experiencing too much pain with the difficulties of putting food on the table let alone paying their mortgages etc. To splurge on gifts that no one wants and ends up being exchanged or recycled just didn't seem appropriate this year.  So we'll enjoy dinner and the beauty and joy that comes with sharing it with family and friends.

 

     So t all who have shared thoughts, words, feelings and love - I wish you all a Merry Christmas, a good holiday and many blessings in the coming year.  Peace........Bittersweet

 

Today is one of those rare mornings - truly restful and peaceful.  When I woke up I looked out toward the sky and there was a gray and heaviness that cast a darker shading on the world. I started to raise my adjustable bed to a sitting position and then I saw what always excites me.....snow.  The flakes were gently falling, no wind, and falling like the softness of dusting sugar. So swirling, just that straight line of falling flakes. It wasn't a heavy snow perhaps 2 or three inches but enough to snuggling on to all the tree branches and dust the fields with a white coat. Then it was up to be greeted with hot coffee. 

 

I then watched Sunday Morning, with Charles Osborne, one of my favorite TV programs. They always have a wonderful offering of segments and this morning was no different.  Today's highlights were Odetta, a new singing trio - The Priests, Presidential animals, ( my favorite being Washington's screaming donkeys,) the first performance of The Nut Cracker in the 50's by an unknown dance studio in NJ still performing today etc.  Always a delight.

 

This was followed by my youngest brother making me ham and eggs with buttered toast not necessarily a common occurrence, a fresh pot of coffee and then offering to water my orchids.  How is that for gracious living! But then again, I will be making tomato sauce to go with the eggplant parmesan for dinnr.  And while I embark on that activity, I will be watching the NY Giants play the Eagles and hopefully with this win, win the division title and have home field advantage.  Not something that frequently happens.

 

So a very good Sunday.  I feel blessed.  I live very much........from want or fear and wish I could say that for most of the world.  Blessings from the snowy hillside.  Bittersweet

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We've had two nights of frost warnings; close but no hard frost as yet. When I see the grass and fields covered with that chilling silver cover, I always think of that fourteen century word - hoarfrost. I will have to check if the remaining roses got nabbed last night but after this weekend, I'm sure there will be little to retrieve from outside.

 

Our leaves are changing and the colors are starting to come into there full bloom and hue. As I scan the hillside I just marvel at the scenery and wonder why fall is not my favorite season. It dawned on me that it really is a sensory thing; the joy of the warmth of the suns rays in summer and then a visual delight in autumn. Winter is an aural experience. There is a silence that really can't be replicated; I am still overwhelmed by the silence that comes when the snow is falling on a cold crisp night. And spring is purely olfactory; the smell of the earth warming and thawing, the greening that comes from the trees and the running of streams that comes with the snow melt. I'm not sure why all this came to mind but there was the realization that the seasons were really a sensory experience - one as different as the next and each with their own beauty.

 

The orchids are in and the first of them is blooming. I was particularly thrilled when my largest vanda started to bud. I've had the three vandas for about three years and I was told that their light requirements was quite demanding so don't expect much. So I'm really quite pleased when to my surprise there was a bud head on my largest vanda. I put all the orchids outside from May to late September and I'm afraid they got beat up a little. Although a little dog- eared, I think they are healthier.

 

I have to laugh about my iris bed.  I think I mentioned that I had the whole bed dug up and I really thought that I could put most of them back into the same bed. My new ones are planted in a different place and figured maybe I could steal some space from my daffodils and daylilies. After replanting in the original bed, I had about two bushel baskets worth left over. I made two smaller beds in with the daffodils and still had another bushel to plant.  So now I encroached upon the roses. What started out as a simple project got extended in time and space. So for the moment they are in the ground and I can always reorganize next year.  I have to remember that I've been adding over the past ten years or so and finally they were chocking themselves out.  I'm sure they'll be a lot happier next year even though there were lots of very young rhizomes that might take another year or so to mature.

 

Suki.... I'm smiling as I read your comment!  I enjoyed the garden this year immensely. We're still enjoying carrots, winter squash, lettuce and if you can believe......water mellon. We had about 15 water mellons  that came in mid-August. I have one in the refrigerator and three more still in the garden.  And how can I forget the peppers; every color imaginable, hot and sweet and even a black one! My one regret is that we didn't plant more tomatoes.  For some reason they weren't as bountiful as I had expected.  The real trick is to stagger the planting.  With somethings it was feast or famine.

 

Anyway my blogging friends, enjoy the autumn weather and find peace in your days.  Fondly, Bittersweet

 

Wednesday the 17th of September - I can't believe it.  We're still 90 percent green but some of the trees are showing just a tinge of color.  This week is slated to be sunny and clear but we're toying with 60 and 70 degree highs.  I'll have to take advantage of the few really nice days that come our way because what is left isn't very much! Pull out the flannel shirts!

 

Actually I'm planning to bring in my orchids, if not tonight then certainly tomorrow.  Preferably tonight since tomorrow will be only in the sixties.  I must admit I lost several orchids to the hot sun early on which was a bit disappointing.  I thought I had them protected enough but obviously not. It didn't take long for them to shrivel up. So what is left should be hardy but I'd really like to keep them out for another two weeks.  Some of them need the cooler temps to trigger blooming before they come in. I've decided not to buy new orchids until I have the indoor conditions under more control. They really shouldn't be in a very warm kitchen like they are but I really don't have many other choices. The library probably would work but it really is one of those rooms I consider "sacred" and is rarely used. I can't imagine spilling water on an oriental rug!!!

 

My little garden house is almost finished. I call it a garden house but it really is one room; 16 feet by 10 feet. It started out as a possible summer reading room, then a quasi green-house and now I've settled on a summer sleeping room or I should say a spare bedroom. I just have a few things to do; finish some molding, (we ran short by a board,) paint the concrete floor a light blue gray, put up the fan and then haul out a carpet that I brought back from the southwest and hang a few pictures. I had hoped to get this all done by the memorial day weekend but so it goes. 

 

While I didn't get everything done, I did get my patio behind the garage done and really just have my iris bed to contend with. I probably will dig everything up, refurbish the soil and then replant all the irises. If I have any misgivings, it probably is not getting the shutters repainted and back up on the house. Some projects are easy, some are fun, but this one seems so overwhelming - especially on a big house. I still have a shot at it but just don't know if I really want to tackle it. I do have a young man who is interested in doing the job so perhaps if I get energized......maybe it will get done.

 

Our garden was a success. Unfortunately, we couldn't eat everything and so many of the cantaloupe just rotted. We have a few watermelons left, plenty of winter squash, new lettuce is emerging and perhaps a few meals of peppers and swiss chard. Potatoes and carrots will stay safe a few more weeks but the rest has passed. The roses after a very slow start turned out to be quite nice. I think they mail them in a dormant state and they remained dormant for about 3 weeks so really didn't start growing until July. The roses that did finally come were quite lovely and hopefully next year we'll get a full growing season.

 

So my friends.....do enjoy September.  It is my birth month - I'm a Virgo and I'm looking forward to the next two weeks.  Peace from Bittersweet.