Old Garden Paths

It's amazing how garden paths can meander through the trees and flowers. Views and perspectives change as you move down the trail. Around the corner, a new vista greets you. As time passes, the garden changes. First there is the seasonal change, winter changes into spring with its many blossoms and blooms. Summer bursts upon you with sudden heat. Then fall slowly creeps up with its colourful array of autumn colours.

Time also move along and the small sapling becomes a stout tree that matures into a giant oak or maple dominating all around it.

Sometimes those paths return to the same place with a different view or at a later time (time of day, time of year, or time)

Crossed paths with Ann Granatier yesterday. Her mother is in the Nursing Home where my wife Rosemary is the administrator. Ann used to work for us at Oriental Garden Gallery-back in the spring time of my life. Was that the late 80’s? Yeah, it was still spring. I think it's still spring! I have always thought I was into spring. ( "spring chicken"-notwithstanding.)

Ann and her husband Bob are into Irises in a big small way. They grow and sell award winning iris varieties. http://www.trailsendiris.com/.

White Christmas

Looks like we are going to have a White Christmas after all. Beautiful snowfall! Light, fluffy flakes on the tree branches creating a winter wonderland.

Merry Christmas to All!

Updated Turf King Hamilton Website

Been working the last little while to update our website (www.hamilton.turfking.ca) Working with a local web designer, John to make things better.

I can do a few changes myself. That is interesting and fun- although, at times I have to be careful as I don't know a whole lot at this stage.New features include a search capability. And, we can send newsletters to customers and so on. working on that. Also a blogging section. Right now transferring blogs from my Turf King Blog.

When I thought about how do I get a picture of the new site. Then I learned about he PrtSc (print screen) key on the keyboard. Press that and an image of your screen is saved in the "clipboard." Paste the image into a graphics program and voila you have an image of the screen. DIdn't know that before- I mean I had forgotten how to use that.

Christmas Lights

I see a lot of Christmas decorations and lights. It seems to be getting to be more and more each year. I do remember the oil crisis back in the early 70's. At that time, everyone (or at least a lot of people) stopped using Christmas lights as their way of contributing to easing the oil shortage and the energy crisis.
Now, it seems to be business as usual. I know that the new LED lights are supposed to use only about a quarter of the energy of the regular lights.
As I was driving home last night, I'm thinking, "When are they going to come up with solar Christmas lights?"
Did a Google search today, and sure enough, they've been working on them, and I see that they are now starting to be available.

Cactus should wear Sandals!

I have had these hardy Alberta prickly pear cactus have been growing in the garden for the past 17 years. A couple of years ago, I put some into some old shoes. When we had the garden centre, on of the greenhouse growers would bring old shoes with hens and chickens (Sempervivum spp.) Well why not grow cactus in some old shoes? Especially since I had some old shoes. And the cactus root easily. This variety has yellow flowers.

I suppose since these cactus can survive the Canadian winters, they are quite comfortable in shoes. Just watch the thorns on these guys. They can be a pain.

Found a blog with only winter hardy cactus.

Winter is coming?

A little touch of snow flurries this weekend. The weather was cool this Sunday, but had to do some more work outside. Put the rest of the furniture and pool stuff away, tidy up some things that needed trimming, dug a few carrots, beets and leeks.

Made up 3 winter greenery pots- trimmed evergreens from around the pool- Hetz blue juniper, Mint Julep juniper, Japanese garden juniper. Added pieces from other parts of the garden. Hydrangea Annabelle, Miscanthus grass, Sedum spectablis, Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium), Asparagus fern, Hibiscus stems, Silver dogwood stem, Himalayan Birch, Corkscrew Hazel, Green Barberrry, Viburnum berries.

see our Turf King Website www.hamilton.turfking.ca

Soup Potluck

Had our soup potluck this Sabbath at Heritage Green. This is the second one this year and the fourth one all told. This time we had 10-11 soups from various people-Lentil, Panamanian split pea, corn chowder, cream of wheat, pasta and cabbage, veggie soup, 11 bean soup, squash/leek, carrot/vegetable, a red lentil and potato stew, a pot of chili beans.

Mom made 2 soups. One was Mulligatawny -a spicy Anglo-Indian soup. (Ken Deweltz says it means Pepper water.) Her vegan, wheatless, chicken noodle was also a hit. Chicken noodle- at some of the earlier soup potlucks it was the first in the line- so we thought that's why it ran out. But this time it was at the very end. This is the first time she made it wheatless- for Dillon- used rice noodles.