Love, Laughter, and Life

Adventures With a Book Lover

Category Archives: Gardens


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What’s Your Fragrance?

Lavender, my signature flower

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

A few days ago, I was reading in 2 Corinthians, chapter 2. Immersed in the words, it took me a moment to realize that I was reading with a scent in my nose.

Tantalizing wafts of fragrance swirled through my thoughts.

“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing,” (2 Corinthians 2:14-15, ESV).

As the words I read floated through my mind, they were accompanied by the memories and aroma of lavender.

Lavender.

In my heart, Christ (and therefore God) has the refreshing, calming, soothing, and beautiful fragrance of lavender. He smells like lavender! The Peace that fills my soul and permeates my life is that of lavender.

Quiet. Peace. Reverence.

Is it no wonder that lavender is one of my favorite blooming herbs? I am drawn to lavender as the bees, seeking scent and beauty. I gently brush my fingertips along the flowers and attempt to capture the faint scent. Or I crush and bruise petals and stem between these wretched fingers, forcing the flowers to release their fragrance. For my benefit.

Isn’t that what happened so long ago? He was crushed and bruised, all to release the gift of His life, the fragrance of salvation. But that was not just for me. Rather, it was for all of us.

The fragrance of lavender.

Do you read with your nose? What fragrance is God to you?

Oh, to smell like lavender to those around us.


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How a Garden Transforms a Backyard

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

These are before and after pictures of our backyard. The after pictures are really just snapshots of specific moments in time, as gardens are always changing and evolving.

Nearly 7 years ago we purchased our home. Putterers by nature, we have planted, chopped down, removed, added, painted, built, dug up, relocated, and generally wrecked havoc (or as I like to say, made improvements in accordance to our tastes) with the yard. Front and back.

The above photo shows what the triangle garden looked like when we moved in.

This is the patio door overlooking the old cement triangle garden.

 Here is Kevin digging out the cement to create a new garden area.

 Here is a view of the new triangle garden, after many years of growth.

 

  This is the view looking out over the old gravel bed.

 

Here is our view.

 The old backyard view while standing at the house.

 The same view a few years later.

 

 The garden shed without any sunflowers or privacy fence.

 IMG_0036

Our well worn garden, including a privacy fence and garden beds.

My garden and backyard today.

What we’ve added: a dogwood tree, a brick patio (covered now by the sunflower forest), 5 garden beds, a flower bed, hundreds of plants, cedar privacy fence, a clothesline (behind the shed), underground sprinklers, shade curtains around the patio, and lots of love.

That’s my garden. What changes have you made in your garden?


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What’s in the Garden? Edible and Not

Almost bursting open sunflower. As Kevin says, my sunflower jungle is alive!

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

I’m amazed at how quickly the garden is taking over the backyard.

I’m sad that several icky pests are winning and eating as much as they can (slugs, earwigs, pill bugs, and aphids). Since I prefer not to spray my garden with pesticides, it’s a daily battle to find those critters. Loss is expected.

Strawberries are still blooming, though they are exhausted!

But mostly, I’m happy to see this dirt produce food and beauty for our eyes, nose, hands, and tummies. I supposed I could add ears to that list, as the bees are a humming, though they classify as beauty not food. At least for us. The cats love to snatch and gobble them up.

Here are some things growing in the garden.

Oregano, much loved by bees, is heading towards full bloom.

Tea roses – beautiful though they were plagued by aphids early on in the season.

Creeping thyme, a walkable plant (you can walk on it). But watch out for bees!

Edible thyme is blooming.

Radishes are tasty and almost gone. Mmmm

Sunset lily. I love the color of these blooms.

Ripening Roma tomatoes.

The pumpkin plants that are threatening to take over our tiny backyard. Soon, it will be true.

Poor, sad, dwarfed okra. I’ve replanted 4-5 times. This is the best so far.

Wax beans love my back yard. Green beans? Not so much.

Dill entices more bees and is ready for canning.

Part of the sunflower jungle.

Lavender and friend.

Raspberries are coming on strong, much to the delight of the icky pests.

Baby zucchini.

The parsley is blooming. Those tiny sweat bees love this stuff.

Garlic. I have no idea when it is done!

Kale.

Baby yellow squash. If you squint, you can see someone else was impatient to try it. Go away, bugs!

Sage. This is also in bloom. But there is more than enough to go around. Five times around.

That’s my garden so far, all from the backyard. I’d be happy to share, especially the herbs. Has anyone else grown okra? What trick am I missing (other than heat, which I think it really needs)?

Happy tasting, smelling, seeing, touching, and hearing in your garden today!


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The Lily ~ Haiku

Lily from my garden

fireworks of flora

speckled bursts of joy

fireworks cool to my touch

enchanting lily

by Angie Quantrell


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What’s Growing in the Garden?

Strawberries, raspberries, lavender, and radishes fresh from the garden.

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

What’s growing in the garden? I mean besides cat fur.

The strawberries are slowing down and I think ready for a big break to build up their energy. Whoa! This was the most prolific strawberry (also known as strawbabies and beebes around our house) harvest I have ever had. Not counting the minimal loss from slugs, sow bugs, ants, and raiding grandchildren.

Raspberries are coming on! Beautiful, tasty, sweet-tart lovely bursts of flavor – be still my heart. I love me some raspberries (also known as raspbabies and beebes at our house).

My miniscule crop of French radishes is nearing readiness for being pulled up, roots and all. I planted a roasting pan with radishes in hopes of avoiding above mentioned pests who annually decimate my peppery red and white treats. Take that, you vermin! Today Donavyn and I pulled up a few to check for size. And we gobbled them all up, just like Goldilocks ate Baby Bear’s porridge. Just right.

Lavender, one of my favorite flowering herbs, is starting to bloom strong. I haven’t seen many bees this spring, so I am pleased the purple blossoms are attracting several from somewhere. If only a swarm would descend in our area and we could capture it . . .

As always, parsley, thyme, dill, and sage are available free of charge to any and all. The sunflowers look like they will put on a great show in another couple of weeks. Birds delight, but beware the two slinking gray girls who blend in to the bricks and sand beneath your dinner table.

One of my failures this year is okra. I really wanted to grow some for my mom who grew up in Missouri. I’ve done 3 plantings, and there is nothing to be had but munched sprouts. I guess they taste good?

I’ve also done multiple plantings of echinacea, or cone flowers, for the bees and butterflies. This last batch is finally showing promise. I may just have to buy half grown plants.

Mary, Mary, quite contrary,

How does your garden grow?

With silver bells and cockle shells,

And pretty maids all in a row.

There is always a furry body helping me. This one particularly loves to sleep on the strawberries.

My friends, how does your garden grow?


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Container Gardens

Baby kale and lettuce mix win the mobile garden location

By Angie Quantrell Angie Quantrell

Container gardens are the way to go this year.

It’s funny how I go through fads in my garden.

Last year, I didn’t want many containers other than the raised beds and strawberry garden. I relished the empty patio space that left ample room for the grands to race wheeled vehicles around without crashing.

Previous growing seasons bloomed and produced according to my every whim and decorating idea. I loved grouping pots and plantings according to heat and watering zone. Notice I say heat instead of sun requirements. My afternoon garden is all a heat zone and any container has to be mostly in shade or capable of handling the crippling sun rays.

Baby kale

This year is once again a container garden year. But my reasoning is fresh and experimental.

This year I want to win against the garden predators. Slugs. Sow bugs. Earwigs. Aphids. And whatever else is chewing its way through my fresh veggie crop.

For instance, radish is languishing in an old turkey roaster pot that has holes in the bottom, mainly because every time I have planted them in the past, the sow bugs and slugs have eaten holes and rings around each beautiful radish.

Radish seedlings popping through the soil

Lettuce and kale are making a new home in a little red wagon and a washtub. This is my attempt to avoid the slugs and aphids.

Chives and a random sunflower are living in yet another washtub.

Chives and a sunflower plant

Germination has commenced and plants are popping through the soil. What has yet to be found is how successful the plants will be in growing to full-size and giving me tasty treats.

Kale? Check. We’ve already had baby leaves.

And that’s all I know for now. We shall see. Let the experiment commence.

Until then, kale, strawberries, and herbs it is.

Spring strawberries


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Encroaching

Beautiful yet encroaching and taking over a flower bed

By Angie Quantrell Angie Quantrell

Encroaching.

honeysuckle

crab grass

pink flowers

vines

raspberries

strawberries

parsley

pumpkins

sunflowers

evergreen tree

birch branches

moss

 

slugs

sow bugs

daddy long legs

yellow jackets

aphids

white grass bugs

ants

 

gossip

television

news

media

politics

pollution

violence

wars

famine

drought

 

Encroaching.

In my yard. In my community. In my world.

 

Aggressively encroaching vines grasping for toe holds

It starts small, but once you start looking, it’s everywhere at every level.

Encroaching.

What is encroaching in your life?

Yet. There is always hope. Big or small encroachments, He is here.

Raspberries escaping and encroaching throughout yard

But you are a shield around me, O LORD;

you bestow glory on me and lift up my head.

To the LORD I cry aloud,

and he answers me from his holy hill.

I lie down and sleep;

I wake again, because the LORD sustains me.

Psalm 3:3-5 NIV


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The Bird

The window

By Angie Quantrell Angie Quantrell

I had just finished reading two separate blog posts.

The first post was about clean windows and how they look great – until the sun streams through and we can still see the smudges and streaks left despite our efforts. You can read this Lynn Austin post here. A Clear View

The second post asked the question “Just How Big is God?” The author encouraged readers to consider how God knows every little detail, even down to when a sparrow falls to earth. Every sparrow! Read this post by Leslie A. here. Just How Big is God?

A few mere moments after completing these readings, I heard a loud thunk.

In our house, a thunk usually means a bird has flown into our large picture window.

This window, speaking of clean windows, streaks, and smudges, defies my every attempt to make it clean and sparkling.

I raced towards the front window, glancing down into the flower bed beneath the brick ledge.

Sure enough, a stunned sparrow twitched on the bark. I went out and saw that it barely breathed. I gently picked it up and stroked its back, watching for signs of being stunned or on the edge of death. Some birds survive our window. After a few moments of being knocked out, they flip over and fly away.

This little guy did not. He didn’t take more than 2 or 3 breaths as I held him cupped in my hand. I watched the still breast, hoping that I just couldn’t see the ribs move. But the glass wall was too much for his tiny body.

And there I was. Crying for a tiny sparrow who died from smashing into my window. Even though I could see the dirt and smudges on it, it looked clear and invisible for my feathered friend. There was nothing I could do.

But God knew. He knew the exact moment the sparrow crashed into the window and the second it took its last breath. And He cared that it happened.

God knows all things. He cares about everything in our lives, down to the tiniest detail. Though He is the God of the Universe, He knows and cares.

About us. About that poor sparrow. About me crying when the sparrow died. About my frustrations with daily life or big events or fears that seem silly. He cares.

God cares.


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Happy Earth Day!

Blossoms in the spring

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

Happy Earth Day, Earth!

What a wonderful world we live in – beautiful, fascinating, safe, peaceful, dangerous, harsh, mysterious, vast, surprising, and awe-inspiring.

I’m glad I live here.

In honor of Earth Day, I think it appropriate to give a gift.

So I will do something good for the Earth today. Maybe several somethings.

 

My gifts shall be:

– picking up any trash I see

– making sure I water only what needs water, not the sidewalk, gutter, or driveway

– turning off electrical devices I am not actually using

– planting something pretty (or tasty)

– giving thanks to God for such an amazing place to live

Tulips opened to catch the sun

Earth Day Haiku

 

Earth home, designed gift

fashioned by God’s mighty hand

habitat for us

Fruit trees in bloom

What will your gift be?


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The Curious Garden ~ Picture Book & KID KANDY

A garden that is curious?

By Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

The Curious Garden

By Peter Brown

(Little, Brown and Company; 2009)

The Curious Garden is a picture book that was inspired by the Manhattan Highline Railway.

I’ve read articles about the Highline that tell how the lonely stretch of railway has been transformed into beautiful public gardens. But this is the first picture book I’ve found on the topic.

The Curious Garden tells the tale of Liam, a young boy who explores the empty spaces to find railways breaking down and nature taking over. Liam decides to help. Together, Liam and the garden grow and explore the empty spaces.

“The garden was especially curious about old, forgotten things.”

I love that sentence. The garden is not just a thing in this book, but one of the main characters!

The Curious Garden (doesn’t the title take on a new personna after you’ve read the above sentence?) will delight explorers and nature lovers.

KID KANDY:

Nature Walk

I walk almost every day through my neighborhood. When I walk tomorrow, I am going to look for places that nature is acting curious and spreading in unexpected places.

How about you?

Ask a parent or sibling to walk with you.

Look for:

– weeds growing in sidewalk cracks

– flowers springing up in odd spots

– old rusted things covered in grasses or vines

– moss creeping along damp, shady areas

– nature that is being mysterious and curious as it expands to new areas

What did you see?