i took this picture last january during one of the locavores tours, and have been waiting patiently to share it with you. i hope it makes you smile as much as it did me.
gobble gobble, rrrwoof!
mrs. t, the turkey in the photo above, has seen many happy thanksgivings. from what her owners told us, she will continue to do so because she has such an amiable personality, as her canine friend so obviously proves.
happy thanksgiving!
i just found out that my dear friend lynn was recognized by horticulture magazine as one of the year’s top 20 favorite garden blogs! and for good reason too. with her keen eye and sharp mind, she captures beautiful moments wherever she goes – be it in her upstate ny garden, on travels near and far, or with her adventurous and furry companions.
so be sure to check out her blog, sin city to slaterville, and peruse the other 20 favorites as well (both linked above).
we’ve only known each other for a few years, but our shared obsession with plants quickly solidified our friendship. she even inspired me to start this blog… and how grateful i am that she did…
grwhryrpltd and travelinbride in the springs, august 2008
congratulations to you, ms. lynn, and your little beagle too!
autumn's best at cypress pond
see more of today’s wordless wonders here.
the weather’s been so nice here the past week or so that i have to keep telling myself that it’s november and not may. but this is only my second fall season in texas, so i continue to gauge how the seasonal weather patterns present themselves in the garden. since today is garden blogger’s bloom day (gbbd, hosted by may dreams gardens), here’s a few observations from our fall garden:
pansy, brassica and ophiopogon combination
muhlenbergia, basil and rosa 'Sunny Knock Out'
pomegranate, crepe myrtle, purple basil, muhlenbergia and lantana
panicums ('Prairie Skies' and 'Shenandoah') and Rudbecia hirta
now that the summer’s heat has finally subsided, the vegetable garden is once again in full swing:
first official green bean harvest
the peppers have bounced back and are finally turning color
the tomatoes and basil continue to produce
and surprise… the bulbs that i’ve associated with spring have started to come up! daffodil foliage has already emerged while other bulbs have sent up their flowers:
a blood lily surprise (bloomed in july, turgid foliage until nov, and blooming again)!
but the summer caladium bulbs are senescening, giving way to other ornamentals:
the ugandense clerodendron is about to open while the caladium fades away
this eclectic mix is what november has to offer in our fall garden.
happy bloom day.
while the state tree of texas is the pecan, i personally associate oak trees to be the pre-eminent native tree of texas, if only because they are planted and growing EVERYWHERE around here! at IQF i was inspired to make a felted interpretation of these trees’ mighty seeds.
take some pre-made felted balls (or spend a lot of time making your own…):
felted balls
and glue on gathered acorn caps. you might have to try a few on for size – Q. stellata (post oak) and Q. virginiana (live oak) were too small while Q. macrocarpa (bur oak) were too big.
but the caps of Quercus nigra (water oak) acorns were just right
and make a whole bunch, or shall i say, peck of them:
felted acorns
a peck of felted acorns
while individually sweet, i’m thinking of stringing these on some twine of jute to decorate the branches of oak that can no longer flourish acorns on their own… it’d extend the fall seasonal display on the front porch. fun…!
a felted acorn line up
under the shade of the tamu pecan orchards
on saturday the brazos locavores visited the texas a&m pecan orchard, located on f.m. 50, just “south” of f.m. 60. leo lombardini, tamu associate professor, horticulturist and pecan physiologist led our tour. he started with a brief history of the pecan orchards. the oldest orchard is the brison tract, which was first planted here back in the 1950’s. since then the adrian (trees located in the background in the image above), storey, and mceachern (trees located in image below) tracts have been added to the research orchards. the name of each tract refers to the current pecan horticulturist/physiologist/professor at the time of planting. the lombardini tract is just taking root…
tamu pecan varieties
tamu is one of two universities in the u.s. with active pecan breeding programs – the university of georgia is the second. common breeding objectives for pecans are for increased nut size (for the commercial industry) and improved disease resistance. while both states work on Carya illinoensis, they have distinct pronunciations for their favorite nut. in georgia, it’s pee-can, while in texas it’s peh-kahn. trust me, you don’t want to get caught saying it wrong or else those who know will take you for a damned yankee.
the geographic range of the native pecan
the pecan tree is in the Juglandaceae (walnut) family and is native to the u.s. – the image above shows its native geographic range. the commercial growing range has expanded east to georgia and west to california. while there are over 1000 varieties of pecan, tamu has worked with the usda to grow, improve and introduce approximately 30 varieties. many of the varieties are named after native american indian tribes while others are named for the breeders who first discovered or developed them.
the pecan variety board
harvest time typically starts in late october to early november. at that time, the grass is mown and sticks are cleared from under each tree. mechanical shakers encircle the trunk of a tree and shaken for no more than 10 seconds. the fallen pecans are harvested with another machine and taken to a processor for cleaning and cracking.
harvest vibrations can be felt three times the width of the canopy away
pecan in a cracked shell
the locavores admire the pecan bounty
at the end of the tour, leo offered pecans (both shelled and in the shell) for sale. he also brought bags of pecan shell mulch that is considered highly gourmet by the squirrels, racoons and fire ants that frequent his garden. supposedly, the dallas arboretum uses pecan shell mulch in its display gardens, as there are many pecan processing facilities in the dallas area. while i passed on the mulch offering, i scooped up three pounds of freshly harvested and shelled pecans. a bargain at $6 a pound when you consider that area stores are just now offering last year’s stale crop for even more per pound.
a 'Desirable' bounty
so fresh and tasty! even mr. grwhryrpltd, who up until now preferred walnuts over pecans, couldn’t keep his paws out of the bag. if you’re in the b/cs area and want to stock up on your own pecan reserves, the tamu horticulture club sells them every friday in the horticulture/forest sciences building on campus.
the future (lombardini?) orchard takes root
a big thanks goes out to leo for the tour of the orchards, and to the student communications group that organized this month’s locavore trip.
on a side note, i was happy to find out that leo was at msu for his PhD when i was there for my batchelor’s. not surprisingly, we knew and admired many of the same professors. the small but important world of horticulture strikes again… and i am humbled.
a few weeks ago i attended the international quilt festival in houston and promised to show you some of the amazing quilts i photographed there. as usual, i found myself drawn to quilts that depicted elements found in nature. so come and take a stroll with me through the iqf garden… (all images are credited with the artist’s name and title).
let’s start with the handi quilter best of show award (and $10,000) winning quilt:
on the wings of a dream, by caryl bryer fallert (paducah, ky)
check out the quilting detail:
detail, on the wings of a dream, by caryl bryer fallert
winner of the world of beauty award (and $7,500) went to this magnificent baltimore album quilt:
hearts and garlands, by liz jones (leominster, herefordshire, u.k.)
hearts and garlands, by liz jones (leominster, herefordshire, u.k.)
block detail, hearts and garlands, by liz jones
the future of quilting award ($1000) went to this lovely:
tuscan sun, by gina perkes (payson, arizona)
this quilt won honorable mention in the handmade category:
the endless world II, by noriko endo (nagoya, aichi, japan)
detail of the endless world II, by noriko endo
i loved the simple fabric selection in noriko’s depiction of a traditional grandmother’s garden quilt (above). the next quilt won the handmade category ($1000):
white dew, by tsuneko shimura (tokyo, japan). embroidery on applique.
loved the hawaiian-inspired applique on this quilt:
my mother's quilt, by yachiyo katsuno (setagaya, tokoyo, japan)
detail of chrysanthemum. my mother's quilt, by yachiyo katsuno.
this quilt won the art-abstract, small category award ($1000):
building up, by kathy york (austin, tx)
according to the artist’s statement, the quilt above is a comment on the beauty of modern urban architecture, but also on its underlying population and consumption issues. in it i saw plan views of both buildings and parterre gardens.
beyond the horizon, by mary ann hildebrand (comfort, tx)
the quilt above was AMAZING! according to the artists’ statement (a wife and husband team), the appliqued design was based on a woodcut that appeared in Flammarions Book on Astronomy, first published in the late 1800’s. here’s a detailed image:
detail, beyond the horizon, by mary ann hildebrand.
another blazing beauty:
rose mandala I, by anne lullie (lake in the hills, il)
the following quilt was inspired by a cross-sectional cut of a tree:
cycles of life, by jean wells keenan (sisters, or)
this quilt was just too funny, and as neon as it looks in the picture:
starbugs fly-thru cafe, by kathy kennedy-dennis (houston, tx)
this one was long and lean:
carrot farm, by carol morrissey (double oak, tx)
the next quilt was INCREDIBLE! i loved the multiple perspective points along the split rail and field rows:
everyday barns & family farms, by karen hanken (medford, or)
you can’t really tell from the photos, but the multiple angles of the barn vignettes made the entire piece look like siding on an old barn. here’s a detail:
detail of everyday barns & family farms, by karen hanken
i fell in love with this one:
keeping watch over carlson ranch, by david taylor (steamboat springs, co)
the artist used rust-dyed fabrics to realistically depict the owl’s feathers. it.was.STUNNING. here are some details:
detail of feather applique, keeping watch over carlson ranch, by david taylor
detail of quilting, keeping watch over carlson ranch, by david taylor
the following whole-cloth quilt won the superior threads master award for thread artistry ($5000):
protection, by hollis chatelain (hillsborough, nc)
thread detail, protection, by hollis chatelain
yes, the ENTIRE image is made with thread…!
thread detail, protection, by hollis chatelain
the following quilt won the traditional pieced category award ($1000):
relationship, by kayoko hata (yokohama, kanagawa pref, japan)
i really liked its color palette:
detail, relationship, by kayoko hata
this quilt won honorable mention in the traditional applique category:
my challenge, by vicki jenkin (horsham, victoria, australia). based on magical medallion pattern by karen kay buckley.
every good quilt garden needs a classical reference or two:
medea escaping, by marilyn belford (chenango forks, ny)
and a way to mark time:
zodiac, by martha brown (pickering, ontario, canada)
zodiac was pretty amazing. the image above was at the center and was surrounded by the artist’s interpretation of the astrological signs. here’s a detail of leo:
detail of leo, in zodiac, by martha brown
and aries:
detail of aries, in zodiac, by martha brown
the show’s youngest white-glove curator (or so her mom told us) saw us looking at the quilt, and showed us its inspiration, which was stitched on the back of the quilt:
embroidered zodiac, made when the artist was a teenager (martha brown)
this next quilt was absolutely STUNNING:
african adventure, by janneke de vries-bodzinga (kollumekzwaag, friesland, netherlands)
great color gradations throughout, accentuated by tone-on-tone quilting:
leaf detail, african adventure, by janneke de vries-bodzinga
and the bubbles even looked like water:
bubble detail, african adventure, janneke de vries-bodzinga
this quilt won the mixed-technique category in the future of quilting award ($1000):
midnight in the garden, by paula byrd (spring, tx)
this one was a pretty view:
a tree's nature, by lucia chan (forest hills, ny)
a moon garden:
she came by the light of the moon, by marlene shea (wethersfield, ct)
this quilt won first place in the minature quilt category:
mission: impossible 2, by kumiko frydl (houston, tx)
just look at the size comparison between the quilt and the blue ribbon! its a teeny tiny 128 point mariner’s compass…! proof nothing’s impossible for kumiko:
detail, mission: impossible 2, by kumiko frydl
this quilt won honorable mention in the art-painted surface category:
moon garden, by judy coates-perez (chicago, il)
the colors and lines on this quilt were quite nice:
winter to spring, by kathy york (austin, tx)
i REALLY liked this one:
surfing school-winter, by harumi iida (kamakura, japan)
and last, but certainly not least, we pass through the fabric forest:
fabric forest, an installation by the grobenzeller quiltgruppe of germany
there were many trees of fabric suspended from the ceiling. you could walk around them to observe how different artists interpreted their favorite trees. the aspen was my favorite:
detail of aspen, by vassen heidrun (unterhaching, germany), member of the grobenzeller quiltgruppe
walking through the quilted trees...
it was quite an inspiration, walking by all those quilts. if you have any interest in design, regardless of your choice of media, i highly recommend making a trek to this show. it will surely inspire you too.
if you want more information, or to see entire images of the winning quilts, click here.
it’s someone’s very special (60th) birthday today… and mr. grwhryrpltd went out of his way for this one. a trip to mexico for the gifts, a large hand made shipping container to get it to the final destination, and two flights later we had one heck of a surprised birthday girl:
the bewitching pinata is strung while the lucha libre mask is donned
she strikes...
and strikes again... (arm down)
a change of implements was eventually needed, but the pinata is finally down!
a sweet gathering...
with tasty treats for you...
you deserve it, happy birthday jan! the weekend went too fast, but the memories will last and last…
my mom and i recently got back from the international quilt festival in houston. we had a great time…! lots of quilt oogling, vendor perusing and mixed-media class taking. while i sort through which of the 300+ photographs i took of the quilts to show you , here are images of the atc’s i traded for:
atc trades (front)
top row (l to r): pokey bolton, founder and editor-in-chief of quilting arts magazine, lisa mallette of studio rose, pat schultz (no web presence that i could find). bottom row (l to r): ana buzzalino of patches & paint, adena joseph of sew4real, maddy sibley (no web). here’s an image of the backs:
atc trades (back)
i’m very pleased with my “trades” as each one spoke to me… other than maddy, who i was able to meet and exchange cards with personally, i have no idea who grabbed the other ones i stuck on the wall… maybe they will contact me, maybe they won’t – it’s all part of the fun.
stay tuned for future posts on the quilts featured at festival, and to see what mom and i produced in our mixed-media class…
i’m actually early for this month’s bloom day, hosted, as always, by carol at may dreams gardens. i have a beautiful bloom to share with you… i missed it the last time they opened in our garden here, but i was fortunate to spot one unfurling today:
another jaded chrysalis, this time above our front door
emergence
a hard landing (the chrysalis above is from the spring monarch hatching)
Asclepia's rest
i’m not so sure this was the best day for the monarch to come out of hiding. the clouds and intermittent rain prevented the monarch’s wings from absorbing the heat of the sun’s rays. i thought i’d be helpful and bring some open milkweed flowers for it to rest on (Asclepia is a primary food source for monarchs), but its proboscis seemed to be sensing the shape of things rather than searching for nectar. when another major storm front moved through, i gently coaxed the butterfly from the concrete and onto the branch of a potted plant (Eupatorium) i have yet to put in the ground. i hope the leafy porch shelter is amenable. as of writing this post, the monarch is still there. i was able to capture a few videos of the unfurling, but i’ll wait a while longer before posting them; hopefully she’ll fully bloom by then.
happy bloom day.
