Monday, May 25, 2009

Welcome to Mother's Garden

It has been a busy weekend in the garden for me. I took the day off last Friday to spend working in my Mother's garden. My Mother is amazing..she is 79 years "young" and works in her yard just about everyday. But I really like to go over and help her with things in the spring and fall. Friday was the day to clean out beds and plant new flowers.
We started in the front. I cleaned out the area around her bird bath leaving the purple heart where it was, and trimming the dusty miller back.
This is a close up of what she picked out to put in front of the birdbath.
For Mother's Day I got her these hanging baskets that look really good hanging in front of this window.
This is a mixed planter we found at one of the garden centers we went to on Friday morning.
This scaveola
"Fan Flower" is one of Mother's very favorite plants. We get her one every spring, but I think the one we found this year is the prettiest she has ever had!
We always get several pentas for her front flower bed. This year she got some for the backyard too.
And..here is Mother's backyard. This long flower bed in front of the lawn has housed many plants. At one time it was the most beautiful rose garden. Now it is home to perennials. I did not do anything here-Mother takes care of this bed all by herself. I think this is her favorite, although she loves all her areas.
And now..
Mother asks for your help. Several years ago, a bird left her a gift. We have no idea what it is, but it is a very special plant as it reappears every spring. It is the most beautiful "cornflower" blue. This year she thought it was not going to come back..but not only did it come back in the original container..
..it also started growing in her perennial bed right beside the California poppies! Mother would love to know what this is. I thought it was a wild phlox, but she doesn't think so. So, what is this? I bet someone out there knows!


Mother has taught me so much about gardening through out the years. It is really nice to be able to help her now..and sometimes add a tip or two of my own!




"I'm still devoted to the garden..although an old man, I am but a young gardener."
Thomas Jefferson

18 comments:

JenningsJunk said...

Wow - you did have a busy Friday! Your mom is such a pistol ;-) Love the bird bath area, it is very very nice.

Susie said...

Sorry but I don't have a clue what that beauty is.

Your mom's garden is really pretty Linda. Wish my mom lived close so I could help her with hers.

Aunt Debbi/kurts mom said...

I don't know what it is, but I want some. Very pretty. The seeds and a little surprise should be in the mail by wednesday. Sorry it took me so long. Monkeys wanted mothering.

Cindy, MCOK said...

Linda, your mom's garden is lovely and how nice that you can work in it together! The volunteer plant is a forget-me-not ... easy to remember once you know!

Meadowview Thymes said...

jj--Mother is definetly a go-getter! :)

Susie-I just wish I had time to go help Mother more often. It is nice that she is only 20 minutes away though!

Debbi--Monkey's always come first! Sounds like Cindy from Katy knows what this is. Now if I can just find out how to collect seeds, I'll send you some! :)

Cindy---Oh my goodness! I didn't know that is what forget-me-nots look like! How can we collect seeds? This is exciting--I can't wait to let Mother know. Thanks so much!

Sandy aka Doris the Great said...

Yes, the donated plant is a Forget-me-Not. They're lovely old fashioned plants; they can take over though!

tina said...

Hi Linda, What a wonderful garden! I so adore the foundation plantings. The house looks as though it is nestled right in the garden. Kudos to your mom!! I hope my garden looks half as good when I am her age! I think the blue beauty is forget me nots. They usually self seed each year. A lovely flower indeed.

Meadowview Thymes said...

Sandy, I am so excited to let Mother know. She will be thrilled to learn that is what it is. I don't think she would mind a take-over at this point! :)

Thanks Tina--her garden is really pretty. She is starting to get frustrated as she cannot do as much as she use to, so I try and help as I can.
So glad you agreed with the other on the plant..I will call Mother and let her know! :)

Anonymous said...

I agree with some of the others, it definitely looks like a Forget-me-not to me too! Your Mother's Garden is quite lovely, and it's very nice of you to help her out with some of the tasks. :)

Nola said...

That little forget me not is beautiful! Glad you found out what it is. Your mom's garden is just beautiful, tell her I enjoyed the tour. What kind of fern is that behind the birdbath? It is so pretty and lush, it gives that area a tropical look!

Brenda Pruitt said...

I love the look of the flower pot in the bird bath. I wanted to do that in one. But Charlie Ross knocked it over chasing a squirrel. And it's all broken now.
Brenda

Meadowview Thymes said...

Thanks Racquel. Mother does almost everything by herself, but as with all of us, her age is catching up with her, so it's nice to be able to help out some.

Nola-you are so sweet! I will definetly tell Mother what you said-she will be so pleased you liked her yard. The fern is just that wood fern that grows so easily. Do you have any? I could sure give you some! :)

Brenda, I'm sending you an email with an explanation of containers in the bird bath... :)

Anonymous said...

Though I don't say it often enough, I do think it almost every day - Mother is really blessed to have you and your family close by to help her out so much! I know how much she appreciates the garden help and I know that she loves to just look at all the beautiful plants as well as take care of them.

Kimberlyn

Meadowview Thymes said...

That is sweet of you to say Kim. I just wish I had more time to do things for and with Mother. I run so short of time these days! :)

Balisha said...

Your Mother's garden is lovely. You are both so lucky to be able to work together. I was going to say forget-me-knot...I put wildflower seed in the woods and wild ones came up. They aren't quite as pretty as these.

Anonymous said...

Now why have I never grown forget-me-nots before? They are so cute and charming!

CiNdEe's GaRdEn said...

What a lovely garden! My dad will be 80 tomorrow and still works in his garden everyday too! He grows veggies but its a huge garden and he does it all on his own. Thanks for sharing your mothers garden with us!!!

Meadowview Thymes said...

Thanks Balisha! I've heard of forget-me-nots, but never seen them. I guess I thought they grew wild..and were very old flowers (which would make me love them more!) :)

msrobin-they are SO cute! I need to find out how to harvest the seeds!

You're welcome Cindee! Good for your Dad! Isn't that great that we share the love of gardening with our parents. I hope Dad shares some of his veggies with you! :)