Month: August 2013

Turkey Tracks: Gardens in the Watershed: Hobbs Farm Greenery

Turkey Tracks:  August 13, 2013

Gardens in the Watershed:  Hobbs Farm Greenery

Who knew that the largest grower of scented geraniums, or pelargoniums, is a stone throw from my house.

Hobbs Farm is a family owned business that has been in Hope, Maine, for 150 years.  The family now raises 270 varieties of geraniums, many of which have scented leaves–as in peppermint, lemon, rose, and Lady Mary.  Some repel mosquitoes.  They also grow stellar geraniums with colorful foliage, notched leaves, star-shaped flowers, cactus flowers, rosebud, gold leaf, miniatures, and dwarfs.

I was astonished at the variety of the foliage and the flowers before I reread the farm’s description.

Here’s Giovanna standing in front of amazing tomato plants in raised beds.

Hobbs 2

Here’s the VERY long greenhouse:

Hobbs 4

And here’s some pics I snapped of unusual plants and flowers:

This one’s flowers look like fairy flowers…

Hobbs

Single flower that looks like an impatiens almost:

Hobbs 7

Wow!

Hobbs 6

Look at the unusual flower form here of the orange flower.

Hobbs 5

Geraniums now have a whole new meaning for me.  It’s kind of like the problem with food, isn’t it?  We’ve settled for a few potato, tomato, bean, etc., varieties, when there are actually so many other kinds, each with different attributes.

Thanks for the education, Hobbs Farm Greenery!

Turkey Tracks: Gardens in the Watershed: The Ames Garden

Turkey Tracks:  August 12, 2013

Gardens in the Watershed:  The Ames Garden

I promised you a tour of the St. Georges River Land Trust annual garden tour and left you hanging when the kiddos came.  The second garden Giovanna McCarthy and I toured was the gardens of Eileen and Leonard Ames.

This lovely garden sits across the road from Tina Marriner’s sunflower gardens.  The gardens sit beneath tall trees and are primarily  shade gardens–but are dappled with patches of sunshine.

Eileen Ames writes that she and Leonard started the garden in 2000 and spent many hours clearing the land of damaged trees and stumps.  There are numerous whimsical and engaging garden fixtures mixed into the nooks and crannies of the garden.

Here’s a pretty fellow:

Ames 1

There were so many small, lovely moments–like finding this small stepping stone enbedded in the rock path.

Ames 2

I loved this idea of putting a solar lamp in a planter and wish I could see what it looks like at night.

Ames 3

This fellow moves in the slightest breeze–and catches your eye over and over.

Ames 4

The drive invites entry, don’t you think?

Turkey Tracks: Baby Robins

Turkey Tracks:  August 12, 2013

Baby Robins

Remember my tale and pictures of the Robins who tried to build 14 or so nests on my front porch?  And how they finally built two and started in to raise a family?

Mike got a picture of the three babies while he was here:

robin babies, July 2013

Aren’t they the sweetest little things?

I’ll take down the nest one of these days since they don’t seem to be trying to use it again.

It’s quite an elaborate next in that it is stuck together with mud and is so nicely formed.

Turkey Tracks: Back to the Blog

Turkey Tracks:  August 12, 2013

Back to the Blog

 

Hi Folks!

I’ve missed you all and hope you have missed me!

My oldest son brought the two oldest grandchildren, Bo and Kelly, to Maine on July 20th and returned to Charleston to the rest of his family.  The boys attended a sailing camp here in the mornings and “Camp Lovey” in the afternoons and evenings.

boys sailing, July 2013

While Mike was here I showed him the way to Acadia.  Here are the boys at the top of Cadillac Mountain–with its 360-degree views of the coast and land.

Kelly at Cadillac Mtn, July 2013

Here’s Kelly jumping fissures in the rocks:

Kelly, Acadia, July 2013

During Camp Lovey I had a blast with them–and I think they had fun with me.  We swam, kayaked, played games (they learned how to play Hearts with me), watched movies, and cooked a lot of good food.  We were somewhat challenged by the weather as we’ve had a really cool and rainy summer.

We had one nice kayak trip on the river–during which Kelly ran into a bank of bushes and saw a wolf snarling at him.  We determined that he’d seen either a coyote or a very large grey fox–the latter has been seen along that side of the river all summer.  Kelly learned to paddle a whole lot better after that incident.

Mike returned with Tami and the girls (Talula and Mina), and they spent a little over a week.  We went out to Monhegan Island to celebrate Great Aunt Maryann’s birthday–and to remember John’s.  But that’s a tale for another day.