Category: Gardening in SC

The New Camellias

Several of you have asked about the new plants.

My Georgia grandmother had several big camellia shrubs in her garden–one was a gorgeous red. Camellias bloom in the fall and over the winter here in South Carolina. I remember times when my Air Force dad needed to fly to keep his flight hours current, and he’d fly to Warner Robbins AF Base, which is near my mother’s Georgia home place. He’d come home with boxes into which my grandparents had placed local food treasures (like lovely smoked bacon) and, if blooming, an array of the red camellias would be nestled into the top of the box. When we were in Omaha, Nebraska, in the middle of winter, the sight of these beautiful flowers was a sight to behold.

I remember, too, once in Shreveport, Louisiana, at Barksdale AF Base, my mother putting one of these red camellias into her curly hair just before they left for a formal party.

The camellia Bryan and Corinne gifted me with is a fragrant camellia (kind of rare) that will get tall and wide and is called “High Fragrance.” She’s going to go to the shade side of the house that gets morning sun.

Camellia High Fragrance

I added a deep pink/red camellia that will get wide and not so tall: Shi Shi Gashira (Red).

Shishi Gashira Camellia

I planted Shi Shi at the front corner of the house, and it will fill this space over time. (I first moved the white azalea that was here to the other side of the house, where it joined the ones that were moved from the front bed.) Shi Shi is small now, but it will…grow. Here it will get morning sun and afternoon filtered sun and shade.

Here’s the Canna Lily–which is a really unusual color. Most Cannas are yellow or a bright orange or red. It, too, will fill this spot over time.

The blossoms are unusual–smaller and more tropical looking. I fell in love with it, and it jumped into my flower cart.

So, there you have the new plants.

And, I can’t leave without showing you, again, the roses, the roses, which are real show stoppers.

Have a great day!

Camellias, Koi, and Donkeys

Bryan and Corinne gifted me with a camellia for my birthday this year, and yesterday Corinne and two granddaughters took me to buy it at a local nursery not far from me: Hidden Ponds Nursery in Awendaw.

We found a beautiful red camellia, and another one (pink) jumped into my cart, along with a pink canna lily.

There ARE hidden ponds on this property. And I so enjoyed seeing the koi begging for food.

There is also a large collection of other animals–a beautiful black duck roaming free, hens in a very cute coop, rabbits, goats, a BIG rooster in a separate pen, and…DONKEYS.

At the donkey pen, a very kind woman had come to visit with the two donkeys (a mother about 8 years old and her daughter)–which is something this very kind person said she does frequently–and she passed us carrots, apple slices, and peppermint treats made for horses–all of which the donkeys happily took from our hands.

This woman also had a beautiful dog–half Springer Spaniel and half poodle–who was enjoying chasing a ball people threw for him. But, sadly, I didn’t get a picture.

Anyway, in a few minutes I’m putting on old clothes and going out to plant the canna lily. Bryan will come sometime in coming days to help me with the camellias as they are large for me to plant.

Hmmm…

Maybe I will move an azalea that is not thriving to where the rest of those azaleas were moved–and I will put the pink camellia in that spot. It gets morning sun and afternoon shade. Perfect!

Wisteria In The Woods

Wisteria is so beautiful in the spring. It can and does escape confinement in formal plantings (where it makes a nice shrub or vine on some part of a house or trellis)–and when it does escape, it decorates the woods in the spring.

Here it is along the walk I take every day. This particular vine is just one among three or four that are running through the woods and are blooming now.

Here’s more of the wisteria in the woods.

There are at least three types of vines here that can get loose in the woods that I know about. One is the Yellow Jasmine, which is the South Carolina state flower. While beautiful and so cheerful in the spring, every part of this vine is poisonous and can cause skin irritation if touched.

Here’s some information on Carolina Jasmine from Clemson University.

Carolina Jessamine

The other vine is Kudzu, which in my mind is like “the little shop of horrors” plants. It can take over whole woods and totally cover whole swaths of trees.

Here’s some information and pictures on Kudzu–from an article entitled “Kudzu: The Invasive Vine that Ate the South.”

https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/united-states/indiana/stories-in-indiana/kudzu-invasive-species

Oh my!

Ruby Loropetalum

This shrub/small tree is new to me. On my walk, it lines the highway along both sides for long stretches. Along highway 17, it is trimmed back to the size of trimmed boxwoods–forming neat rectangles that line the sides of the highway and glow pink. In my neighborhood, it is a common planting beside and in front of the houses.

I finally slowed down to see what it was–deciding it was not an azalea form.

The feathery blooms are different–and pretty.

See?

As near as I can tell, this plant blooms for rather a long time.

Wikipedia says this plant is in the witch hazel family.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loropetalum

Here’s a quote from an online nursery:

“The Ruby Loropetalum is a great shrub for screening and adding rich, red color to the landscape. If you’re looking for a shrub that’s hard to kill, this one’s for you! The Ruby Loropetalum is the most popular Loropetalum! This Ruby Loropetalum produces bright, pink flowers in the spring and pushes out new growth. As the new growth hardens off, it turns from red to ruby. Loropetalums are evergreen! They hold their leaves throughout the winter months still adding ruby color to your otherwise barren landscape. The Ruby prefers full sun. The more sun it gets, the more color you will have.

This loropetalum will reach 6 feet tall and about 6 feet wide. In the landscape, this Loropetalum is great for hedges, natural areas, small privacy screenings, and berm plantings. They break up all the green and function well. Use this loropetalum in the back of the landscape. They get large in size, so close to your house is not a good idea. We suggest planting out in the yard or in natural area where they can grow.”

This plant can handle full or partial sun. It attracts birds, bees, and butterflies. It is drought tolerant when established. And the flowers are FRAGRANT.

What’s not to like?

The redbuds have been blooming for some weeks now:

And the azaleas are in full bloom. I’ll have to drive some neighborhoods to get some pictures. Or, visit one of the plantation gardens where azaleas will be featured.

Camellias and Glue

Good morning!

It is a rainy Saturday morning, and today I will finish the final top of my series of 3 tops made with the 1920-30’s reproduction fabrics. So, pics tomorrow most likely.

AND, the new and final block, the 6th, of my online class with Tara Faughnan dropped yesterday. It’s called “Wheels,” and I can’t wait to try to make it. My improv project with the other blocks on the design wall could use some round blocks. I have so enjoyed this class. Friend Betsy in Vermont is already at her sewing machine this morning as she sets out to start this new block.

Camellias bloom in South Carolina in the winter months. Son Bryan and DIL Corinne have the prettiest white one in the front of their house, and this year it is loaded with blooms. It is backed by a pink one that is also blooming this year, but there wasn’t an open bloom when I took this picture.

These plants are so pretty with their glossy green leaves.

I have one spot on the shady side of my house. I could put a camellia plant there. Hmmmm…

I listen to books upstairs when I sew. And my little iPod that fits into my Bose speaker started to come apart at the seams. The humidity? I don’t know. Anyway, I thought it worth a try to try to glue it, so off to Home Depot I went and came home with a Gorilla glue gel that would work with plastics.

With paper towels and plastic gloves, I glued around the edges and clamped them shut. YEAH!! It did work and the iPod will keep going for a while now.

With that success I thought to try to glue the top of my cheap sunglasses back to the frame. Clamps wouldn’t work, so I tried a rubber band.

Yep. That worked too. Only somehow I got glue on the lens–probably from the gloves–those baggy thin clear ones painters use–and when I cut the rubber bands off I scratched the lens. Ugh!

Still, the glue did work fine. The glasses were fixed except for the glue and the scratch.

New glasses from the drug store are now back in the car. I do need sunglasses here with the rich sunlight and my cataract/lens eyes.

Now, on to that quilt top upstairs. Then I have to quilt all 3 of them on the longarm and sew down the binding. The hand quilting project on “Happy” is coming along. That will take some time though.

Bits and Pieces, Early December 2023

Hello Everyone!

I’ve been busy and have neglected the blog. For one thing I’ve been walking almost every day for the past two weeks: 2 miles is becoming easy now. And I’m sleeping so, so well.

Anyway, here’s a bit of a long post for you.

In anticipation of walking the winter beach and traipsing through tidal pools, I got a pair of navy blue Bog Boots–on sale!! And they fit beautifully. When I saw the constellation theme, I knew this pair was for me.

The berries on the little Chinese Holly plants that the builder’s landscape sub planted have turned red. Aren’t they beautiful? And all are healthy. Now I really, really need to trim back the red rose plants, which are still blooming.

“Sprinkles” is off the longarm–and the quilting looks awesome. It is now bound and ready for the last hand sewing of the binding.

Look at the adorable backing for “Sprinkles”! It is a Ruby Star Society print–and I bound with it as well.

Traverse is also bound, and I’m hand sewing down the binding now. Oh my heavens, that hand quilting was a LONG project, however delightful.

So, I now have FOUR quilts with binding ready to be sewn by hand. I dragged out my three thread spools–each of which holds 10 threaded needles. Two of these were gifts to me years ago. The only issue is that these needle eyes are tiny, tiny, tiny–too tiny for any threader unit I’ve ever tried. I resorted to magnifying lenses and a strong light. After a while, I got faster, but…

I now have two sides of Traverse done–and have ordered some color catcher cloths for when I wash it–just to be sure. I’ve used up most of the 30 threaded needles now.

I couldn’t stop making the Serpentine blocks from Tara Faughnan’s online class–and I do love this scrappy one. The small quilt I made from these blocks is ready to go on the longarm. I’m still wondering about being able to make an improv quilt with these small fun, playful projects. The third month is a block Tara calls “Lines.” You can see it on her Instagram page.

I have seven colors of these 1920/30 reproduction fabrics–and I’ll make the red one today–the one below is pink. I’m loving the secondary patterns that will come along with this project.

So, this brings you pretty much up-to-date with me.

I’m good, and hope you all are as well.

Late October 2023

The Holly Berries along the roadside where I often walk are so beautiful now. I hope mine in the front of my home turn this very pretty red.

Some days are cool enough now that dinner on the porch is best when sitting in a sunny spot and wearing a sweater. But not all days; the past two days have seen me finding a pair of shorts and a short-sleeve t-shirt–at least in the middle of the day.

The air fryer does a great job with fish filet coated lightly with a gluten-free panko and sweet peppers. The asparagus got cooked in the microwave. The berries are a treat.

Last week a host of repair men were in and out of the house–at the 11-month occupation “clean up” of things needing fixing. I roasted a chicken last Monday, so had some meat for a few days. The cauliflower and baby bok choy was pan sautéed in a little duck fat–with herbs and garlic, of course.

I decided to go back and add a middle line of quilting to the solid bar strips in Traverse–and I’m so glad I did. They just needed…more. I am nearing the end of this hand-quilting project, but have some wide bars to do before I can say “done.” My stitches, front and back, are so much more steady and reliable now.

Yesterday I had dinner with Bryan, Corinne, and the girls–and Corinne’s mother (Cheryl) who is here for a few days. I have not seen her in over 10 years, so it is delightful to see her again. Cheryl is a very special person.

Two granddaughters went with me for a quick walk on the beach late yesterday afternoon–and they went swimming–though the water is colder now. You can just see their heads out among the waves. They warmed up in the tidal pools left up on the beach.

We used to call these pools “buffalo holes,” and I have idea why–it came from my Georgia mother way back in the day.

I’ve almost finished a quilt top made with 1 1/2-inch squares I cut from the Cotton+Steel/Ruby Star Society fabrics. When I had leftover scraps I cut them into useable pieces–based on quilter Bonnie Hunter’s scrap system. I should have a picture to share in a few days.

More Bowl Dinners: Lamb Chops and Meatloaf

*I wrote this post last week, and this week has been so busy. I’m at the 11-month occupation of my new home, and the builder sends in various subs to fix things that got missed in the first inspection. Sometimes you don’t see things at first, but you do after living in a new home for almost a year. And there are things that range from the simple to the more problematic that need fixing or adjusting.

Grilled lamb chops, baby bok chop with onion and sweet peppers cooked in the air fryer, and rice I froze and defrosted.

Leftovers!

Meatloaf, okra with butter, and roasted butternut squash with fresh garlic and rosemary dressed with olive oil.

Here’s the herb garden these days. The tall plat on the right is lavender, and there is some chive between the sage and the lavender. The oregano is going wild, so I trimmed it back and am drying those stems in the kitchen. When dried, I’ll strip off the stems and save the leaves for winter use.

So…

That butternut squash…

Normally roasted it would have a dense candied sweetness to combine with the garlic, rosemary, and olive oil. I have always looked forward to this dish in the fall.

But this squash was absolutely tasteless. Likely it was picked green and had not had time yet to develop its sugars. It’s hard to tell before one cuts into one of these winter squashes. Maybe if I had held it longer it would have “ripened.” This squash is a good keeper. But I’ll pay more attention next time. An over-ripe one is too mushy. So, I guess it is a bit of a crap shoot.

Beggars’ Lice

Last Sunday we gathered at Mike and Tami’s to celebrate Debbie’s birthday (Tami’s mother). Mike and Tami had been hard at work with various garden projects, which resulted in this kind of “beggar’s lice” sticking to their pants. And, to the dogs, which took some days to rectify once the seeds got wound up with the dogs’ hair.

“Beggar’s Lice” are seeds that a “weed” plant produces. The seeds have POWERFUL gripping power if one brushes up next to the host plant. I grew up with the name “Beggar’s Lice,” but there are other regional names for this seed. And, several plant species that produce this kind of seed.

If you google “beggar’s lice,” a page will appear with lots of pictures and links to information about his seed, like this one: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hackelia_virginiana

While Michael was organizing our dinner, we women gathered to try to get the “lice” off of the various clothing items. Tami had already spent about three hours the night before trying to get the lice off a pair of her pants. (Debbie is on the left and granddaughter Mina, on the right.). We tried the flat edge of knives, spoons, and a carrot peeler to scrape off the seeds. It was easier to get them off the jeans than the knit-type fabric in the above picture.

While we “persevered,” Mike made us a beautiful dinner. Here’s my bowl–which is missing the beautiful sliced heritage tomatoes dressed with minced herbs, avocados, and fresh mozzarella balls. Mike grilled the chicken breasts, zucchini, and sweet peppers. The grain salad is barley and contains more diced veggies. It was dressed with olive oil. (You could add an acid, like lemon juice or vinegar.) Mike’s salads are always fun: this one had radicchio included, which I love. And the hard boiled eggs are a colorful and nice inclusion.

I can say that we were “eating the rainbow” with this meal.