Bordered Patch, Chlosyne lacinia, butterfly on Cosmos 'Cupcake White.' Good September afternoon! Hope all is well in your little world especially if you're in the path of Hurricane Florence or one of her ilk. Here, at Little Cedar Garden, everything is refreshed from the rain, but a little tired too. There are great swathes of green, but very few blooms. We do have plenty of wonderful insects especially butterflies and spiders. The butterflies emerge from their chrysalides, and the spiders try to eat them as the butterflies flit from flower to flower. Sometimes, the spiders are lucky, and other times, the butterflies are. Releasing a Monarch butterfly in my garden. It didn't seem to want to go. Thanks to Father Novak for taking such a lovely photo! I smile whenever I see it. Personally, I root for the butterflies even though I understand spiders need to eat too. It's just...

A large pot makes a focal point at Cow Close Cottage. Finally! I've found time to post again about our Yorkshire garden trip. My first post was about Newby Hall. You may get really tired of these UK posts, but as Robert Browning wrote:  "Oh, to be in England now that April's there," or perhaps, in this case, June. Antique copper pot used as a very large container. The owners were thrilled to get one that was so large. Unfortunately, I can't remember what was once boiled in it. Sheep's wool? Sorghum? I don't know. I hope you don't mind me sharing our travels because travel is one of the things I truly live for. Sedum 'Matrona,' Salvia nemorosa 'Wesuwe', and tall campanula at Cow Close Cottage. When not traveling, I'm planning my next trip. Last week, I spoke on a panel with two other bloggers, Erin Schanen from The Impatient Gardener...

Putting the frame back into the hive. My first season of beekeeping. Several people have asked about my bees and my first season of beekeeping so I thought I would share some photos my daughter, Claire, took of a hive inspection yesterday. When I'm working alone, I don't have enough hands to take photos very easily, and I haven't yet created a setup like some beekeepers to take video. Maybe I will someday, but now, I'm doing good to hold the frames, smoke the hive and watch out for the small insects. They don't always take kindly to being disturbed. Lighting my smoker. Beekeeping has its own language. The first thing I had to learn was all the different beekeeping terminology. Just like gardening, beekeeping has its own language. I may mention one or more of these terms throughout this post so I want to explain them as best I can. Hives are...

Newby Hall's long herbaceous borders, replanted by Lucinda Compton. The borders were the original gardens at the house. One of my favorite gardens we visited on our Yorkshire Garden Trip was Newby Hall. Newby Hall was built for William Weddell, but the first home wasn't like the stately one now standing. The main part of the current house was designed by Sir Christopher Wren for Sir Edward Blackett. Sir Blackett must have had some pull to get Wren who also designed St. Paul's Cathedral and many other buildings after the Great Fire of London in 1666. Newby Hall's Proud History. The Weddell family eventually acquired the land and the home and set about making it theirs. They made improvements and employed architects to enlarge the house. If you loved the television show, Downton Abbey, as I did, you'll be happy to know that a real Lord Grantham lived in the home at one...