Serenity in the Garden

Foamflowers / Hay Scented Fern - Johnsen Landscapes & Pools   Sustainable Landscape Design - Tips on Creating Beautiful Outdoor Spaces for a Healthy Biosphere     A dry stream gardens in the making My Powerpoint talk on Sustainable Landscape design is very informative - if you are interested please contact me! I call on my decades of experience in dealing with tough site situations in a sensitive manner...Lots of great ideas you can use!   Sourwood (Oxydendron) I have expanded that somewhat to address Sustainable Landscape Design which would touch upon the various aspects of designing with our ecosystem in mind.   . Soft paving Some of the points covered: Creative ideas to minimize surface water runoff Rain gardens and plants Alternatives to hard surface paving Actual projects and layout ideas - before and after photos Discussions of the best native plan...

Happy New Year - 2011! So why did Oprah Winfrey choose to start her OWN channel today? ....        1-1-11... She's no fool ...Why not use the power of number one to ensure success? Steve Jurvetson Photo - Flikr Ball 2006 And then there is the double one or 11. In numerology circles, the double-digit number, 11, is called a Master number. Symbolically, the number 11 also is associated with the psychic and mystics. ______________________________________________________ And do you see 11:11 wherever you go? For many years the numbers 11:11 has been appearing to people all over the world. Often appearing on digital clocks, it has a powerful effect on the people seeing it.. It is a trigger of remembrance.   One person wrote: "I started seeing 11:11 on clocks, receipts, bank clocks, EVERYWHERE about 7 years ago. Here is what I've learned since then. 11:11 is a wake-up call..." And today I saw 11:11 on 1-1-11....INTENSE. So...

The British have always been the leaders in Landscape Design.....Since 1972, The British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI)  has represented UK's landscaping sector. Their membership comprises interior and exterior landscapers and designers, grounds maintenance contractors, and companies supplying industry-related products and services. And they all have one thing in common: a commitment to delivering professional excellence by continually raising standards across the industry. These photos are a testament to that. They show some wonderful photos on the website BALI (click here) and I had to share some with you.  If you live in UK and are in the business I guess you already know about BALI....this 'eye candy' is for the rest of us. Very Inspiring, yes?

How quaint! a calendar on paper...with little boxes denoting days!  You might think that calendars are passe due to all of our cell phone and computer schedulers....but the Gardener's calendar still lives on.   I looked at some calendars that go beyond the cottage gardens and beautiful flowers variety (although these are all wonderful) ....and I found a few that might be of interest to you. The 2011 University of Massachusetts Garden Calendar is titled,   'Plants that Inspire' ( click on title for info) It showcases a collection of plant images with a brief description of each plant photo. Daily gardening tips provide information on garden pests and management strategies as well as “how-to and when” tips such as dates to plant peas, renovate lawns, prune and fertilize roses and conserve water in the landscape and many more. A great and informative calendar. You might prefer the Trees calendar from National Geographic. Long and narrow,...

PEACE  ON  EARTH and love to all __________________________________________________

"How hard to realize that every camp of men or beast has its glorious starry firmament for a roof. In such places, standing alone on the mountaintop, it is easy to realize that whatever special nests we make -- leaves and moss like the marmots and the birds, or tents or piled stone --  we all dwell in a house of one room -- the world with the firmament for its roof -- are all sailing the celestial spaces without leaving any track." ~  John Muir John Muir was born in Scotland in 1838 and came to the backwoods of Wisconsin when he was 11.  As a teenager, he had no time for school or formal study. He worked with his father taming nature, clearing the forest, plowing with a team of oxen and other arduous tasks. Yet he so desired knowledge that he would rise at one in the morning to read. He wrote, “I had gained five hours, almost half a day! ‘Five hours to myself!’ ‘Five huge, solid hours!’ I can hardly think of any other event of my life, any discover...

Taken by Richard Harris      Dallas, Texas          Dec. 21, 2010