Autumn Notebook

Both Ruby and Winston enjoyed hanging out near the horses:

And Rosella tried to touch noses with Remy, though the electric fence prevented it:

The very last flowers which went to church. It was communion Sunday and all three vases were placed on a small table with a white cloth underneath. The vase on the left held pink Morden Blush roses. The vase on the right held neon red Emily Carr roses. The vase in the center held yellow Heliopsis, red Yarrow, magenta Rugosa roses and Peony leaves which were turning red:

The trees bordering my north field began to show some gorgeous color:

And I purchased a lifting harness for Seamus. He hasn't needed it much yet, but I know he has periods of lameness when it will be helpful for both him and for me:

My sister brought a new toy for the cats, and both Sammy and Daisy like it very much:

Caspar, Clover and Bugsy like to sleep together on the big, green floor pillow:

Blue claims the morning hay and won't let Remy have any, although he softens once his belly is full:

Remy likes to sneak a bite of vegetation from beneath the bottom electric fence wire:

The Box Elder tree finally began dropping seeds, so I've had to spend much time picking them up twice each day. There is still too much green grass in the pasture for me to let the horses out:

Blue and Remy, my mischievous boys:

I finally got a buyer for Winston, so the next morning I was able to trap him inside the barn. He bawled for his mother and his herd, but was not as upset as previous calves. The buyer also wants to buy Ruby when she's old enough:

A Peaceful Time Of Year

Our temperatures have been gradually getting cooler and we've had more rain. The Cliff Swallows and Redwing Blackbirds have disappeared, the Starlings are flocking and the Goldfinches suddenly seem to be everywhere. Blue and Remy continue to spend their days in the corral. I dare not let them out until almost all the green grass is gone lest they get laminitis (founder) again:

But they seem content, and all the extra handling they've gotten has them behaving beautifully:

The cattle are fat and contented, though the flies are a persistent problem:

Little Ruby is growing rapidly but Scarlett, her mom, is still swollen with more milk than the little one can drink. That won't last, though, as Ruby grows and wants more milk:

I planted Armenian Basket Flower seeds this spring but none came up. I waited a long time for them, then bought some half price Red Hot Poker roots to replace them. The four Red Hot Pokers came up, although I worried that they weren't hardy enough to endure our winters. Then one day I said, "Wait a minute - those aren't Red Hot Poker leaves." I looked online and discovered they were Armenian Basket Flower (AKA Giant Yellow Knapweed) leaves after all. Four of them were growing and one now seems to be sending up a flower stalk:

Some neighbors came to collect all my windfall apples (that 55 gallon drum was almost full, as were a number of pails and coolers). They will feed them to their pigs:

Flowers are almost done for the year, but I managed to put together three vases full to bring to church on Sunday. This one included mini-sunflowers, pink Rose Mallows and Tree Hydrangeas:

All sunflowers, but various colors. Someone from church had a death in the family the previous night, so these flowers went to him after the service:

Peony leaves (turning autumn red), various colors of Yarrow, blue Delphinium and Rugosa roses:

These baby fantail pigeons were not siblings, but they had found each other, established a friendship and slept together in a nest. I found it heart warming:

The flock is now so large that I will have to sell some as soon as the babies are all on their own:

A Season Of Great Beauty

The cherry tree is producing fruit nicely, but I have been here long enough to now realize the birds will probably eat them all long before they ripen:

The little climbing rose, called Darlow's Enigma, is living beneath the former farm sign framework but certainly hasn't grown much:

The other five new roses have more sun in their spot near the county road, and they seem to be doing better:

The Mock Orange bush never reached its full potential this year, but I'm not complaining - it was still beautiful:

The Ninebark bush truly outdid itself this year:

I was mowing the lawn on the north side of the house when I noticed this lovely scene and stopped to take a photo of it:

Alas, that's when I noticed that the Prairie Rose flowering crab tree has got some kind of disease again this year. It has almost no leaves left:

My crowded little Iris and Lily garden is so full of plants that it's a wonder any of them can live. One Oriental Poppy is blooming this year and the Blue Sea Holly is going gangbusters:

The old fashioned rose I started with a shoot from a bigger rose began to bloom nicely:

And the white Peonies were spectacular:

There was also one red single Peony which I planted two years ago:

I often take pictures of nice dawn skies, but this one may top them all. I was putting the little horses out in their corral just after 5:00 AM when I saw this sky:

Fabulous Flowers

I cut back the Rugosa roses almost to the ground this spring, and my efforts began to be rewarded with this, the first Rugosa blossom of the year:

The Ninebark buds began to open:

And the giant Iris, which I planted two years ago, blossomed. This was a bi-colored flower, and the small, yellow one behind it is the old fashioned type which came with the farm:

A giant purple Iris, so heavy the stem fell over:

And a giant pink Iris:

And my old fashioned white Peonies started blooming abundantly:

They are having their best year ever:

 The old fashioned rose which I rescued got cut down to the ground this spring and hasn't bloomed yet this year, but its offspring, started by putting a cutting in the ground with a bottle over it, is blooming nicely:

A close-up:

One of the two Morden roses I planted last year is already putting on a show. This is the Morden Blush variety. The other variety is budding, so should bloom soon:

The Mock Orange bush burst into bloom:

I collected some of the flowers in a vase and took them to church. Alas, I learned that Oriental Poppies wilt quickly when cut. Besides the Poppy, I included Peonies, three varieties of Iris, Mock Orange and Ninebark:

Dreams Of Springtime - Part 2

Yesterday I presented my excessive plans for planting seeds this spring, but I've also got roots and plants to put in the ground when it finally warms up. I have six Asiatic Lilies, mixed colors:

Four Day Lilies, Always Afternoon variety:

Four Day Lilies, Daring Dilemma variety:

Four Day Lilies, Eleanor Apps variety:

Six Day Lilies, Frosted Vintage Ruffles variety:

Six Delphiniums, mixed colors:

Four Echinacea, Purpurea variety:

Two Peonies, Coral Sunset variety:

Hardy rose, Carefree Delight:

Super hardy rose, Morden Snowbeauty:

Hardy rose, Watercolors Home Run:

Six Yarrow, mixed colors: