of momiji

osakazuki leaves out. who would have thought that it would be this splendid.  everything points out that this is going to be a good year for plants

golden dreams doesn't look bad.

and a promise of a forest to be.

neki desu

 

a field day in the rain

the plants ordered from the french nursery arrived. here are the lemongrass and the weeping plum tree.

my bestie aka gemini guided me through the steps to help the plants overcome the travel shock.these people are extremely knowledgeable and the plants got home with just the normal mishaps for being packed with no light for 4 days.however no broken branches or other ugly things.

in the background  there is a osakazuki momiji leaves coming out.looking forward to fall when it turns fiery red.

golden dreams in progress.i am building a nice momiji collection  

the one who started it all katsura momiji.it moved with me from barcelona to the surprise of the movers.

ma'am where are you going with that plant? to oviedo said i. 

the climate here has been benevolent with it, it doesn't fry in the summer as it did in barcelona and the cool nights give it a rest. never looked better.

on the right behind it there's a bloodgood. have always kept away from it because it's quite vulgar, but could not resist the price.

and now the babies. all seeds gathered and wintered in the fridge are coming out.want to plant a mini-forest.

neki desu

 

now that i found the pots

those dummy momiji seeds better sprout. drying them in a sunny spot. then they need to winter for three months in the fridge .after that they come out and then they're planted. and they frizzle like last year's.

⋋"⋌      i had picked them from the garden in nijo castle in kyoto and  had a soft spot in my heart for them. let's see  how it goes i have tons of them from momijis from the park here.

neki desu

 

coming up

my golden dreams momiji which has spent all year being red. not that i'm complaining though.

the one next to it is a katsura which will turn red soon. this year it didn't do well wonder why.

my latest obsession is trying to grow momiji from seed, after the ones i brought back from japan bombed out. been scouting for botanical varieties and gathering seed pods.think it's too early and they are still green, but will persevere until the optimal gathering  time comes.

now that we've decided to stay in this apartment there's going to be some more gardening.

neki desu 

 

volitional

so far.

have a good weekend. watch out it's friday the 13th.

neki desu 

 

sourcing from the stash

 for a weave. silk dyed in walnut and i believe chesnut water.the blues were a gift from a dear friend.

think i'll also use the akane dyed silk.plan is something simple to highlight the yarn colors.

have to decide on the structure but it needs to be simple, notice the operative word again, as it will be on the table loom. the dobby is still with the dead warp on bcse gutless me can't bring herself to cut it, trash it and liberate the loom.

the last hellebores.they were white but this year they came out pink.not complaining.

it's a holiday here so happy may day to all!

neki desu

 

coming up

my momiji katsura . it's an all season because it is splendid in spring, summer and autumn. when we moved up north i hauled it all the way from barcelona. such is love. 

neki desu

 

pot luck

this baby was a self sowing hellebore which surprised me after xmas. let's see what comes out of it as seed propagation plants can be quirky.

still weather wondering, one day cold another springy temps.

the results are worrisome, clematis are coming out,

the camellia is full of blooms,

but they are not opening.

the jasmine has more flowers than in the summer, and it's not the season for that. frost will come and all will suffer. 

 and the layout of this post is sucky, but frankly i'm taking a rest from html.  wysiwyg literally and figuratively.

neki desu

 

the fogs and first hellebore

was missing those lovely foggy days  bcse of these abnormal temps.

first hellebore is out. this is not surprising as they bloom in winter.

neki desu

 

food pots

lettuce already planted

 toms as well

started the eggplant seeds and this week i'm getting  a cucumber plant and more dirt.

coriander is kicking , mixed salad  and radishes already planted . fewer things in life are more satisfying than growing your own food

neki desu 

 

the gift of spring one more year

came back  from the trip to a gorgeous crop of hellebores this year.although some which were supposed to be white came back plum colored there are plenty of blooms this year.

the momijis are pretty glorious too.

neki desu

 

while

the rest of the country's frying we hare here coolly enjoying 25ºc. somewhat high for the north ,but totally palatable.

this year's crop : eggplants and lettuce 

on a bed of pulverized egg shells.

last year i lost all the lettuce to slugs

(>人<)

 won't happen again.

toms too and i have seedlings of yellow cherry toms. jalapeños have overwintered inside , still cold nights to bring them out.

bad news is that i lost my beloved dogwood.  

neki desu

 

spring light

affects colors and moods.testing color combinations for future projects. these are inktense watercolor pencils from derwent and also watercolor  pastels from caran d'ache. under the influence of my watercolor artist friend   ( ¨¨ ω¨¨ )    

regardless of the weird winter and how the plants  have reacted the clems are doing very well this year.

dogwoods put out all the leaves and little or no flowers, prunus the same.

all cheerful colors and beautiful flowers to send off my friend susana.

my friend and role model,sad not to be able to talk to her again. happy because she was in my life.

neki desu 

 

gardening relief

pretty pelargonium plant. last year i thought it was going so i cut it and replanted . it worked. next on the left is a newly bought andalusian jasmine (jasminus oficinalis) which is the one with the heavenly scent.hard to find now that the  asiatic(trachelospelmum) variety has inundated the garden centers.

good ol' lidl is a not fail.

 heucheras are  glorious this year, so are the hostas . it has been a cool  rainy spring so looking forward to lovely colors in the fall

neki desu

 

nature as a healer

my momijis.the bigger one was hauled from barcelona and it has never been nicer.

 lettuce and chives in bloom.

lilies of the valley, three sprigs this year

finally been able to enjoy clematis and hostas without getting fried.

japanese painted ferns becoming a forest.

the bad news is that i can't seem to be in the studio.（´＿｀） and my internet time has been drastically reduced.

neki desu