Where The Garden Begins

The Shed..

"In the potting shed, our hearts, the pleasures of home, and the glories of the garden merge.

Its practical character eases our garden labors.

Its romantic nature enriches our lives.

Here is peace, and beauty, and a sense of purpose."

~Linda Joan Smith : The Potting Shed

Timeless Blue And White Treasures

Ever since setting eyes on my grandma's blue and white English Staffordshire Ware, I have been a lover of this popular dinnerware.

The majority of the pieces I own, have been painstakingly wrapped and shipped over from England, a treasure to cherish from my parents.

I add to the collection whenever a piece catches my eye, although in the past few years, the prices seem to have sky rocketed.

One of the most popular lines was manufactured by Wood and Sons a classic BLUE & WHITE pattern of English Scenery in which the central landscape designs differ from plate to plate.

The firm of Wood & Sons was founded in 1865 by Absalom Wood (a descendant of the 18th century English potter Moses Wood) as Wood, Son & Co, in Burslem, Staffordshire. Thomas Wood, his son, founded the present firm around 1910, and it remained in the Wood family until 1981, when it went into receivership and was acquired by the Yorke family. The firm finally ceased to exist in 2006.
The Woods lineage also extends back to the famous 18thC Staffordshire potters Enoch and Ralph Woods, whose names and dates are given on many Woods marks.

Home On The Range

Home, home on the range,

Where the deer and the antelope play;

Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,

And the skies are not cloudy all day.

~ Dr. Brewster Higley~ 1873

A Basket Full Of Ginger

Tea Party Jabberwocky

I had a little tea party

This afternoon at three.

'Twas very small-

Three guest in all-

Just I, myself and me.

Myself ate all the sandwiches,

While I drank up the tea;

'Twas also I who ate the pie

And passed the cake to me.

~ Jessica North Nelson

Lavender And Linen

I don't think a day goes by, without I burn a candle.

There is something so relaxing and welcoming, about the fragrance and flicker of a burning candle.

I found a wonderful candle a few days ago, in my favorite grocery store Publix. A combination of Lavender and Cedarwood, in a soy wax blend.
The scent is heavenly.

I 'spect I've had a little spending spree lately, since I also bought six beautiful, vintage-linen napkins off eBay. They arrived yesterday, all crisp and pretty, the embroidered pattern, even

lovelier than expected.

"ladies fair, I bring to you

lavender with spikes of blue;

sweeter plant was never found

growing on our english ground."

~ Caryl Battersby

Pigs

I like pigs, especially the Primitive variety.
Apparently, I'm in very good company....

"I am fond of pigs.

Dogs look up to us.

Cats look down on us.

Pigs treat us as equals. "

~ Sir Winston Churchill

Returning Visitors

Moma deer and baby returned today. The fawn is getting bigger, although still sporting it's spots until the first Winter.
Mom hides her baby in the field of tall grasses and wildflowers, and only gives us a glimpse here and there.

click to enlarge

Two of my favorite summertime wildflowers are back, the Joe-Pye Weed, and the Black-Eyed Susan.

Each year the field is brimming with yellow and purple flowers as far as the eye can see.

The Joe-Pye Weed, Eupatorium purpureum, is an amazing plant that is an herb, a wildflower, a butterfly plant and an ornamental for the flower bed.

It obtained its name after a Native American herbalist, named Joe-Pye, cured fevers using the Eupatorium plant. Though we tend to think of it as a wildflower in the U.S., it's long been an ornamental plant in England where our cottage gardens are so popular.

Black-Eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta (Asteraceae)
The Black-Eyed Susan is probably the most common of all American wildflowers. The characteristic brown, domed center is surrounded by bright yellow ray florets. The plant thrives in most soils in full sun.

A true sunshine worshiper that forgives neglect.

I always think it is a 'happy' looking little plant.

O' Winter Where Art Thou ?

Just about the same time each Summer, when the air is HOT and stagnant, the weather gauge is showing over a 100 degrees, and it's almost unbearable to enjoy the outdoors, my thoughts turn to Old Man Winter.

I'm not a lover of heat, and the older I get, the less tolerant I've become.

What can I say....I'm of English blood, Norsemen, Vikings and such, my comfort zone is a cool and rainy climate, not humid and hot.

It seems the excessive heat-wave has hit most of the country, so the best advice is to stay indoors under the comfort of air conditioning.

If you have no choice but to brave the elements, adhere to the advice of the experts; drink plenty of water, and wear a hat.

They have a cute Southern saying in these parts..........

"It's hotter than a billy goat in a pepper patch."

Nary a truer word spoken !

For The Birds

There is something about birdhouses that tug at my heart strings.
I just can't seem to say NO.
They are scattered about the porches, in the garden, in the kitchen, and generally all over.
Some of them are well-used by expectant parents returning year after year, to raise their young. Others just for decoration.


The First Sergeant is looking forward to retirement days, he has birdhouse-building plans in mind, to idle away the hours.
As 'Martha' would say....."It's a good thing."

A Victorian Charmer

Country Primitive

In The Potting Shed

Country Cottage Gourd

"Those little nimble musicians of the air,

that warble forth their curious ditties,

with which nature hath furnished them to the shame of art."

~ Izaak Walton