Field Trip~VFF!

A day out of vacation week, I took a trip to Vermont to visit George and Gail Africa at their nursery, The Vermont Flower Farm. The 2hr-drive on back country roads was a beautiful one and I couldn't contain my excitement as I came down the hill and saw the beautiful patchwork of colors. It was a cool morning so perfect for browsing and ogling. What a hard working team, the progress they've made at this new location in such a short amount of time is truly impressive! Mixed borders provide a colorful welcome as you pull in.

Every morning, Gail presents a display of what's blooming. Isn't this a great idea! No guessing on what color or form your daylily will be. This is only one of two large tables!
A whole field of daylilies...pure heaven!

Notice how each row is well labeled.

Here's Gail working hard digging up clumps from my list. I kept her busy! With so many different types of perennials available, I still concentrated on my main addiction. A total of 9 new beauties lovingly called my name.

Like the pretty pink with dark eye zone up front, Mardi Gras Parade. I had to really lean down to hear her call as she's still very young and small (Siloam in her bloodline).

Some other favorites that VFF provide.

El Desperado Niles Crane-which I mail ordered last fall and has done beautifully this season.

Always Afternoon Pandora's Box and Bela Lugosi (in background)

Silly me~I had not, for one second, given any thought to how I was going to squeeze the plants in along with kids and luggage for the ride home...OOPS!! I would've been ok leaving a kid or some dirty clothes behind...just kidding!

So, if there's some of you who still haven't given daylilies a test run in your garden, this is your year! With end of season sales going on NOW, it's good incentive to give these awesome blossoms a try. Just be sure to pick an Early, Mid and Late variety to maximize bloom time. You won't be sorry! And if you become addicts, like some of us, (God help you!), I'll even be happy to take the blame...teehee!

Please take a second to visit George's wonderful blog under my Links...the last one.

Thanks again, VFF :) See you next time George!

I'mmm Baaack!

Back from a wonderful vacation in SUNapee, NH! Oh, but I missed you all! Who knew a week away would cause such blogging withdrawal?! And I got pretty sick I tell ya! Had to take a break though~I had no choice! Internet service in the mountains was hit or miss, mostly the latter!
We lucked out with perfect weather though, for hiking and boating. When I think of New Hampshire, I think of lakes and lighthouses...

Dinner cruise anyone?

The kids had a blast!

A hazy morning here but you can just make out the lake. We ascended around 2500ft. to Lake Solitude. I would have photographed all the cool woodland plants (ferns, mushrooms) but the gang left me in the dust! Hey, these little feet don't go very fast! And it was a very muddy and root-rutted trail.

You just knew I had to include flowers in this post!

And a duck... and a chipmunk...lol! A favorite past-time~reading and relaxing.

Ahhh....you can just feel the peace... And talk about jaw-dropping gorgeous sunsets...

Can you tell I love this little island...so cute!By week's end, I was very sad to leave.

So, 'til next time, Sunapee...

I'll be missing thee...okay, corny rhyme!

Did Someone Wish for Rain....?!

Raising my hand...guilty! Yep, something about "rain, rain, come back and stay awhile..."

Well, guess what..it did! for over a week, we had overcast skies, heavy humidity (ew, ew, ew!) and rain! There was actually a tornado warning in my town! Yep, the torrential downpour was accompanied by hail the size of marbles! Not to mention power blips..fun!

So..now I'm changing my mind (hey, it's my prerogative!) and would like to order sunshine!
Mainly because our deck is getting a make-over and almost daily showers have not resulted in
much progress. Even had showers under bright blue sky...strange!

But not having to water the garden was a plus...Of course, this means weeds are rampant..isn't it amazing how fast they grow! I completely cleaned this bed of vincas just last month! Black-eyed Susies are lush, lush, lush! The view from my desk is a sea of yellow. Flip side...daylilies are suffering! The blooms cannot hold up and some of my late varieties open and close in mush-mode...not a pretty sight! I'm still out there every morning with my camera...catching some really cool visitors. For some reason, he reminds me of the talking "Geico" in this photo..lol.What is this bug??

More yellow!

Extra points if you see the two butterflies...

Due to all the beetle damage, I trimmed this 'Knock-Out' way back. This is her third flush of blooms for the season...easy plant!

So true how weather can affect one's mood...I've been feeling kinda blah...Maybe I'm coming down with something...or maybe just in need of a vacay!

All of you, enjoy your weekend!

Update: I see sun peeking through! Arms up again, head tilt back...BIG SMILE!