Turquoise Sunflowers, Fuchsia Daffodils?

Paeonia hyb_Peony_DBG-CO_LAH_8488

Why do we always seem to gravitate toward things that are rare? Precious stones, one-of-a-kind art objects, limited edition car models—we always seem to want most what’s hardest to find.

Gardeners aren’t exempt. We’re  continually on the lookout for unique cultivars, with odd shapes or unusual colors. While lots of flowers are yellow, peonies usually come in shades of white, pink, and red. Yet, I have a good friend who paid a lot of money to get a yellow peony. Why? She thought it was “interesting.”

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Florida Offers A Mid-winter Reprieve

MerrittIslandNWR-FL_LAH_4047

I admit it—sometimes I’m spoiled. It’s mid-winter here in Colorado, but we just returned from a road trip to Florida, courtesy of an invitation from some much-appreciated friends. Even on the coldest days, the beach was so much nicer than the snow arriving at home! Continue reading “Florida Offers A Mid-winter Reprieve”

Flickers Come Bearing Valentines

Northern Flicker

In honor of this coming Thursday being Valentine’s Day, I decided to present you with some hearts, courtesy of the Northern Flicker.

I’ve long known that flickers are easily identified by their black bibs and spotted chests. But have you ever gotten a look at the feathers further down their bodies, such as on the side near the rear, or the rump just above the tail? It can be hard to see them, as they’re usually hidden by the position of the bird, or obscured by the folded wings.

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Amaranthaceae

Celosia (above) & Gomphrena
Love-lies-bleeding

Family Amaranthaceae has a lot of members—over 2,000 species. You will likely recognize many of them. Some are ornamental—think of the garden annuals Gomphrena, Ptilotus, and Love-lies-bleeding (Amaranthus caudatus). The Celosias are also amaranths—you might know some of them as the old-fashioned flower Cock’s Comb.

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Gorgeous Ginger

dbg_lah_2899

I love Asian cooking, or at least the American version of it. (I didn’t recognize anything on the buffet at the hotel in Bangkok!). Anything with plenty of onions, garlic, and ginger makes my mouth water. I’ve grown onions and garlic before, when I had more room for such things. But living in the cold part of Zone 5, any ginger I planted would have to be in a pot so I could bring it in for the winter. And at the rate I use ginger, it just didn’t seem to be worth the trouble.

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