skippy's backyard

Photos of Skippy's backyard: May 8, May 24, August 12, October 5 and today November 13, 2006. I can add a snowy photo this winter to that empty spot.

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spring thaw begins

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first snow on the backyard

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white backyard

A sticky, wet snow in our backyard. Everything is blanketed with white.

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the backyard after a wind storm

We had some cold, wet, and very windy days this week.


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Late September backyard

Our grass has greened-up again with the cooler weather. And Skippy has learned to pee in the bushes most of the time, so we don't have as many brown spots on the lawn. Its a nice place for evening dinners on the patio and for wandering around in the morning and taking pictures.


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Elephant ears

This giant colacasia is doing a good job of hiding my air conditioner (and dog) this year. I think its the third year I've planted these bulbs. The leaves get bigger every year. I lift the bulbs in fall after the leaves die and store them in a paper bag in the basement over the winter. In the spring it usually takes me a few days of searching to find where I put them. Anyway, its a fun plant.

(Thanks for the correction on the colacasia!)

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New gnomes

For my birthday I got 3 little garden gnomes. I think they are very cute and cheery. Especially the way they hide in the leaves until you are close and notice them there. They are pensive, serious guys. Seemingly working hard. But they do add nice color during this period when there is not alot blooming in the shady areas. Definitely for the whimsy category.


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Birds bathing

A bit blurry. My camera is not the best for zooming in on birds. There are a couple of young sparrows and robins hidden among the rocks here. Sometimes I'll look out the window and see 20 birds playing in the waterfall. I took this picture through the kitchen window.

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Yet another backyard picture

I see that box of flowers is still sitting there. I better get them planted tomorrow. I could do it now - but its kind of dark out there.... The pond has been very busy with the new baby birds - just sparrows and robins, but they do alot of bathing. The two Koi are getting enormous. That big holly tp the right of the pond (Blue Prince and Blue Princess) could use a trim. But I don't have that job on the urgent list yet. Urgent is those plants in the box!

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Looking down on dendrobium and coleus

Here's the same group of plants from a different perspective and with the midday light. This is how they look from my kitchen window. I love all the shades of green.

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August on the patio

It must be August. The hydrangea tree has opened its enormous blossoms over our dinner table. And the weather has been perfect for outdoor eating. Skippy enjoys the outdoor dining experience, probably because more food tends to fall off the table out here.

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Backyard pond

We had a nice thunderstorm and good rainfall last night so I went out early and took pictures. The yard always looks best then.

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R. maxima again

Another photo of the rosebay rhododendron in full bloom. It seems really late in the season for a rhododendron to be blooming.

This corner of my yard is the catbird corner. Though I'm sure I'll never get a photo of them, there is a pair of birds that spends alot of time here. Usually in the afternoons, about 4 pm, they take a bath and hop around here. My mom says I should look for a nest, but I haven't found one. I think my new rhododendron could be a good spot, but we do have several big cats around.

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Herb garden

This is my herb garden. Its right outside my kitchen - down the steps and across the patio. I don't know why it looks so scraggly this year. Lots of spaces. Tiny plants. I think I'll have to do better mulching over the winter. I seem to lose alot. Maybe its a cold spot. Here's the list of what's in there now: parsley, a little cilantro, rosemary, 3 kinds of thyme, 2 oreganos, sage, 3 mints, garlic chives, basil, tarragon. I also stuck in some vegetables to fill space: celery and jalapeno peppers. In the back, there are daylilies, the ubiquitous violets, 2 grape vines, a rose, yew, and a climbing hydrangea.

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July 8, 2006

The backyard fish pond - Skippy's swimming hole.

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June 30, 2006

Its a good day to work in the backyard. I have a writing project due today. I'm procrastinating and posting another photo ...

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Grape vines

Here's a project waiting for me. I know grapes are supposed to be pruned and there is a certain way to do it that seems quite complicated to me. These grapes (Catawba, a red grape with seeds) never ripen properly, probably because there are too many clusters on the vine. I could probably figure it out, but in reality I don't like to eat grapes or get up on a ladder and I like the way they look.
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Dog's eye view

The patio from Skippy's level.

Someone said the funniest thing about Skippy yesterday on our walk. She all of a sudden laughed and said "He looks just like a person in a dog suit!" Now what is that supposed to mean? I had to ask twice what she said, not that I didn't hear it the first time. I think its his movements - they do look very human-like (or as my Dad says primate-like). Something about his elbows.

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Waiting for sun

My kayak is grounded and waiting ..... For anyone who likes to follow the weather forcast, an interesting blog site is below. Some quotes from it about our upcoming weather: "... the GFS 180-hour rainfall forecast is nothing short of stunning." "... the possibility of historic flooding in some parts of the East within the next week." "In the black zone" Yup, that's us "more than 10 inches of rain are predicted for this period!" "The basic problem is that a trough that doesn't have much amplitude now slowly gets carved out during the upcoming week. At this time of year, such troughs are tough to get rid of, because they can become detached from the surrounding flow that is circling the globe .... " Anyway, we have at least a week of wet weather ahead. http://wwwa.accuweather.com/news-column.asp?partner=accuweather&myadc=0&webcaster=abrams.

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kayaking