Baby Birds Hatch & Drywall & More Flowers

 

Franklin and Russ worked on drywall all last week and this is the kitchen with the large window that will overlook a little rock garden.

 

Close-up of one of the first sunflowers of the season. I think I'll make this my new desktop photo.

 

You've probably seen enough hollyhocks but these are gorgeous this year. They're an old-fashioned type with single blooms that I think are more attractive than the modern ones. When they die back, I take the seed pods and crush and sprinkle them wherever there's bare earth. That fall or the following spring, I have all the volunteers I want and just transplant them to where I have room. These volunteer plants are the reward for getting in there and cutting down the plants and distributing the seeds because the plants are hairy and those hairs tend to get into your clothes and make you itch.

 

THE BABY BIRDS HATCHED - it was either late on July 4th or early this morning because I'd checked them the morning of the 4th. I still have to identify them and hope snakes don't find them, road dust doesn't kill them or a myriad of other dangers doesn't befall them. I'll try to photo journal them daily and will publish some of that so stay tuned. Last night we went to get Jake from Waynesville - he's back from the Bahamas. We have some photos to blog but he ran off again a few minutes ago to visit Walker at Tuckasegee so it'll be Sunday night or Monday before he writes captions to the photos I'm sending. We were invited to the home of some friends who have hundreds of acres here in Fairview and an incredible view of the Asheville fireworks (not to mention their own contraban supply). There I picked up a little pun that I had to call Gabriel and report right away: "May the 'fourth' be with you."

End of June Garden

 

Here are a few photos of the garden as it looks now.

 

This is the 'upper garden' nearest the house. It's a hodgepodge of all kind of flowers with a pathway leading to the house.

 

The tall flowers are old-fashioned hollyhocks and some of the many sunflowers are just beginning to come on. These two flowers really make the garden what it is.

Spring Garden & Porch

  This is the beautiful glass heart Walker got me for Mother's day from Fearington where he used to work. It reminds me of him because he's so kindhearted.
 The chicken pen.
 The garden in spring
 The porch. I took this photos so I'd know where to put the things back onto the wall once we took them down to stain the house siding.

Here are a few more photos of the porch and the gardens.