Winter

Winter

Monday, June 18, 2012

First Artichoke

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Oh my, what a delightful surprise!

The small artichoke start was planted a mere month ago; this wasn't expected until sometime next year.

And three days after taking this photo there's another tiny thistle forming.

Oh my!






© Copyright 2006-2012, Raven Ridge Gardens. All rights reserved.

Friday, June 08, 2012

Calla Lily Redux

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The exquisiteness of a Calla Lily, from its tightly closed bud to the spiral unfurling of the flower,
revealing itself in sensuous slowness to its full, pristine white majesty, never fails to captivate me.





© Copyright 2006-2012, Raven Ridge Gardens. All rights reserved.

Monday, June 04, 2012

Ruby Tuesday 2: Ruby Daylily

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The first daylily to bloom in my spring garden,
I caught this one glowing very ruby-like in the late evening sunlight.






Followers of Ruby Tuesday 2 will want to head on over to see this week's delightfully creative ruby photos.








© Copyright 2006-2012, Raven Ridge Gardens. All rights reserved.

"Hootie"

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Owlbert, doing his very best to keep the pesky quail from decimating the vegetable garden, needed help.  

Afterowl, how many quail can one silent owl scare off?


Enter Hootie, whoooo even without his compliment of Blowfish, scares the feathers off of the resident quail with his haunting, sudden and rather loud hooting accompanied by the turning of his head, which, I found out, can turn totally backwards, and that's a bit disconcerting to see.  


A daunting sentinel indeed, Hootie is so fierce that he startled a flock of mourning doves
that were just settling into the chicken yard for their morning snack of grain.

That was quite a sight:  doves flying in all directions cooing WTF???

Now maybe I can harvest lettuce, kale and chard that don't look like they've been peppered with buckshot,
and the chickens won't have to share their breakfast. 


Update, July 12, 2012:  The band-tail pigeons have arrived, as they do each summer and, sadly, they are not fooled by plastic owls.  This is quite a bummer.


© Copyright 2006-2012, Raven Ridge Gardens. All rights reserved.

Sunday, June 03, 2012

Shadow Shot Sunday 2: Shadows on White

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Walking from one room of art to another, I turned a corner and started down the corridor
when the shadows cast symmetrically on both walls arrested my attention.

If it's unintentional, is it art?



Of course I had to take photos.



Our lovely Tracy from the land down under, and originator of Shadow Shot Sunday,
is guest-hosting Shadow Shot Sunday 2 this week.

Head on over and say G'Day!




© Copyright 2006-2012, Raven Ridge Gardens. All rights reserved.

Sugar Snap Peas

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Sugar Snap Peas


Pea Blossom
Our cool weather vegetable garden, guarded by Owlbert and his new friend Hootie (sans the blowfish) - pic coming - is producing madly and becoming hard to keep up with.  Meanwhile, summer produce is coming into our local co-op. For two people who were raised in the summer-hot Sacramento Valley where tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, etc. abound, deciding to eat from the garden or to buy summer squash for the grill is a constant conundrum.  We do both, trying to put the emphasis on our garden produce.   With beautiful peas like this one, some decisions are a snap.  (Yeah, I know...)



© Copyright 2006-2012, Raven Ridge Gardens. All rights reserved.