Chronicaling the lunacy of taming three acres in Tidewater Virginia, one square foot at a time!

"Gardens... should be like lovely, well-shaped girls: all curves, secret corners, unexpected deviations, seductive surprises and then still more curves. ~H.E. Bates, A Love of Flowers


Saturday, April 3, 2010

A Full and Happy Saturday...

Started my Saturday with a stop at the Avalon Pier to check out the pier and the fog. Last evening a cloud of fog literally creeped down the street from the ocean to the sound...thick as pea soup, it was like flying through a cloud.
 
The fog remained this morning, despite the sun. The tide was almost full high when a truck full of ~20 year olds came driving down the beach, (I will be happy when the beach driving season is over) the writing was on the wall. An ill-fated decision to try and make it under the pier, and a last minute change of heart, sunk the newer pickup in the sand fast. A small group of "experienced" fishman gathered on the pier offering suggestions to the pickup group in a classic scene of youth versus experience....offering such comments as, "Y'all better hurry up that tide is coming in fast." The truck owner kept digging and trying to get the truck to budge...meanwhile, his friends made the surrendering gesture of lighting up a smoke and taking camera phone pictures of the escapade. Finally, a good samaritan with a rope and a better positioned truck....disaster averted!

 
As the fog lifted, GoddessSupport and I headed over to Roanake Island with our cameras in tow, to the The Elizabethan Gardens The Garden Club of North Carolina adopted The Elizabethan Gardens as a project in 1951 and opened the gardens to the public in 1960.

A nice mix of native and "other" the gardens are interesting in all seasons.
This Clevia was in full bloom in several pots...the bees where pollen diving deep into each flower. For some reason this year, orange things are growing on me...this color- I don't even know how to describe it.
 

The Camelias are blooming their brains out all over, soon there time will pass, but what a show they put on today!

Georgia O'Keefe anyone??






Sing a song of spring....lute a song of spring!!
A large swath of Lily of the Valley blooming in the shade.
Ferns, unfurling everywhere...



The daffofils were still going strong, as the location near the water keeps this area a little cooler than the mainland.

Bees were out in full force!

Last night, D14 and her friend assembled homemade horse treats. A mixture of molasses, oats, carrots, raisins, apples, flour, they baked in muffin cups with a most interesting aroma. The horses being piggish about anything tasty, were more than happy to walk over and investigate what the girl had in her hand...

I am not quite sure what to make of this...I will have to reference the "horse behavior" book!

Despite the reaction, he ate more than one!


In the end...I am left wondering about this whole horse treat idea....

I also saw my first Monarch butterfly today, while at the base of the Mann's Harbor bridge looking for osprey. It was a full an happy Saturday!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hello, I just discovered your blog via Charlotte's. Enjoyed your Saturday tour - especially the way that little daffodil is glowing in the sunlight!

Les said...

I know I wouldn't many friends if I lived down on the Banks, but I think the beaches should be closed to all private vehicles. To me the solace of the beach is ruined every time a loud 4-runner or jacked-up truck goes by. That said, we have a friend who lets us use her house in Corova and the only way to get there is to drive on the beach. Oh well.