Wicker Baskets for Plants

These wicker baskets look wonderful on either side of the front door. Maybe they are having a party! They look very festive, con't they?

Female Hare with Daisies

This famale hare is lovely. Found on Instagram. I don't believe I've ever seen a wild hare, only rabbits. I tried Google to see if there are wild hare in New Jersey and all that came up was a beauty shop called Wild Hair😂😂😂

Hydrangea Explosion

Wow. I love how happy these hydrangeas are all smashed together and blooming their hearts out. via

More of My Peonies + Happiness Quote

As promised, here are my red and white peonies opened up showing their yellow centers. I completely forgot they close up in the late afternoon and are still closed in the early morning. They are like me, they go to bed early and open slowly the next day. I shall watch them closely this morning to see what time they fully open and awake. For me, it's after two cups of coffee.

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I love this quote: 

"The art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things." 

Henry Ward Beecher

Another view of my front garden from from farther back. I clipped all 15 of my American boxwood earlier this week and they look neat and tiny now. The large one left center is an English box I transplanted my garden when I moved. It is the mate for the two  at the end of my front walk at the driveway. I didn't clip this one at all. 

Enjoy your Sunday. xo

My Peony Garden

I took this photo late Saturday afternoon, the last day of May. This morning the peonies have opened showing their beautiful yellow centers. The ferns I dug from my woods are spectacular this year too. Will post a photo later. Happy First Day of June. The ferns I dug from my woods are really thick and healthy this year because of all the rain. xo Click photo to enlarge.

May Flowers in Bloom at My Cottage

I have no idea what this is or where it came from. A bird must have planted it for me. The purple flower is small, measuring only two inches across the two lower petals. There is a spider inside and some sort of winged pollinator on his way to the yellow stamens in the center. This looks like a small flat iris and I love having it in my front garden.

This is the third nasturtium blossom I have had from my overwintered plants.

My lamb's ears in the back are standing proud and tall this spring. The lace cap hydrangea in the distance is full of bud that will be blooming soon. The limelight hydrangea in the left foreground has no buds yet but it's are loving all the rain we've been having.

My pink peonies will be opening soon. This bud is the most advanced. They are already starting to droop because of all the rain drops inside. They are taller than ever this year, up to my chin. They are the loveliest of all spring flowers, agreed?

And last, but not least, the humble wild daisy.

Lovely Raised Bed Flower Garden

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I have always loved plantings so close together that weeds don't have a chance. I no longer look at photos like this and want them for myself. I know my limitations and am quite happy with what I've got. I like perennials, geraniums, nasturtiums, limelight hydrangeas and milkweed, lambs ears, and peonies. I overwinter my hardier plants. Right now my lilies of the valley are blooming and I have large buds on my peonies. My Lady's Mantle has been enjoying capturing all the raindrops we've had lately too. I don't do store-bought mulch like most people because I prefer wood chips in my beds. How does your garden grow? Enjoy all of my individual links leading to various photos around my cottage gardening. xo

Climbing Roses + Embroidery Stitches

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There are so many charming elements wrapped up in a single photo, right?

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This handmade cloth needlework book illustrating embroidery stitches is truly a treasure and a work of love. I think this woman is the creator of this embroidery book.

Hanging Box for Spring Flowers

I love this idea for an outside hanging box to plant with seasonal flowers in bloom! It would be easy to change varieties as the current ones fade and bloom out. via

First Day of Spring

Happy First Day of Spring.

It's not until 5:00 this afternoon, but it's here. It will be quite a while before real tulips bloom so here's one of my John Derian tulip plates to help you celebrate. The decoupage paperweight below is from his shop.

I have given up on growing tulips because the deer and rabbits love them. Daffodil bulbs are poisonous and pest free so I'll stick with them. 

My first SNOWDROPS to Bloom this year.

I just went outside to jump rope on my balcony and I couldn't believe how warm it was. I checked my phone and it's 73° and most of the snow is gone. As soon as I finished jumping, I ran to the front yard to check my biggest clump of snowdrops and they are in full bloom. They have been buried under deep snow for over a week. Hooray! These spring flowering bulbs are true harbingers of spring.

Happy Friday and have a great weekend. xo

Geraniums 1888

GERANIUMS

Childe Hassam

1888

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Beautiful Floral Wallpaper

Odessa Garden Damask wallpaper in white. A unique take on the classic damask, this contemporary wallpaper that features ornate flowers is a wonderful feature wall option. via

Available in black too. Details and ordering information here.

Small Space Love

There is not a single thing I do not love in this photograph. Obviously an antique-loving gardener who likes to fish lives here. The painted floor and the old drop leaf table painted white set off the collection of old watering cans. Love it!

I have been advised that the first photo is from this book: "Nora Murphy's Country House Style" Making your Home A Country House. Thank you for all the comments crediting the first photo. I am so glad to know the source. xo

Goodbye to Summer

It is hot and muggy at my cottage today but a change is coming tomorrow when the high will be only 68° which is a big drop from 82° now. Can't wait! This image personifies the end of summer, doesn't it? via

Wisteria

This townhouse is impossibly lovely with its floral decoration by Mother Nature. Wisteria is pretty wild when left to its own devices so this vine must have had some help from a landscape design expert who trained it well. via

My Green Zinnias

My first chartreuse zinnia called ENVY opened up this morning on an overcast day. Of all the flowers on my hot balcony, which gets direct sun for much of the day, these plants are doing best of all in a big round clay pot that is somewhat shallow. They are heat-loving annuals that grow straight and tall. I posted this photo on Instagram this morning and people are loving it.

Here's a photo of the seed packet. Next year I want to plant them earlier than I did this year and might even start them indoors and transplant them when the weather is warm. The note on the back of the seed packet says "Transplant outdoors after last frost. Zinnias do not benefit from being planted early; wait for warmer weather". I sowed my seeds way too late but better late than never, right?

I edited my photo a little more to get rid of the green reflections on the lower portion. I use the iPhone edits and then go to my Snapseed App (free download for iPhone and Android) for final perfection 😎

Around My Cottage Outside

Looking down from my balcony. Keep your eye focused on something sticking out beside my limelight hydrangea in the bright sun in the area above the red geranium.

I discovered this long-forgotten dog made from terra cotta flower pots in my barn/garage and now he's my watchdog.

The lamb's ears I planted in this part of my back garden are blooming and standing tall and the humming birds love them.

Here's a closeup of the dog. A young rabbit had a standoff with him at dusk on the day I put him out over the weekend. It was so cute to watch from my bedroom window that is above the raised garden. There are remnants of hot glue in certain places where moss was once attached. I think this was project for a garden club contest at one time and I hope it was a prize winner. I got it at our annual firehouse flea market and auction years ago. It was very heavy to lug to my car but it made me smile and still does. It reminds me of Pluto and he seems right at home on this small patch of blacktop that is in my backyard for some reason. I think I will put a water dish out for him that the birds and chipmunks might enjoy. Happy Monday! xo

Pink Peony Portraits

My pink peonies are way too heavy to stand upright and are in their last days in the garden. I put a white plastic bag on the ground to photograph this one after a soft, short rain yesterday.

Good bye peonies. See you next year in all your beauty.

Jessie Willcox Smith 1930s Covers

A very sweet Good Housekeeping Magazine cover dated June 1930 by Jessie Willcox Smith, one of my all-time favorite illustrators.

Here we have Picking Strawberries dated June 1931

Both covers found on Google images.