Baby It's Cold Out There!

The crazy up and down temperatures we have been having lately are headed for the sub basement  now.  The rosemary, lady bugs and I are all sitting by the south facing windows hoping for some sunshine and warmth.

Now is the time to sift through the big stack of garden catalogs.   Once in awhile a new one for a company I have never heard of comes, and naturally I at least have to take a look at those.  The idea of some new and wonderful plants in the garden helps me through the winter months.  There are certain catalogs that I look for every year.  Logee's used to be one of those.  Exotic is the word for the plants that they sell.  After all these years, however, I am not so easily charmed by exotic tropical plants that are interesting, but suffer here since often they come from a zone where the minimum temperature is warmer than I heat my house.  This year I dropped it into the recycling.  Others get dropped in there without even a second thought.  Sometimes it's because of past disappointments.  Sometimes it's because the plant colors are so vibrant I know they can't be real and I need a certain amount of trust to part with my money.  Sometimes the prices are so high I just can't justify the extravagance even in January.

There are catalogs that I watch for and yesterday I spotted the Richter's catalog just peeking out of the stack of mail.  I have always loved this catalog.  If you are interested in herbs it is a must have.  For me it is as fascinating as any book on herbs I might have in my library.  I will look through it many times before I place my order.  It is full of temptation.  Over the years I have purchased seeds for weeds like lambs quarters and teasels.  One year we purchased wild rice to put in the pond.  It didn't grow.  Sometimes when you do something stupid like that you luck out and the plant doesn't take.  On the other hand the Good King Henry planted next to the stone square  comes right back no matter how much you cut it back and self seeds too if you are not paying attention.  What will I buy this year?  I'm still reading. I'll let you know.

Natural Rock Garden

Today's post photos were taken five days ago during the December warm spell.  Seasonably colder weather with snow in the air has returned and we are staying inside.  The first picture shows the oldest stone wall on the original farm.  A river bottom field that gave up these stones lies just beyond a sad excuse for a hedgerow.  A spot of red color marks the location of the present barn.  A missile shaped white blot nearby is the single remaining capped silo. The long strip of bottom land alongside of the barn is not anywhere edged with stone.  Pioneer farmers may have dumped stone from those fields over the river bank where flood waters moved them out of sight down river.

Round puddles of blueish white primitive plant growth sets this stone apart from its neighbors.  If this type of growth has been seen here before, it escapes my memory.  What I had for breakfast also escapes my memory so this plant may be as common as dirt.  In any event, the appearance of this stone placed it in this post.

Hard lichens and darker green mosses are commonly seen here on stone lying near the ground under tree cover.  Stone, moisture and shade provide favorable growing conditions for these simple plants.  The bare areas on the top surface of the stone are puzzles.  Why are no plants growing in those spots?

 

Ocean water swirling over a coral reef is suggested by these round balls of moss.  Somehow this growth just seems out of place here.  Actually, it would be out of place any where else.  Carefully placing stones sporting similar growth near the base of a new wall has always ended the moss.  Perhaps they just shrink when exposed to sunlight.

This stone is supporting plant growth that is nothing like the others.  Stems and leaves point to a more complex higher plant.  Perhaps these plants are growing in trapped soil on the stone surface that was earlier created by eons of lichens that had called this spot home.  What better way to begin  2015 here at the Stone Wall Garden than with plants that actually grow on stones?  We are still fascinated by their beauty.