Peacocks and Tall Grass

I travel around quite a bit, though it is not my favorite thing to do-that would be gardening! Another nursery I found in Evansville is called Hillside Gardens. I enjoyed the atmosphere here as the nursery is very well maintained and the staff is very helpful and knowledgeable. I finally purchased my Sweet Shrub (Calycanthus floridus) here for a very excellent price (more on Sweet Shrubs in another post). Have you ever seen peacocks in a plant nursery? Hillside Gardens has quite a few. This picture is of the blue ones roosting under a shade house. I walked all through this nursery before I realized there were peacocks all over the place! I really tried to get a picture of the white one walking around as if he owned the place (perhaps he thinks he does?). The birds were stunning, as you can see from the picture.

I did visit two other nurseries this weekend. One I will not mention as it was not a good experience at all. The last one, Scotty's, is right around the corner from the Jim Hipp nursery. This nursery was a nice place and they had a 50% off sale! I bought a beautiful and large 'Snow Queen' Oakleaf Hydrangea and a Fothergilla, which had great fall color from Scotty's.

Even though winter is on its way now is still a good time to plant trees and shrubs. Many nurseries have some grand sales to help out the savvy gardener. Most often spring is the time when people are interested in gardening but when you focus your efforts only on spring planting, you sell your garden short. Fall color is one of the best things you can do for yourself and your garden. The only way you can be sure to get the fall color you want is to shop in the fall when plants are displaying their fall color. This year has to be one of the most splendid falls I have ever seen. I can tell you in my garden club and in all of my conversations with others everyone agrees the drought did not hurt the fall display at all. Even Jim Monday commented on the beautiful fall in his weekly Sunday column in the Leaf Chronicle. So get out while the color is still here before winter truly sets in, and visit some nurseries to see what kind of fall color will go nicely in your garden.

On our way up north Jimmy really, REALLY had to go pee. He could not hold it for the life of him. Being a boy who is not used to going pee on the side of the road and never one to settle for any ole bush, I was surprised he insisted I stop right away. He picked the perfect spot on the side of the Pennyrile in the dark. Ran to a bush, did his business then ran back. Here begins the problem.

He had to jump over a drainage ditch in tall grass in order to get back to the car. His eyeglass lens fell out of his eyeglasses when he landed after jumping. Jimmy knew exactly where and when it happened. Simple enough right? Anyone who wears eyeglasses knows they are not cheap and this pair is particularly expensive because it has a one year warranty. Apparently the cost of the glasses does not make them immune to falling apart at the slightest movement. We spent the next 45 minutes searching for the eyeglass lens to no avail. Not one single police officer showed up, but a nice couple did stop to see if they could help. They thought we were wrecked and I am sure we looked comical searching for something on the side of the interstate in the dark with nothing but headlights and an LED light. The couple were quite kind and got down in the tall grass with their hands searching for the eyeglass lens (after they made sure it was not the place where business happened). Jimmy cannot see without his eyeglasses and I thought it vital we find them. Not to mention I was REALLY mad about the whole situation and a bit frightened being parked on the side of the interstate at night, but it was OK. The woman told Jimmy that if that was the worst thing he ever did then he'd be alright. She really did put things in perspective. We left the roadside empty handed.

All is not lost though. We returned in daylight hours and spent a total of fifteen minutes searching for the eyeglass lens. Who would have thought it would be so difficult to find a little piece of glass in tall grass? (Say that three times fast for tongue twister) Finally, an ever so slight glint from the sun led me to the lens and we left the roadside very happy and relieved! Today those eyeglasses go back to the manufacturer! So much for tall grass and eyeglasses. Lessons learned: Jimmy-hold it or go closer to the car! Mom-return the eyeglasses or glue the screws in! Jimmy is a good sport and does not mind me talking about him on here (does he have a choice?) though he might not like this story getting back to him so help me keep it a secret-ok?
in the garden (or in this case the tall grass searching for eyeglass lens)....