Monday, October 27, 2008

Lola's Summer Garden

Many of you know Lola. You all know she gardens and is a faithful reader and commenter of not only my blog, but of many, many others. I see her everywhere on the net. This is unique in that she does not blog herself. She simply enjoys talking, sharing and commenting. A rarity for an individual who does not herself blog. Today is Lola's post. She gets to be the blogger herself and share her lovely garden with you all.

Here in my zone 8B or 9 garden, gardening is a bit different from what I am used to. Being from Tennessee I am used to a Zone 6 garden; where I probably could never grow pinecone ginger (Zingiber zerumbet) as pictured above. Although I've lived in different states, I didn't get "involved" with gardening until the last few years. More so as a hobby or something to do. I think I got the gardening bug from my mother.
Now that I have plenty of time on my hands and since I started reading Tina's blog, I have begun to pay more attention to the plants and what they do. I have learned a lot from Tina.

I plant veggies and flowers in pots, as it's easier to tend them. I do have some plants that just have to be in the ground. Most of them I planted before my accident. But now I've learned how to do more.

As for the rose arbor where the gourds are, the gourd vine attached itself to a rose cane and then it grew to the top like it is now. If you look close you can see it growing out of the black plastic tub. Imagine my surprise when I found the gourds growing as I thought the vines were dead. I found the gourds just before yanking the vines out. I'm glad now that I didn't.

To the right of the arbor is my new garden that I just started. I planted a Red Crepe Myrtle, and behind that a Flowering Almond dug up from a different part of the yard. I will add more as the myrtle grows. This new garden will take up the corner of the chain link fence. I hope it grows the way I have it pictured in my mind.I also have an asparagus garden that is to the left of the arbor if you are facing East. From these plants is where my volunteer asparagus is coming from. You know how seeds and birds go together.See the Pinecone Ginger below? It grows in the back of my house. Now for the story of my using the sticky liquid that is in the "flower". I broke off a couple blooms and put them in a glass of water. I put one in the shower so I could reach it. I first shampooed my hair then rinsed with the liquid (sticky) found in the bloom. The smell of ginger was so pleasant. I noticed that the tangles were easier to comb out afterward. When my hair was wet it was "squeaky" clean. Now that it has dried it feels so soft and there is a hint of ginger smell to my hair. I will use it again to rinse my hair. I wonder if I could freeze it for later use!!! Hmmmmm.


Those are NOT tomatoes pictured to the left of the pinecone ginger; they are persimmons. Do you notice how much my persimmons look like tomatoes? It is easy to confuse the two.

Lola

in the garden....

Thank you so much for sharing your gardens with us Lola and this lovely post today!

37 comments:

  1. Hi Lola, what a delight to see you lovely garden. The arbor with the gourds is inspired! You have the beginnings of a fine space and I know you will sculpt it to suit your vision. The hint about the ginger lily as hair rinse is the best! Did you know to try that? I bet the smell was heavenly. Welcome to the blogdom! And many thanks to Tina for so generously opening her blog to her friends to enrich us all.

    Frances
    http://fairegarden.wordpress.com/

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  2. Good morning Lola, so nice to your post this morning, and get a peek into your garden. What a cool plant that pineapple ginger is!

    This spring I planted some asparagus in my shade garden. The squirrels here dug most of it up, but I was happy to see that two of the six plants escaped their digging, and I'll be very pleased if they seed themselves around the garden!

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  3. Good morning all!

    Lola, so good to see your garden. Those gourds are fantastic and I love the pinecone ginger. What a great picture! Mine is hanging tough in the garden. The flowers are slowly popping out, but I tell you even without the flower, the foliage is quite the eye catcher. I do so hope it comes back for me next year! ttyl

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  4. Lola-thanks for sharing your garden with us! I love the pineapple ginger..and how I wish I had asparagus!! That's one of my favorties. You must have lots of patience to grow it--I've heard it takes a while before it produces.
    Happy gardening!

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  5. Good Morning All.
    Hi Frances, Thank you for the kind words. I really like to garden & some time I like to experiment. As for as the liquid in the Pineapple Ginger, I researched it & learned what you could do. It can also be used in floral arrangements.

    Hello garden girl, yes the Pineapple Ginger is a fascinating plant. It's over 5' now. Flowers galore. My Asparagus garden is in mid-day sun but the volunteer is in late afternoon sun & does better. Mulch very good with manure for the winter.

    Tina, Thank you so much for this opportunity to share some of my garden through pictures. As you have got to know me here on your blog you know I love to "play" in the dirt. Thanks to you I have started naming my gardens and paying more attention to the plants and what they do. This knowledge has helped a great deal in helping me to know what would possibly work better in my garden. Again, Thank You.

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  6. Lola ~ What a delight to visit your garden and learn about the pineapple ginger! That is so cool and I bet the smell is divine. I also like the gourds hanging from the arbor.

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  7. Hi Lola,
    The pineapple ginger is awesome! When I first saw it I thought it was a waxed pinecone! How pretty with the slight red!
    Your spaces look wonderful! It's good to have pots for different plants/veggies (less weeds) and the arbor is to die for!

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  8. Hey Lola! What a pleasant surprise to see that you had posted today! I thought they were fake pinecones or something too, never even heard of pineapple ginger.

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  9. Lola--A wonderful post! It's great to see your photos and read about your gardening! Cheers, Cameron

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  10. Hi meadowview thymes, yes I love asparagus also. That is why I grow it. Not hard to do at all. Just start off with at least 3 yr. old plants in very rich soil. We were posting at the same time.

    Yes Cindy, I'm enjoying the Pineapple Ginger. It does smell divine. I have a bloom in a glass in the bathroom. Well last night I accidentally hit it & guess what. The most amazing smell came up into the air. Me half asleep I really enjoyed the aroma.

    Dawn, It does look like a wax pineapple. It does get redder as it ages. Thanks for the compliment on the arbor. I will tell Young'un as he built it for me. 2 of them in fact.

    jillybean you are missing an experience with these Pineapple Gingers. If you would like to try it I sure can help you out with that. I had sent some to Tina and hers is doing fine so it should do good for you.

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  11. defining your home, Thank you for your kind words. I read you blog and enjoy it. Looks like we were posting close together.

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  12. I really enjoyed the tour of your garden, Lola! I'm so intrigued by your ginger! They look like giant pine cones. :)

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  13. That was so fun. Thanks for the tour Lola. I enjoyed it, and I've never seen the ginger before.~~Dee

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  14. Great post Lola. I've been wanting to try those gourds too. I'll remember what you said and not pull the vines out before the gourds mature.
    Marnie

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  15. Hi Lola, I've enjoyed the tour of your garden this morning. Thanks for sharing pictures of your Pineapple Ginger, it's not something I have ever grown. That is so cool that you can use the liquid from it to rinse your hair. Hope you guest post again! :)

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  16. Thanks for sharing your garden with us, Lola! The pineapple ginger is really unusual; at least I've never seen it before. Sounds like you have found a great use for it.

    I would love some volunteer asparagus:) Asparagus has been on my planting "to-do" list for some time--maybe next year.

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  17. I'm going to have to try some asparagus at some point Lola! Yours looks like it is doing great. I've never actually tried a persimmon. My in-laws have a tree that fruits every year, I just need to gather a few and give them a go!

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  18. Dear Lola,

    I am so glad to see your charming garden! I have wanted to see where you garden and what you grow for a very long time! It would be a shock to this zone 6b/7a gardener to try to garden in a zone 8 garden; although the new plants would be very exciting to try!
    The pineapple ginger is wonderful looking, at first glance to the photo (don't we look at the photos first?) I thought it was an unusual pinecone! Have a good day and thank you for the tour!

    gail

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  19. Oh Lola your place looks so great and I do love the ginger as it is gorgeous and I had never seen one before. Nice of you and Tina to share your talents with us.

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  20. The pineapple ginger is really unigue and totally new to me. I'm fascinated.
    I'm sure if you had your own blog I would be a regular. Ready to give it a try?

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  21. Hi nancybond, yes, they do look like giant pine cones. They hide under the foliage.

    reddnas1, I'm glad you enjoyed the tour. I thought it was nice to be able to share.

    roses and lilacs, yes do leave the vines intact. I was surprised to see they waited so long to fruit.

    parrennialgardener, I'm glad you enjoyed the tour. I like to find different uses for things such as plants to have dual purposes.

    rose, I'm glad you also enjoyed the tour. I could help you out on the volunteer asparagus. It's so neat to go out & snap one off & just eat. Yes, raw--it's good.

    Dave, yes, asparagus is good & good for you. You really should try it & also the persimmons. I have put some of the persimmon pulp in the freezer for use this winter. I like to make bread or pudding with them. They do have an unusual taste that is a little sweet. I didn't know that they were so big till I moved here.

    Hi Gail, Thank you & I'm glad you enjoyed the tour. It is quite different gardening here but lovely. There is so much more that you can have all year. I got the nuts, thanks, never saw them like that before.

    Wow jean, I'm glad to see you. I'm looking forward to your visit this winter. Hopefully. Yes, I really enjoy Tina's blog & I've learned so much from her. She doesn't mind my stupid questions. Maybe you could try some ginger next year.

    jane marie, thank you for your encouragement. Just not yet. I "just put my toe in the water" as they say with this post. It's really neat to talk to so many different people. Tina has been so gracious to allow me to do so. I think she is a super person.
    I think the Pineapple Ginger is a fascinating plant to watch. It is very unusual. I have plenty of it.

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  22. Lola! It's so great to meet you through your garden. I always enjoy your visits to my site. Maybe now you will be convinced to try blogging on your own or at least as a regular contributor on Tina's site. Very interesting, that pineapple ginger. I need to research it a bit. Maybe when I get back to Florida to stay, I will try growing it. We live in zone 8 (NW corner) there, so it would probably do well. I'm always game for something beautiful that's useful as well (hair rinse). Thanks to you and to Tina for letting us visit with you! Tina's the most generous gardener and blogger I know!

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  23. Well hon, as we say in Texas, join the rest of us and get on board! Start yourself a blog. What kind of accident did you have? If you don't want to go into that, it's fine. I'm a question-asker. Comes from being a journalist years ago and can't kick the habit.
    Brenda

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  24. Hello,

    I love gardening! Loved this post!

    ~ Gabriela ~

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  25. Lola! Your garden looks so inviting. I just love that arbor. It was so nice of you to share your wonderful space with us.

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  26. Lila needs a blog so we can watch her progress! Oh, and stay out from under that arbor when the gourds dry up, LOL. Vickie

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  27. Hey Lola, Glad to see your toe got a bit wet today! lol...Great job and you must post again and soon! I think the ginger is so neat and can’t wait to see if mine will bloom next year. I put it in soil in a pot and will bring it inside this winter and play baby to it and see what happens. The cats will be mad that a door is closed inside the house but they will just have to get over it. lol...

    I have been busy today trying to get the house back to normal and doing laundry and all that fun stuff that goes along with being on vacation for a week. We had a great time at the Fur Ball in TN and made almost $20,000 for the homeless fur babies! Yeah, all for a good cause.... I don’t usually drink caffeine coffee but when at someone else’s house, you drink what they drink. Now back to my decaf and a icky headache… arggg… need to take a pill and lay down now. Good post Lola….

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  28. walk2write, I'm glad you enjoyed the walk through my garden. I like to share. When you get back to your southern home I will send you some of the Pineapple Ginger if you like. I have plenty of it. I agree with you about Tina.

    Brenda@view from the pines, I don't mind your asking. I had a nasty fall in my back yard & broke my leg. Now I have 2 connecting rods--1 from my knee upwards then connected to another that is screwed into the ball of the hip socket. EEwwwwwww is right.

    gabriel delworth, I'm glad you enjoyed the post.

    cinj, thank you for your kindness. I'm grateful to Tina for allowing me to post today. Her help as always was fantastic.

    my little family, Thanks for the warning. But do they fall on you? lol I was wondering how was I to get them down as I can't climb a ladder anymore. I guess I could just pull them down---ouch. lol

    Skeeter, Thank you so much for your kind words, It means a lot to me. We'll see about the posting. Oohhh, sorry about the babies being upset about the closed door.
    Glad you're back. You were missed.

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  29. Growing gourds on an overhead structure is how they're grown in many Asian countries. I've considered doing that, as I've got a small urban yard with little room for spreading plants. Gave up on squashes years ago.

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  30. Hi jim/artofgardening.
    This started out to be a pot of gourds, cantaloupes & pumpkins. Trial & error. The cantaloupes were a new seed that was supposed to be peach flavored. Well all flopped except the gourds. I thought they were goners too till I looked up. And there they were, pretty as a pix. They are really shaped like a woman's body. You can't see them very plain in the pix. I don't have a very big space either so growing up is an option.

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  31. Hi Lola, thank you for the lovely tour of your upcoming garden. I've seen your name so many times in the comments' section that I'd always thought about you as a regular blogger. So blogdom HAS its surprises!
    The gourds are cute! The pinecone ginger is something I haven't seen before (and I mean photos here).Loved the beauty tip too!

    Tina, love the idea of a guest post. Enjoyed reading and viewing every bit of 'Lola's Summer Garden' IN THE GARDEN.

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  32. kanak hagjer, Thank you so much for your kind words. I'm glad you enjoyed the tour. My garden is simple but I like to share.
    I myself get surprised at blogs. I really enjoy reading them & seeing how other gardens look. I comment when inspired either from the context or the pictures. And I've made some super friends even though I haven't met them. I think gardeners make the best friends as their common connection is Mother Earth & what she provides.

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  33. Kanak, I am glad you like the idea of a guest poster. Lola is such a loyal reader and commenter that she shares in this blog so much that it is natural. And didn't she do a great job with the comments?

    P.S. Still chuckling? Hope so!

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  34. Lola! It's so wonderful to hear from you and see a blog post from you! And finally to see your garden--it looks so beautiful.

    We grow persimmons in our garden too, and I always thought they looked like tomatoes, only they are fruit and I think delicious to eat.

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  35. Hi dp, Thank you for you sweet words. Yes, I like the persimmons. The kind I have you can eat like an apple as they don't have seeds & they are not stringy like some. I let them ripen very good on the counter then I open & squeeze the pulp out, that way I can freeze for future use.

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  36. Hi Lola, it's me again. Loved having you at Terrafarmer..thanks.

    Tina, oh yes! Much as the post was wonderful, the comments-- equally so. I was back again drinking up all the words...I don't understand WHY Lola isn't at IT! (Till now, I mean.)

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  37. Lola,
    So good to hear from you and see your garden, which is lovely by the way.I was always so disappointed that I couldn't comment you. You must post again soon. Thank you for all of the nice comments you have left for me.
    machelle

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