Gardening as Winter Ends

Spring Countdown

 In 27 days on March 20 it will be spring.  I love the color burst of Spring. My love of this comes from my paternal Grandma.  Growing up, I helped her in her gardens.  I have fond memories of her yard in the spring bursting with colors.  I helped pull the weeds from around the roses.  While her children were growing up, she grew fruits and veggies.  She had plums, raspberries and blackberries when I was growing up. Summer flowers in Grandma's garden included: roses, zinnias, geraniums, peonies, pansies, petunias, snapdragons.  She had a second garden at the family cottage near Alexandria Bay, NY in the 1000 islands.  The flowers were in whiskey barrels at the entrance to the home.

 Backyard Visitors

Our suet feeder seems to attract a wide variety of Woodpeckers to my garden.  they enjoy the food in the winter we provide and in the warmer months they feast on the insects in the garden. It is nice to have a back yard habitat they enjoy. 

 My pond is right next to this feeder.  When it is warmer, the birds enjoy the waterfall and their bird bath at the top of it. Have you made a space that is friendly to local wildlife?  Always be kind ot others.  I was taught this by my Father and honor him by my practice of it.

 

 

 

 As I countdown to spring, the garden design is finished for the veggies.  Very happy to have a plan to grow by so I do not end up without space for a favorite vegetable.

 

As winter is winding down, my garden catalogs help me plan for the warm season.  As the designer in me is active, there as some new jewelry designs for spring, too.  Working on Earrings, necklaces, and bracelets in Copper and Sterling Silver. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Black Lives Matter

Free the People ROC is the group in Rochester, NY.  FB page  Free the People ROC

 I invite everyone to stand up, listen to others, be kind and be ready to support our sisters and brothers.  

 

#bekind

#blacklivesmatter 

#stopasianhate

#standup

#listen

#lovewins

 

 

 

 

Shop Small

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For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community. 

 

June is here and almost summer

 June is here and it is almost summer.  Summer begins unofficially Memorial Day weekend & official on the summer equinox, 6.20.21.

June is pride month in most of the US.  Here in Rochester, NY it is in July.  I believe in Equality, Diversity and Respect for all people. 

Being an artist I feel things in a different way than many do.  Many artists are empathic by nature which helps us create.  My empathy helps me identify with much of my environment. 

LOVE WINS!

Happy to have the warmer weather back in Rochester this past week. Our veggies are happy and we had the first harvest of full sized Kale last week.  The tatsoi mustard have been fantastic so far this year.  I have enjoyed them in salads and omelets regularly.  

Almost all the veggies are planted.  The cucumbers and bush beans are last to be transplanted. feels great to be finishing with the planting. 

 

Happy Iris trying to be closer to the fun on the left..  These are alongside my pool in the backyard.  The railing has weathered naturally because we like the gray color. 

 

 

Happy to have been given some bearded iris last year which have survived the winter and are looking stunning right now.  I will transplant to a better location for next year. We ran out of space in my beds last summer.  Always want room around plants when they are transplanted to allow for settling in and establishing into the new home. 

Now the hard part to choose where they go to live in a flower bed for their new home.  Likely will be group with another color to the beauty of the twi colors in the blooms for next year. 

Black Lives Matter

Free the People ROC is the group in Rochester, NY.  FB page  Free the People ROC

 I invite everyone to stand up, listen to others, be kind and be ready to support our sisters and brothers. 

#bekind

#blacklivesmatter 

#stopasianhate

#standup

#listen

 

Buy Local from the Maker

My shop:  Panda Wear Website
Facebook:  PandaWire Facebook
Twitter:  Panda Wear Gems  
Instagram: Instagram

Why shop small?  For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community.

Joy in my Spring Garden

Backyard Garden

The joy of the wildlife in the gardens this week was felt deeply by me. We had the privilege of seeing the cottontails courting so that means baby bunnies or kits as they are called.  The snow last week did not stop my greens from persevering.  they are all ding well and I should have some small leaves to harvest end of this week or early next week.  I was able to be outside within 10 feet of this one while she was eating for a whole and then she decided to come closer to me.  Maybe she wanted to be featured on the blog this week.

This beautiful wooly bear caterpillar was very active in the garden this week.  Sunning herself on this rock and moving around quickly to find the right spot to spend time.  She will become an Isabella Tiger Moth.  Hardy to many cold climates they are frequently seen in the fall in my gardens. Not sure what they prefer to eat that I seem to have,: do like to have them in the yard.  Please not not to pick them up, the hairs on them may cause reaction on your skin.  sometimes they are in the veggie garden.  planted the snow peas this past weekend.  One of my favorite things is to eat the fresh ones right out o the garden.

What is a garden without flowers you ask?  two of my easy to grow perennials in the garden.  Forget me nots, Myosotis or scorpion grass & primrose, Primula vulgaris.  they are  greeting me & the warm sunshine in the backyard flower bed in the early morning.  Fantastic way to start the day is a walk thru the yard and smell the flowers with a hot mug of green tea.  Spent time laying some cedar mulch into s few of the flower beds to prevent weeds taking over the areas. This is easiest to do in early spring before the weed seeds germinate.

Black Lives Matter

Free the People ROC is the group in Rochester, NY.  FB page  Free the People ROC

I invite everyone to stand up, listen to others, be kind and be ready to support our sisters and brouthers.  

#bekind

#blacklivesmatter 

#stopasianhate

#standup

#listen

 

Buy Local from the Maker

My shop:  Panda Wear Website
Facebook:  PandaWire Facebook
Twitter:  Panda Wear Gems  
Instagram: Instagram

 

Why shop small?  For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community.

This is my "diet" cupcake necklace.  Why not focus on what we want in a fun way?  great gift for the Mom who loves these or making them.  

May is Here with Warmth

 Garden

Lettuce & snowpeas

 Mother Nature is warming up this week and we will return to normal temperatures.Having been about 20 degrees below normal for about a month, it is slow growing in the garden.  My experience & knowledge has kept my plants alive.   I have small greens right now and harvested some voluntary Chard from the 2019 planting. this is an image form a warmer spring. 

 

Zinneas

Why I love gardening.... from my Grandma on my dad's side. Growing up I helped her in her gardens.  I have fond memories of her yard in the spring bursting with colors. Some of the flowers in Grandma's garden: roses, zinnias, geraniums, peonies, sweet potato vine,  pansies, petunias, snapdragons and many others.  She had a second garden at the family cottage up north of Alexandria Bay, NY in the 1000 islands. The flowers were in whiskey type barrels at the entrance to the front porch.  She was always happy to tell me the name of any flowers we saw.  My favorite up at the cottage was the wild snapdragons which were everywhere along the privet road.  An especially fun activity for me was walking up the hill with my father.  As I was coming back down with snapdragons.Grandma always put them in a glass on the kitchen table.

Gemstones

I sell rocks! Do you know a jewelry designer or small local Jewelry store?  As a lapidary,  I custom cut my own gemstones.  There are many one of a kind cabochons I sell both retail and wholesale.  Please feel free to contact me if you have a friend with a shop who uses one of a kind gemstones. .  The rocks I sell are available uncut as slabs for those who enjoy the lapidary work as I do.  Always happy to talk about rocks, gemstones and lapidary passion.  Links at the end of this post.

Challenges

As we move into the the third month of the Covid 19 pandemic here in my state I feel a bit unsettled . As an artist, I feel the isolation and the difficulty of how this is affecting so many in the USA. When will it end, I often ask myself.  The unprecedented way the federal government is handling this pandemic is appalling. I am proud to be in new York state because of the fantastic leader we have in governor Cuomo.  His leadership is an example of what we want to see in a time of crisis like this.  He has created partnerships with other states and together they are making decisions which will benefit the greater good of all those in the north eastern USA.  I am reminded of the feelings I had before & during my recovery after  my knee reconstruction 5 years ago.  The main difference is I felt the outcome was certain as long as focused on & worked my PT(physical therapy) daily.  To thrive we must focus on what we can control and the positive things we are learning daily.  We will survive this and we will be educated on what needs to be done the next time we face a crisis.  Stay strong, stay home, flatten the curve &  use your favorite video app on your phone or computer to stay connected with your family at this time.

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 In NY OMH Emotional Support Helpline: 1-844-863-9314

  help:https://omh.ny.gov/omhweb/covid-19-resources.html

May the spring season bring new growth and life into your world. 

Garden Visitors in my Backyard

My garden has two visitors every year.  depending on their mood we may see them infrequently or often.  The mallard & his mate stop by usually 2-4 times and eat the tadpoles in my pool cover.  I guess being their snack stop is a good thing.

As a lapidary & jewelry designer I am inspired by the visitors and look forward to seeing them. The deep green of the mallard reminds me of one of my favorite gemstones, kambaba jasper.  It is seen here in this necklace set in sterling silver, Seeds of Kambaba.  Yes there are several names for many gemstones.  This is the name I prefer for this stunning gem. Want a special Mother's Day gift,  please reach out.  I have an extensive inventory.

Before on left, action on right side

Our second visitor is more of a resident. She lives under my in ground pool.  She is a cottontail rabbit.Amazing  has had a litter each year that we have seen for the past 5 years.  We were lucky enough to see two of the babies about two weeks ago. One was bolder than the other.  The  shy baby seems to stay in the backyard and runs for cover frequently.  Because of how tiny she is, often we do not see her.   I managed to get these  pics  on the pond walkway last Friday. Rabbits blend in easily as shown here.



Remember, for every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community.  We are in this together..

            Buy Local from the Maker 

My shop:  Panda Wear Website

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Stay strong and know there are people if you need to talk.
 In NY OMH Emotional Support Helpline: 1-844-863-9314

more help:https://omh.ny.gov/omhweb/covid-19-resources.html

stay safe, flatten the cute, stay home during this cover 19 pandemic.

May Day 2020

The Calendar say it is May Day 2020.  Definition form Wikipedia for those unfamiliar with the celebration of spring on May Day:  May Day is a public holiday usually celebrated on May 1 or the first Monday of may.  It is an ancient festival of Spring and  current traditional spring holiday in many European cultures.  Dances, singing & cake are usually part of the festivities.You can read more here:  May Day details

This is temporary art I found in Taughannock Falls State Park in 2018.  It feels perfect for May Day today.

 The weeping cherry tree in my front yard.  As an avid gardener, I feel the change to spring strongly.  Especially this year with all the changes we have had to endure. It is painful to have to offer condolences from a distance.  Staying safe is vital to our recovery form this pandemic.

What we are dealing with is not forever.  We will get through this together and be wiser.  Please remember to be kind as you practice social distance and wear your PPE to go for a walk or go grocery shopping.  Stay strong and know there are people if you need to talk.  in NY OMH Emotional Support Helpline: 1-844-863-9314 more here:https://omh.ny.gov/omhweb/covid-19-resources.html

Time seems to move at a difference speed.  My last public event was Dance Flurry in Saratoga Springs Valentine's Day weekend, 2 months ago.  Banner over the stage in the room the vendors were in at right.  The BIG thing I will remember is the LOVE & TOGETHERNESS & ACCEPTANCE I felt at the event.  It was a phenomenal event to be part of and I hope t be able to attend next year.  Some of the participants only see each other at this event once a year.

Remember Mother's Day is one week away. As a small business owner I know how difficult it is at this time.  As a women owner business it is challenging to generate the income necessary to keep the business afloat.  We are counting our community to support all local business. 

For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community.  We are in this together.

       Buy Local from the Maker 

My shop:  Panda Wear Website

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Special orders welcome.

Yes it is Spring

As an avid gardener my spring plants for the veggie garden do not wait for the frost to go away.  They are large enough for transplant but my muddy garden is not ready for them.  There are both plus and minus to  homegrown plants.   My tomatoes are six inches tall right now & they smell fantastic.   We may try to remove & dry some of the soil to help them.


My giveback at this time is hosting an artist chat once a week.  Started last week.  Sure feels good to connect with like minded creatives right now.  Hard to be in isolation as an artist. Making a few new wearable works of wire art.

Working on adding more of my gemstones & finished jewelry to the website.  Time consuming to edit all the pics need to show the detail in the pieces.  Please take a look and let me know what you like.  Have some quarts points on FB and a few pewter beads for you to do your own DIY jewelry.  There are kits from $10 each for earrings.

Find memories of sisterhood from the trip to DC & our Womens' March on Washington 1/21/17.  Met some great ladies and felt a sense of sisterhood and love from the gathering.

Womens' March on Washington 2017

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Please remember to be kind.  We will get through this difficult time as long as we are together.  PM if interested in the Artist chats.Stay safe & show your love to others via face time, zoom or other social distancing choices.

Almost Summer - Rain Dance

Welcome to the end of Spring and anticipation of a great Summer here in Western NY.  Thursday is the Summer Solstice and it marks the official beginning of summer.  Try something new, find an event celebrating it and attend.

We would like some rain here in the garden it is dry here and nature give the best soaking water to the flowers and vegetables.  The snow peas are doing well,  even with the extra warmth this month.  Unseasonable 90's for the early part of June so far.




The Snow peas on the over 4 foot tall vines.  Our harvest in the past few days has been enough to know we can freeze some this year.

Happy to say the tomatoes are on track for the early July harvest.  We can hardly wait to enjoy the first salad with fresh homegrown tomatoes.  We grow all our vegetables from seeds.  With the dry here we are hoping for some rain good soaking rain.  Even made plans to dance in the rain when it arrives.  

What is growing in you gardens?  What are you pans for the summer? Are you ready to enjoy the sand between your toes?  We are and making some travel plans. 

Beach glass ring in Sterling Silver from Lake Ontario.  I only use natural glass created by the years and the water washing it over.  Inspired by the beauty and working on new designs.



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Albert Einstein  "The difference between Stupidity and Genius is that genius has it limits."

Happy Inspirational Monday

Hello and Happy Monday.  As we  nearing the end of Spring, we are grateful & enjoying the bounty of the spring greens.  The vegetables & flowers are doing well this year.  Happy this spring has not been super wet &  bit more ran would be welcome.   

Always grateful for topic suggestions by my followers. 

Some of the beauty found in the garden this week.  Our hope is to have red ripe tomatoes by the end of the 1st week of July.  May you find the joy we do in a hobby of your own.  Gardening is the one pleasure we have daily.  My recent travel has taught me it is universal pleasure to enjoy nature.  As I stopped to take photos in the Phoenix Botanical Gardens earlier this year,  the beauty of the musical voices of many cultures fell upon my ears.  We were all enjoying the same landscape and language was not necessary to understand the pleasure everyone was sharing. 


 As I gardener I was inspired by this quote by Tina Martin of Huffington Post  "No matter what situation is changing, don’t get discouraged! It’s uncomfortable, but great things never come from comfort zones. Embrace and welcome change. Consider it a blessing you needed but couldn’t make happen on your own. "

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Step outside your comfort zone and see what wonderful things develop. 

August How did this happen?

It is August and the summer is nearing the final hurrah.  Enjoy every moment.   The garden is tenacious because of all our compost it had received over the years.  We are happy to have a decent harvest at this point of the summer. Our experience and well enriched soil are why we have a successful garden.


Our harvest so far from the backyard garden:  beefsteak tomatoes, zucchini, cucumber, lettuce, tomatillo, kale, swiss chard, celery, thyme, oregano, sage, chives & fennel.  Several of them in this pic at right.  Green salsa = tomatillo salsa have been put away for later this year. One delicious way to use the salsa, is as a marinade. 

Went to the 2017 Flour City Brew Fest at the Rochester Public Market this past weekend.  It is a great way to enjoy the many unique and interesting creations by the talented brewers in my area. Certainly on the list of not to miss events for 2018.  A fantastic band, Grass is Dead was the headliner at the fest which made the event delightful.

Sterling silver or 14ktgf - which is my favorite metal to create with? This piece is Sterling & dichroic glass from a glass class from several years ago. 

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Enjoy your journey creating memories with your family through this beautiful season. 

April Garden Installed

April is rapidly coming to a close.  The vegetable garden is installed or planted and the growing season has begun. We are happy to have a few greens harvested and enjoyed so far this month. As my regular readers know I am an avid gardener.  My inspiration for my jewelry designs come from nature.

 






Planted in the ground so far are lettuce, mesclun, kale, broccoli, parsnips, leeks, & snow peas.  We have seedlings waiting to be installed:  tomatoes, cilantro, peppers, celery, kale, broccoli, & lettuce.

These lovely garden pics were taken this morning between the rain showers. A beautiful spring day here in Rochester, NY,





With Mother's Day quickly approaching, I have
a few orders to finish and deliver. Jubilant customers and soon to be happy Mothers.

 PM with your special requests or use links
 
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Vacation Relax Road Trip

Sandy Hook, NJ

 Where to begin sharing my adventure with you?  The idea for the Road Trip was to see friends & family in NJ & MD.  Started out Thursday morning and was home Tuesday night.  It was such a fantastic adventure for me meeting new people and reconnecting with others.  

Asbury Park, NJ

I believe these photos speak for themselves showing  the beauty of Mother Nature.  Big Thank you to an artist friend, Dawn in NJ for the scenic tour of Jersey.

Artisan Bench

 These next three photos are from Brookside Gardens in
Wheaton MD.  Difficult to choose my favorite one. The benches are in several places & stunning craftsmanship. Pretty Ivy in one of the conservatory and finally a Free library. 

Swedish Ivy

Free Library

I felt a kinship to this community in Montgomery County immediately when I saw this,Free Library.  It is just like the ones here in my home in Rochester, NY.

Have an enjoyable rest of your day.  May your gardens bring you joy every day and feed your dreams.



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