I get by with a little (lot) help from my friends.....

If you happened to find yourself on our Flower Tree FB page a few days ago you already know that I still have a LOT of plants to get into the ground before old man winter sets in. I seem to be more of a "plant hoarder" as the years have gone by. I see all of the strikingly beautiful plants drift through the nursery over the season and say "I just have to have that one, and that one, and that one, just one......more plant, one more pot to fill, one more arbor", and then it gets way to busy for me to actually do anything with them. Well......you get the pic.

19 roses, untold perennials, pots of surprises given to me over the season by fellow gardeners, herbs by the dozen, a bunch of bulbs, 5 trees, a few shrubs and .......yes ..the list goes on and on.........all of these living things that just want to put their roots IN THE GROUND!


Enter my fellow dirt diggers.....first there was a little bit of disbelief, "You have what to plant?" , "How many roses!!!" , "Where are you going to put everything?", and then ...the music to this gardeners ears, "Hey, do you want some help?"

So on a magnificently beautiful fall day, with the sun shining, no wind and the husband in charge of a smoked rib BBQ in the backyard for when we were done, we set out to plant some more of my little plot of earth.


Sooz changing the direction of the path.....

roses placed in position .........we are ready to do some major diggin' 

 

want to know the meaning of "perfect timing"??? it's when you encounter a 6" root that needs to be cut out, and a 10' volunteer elm that needs to be chopped down at THE EXACT SAME TIME you hear the neighbors chainsaw fire up across the street...(Thank you Ray for coming to our rescue)

the menfolk hear power tools so they come outside to investigate 

 Jaime takes being a vegetarian to a new level.......

 Bob using his machete skills he learned in Hawaii, we all stood VERY far away

 the stubborn cottonwood roots that still show up everywhere,
long after the trees are gone

 "dirt diggers" are us!
THANK YOU LADIES!!

 what we planted around the perimeter, 10 more Burgundy Iceberg Roses :}

a little advance preview of what the entire courtyard is going to look like come Spring, here is a shot of one of the established plants that is still in full bloom now

and a perfect end to the evening......belly full, spirit overflowing and the almost full autumn moon comes up over the horizon as I wander out after everyone has headed home.....just to gaze at what a little dirt under the fingernails, and a whole lot of friendship can bring together.

The Ghouls come out to play

Our guest sommelier for the evening led us down an extraordinary wine path......

 

 
What a blast......only thing missing was more photos.....sorry to all of those that I missed.....some pretty amazing creative wardrobes were on display tonight....see you next year for another "Dead Zin Ghoulish Gathering"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gather as you Go ~ 2012

Couldn't have asked for a prettier fall day as we prepared for today's "Gather as you Go" workshop. This is one of my favorite classes that Michelle teaches. Gardeners arrive, and with pruners in hand they wander through the nursery and out to the back display garden and clip anything that catches their eye. Crab apple branches filled with berries, sea oats and cat tails from the pond, dried echinacea flowers, juniper branches and vibrant leaves from the Autumn Purple Ash fill their arms as they head back to the tables. Then with Michelle's guidance they arrange the abundance of colors and textures into a carved out pumpkin to make a beautiful porch arrangement, centerpiece or gift for a friend. Try this one at home, and if you don't think you have enough selections to prune from....come on down, and have your fill out in Linny's garden. We will even loan you a set of pruners if need be. Just one more small way for us all to savor this beautiful season. ~ Enjoy, Susan