The Mega Pawsitive Fundraiser

[1CatOverTheLine]

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R raysmyheart - It's really a lovely ornamental; it's nice to see the flower structure as well!


tarasgirl06 - Here's the Hybrid Redbud - 'Ace Of Hearts' - I think it's the latest-blooming of the Easterns. Just about ninety days later than your Western here in Zone almost-six!

 

[raysmyheart]

These flowers are growing in the woods surrounding my yard, I remember these every year even as far back as my childhood. I used to call them wild geraniums, but I wonder if they are a Mallow flower?

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

These flowers are growing in the woods surrounding my yard, I remember these every year even as far back as my childhood. I used to call them wild geraniums, but I wonder if they are a Mallow flower?
View attachment 234224 View attachment 234225

R raysmyheart - You're right - they're Vervain Mallow (Malva alcea). I used to love coming on them at the edge of clearings on portages when canoe-tripping. There's something almost magical about these humble little flowers.
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[tarasgirl06]

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R raysmyheart - It's really a lovely ornamental; it's nice to see the flower structure as well!


tarasgirl06 - Here's the Hybrid Redbud - 'Ace Of Hearts' - I think it's the latest-blooming of the Easterns. Just about ninety days later than your Western here in Zone almost-six!

View attachment 234209

They look very like mine. Aren't they beautiful trees, with their red buds, pink blooms, and heart-shaped leaves? I'm so glad my little stick survived and thrives. It is getting big and will shade the master bedroom area next year, I'm sure.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

They look very like mine. Aren't they beautiful trees, with their red buds, pink blooms, and heart-shaped leaves? I'm so glad my little stick survived and thrives. It is getting big and will shade the master bedroom area next year, I'm sure.

tarasgirl06 - Mine isn't as full as yours as far as budding goes, but they surely do grow quickly. Yes - I think that nearly every variety of Redbud is amazing, although I'm not as impressed with the purple leafed varieties - 'Ruby Falls' and 'Merlot' as most people on the garden forums seem to be. They're certainly different, but the leaves reduce the contrast between themselves and the flowers. Maybe I just need new glasses?


A bit cooler here than predicted - always a good thing - and from the look of the radar, the rain marching slowly across the Great Lakes is beginning to get a little tailwind now, and (hopefully) will get here just about nightfall. The lawn is just beginning to lose a bit of its colour, and rain will really be appreciated.

Here's a chap who hasn't lost any colour at all - an Eastern Milk Snake, who apparently was shading himself between rock and tree until my movement startled him. On the way back from the woods, I took a different route, and was glad to see that he'd retaken his original position, seemingly getting in an afternoon nap in the heat of the day.

Edit: Yeah, yeah, yeah... I can see that it's time to sharpen up the edging shovel and redefine that sloppy bed. Come oooooonnnnnn Winter!!!!!


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[Jcatbird]

I am so thrilled this thread continues. It was one of my first discoveries when I found this wonderful site. I have been given the companionship of so many loving cat people here. The laughter shared is always a positive thing! For me the past year has been a good one with many kitties rescued, Spay/neutered, vetted, tamed and adopted out. I got unexpected help from out of the blue. I got support from many of you here on the site. Thank you! Spring brought beautiful flowers and warm, fuzzy kitties. It also brought fantastic kitty adoptions. Purrfection! Pawsitively positive!

 

[tarasgirl06]

Yes, Jcatbird -- TCS members are such a wonderful group of people, from all over the world, all ages, persuasions, ideologies, etc., and the one thing that unites us all is our love of the most beautiful and amazing beings, cats. I'm so glad to read your post!
1CatOverTheLine What a beautiful snake! I miss "our" resident Pine-Gopher snake, named oh so originally by me, Slither. The folks who bought our home said they would not harm her as my ex explained she is not poisonous and eats rodents, of whom there are many in the Mojave (sorry, rats and mice. No harm meant). She was probably about 7' when I left there.

 

[Jcatbird]

@tarasgirl106 and 1CatOverTheLine Love the beautiful snakes! Positive I love them. Lol. We need them to help the kitties with the rodent issues. I have an Indigo here that is very friendly and tame. Also a King snake that keeps the kitties safe from the toxic reptiles. Good guys! Great pictures!

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

1CatOverTheLine What a beautiful snake! I miss "our" resident Pine-Gopher snake, named oh so originally by me, Slither. The folks who bought our home said they would not harm her as my ex explained she is not poisonous and eats rodents, of whom there are many in the Mojave (sorry, rats and mice. No harm meant). She was probably about 7' when I left there. View attachment 234279

tarasgirl06 - Now that's a snake! I thought that big twenty inch fellow was good sized (he is compared to our tiny garter snakes, ribbon snakes and racers), but seven feet! Holy jumpin' Jerboas - that is, as Jerry Lee Lewis was so often wont to say, "a whole lotta snakin' goin' on!"
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[ileen]

Yesterday on the way home from work, I saw a chocolate lab puppy in the window of a pet store. There is an area where people can play with the animals up front, but no one was in there with her. I went in & asked if I could play & was told yes. She was incredibly high energy, probably teething & very interested in chewing & scratching me. After she pulled hard enough on my beaded bracelet to break it & send beads scattering around, I picked most up as best I could, but I'm sure she ate a few. They're tiny beads so no harm to her, but I decided I had enough for one day. The pawsitive? She made me appreciate my sometimes-aggressive cat a lot more!

 

[tarasgirl06]

1CatOverTheLine Yeah, she was -- and hopefully still is -- a beautiful creature! *IDK the gender, but have always called Slither "she" because well, you have to choose, right?* We also had red racers, sidewinders, and Mojave Greens up there. One time I walked up to the henhouse and surprised a Green having lunch -- the hind end of a rat was sticking out of the snake's mouth. *Sorry, I love rodents too, but that was what was happening. It's nature.* I high-tailed it back to the house, called my then-husband and told him about it. He just told me to use a flashlight when going walking at night, so as not to surprise anyone like that. We lived and let live. Once he found a juvenile rattler and carried it over to the undeveloped land across the road. We don't believe in killing those who have a right to live on their own land and are not harming us.
ileen -- two words: CATS RULE. *and I'll just leave it at that.*

 

[foxxycat]

These flowers are growing in the woods surrounding my yard, I remember these every year even as far back as my childhood. I used to call them wild geraniums, but I wonder if they are a Mallow flower?
View attachment 234224 View attachment 234225

I dug up some of these in the woods by work. They are now growing under neath my pine tree. The area where they cleared all the trees by work ticked me off because there were yards of these wood gereniums or whatever they are called. I am going to pedal by the same area tomorrow and bring my plastic grocery bag and hand shovel to dig up any remaining ones. I have tons of woods behind my house that would be moist n shady for these beauties.

Tonight's photos:
Nightshade petunias. The purple is darker than shown. I ran out of flowers to plant lol. Gonna get geraniums for the last box since they hold up to drought much better than petunias.

Love all the photos!!

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

We lived and let live. Once he found a juvenile rattler and carried it over to the undeveloped land across the road. We don't believe in killing those who have a right to live on their own land and are not harming us.

tarasgirl06 - Absolutely; they were here first - we're living on their land, not the other way 'round. I've only ever encountered Eastern Timber Rattlesnakes and Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnakes. The Massasaugas are as timid as mice, and would run away from a kitten; those tiny little Timber Rattlers will chase a Tyrannosaur up a tree just for fun. Their venom is equal to your Mojave Rattlesnake, and they're probably just about as aggressive as well. I like snakes, but I'll keep clear of anybody on the top ten list.

A little too breezy tonight for a better shot of the Laburnum, but it's getting stronger:

The Tulips in the foundation bed have been trimmed back, and hopefully that shaped bed will fill up with foxxycat 's Night Sky Petunias very shortly.
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[Lari]

Signed my contract for next year and 6.5 more days with the students. Love them, but I'm definitely looking forward to summer! (I really need to get to the gym again. )

Lelia's chilling in the bathtub. This has been one of her new favorite spots lately. It must feel nice and cool in this heat or something. She's so weird, but I still love her so much.

 

[foxxycat]

tarasgirl06 - Absolutely; they were here first - we're living on their land, not the other way 'round. I've only ever encountered Eastern Timber Rattlesnakes and Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnakes. The Massasaugas are as timid as mice, and would run away from a kitten; those tiny little Timber Rattlers will chase a Tyrannosaur up a tree just for fun. Their venom is equal to your Mojave Rattlesnake, and they're probably just about as aggressive as well. I like snakes, but I'll keep clear of anybody on the top ten list.

A little too breezy tonight for a better shot of the Laburnum, but it's getting stronger:

View attachment 234334

The Tulips in the foundation bed have been trimmed back, and hopefully that shaped bed will fill up with foxxycat 's Night Sky Petunias very shortly.
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You can order seeds on ebay. Its not too late to start from seeds. You will have flowers by August then harvest seeds for next year IF they are not sterile. I harvest seeds but they never come back as that color. Either dark pink or purple the following year. And a field of petunias is always pawsitive!

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

I harvest seeds but they never come back as that color. Either dark pink or purple the following year. And a field of petunias is always pawsitive!

foxxycat - Blame the bees. Petunias are extremely easy to pollinate, and bees refuse to coöperate when you ask them only to collect and distribute pollen from a single cultivar. You can ask tarasgirl06 about it since she talks to the bees, but I doubt that they listen to her either.

I found a nursery here that has Night Sky in flats, ready to roll. I'll amend the soil at the front of the foundation bed today, and will probably pick up a dozen 24s on Sunday. That's six inches apart over 150 feet, so they should spread in pretty quickly.




Our overnight shower turned out to be little more like a leaky faucet than a shower, and as the storm passed by, it brought with it a windy, blustery day. Hopefully the rain predicted for Sunday-into-Monday will be better organised. If not, what the heck - I have the three Cs - Cats, Coffee and Chocolate!
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[tarasgirl06]

Lari Cats tend to LOVE sinks and bathtubs and such in hot weather -- cool and smooth and private! There have been several tubcats, sinkcats and even (shower) tilecats in this fumily.
1CatOverTheLine Naw, they ignore me. We have detente. I was stung by one poor soul in the Mojave -- I walked up behind some of our outbuildings and a colony (or part of one, anyway) was surprised by my presence, so two of them took out after me. I ran, but one of them got lodged in my temple right by my eye. I wasn't sure the outcome, as I have a cousin who's allergic to bee venom and I'd never been stung, but apart from some pretty intense pain at the site, I came out ahead of the poor girl who gave her life and her stinger for her people.
*My mom used to say she loved the 3 C's, in her case being cats, candy and cash. For me, it's cats, computers, and credit cards, of course.* Pix, plx, of your plantings.
Our beloved angel Maryam in the sink.

 

[segelkatt]

1CatOverTheLine Yeah, she was -- and hopefully still is -- a beautiful creature! *IDK the gender, but have always called Slither "she" because well, you have to choose, right?* We also had red racers, sidewinders, and Mojave Greens up there. One time I walked up to the henhouse and surprised a Green having lunch -- the hind end of a rat was sticking out of the snake's mouth. *Sorry, I love rodents too, but that was what was happening. It's nature.* I high-tailed it back to the house, called my then-husband and told him about it. He just told me to use a flashlight when going walking at night, so as not to surprise anyone like that. We lived and let live. Once he found a juvenile rattler and carried it over to the undeveloped land across the road. We don't believe in killing those who have a right to live on their own land and are not harming us.
ileen -- two words: CATS RULE. *and I'll just leave it at that.*

Snakes freak me out. Any kind of snake. I did not grow up in a country with poisonous snakes, only one little one living in the woods which would not kill you but you should go see a doc. We did have some other snakes which were not poisonous, apparently some really big ones but I never saw any of those besides in a zoo. When I first came to the US, to Texas to be exact, I was told about all these snakes and that they were deadly: Rattlesnakes, Gila Monsters, Cottonmouths, Sidewinders, Coral Snakes etc, enough to make me not walk on anything but asphalt for fear of some snake coming out of the grass or bushes and killing me. Now I live in Calif, not so many snakes and I live in a civilized part where hardly any snakes live, including harmless ones. I still don't go camping, even a picnic is not a favorite occupation. I miss being able to walk in woods or any kind of wilderness, but that introduction to poisonous snakes in Texas has really traumatized me. When I lived in WA and visited Montana I felt safe to walk anywhere as these poisonous snakes apparently do not live in those much colder places, but SoCal is home now and I can't stand the cold anymore. To each his own, I'm happy where I am and that's positive in almost anyone's book .

 

[raysmyheart]

foxxycat and 1CatOverTheLine , these Night Sky petunias are intriguing to me and I hope to hear more about these gorgeous flowers, for sure! This is the first year I am hearing of them and the blooms indeed look like a beautiful sky at night with stars shining at various intensities like jewels on the petals!

tarasgirl06 , That is such a beautiful photo of your precious angel Maryam.

The day is so sunny and clear here. It is 75F but feels a bit warmer to me, I do love the heat!


The sound of birds is wonderful, I can hear them, very busy it seems. Today I am putting up a small glass hummingbird feeder, it will be my first ever of this kind.

Tomorrow is the day our local farmstand will open for the Summer 2018 season!

The shrubs in my front yard are still in bloom and I am trying to appreciate the flowers and bees while they are here.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

Lari Cats tend to LOVE sinks and bathtubs and such in hot weather -- cool and smooth and private! There have been several tubcats, sinkcats and even (shower) tilecats in this fumily.
1CatOverTheLine Naw, they ignore me. We have detente. I was stung by one poor soul in the Mojave -- I walked up behind some of our outbuildings and a colony (or part of one, anyway) was surprised by my presence, so two of them took out after me. I ran, but one of them got lodged in my temple right by my eye. I wasn't sure the outcome, as I have a cousin who's allergic to bee venom and I'd never been stung, but apart from some pretty intense pain at the site, I came out ahead of the poor girl who gave her life and her stinger for her people.
*My mom used to say she loved the 3 C's, in her case being cats, candy and cash. For me, it's cats, computers, and credit cards, of course.* Pix, plx, of your plantings.
Our beloved angel Maryam in the sink. View attachment 234442

tarasgirl06 - What a lovely photo of Maryam; this really should be where everyone can see it:

Cats and sinks?

When I lived in the city, the house had a big old copper-roofed tower. One evening I noticed something sticky on the ceiling in the library, and of course, it turned out to be honey. Took me two days to locate a beekeeper willing to come out and capture Queen and colony rather than killing them. Bee Boxes! Who knew?



Here's the wrap-around of the shaped bed where the Night Sky Petunias will be going:

The six by ten foot flag? Well, the front screen door is beginning to fade a little; it hasn't been painted in fifteen years. I have too many Summer projects going, and it can wait until Autumn, so the solution was, "put up a bigger flag." Works like a lazy man's charm!

Last night, at the front of the naturalised border which forms the divider between lawn and woods (my neighbour calls it, "the sloppy area," but it serves to conceal and to house lots of little animals, and becomes Ground Zero for Fireflies in mid-Summer):

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The Sloppy Area​

the Hesperus were beginning to take on some colour. These lovely cruciform, cruciferous crusaders (they are four-petalled, related to cabbage, and multiply like weeds) spread across the high bank in June and July, almost obscuring the deer trail which follows the ridge line:

Whaddya gotta do for these smashing spikes of colour? Nothing. Nada. Zip. They'll grow in acid or alkaline; wet or dry; sun or shade. They keep coming back year after year just like an evil Snowshoe bad penny. They were here when I bought the place, and will doubtless be here long after I'm gone.



Edit:

Snakes freak me out. Any kind of snake. I did not grow up in a country with poisonous snakes, only one little one living in the woods which would not kill you but you should go see a doc.

segelkatt - Aspisviper oder Kreuzotter?
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