Wednesday Vignette - Something Spooky is Going On

In Blogger land, something spooky is happening with my images.  For some reason, Google Albums won't let me upload images and has removed some of them from my blog.  I'll try again later to post what I intended for today but if not, let's pretend this is a whole bunch of ghosts in a blizzard and call it good. (Oops, when I write these, the background is white, not black so we'll need to change that image to a bunch of bats on a very dark night. 



















Happy Halloween!

Wednesday Vignette is hosted by Anna at Flutter and Hum.  Click here to join in the party.

P.S. After doing some computer clean up, wringing my hands, writing to Google feedback, and waiting a while, everything seems to be back in order.  Maybe there was a ghost in my computer and not at Google Albums.


My eldest sister inherited the title "The Old Bat" upon the death of our mother 13 years ago.  The Bat is dead, long live the bat we cheered after an appropriate interval of mourning, of course.   Since her birthday is only a couple of days before All Hallows Eve, her title is especially appropriate.  The Bat is very thoughtful and sends cards for every occasion and this one simply needed to be shared with you.  Notice how sweet her jack-o-lanterns are and how naughty mine look.  Pretty much sums up our personalities.

May you have a sweet Halloween!

In Search of the Great Pumpkin

Once again this year, we visited a pumpkin patch.  While the wide variety of squashes on display is the main attraction, watching the young families in attendance is an equal delight.  How refreshing to see children enjoying something other than their electronic devices.

Pretty and tasty!

I wonder if children who only visit the farm at this time of the year think that pumpkins appear out of the ground lined up like this?

Waiting in the wings.

Is it the Great Pumpkin?

While lots of folks were using these giants for photo opportunities, they were also for sale and could be loaded into your vehicle with a forklift.  Now, how do you get that out once you're home?

A fraction of the food vendors.  Halloween has become so much different from what it was when I was young.  Now it's become a month-long carnival and, for many family farms, this has become a cash cow. 

A few small glass pumpkins.  

Inside the store, Halloween merchandise has taken over.  

I love these silly trick-or-treaters.

However, I wasn't tempted to bring any more home. 

Note the eyeball decorations on the trees. 

I hope you're enjoying the bounty of the season!

In a Vase on Monday - No Tricks, Just Autumn Treats

In a Vase on Monday is graciously hosted by Cathy at Rambling in the Garden.  Click here to see more Monday Vases!

In the neighborhood near the church where I work there are a couple of maple trees whose large  leaves are burgundy all summer but in autumn, the leaves change to all sorts of colors from lemon yellow, orange, scarlett, and almost purple.  They're nice on the tree but each individual leaf is gorgeous all by itself.  Each fall, I find myself gathering loads of them from the sidewalk.  The size is perfect for making leaf roses.  The parking lot of the nearby everything store (Fred Meyer,) where we shop after work, is also full of these trees and I can't stop picking them up to more closely appreciate each one.  People must think me a bit odd but I'm delightfully past the age of caring what people think.  Life is too short not to enjoy every bit of the abundant beauty all around us.

Some of the gathered leaves are a major player in today's "vase,"  a ghost pumpkin.  Since I cut the top off, it must be the holey ghost, right?   To get a little more height, I taped some of the leaves on bamboo  plant stakes.

The Callicarpa berries from last week's vase were still looking good so they made their way in as well along with some Sarracenia "pitchers" that are starting to change color.  I can't bring myself to cut them when they're still green but at this time of year it's an easier choice.

 Joining the arrangement are two trick-or-treaters - Tom

and Peter

 And some more Poncirus trifoliata 'Flying Dragon'  (hardy citrus) fruits.  I wish they stayed on the shrub longer as they are stunning on the bare thorny branches but they are interesting to have inside once they fall.

Happy new week and may your Halloween be full of treats!

The Rhododendron Species Garden - My Walktober Post

I heard about the Walktober Meme on Eliza Waters' blog last year and decided it would be fun to participate. It's a wonderful bookend for Les's Winter Walk Off in March.  Walktober is hosted by Robin at Breezes at Dawn.  Click here to see more or better yet, to share your own Walktober post.

On Saturday, I visited the Rhododendron Species Foundation Garden to enjoy the first day of their fall festival that included a plant sale and was delighted to run into Riz and Camille browsing among the offerings.   A day of delights: plant sale, garden, and friends!

A view from the parking lot on the former Weyerhauser campus. 

A path leading into the garden. 

Most of the plants offered by the RSG were 50% off and the event continues through the 27th!

One of the vendors specializes in Acer palmatum which are putting on quite a show at the moment. 

More sales tables. 

Schefflera  fengii 

Windcliff Plants brought some treasures including Galanthus reginae-olgae, the fall-blooming snowdrop that blooms here between October and December.

Hostas are beautiful even in decay.  I love how these huge plants melt into nothing. 

One of my favorite winter plants, Meconopsis paniculata.

Dogwood fruit

The Alpine Garden

Schefflera hoi in the foreground.

 Microbiota decussata, a Siberian native, hardy to zone 3, looked very soft and almost fern-like.

Everything in this area was dwarfed by this gorgeous old tree. 

Who would have thought?  

Hope you enjoyed today's walk.  There will be a bit more from this garden in a later post.