Green Thumb Sunday

My fall crocus (colchicum) are blooming. I got the bulbs several years ago from a customer.
They are a very simple bloom but I do love them. The only thing I don't like is the large leaves they produce in the spring. They make it hard to decide where to put them.
They sure make a nice show in the fall so they are definitely worth planting.
I love the color. My problem with bulbs is I forget where I plant them and end up disturbing them to plant something else.
Do you do that too or are you a planner? Do you put everything down on paper and plan before you plant?

It's a nice cool morning so I'm off to plant some mums and dig out some invasive violets. Have a great day!

The signs of Fall

The signs of Fall are all around my yard.







Are there signs in your yard?

The Bean

Susie suggested I join "Show and Tell Friday" since my bean is so interesting. I decided to give it a try so will leave this post up another day.

Welcome to “Show and Tell Friday!” Do you have something special to share with us? It could be a trinket from grade school, a piece of jewelry, or a treasured collection. Look around your home for something to share; dig through those boxes in your closet if you have to! Share photos and the story that goes with your special item.To check out all involved in "Show and Tell Friday" go to Kellies Place

This bean has been in a small brown envelope in a drawer in my Mom's secretary for as long as I can remember. I have no idea how old it is or where it came from. All I know is we (my brother and I) have always been fascinated by the bean.

As you can see by the picture it is a very small bean. The little "stem" in the top is made from ivory.

So what is with this bean? It is full of ...
(click to enlarge and see details)

ELEPHANTS!
Yes, inside this very tiny bean are 10 carved ivory elephants. The elephants are about the size of the flame on the dime. That's pretty tiny.
Are you fascinated now? Have you ever seen anything like our bean?

Fall preperations

Laurie and I went to our favorite nursery yesterday to get some mums. I have tried to plant and save mums but they never seem to make it. I usually just by the ones sold in the grocery store. This year we decided to buy them at the nursery and plant some. The nursery was actually cheaper and of course had more varieties. We both got 4 for $11. By the time we left Mr Tate had given us each 4 more. He said he had way too many so we might as well take them. It sure pays to go to the same place several times every year. Now all I have to do is figure out where to put them all.We also went to the vegetable stand and got some gourds. I got a bunch of corn stalks,too. It was fun getting them home in my car!
Today I hauled out all the fall decorations and they are all over my basement.I just need time to put them up now.

Mr Tate had some ornamental kale also. I have never grown this but I am fascinated with it. I didn't bring any home because I don't know what to do with it. Have you ever grown any? What's your opinion of it?

Completed Dining Room

Today I'm going to show you my finished dining room. I just needed a little change and did most of it using a dollar box of wood and a dollar box of boxes that I got at an auction.Here is my book case with the tea cups.
The shadow box I made in memory of my Mom is centered over the book case. The cheese box with my childhood tea cups is on the right. A small collection of my chairs is on top with the chair and candle setting on some wood pieces.
I changed a little in my secretary but mostly added green candles and a green doily to bring the green color to the area.
I found this fern candle at Big Lots and have it setting on another wood piece with a large doily underneath. I really like the contrast between the wood and the doily. This is on my Great Grandmother's drop leaf table in the center of the room.

This is the other side of the room. The book case is to the right of the window.
I put the green cupboard door with the ferns that I made, in the corner.
The window with dried ferns is over the mantle piece. The collection of junk using wood pieces is on the left . A couple boxes from the box of boxes are in the middle. The picture is a view of Germany on glass that was from my Grandfather.
This grouping is on the right. The vase was my Mother's and the green material is a camouflage scarf from my Grandfather's Army uniform. There is another picture on a piece of baseboard on the wall.
An old crate holding a fern and the rocking chair I got at the auction.
That completes my dining room make over. I had fun using the stuff I bought at the auction. To see how I made or put things together, just click on the item and you will go the that post.I still have more windows and pieces of wood so we'll see where they turn up.

The winner is....

At 12 o'clock on the dot..
I emptied Jerzie's shape bucket...
and put in 11 pieces of paper with 11 names.

Jerzie put her hand in...
and pulled out 1 piece of paper...
(she "read" it before she gave it to me) then she laid it on the floor.

(She had so much fun with 1 that she kept on!)
SUSIE! YEAH!!!!!!!

You are the winner of the Smelly Jelly and note pads! Just pick out which scent you want of the 4 and e-mail me your address. Thank you all for your nice comments! You are all winners in my book!

Green Thumb Sunday

I'm excited about my GTS post today for a couple reasons. I bought my first Angel Trumpet (Datura) plant a long time ago. I planted it in a pot for the deck and enjoyed it for several years, over wintering it in the basement. I lost it a few years ago. I've bought a couple since but couldn't get them to last. This year I didn't find one.
I also have a Calla lily that I keep in the basement (For some reason the leaves grow great but it hasn't flowered in a couple years. Any suggestions?) In mid summer I noticed something else growing in the Calla pot. There were 3 Angel Trumpet plants! I transplanted them into their own pot but didn't pay much attention to them because they were still small. Last week I noticed that there was a bud.
When I got out of work at 10 Friday night I saw that the bud had opened. They usually open at night or when it's cloudy.

The second reason I'm excited is because I got a new camera with a night setting and decided to try it out.

I'm very happy with my first attempt at night pictures.
The only thing I did to them is a little cropping and some softening of the edges.
I couldn't pick a favorite so I had to post them all.
Just one daytime shot.
It's in the 30's here but sunny so I'm going out to do a little work in the garden. Click on the button on the sidebar for a list of all GTS participants.
Happy Green Thumb Sunday! Enjoy!

Dining room

Here is another way I used my auction "stuff". This shelf is a cheese box that I got in the box of boxes. It says Blue Chip on the sides and appears to be for packages of blue cheese. The box is only about an inch and a half deep so I just hung it on the wall the long way. I cut an old stained hanky in half, corner to corner and laid it in the bottom. Inside are a cup and saucer from my childhood "Blue Willow"dish set, a flower cup and saucer made by my Mom's best friend in her 20's and a tiny tea set from "occupied Japan" one of my uncles gave me as a child. I also took down the shelf over my windows where I had my cup and saucer collection.
I moved them all into my Great Grandmother's book case.
It's a nice change. I like change, especially when it doesn't cost anything!
Don't forget to sign up for my give away before Monday noon.