Some of you may not know this, but for a couple of months, I have gone out into my garden several times a week, and I have talked about what is or is not growing there. Quite often, my videos pivot into something that is rather philosophical, and I label those thoughts as “Learning from…
To Everything, There Is A Season – A Fable – The Moral: Look for the Beauty of Every Time of Year
Nothing sings the song of autumn more eloquently than a sunflower withering on its stem. Mid-July I was at a nursery, purchasing a perennial that had been marked as a clearance item. Like the sunflower in the above photo, that Black-Eyed Susan [Rudbeckia] had passed its season, and it had withered almost to nothingness. When…
The Importance of Planting Pollinators in Your Garden
I have written several posts about the pollinators I plant in my gardens. Generally speaking, I focus on planting perennial pollinators. But I also add several annual pollinators. For instance, I plant Heavenly Blue Morning Glory Vines EVERY year, and the morning glories I plant are annuals. What Is A Garden Annual? An annual is…
Growing Morning Glories – Remembering My Grandmother’s Garden – Memoir Monday – Joy Comes in the Morning & Thomas Wolfe: Some Things Will Never Change
For weeks, I have watched my morning glory vines as they have slowly and tediously twisted themselves into glorious blue tapestry that has woven itself around my garden. Morning Glory Vines at the Back of My Garden – July 15, 2024 During the early part of summer, I praised my morning glory vines as they…
The Outlaw Years: Land Pirates of the Natchez Trace – Homes and Life of the Pioneers
THE OUTLAW YEARS: THE HISTORY OF THE LAND PIRATES OF THE NATCHEZ TRACE by Robert M. Coates James Calk keeps a diary: 1775 Mon 13th [March?] “I set out from prince william to travel to caintuck. . . . “Thursday i6th We started early it rained Chief part of the day. . . . “Wednesday…
Cave-In-Rock, Illinois – Legends of Keelboats, Frontiers, and Native Americans on the Ohio River
Image Credit: Ohio Scenic River Byway The Cave “River pirates were some of the earliest settlers around Cave-in-Rock who preyed on the Ohio River flatboats, keelboats, and rafts, as profitable targets of goods, attacking the crews and pioneers who were easily overwhelmed and killed. … Wikipedia History “From the 1790s to the 1870s, the area around Cave-in-Rock was…
Native Primrose Plants Growing in My Mississippi Garden
Oenothera speciosa ‘Siskiyou’ Evening Primrosea Image Credit: Rare Roots Height: 12″ – 18″ “Oenothera speciosa ‘Siskiyou’ produces 2″ pink, cup-shaped flowers most of the early summer. Also called Evening Primrose or Pinkladies, Oenothera ‘Siskiyou’ blooms are open during the day. ‘Siskiyou’ is a rapidly spreading perennial plant that makes a deciduous ground cover, but it should…
The Ancient Celts: History, Religion, and Mythology
Anglo-CelticPeople “The true term for the population of these [British] islands, and for the typical and dominant part of the population of North America, is not Anglo-Saxon, but Anglo-Celtic. It is precisely in this blend of Germanic and Celtic elements that the British people are unique—it is precisely this blend which gives to this people…
Samhain – The Ancient Celtic Origin of Halloween – A Struggle to Light the Darkness
Over the years, I have read many explanations about the origin of Halloween. Until recently, no explanation stuck, but I am in the process of researching ancient civilizations, and I have begun to understand why and how the need to celebrate Halloween has been etched on our consciounesses. Before I begin this post, allow me…
Halloween – History and Mythology of an Ancient Harvest Festival
SUN-WORSHIP. THE SOURCES OF HALLOWE’EN “If we could ask one of the old-world pagans whom he revered as his greatest gods, he would be sure to name among them the sun-god; calling him Apollo if he were a Greek; if an Egyptian, Horus or Osiris; if of Norway, Sol; if of Peru, Bochica. As the…