Occasionally the signs align perfectly, and an idea comes to me for a new online event. Today is July 1, and I went out to my garden and began harvesting from my garden this morning. As I set my newly gathered vegetables on my porch table, I noticed nearby my new copy of Anne Lamott’s…
Category: #Cottage Garden Living
In Writing and Painting, Be Specific – Learn to See the Differences with Contour Drawing
Learning to Write and Paint Is Dependent on a Person’s Ability to Dig Deep and to Be Specific. When I start new writing an painting students, I always tell them that having previous experience is not necessary. Sometimes, a person’s previous training is more detrimental than helpful because my approach to teaching is different. Regardless…
The Empty Lot of My Childhood – Mow It – Make A Path – Weed to Find the Way – Joy Comes in the Morning
On one scorching hot summer morning, I heard the ratcheting sound of lawn mowers firing up. I hoped the sound was coming from my yard. For days, feather-tufted spikes of Johnson Grass had been waving jubilantly in the wind. I rushed to the door to be sure that my ears were not deceiving me, and…
My Summer of Zinnias
Purple Zinnia – Jacki Kellum Watercolor Painting June 13, 2025 The summer of 2025 is my summer of painting zinnias. I love zinnias, and they are relatively easy to draw. I decided painting zinnias would be the least painful way for me to teach myself to paint again. Therefore, I am trying to paint zinnias…
Goldfinches in My Garden – They Love Eating the Sunflower Seeds from the Live Plants
American Goldfinch (Carduelis tristis)gun I have begun my third year of gardening in my current Mississippi garden, and I am thrilled the American Goldfinches have finally found me. What a difference two years of gardening have made. The first year I was here, I saw very few birds. But for years before that time, my…
What Is a Cottage Garden? What Is a Chaos Garden? Reasons to Garden Chaotically
Jacki Kellum Garden “The cottage-style garden is all about whimsy, soft lines, and classic blooms—like pansies, daisies, snapdragons, peonies, foxgloves, and delphinium—that might have been found in grandma’s garden.” Better Homes and Gardens Is a cottage garden the same as an English garden? “While both English and cottage gardens are known to include architectural elements…
God Is Light: He Feeds & Waters the World – from Psalm 104
Psalm 104 1 Praise the Lord, my soul. Lord my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty. 2 The Lord wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent 3 and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters. He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind. He…
What Is A Morning Chair? My Morning Chair Is Where I Can Be Still and Hear Myself Think
Over 30 years ago, the bank and I owned a perfect piece of land that I called my Mississippi Farm. It only had 25 acres, but in my rose-tinted glasses, the place looked perfect. One of the reasons I loved that little space was that it had a huge gully that rendered most of the…
What Is A Perennial? What Is An Annual? Often, The Lines Blur in Areas that Have Milder Climates
What Is A Perennial? A Perennial is a Plant that Reliably Returns Year after Year. Coneflowers Are Perennials Black-Eyed Susans Are Perennials What Is An Annual? Annuals Only Live One Year. Generally Speaking, They Must be Replanted Each Year. Bachelor Buttons Are Annuals Zinnias Are Annuals Almost all Vegetables Are Annuals In most cases, all…
Black Oil Sunflowers – How to Grow – What You Need to Know
Black Oil Sunflower Jacki Kellum Garden May 19, 2025 Although it is early, my first sunflowers bloomed today. I am delighted to say that I have sunflowers in my garden much earlier than I did last year. Because I kept my bird feeders stocked all winter, I am blessed with early sunflowers. I buy 3…