Updated Garden Pics and Easy Mosquito Repellent

Hello lovelies!

I just HAD to post pics from just a week ago, of the growth of the things I planted and the absolutely crazy lemongrass! which literally began to grow back within the hour of cutting it! My housemate said when he moved the pot that he saw it grow up since I had just cut it and I thought he was nuts. But he said 'look'! and I looked closer and saw that indeed the stem has sprouted up from the cut place as it was not flat where I had cut it, but rounded and taller! The very next day it had grown inches! my jaw opened in shock I could not close it! :-0 ! Check out the pots on either side of Lampost Square here This is before:

and today:

This is one weeks growth people! :D

Some new pics to compare: before.......

 today...........AND ! I topped off a few of these tomatos as they had gotten too tall and leggy ! ;-0



BEFORE.......

 I peeked beneath the straw and the basil and parsley seeds have sprouted....they are all in front.....




I planted this Front Porch Patch....with zuchini, peppers, and tomato, and LOTS OF FLOWER SEEDS LOLOL.....I intend to have more flowers this year than ever before! we shall see......

and today..........

 

the bougainvillia has grown lots of leaves all over its thick base already, the summer should have flowers.

this is the circle.....also planted with lots of seeds and gladiolas which are coming up already in a week. I can't stand the waiting! I get up every morning and run out to see what has sprouted and grown. I really can't stand waiting! :D

the grass looking things are the gladiolas.......around 25-30 should come up......:D:D:D AND I planted alot of seeds in all the vacant spots......edible nasturtiums, cosmos, marigold etc.....I can't wait. This Circle should have NO bare spots at all in several weeks! :D

my mandevilia is sprouting ALOT of flowers along this vine which keeps growing new shoots and taller by the day!

I love the antique colors of this bougainvillia......looks beautiful in the sun.

 

 

from the original veggie patch......

THE berry LOLOL..........but it is sweet! see that broken stem? I ate it LOLOL

basil galore.......

 only some of the seeds I've planted........I really am having a hard time waiting for them to grow :-/   :D

my room today....my housemate John brought home the pink and white flowers I wanted, HE DID GOOD! 
pink and white and silver! to die for !

And now for the Easy Mosquito Repellent recipe. Sorry for blurry pic, but I'm just not into long photo shots.
We have lots of mosquitos here and when it rains, they are horrid. But to make your property smell divine and be mosquito free is heavenly! I made a spray for skin use which I talk about here.
But this one is just for the area, not for skin. I use Florida Water as a base to just disperse the essential oils in, because essential oils do not mix with water, but do mix well in alcohol. And this Florida Water does smell very nice on its own. I use about a 1/5 cup of Florida Water. Then I add about 30 drops each of citronella, basil, and thyme. Mix it well, then add water to top off. Spray the areas needed. I did it this morning as I went out to just sit on my chair and I could not because dozens of mosquitos were out to kill. Then I made this, went back out to the porch, let them all out by pulling up the curtains, sprayed everything alot, they scurried out, then put the curtains back down and all day they have stayed away. I shall see how long they stay away. But even if its just a day, it works fine. My housemate says the one for the skin works for him beautifully and this one works well to keep them away from his seating area. I also spray the top of the water of my water barrel and the water fountains. No chemicals, it smells wonderful and lasts (at least) the day. I love it.
Enjoy!
Ha! update!. 2 days and still no 'mosquits' or very very few, not to be seen unless you hunt for them! Love it!

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Garden & Home Pics for Pammie

Hi Pammie, my darling Angel!

And all the other lovelies from blog land!

I haven't been blogging much because of life and feelings and trying to figure out more of what I need to know in order to navigate sanely in an insane world....I know you know what I mean !

But Pammie, after your card today I thought I'd go out on this beautiful sunny day in hot humid Florida and take pics for you because that is the best way to answer your questions, isn't it?
I have been painting still, but the outside!! of the house, if you can believe that, but only the porch so far because rainy season is here and it is tricky painting now. But I have to still do the trim white and then the bedroom window wall which does NOT have the monster vine ficus repens on it, and when I recoup from all the gardening etc, and find a day with no rains, then I will paint that too. The rest of the house is not going to be painted because I am not tearing off the beautiful monster Mr. Repens from the building because I love it being covered in that vine.....




soo......the rest will have to remain my old love Tuscan Clay beneath the vine.....:D c'est la vie~

But lots of pics here so I hope your new lap top can handle it....and I do mean LOTS! LOLOL

First, the front porch is now pink. Lovely color, yes? but somehow its not rocking my boat like the older Tuscan Clay color which when the sun hit it, was absolutely warming and so cozy! This one is pretty and cool, but doesn't warm my heart I have to say. Lets compare.......

 

 Moving on........I have this lattice I put up on front of my bedroom window because I've never lived in a house that was on a street, I always lived tucked away, or up and away, and this freaks me out to be on ground level! and facing a street, even 10 years later! I hate it, so when I moved in, I had the housemate John, put together two sheets of lattice which I painted the same color as the house so it would blend in and then planted a bougainvillea in front of it so it would cover it and no one could see there was a window there. It worked for a little while, but the bougainvillea got leggy and didn't bloom too much. The paint faded and changed a bit, and sooo.....needed freshening. This was the year to do it because I simply do not want to see anything that is not beautiful. So I cut the leggy bougainvillea down to its base which will grow back but in the meantime I will need something else there to grow quickly. So we got 2 sheets of lattice in white and I bought flowering vine Mandevilia in pink and white, and planted them in front of it. This picture was after cutting the bougan all the way down, poor thing. .....but it's already sprouting leaves all over the base :D

New lattic up and vines planted. Now every day the first thing I do is look out my window to see how much the vine has grown LOL.....because it certainly does grow very very fast! and already in a week has grown extra vines and several feet in length! I love it!

 I raised the soil in that area so it had good stuff to grow in and added this verbena which is also pink and white.

Some plants on the porch......

I dont' know what this delicate tiny white flower thing is but I adore it! when these tiny blossoms open it is sooooo sweet!

begonia.....looks like tiny roses........

ok. outside the front porch this bougainvillia is blooming very nicely! If you want color in Florida, this bougainvillia is the way to go! it is wild in shape and the colors are in jewel tones, and when you have different colors in different places around the property, it is striking! I love these.....planted 2 more today :D

 

hydrangeas.......wont last here in Florida, but for Easter they are sold and I could not resist!

 Ok, this is the tiny square in the front lawn area.....It has a Hawaiian Glory Princess Bush which is supposed to have lots of purple flowers, but this one is in too much shade for that. I added some coleus cuttings which grow anywhere, and some red lettuce in between because I'm trying to grow lots of edibles this year, more than usual......I will not give up on having paradise......both edibles and flowers galore!! :D:D:D

This is the front porch patch, which has collards in it which I love to juice and to make sandwich wraps with it in place of bread :D, and then use mayo, avocado, onion, red tomato, sprinkled herbs and oh yum O! :D
But I have now some hot peppers, tomato, zucchini and spaghetti squash that are going in there in between the collards in a few days.

This is the official tomato patch which I just planted with 2 different kinds of tomato along with seeds of parsley, basil and coriander, with marigold flowers in between. It's only a week old, lots to grow yet. I use straw as mulch.

Something very sweet about this spot......

 



 

This is the first veggie patch I had, I have about 7 now. This has arugula gone wild!! love it! :D, cabbages, rosemary, chives, tarragon, strawberries, and more herbs constantly growing in here......those vines along the fence will be the muscadine grapes, which are gorgeous and grow like crazy!

This is Lamp Post Square patch LOL.....I like to name my patches. :D:D:D
I just did this one this morning, with more tomato and chinese eggplant, and marigolds in between. On either side in pots are the lemongrass plants which is a beautiful tall grass and I use the leaves to make tea in the summer and to scent the house....it is one of the most amazing scents and flavors in the world. I just cut back its 7 foot length this morning and will freeze the bases, not the leaves. It will grow in no time to 7 feet again! :D

phlox in pots.

One of the pathways........
the white flowering bush is almond bush which is amazingly fragrant! JOY!!! :D

see the large conch shell on the table? a little tree frog lives in there :D
 




This is the shade area, with ferns, traveling palm, peace lily, anthurium and bromeliads......all these plants do well in Australia too!

One of the lemon trees finally bloomed alot this spring and the scent of lemon blossom has to be one of the most heavenly scents in the cosmos!! I can't get enough of it!....and finally.......lemons!! at least a dozen now.

Remember my potting bench? love it! more like a storage bench, but I do love it. See how the clay pots match the clay wall? I loved it when it was first painted.... but it is a cozy color in the sun.

and a very magical Fairy Winged dragonfly which was huge, and even let John touch it!......just for you!

okay everyone......hope you enjoyed the latest tour of my Fairy Hobbit Home! love and hugs to all.



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