Outside Wonders

We recently visited Colonial Williamsburg. We love to go to their garden and see what is growing. Mike comes away with ideas to use at home. These are rows of peas. They use twigs to create a trellis for the vines. We noticed they wrap the bottom with cheesecloth to keep out rabbits

This was the first time we saw the artichoke plant with a flower head. I didn't realize that the artichoke is a herb, but cooked as a vegetable.

The onion patch was in bloom, what a wonderful aroma came from that section of the garden.

We also saw a flower garden in full bloom. The
colors and the height of the flowers made a spectacular scene.

Our planter boxes are doing great! The bean and pea seeds sprouted, and are growing fast. The challenge now is to put something in for them to climb up. Mike wanted to build a trellis from maple twigs, but hasn't had the time.

Mike has been busy working on the yard. He took two days off work, rented a roto tiller and churned most of our lawn up. Then he hauled two truck loads of compost in and spread it over the side yard. Back on the roto tiller to mix it in. On Memorial Day, Mike raked the side, and spread seed. We have been watering every day, except when we are blessed with rain. The seed has sprouted - I let out a cheer! The rest of the yard is still dirt or dead grass, but it is easier to do it in sections since we don't have a sprinkler system.

I was in the kitchen early yesterday morning getting breakfast. When I looked out the window. I was amazed to see a turtle in the middle of our barren backyard. I ran upstairs to grab the camera and hurried outside. He huddled inside his shell, the neighbors were doing yardwork and the noise may have frightened him. I quietly walked around the yard. It wasn't long until he came out of the shell and moved to the edge of the yard. When he reached the grass he went straight for the pond. I moved to the edge of the pond and waited. He walked past me and I touched his shell. The turtle moved quickly into the water and swam away. I wonder what wildlife we will see next in our backyard.