Sanlan Ranch biking

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Sanlan ranch

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Year of the Water Snake

There is a secret language we know, the language of symbols. Symbols surround us in myriad forms and form  part of our daily lives. Many of the symbols we take for granted today as static signs of religious or secular life were created long ago. Over time, they have acquired layers of increasingly complex meaning, and this evolution of meaning tells us much about how we developed our ideas about the nature of life and the universe.

 Here are just a few associated with the garden

Carnation: a symbol of betrothal or engagement.and China, a carnation is a symbol of marriage.  In our family it symbolizes death.
Chrysanthemum: in Japan, 'mums are a symbol for long life.
Clover leaf:  trinity  luck.
Daisy:  symbol of innocence
Iris: associated with death as Iris was a Greek goddess of the rainbow, . The three upright petals and three drooping sepals are symbols for faith, valor, and wisdom.
Jasmine:  Hindu symbol for love
Juniper: symbolizes chastity (because juniper berries are protected by the tree's thorny leaves), Christ (an association with the crown of thorns place on the head of Christ),
Lily: symbolizes purity, chastity, and innocence.
Lotus: a common symbol in Asian art, the lotus symbolizes birth and rebirth through the fact that the petals open when the sun comes out and close when the sun sets. Also a symbol for fertility, creation, and purity.  the flower represents the enlightenment to which we aspire.
Orchid: a symbol of perfection. The spots on an orchid sometimes represent the blood of Christ.
Poppy: a symbol of death
Thistle: a thorny plant with a beautiful flower, the national symbol of Scotland. It's thorns symbolize both evil and protection. In Christianity it represents the suffering of Christ.

China is famous as being home to many thousands of varieties of flowers. The ten most widely appreciated and culturally significant peony, Chinese herbaceous peony, camellia, azalea, narcissus, chrysanthemum, plum blossom, lotus, The flowering crab apple,the orchid, the pine and bamboo are also very popular. Many different aspects of plants, flowers and trees are admired, including their shapes, colors, and scents. Furthermore, they are often endowed with spiritual and human attributes. In Chinese, the expression Three Friends in Cold Winter refers to pine, bamboo and plum trees. Similarly, the expression Four Men of Honor refers to plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum, and Four Elegancies refers to the simple yet graceful orchid, chrysanthemum, narcissus and calamus. The .pine is held in high esteem as one of the Three Friends in winter because it is evergreen, grows straight and tall, and can endure cold weather with relative ease. People there value it as a symbol of integrity, tenacity and uprightness

Bamboo has many rhetorical implications in Chinese culture. Somewhat similar to pine, the fact that it is evergreen, and its stems are strong and hard make it an apt symbol of integrity, strength and loyalty. In Chinese, the hollow aerial culms and the nodes of bamboo are homophones for modesty with self-esteem. The worship of bamboo as a form of divine being was recorded in several classical history books, including The Annual of the Huayang Kingdom, which was one of the earliest chronicles of southeast China. It was also mentioned in The History of the Later Han Dynasty.

The graceful plum blossom can withstand freezing cold that kills other flowers, and also has a delightful scent. Because it is the earliest blossom to bloom after winter, it stands out among its peers. And like bamboo and pine, the plum blossom also had its legion of fans. Lin Bu a Song Dynasty hermit who lived at Mt Gushan near the West Lake in Hangzhou was famous for his love of both plum trees and cranes. An idiom, 梅妻鹤子, literally meaning plum as wife and cranes as children, actually was generated from Lin Bu's way of life, as a metaphor for a lifestyle free of worldly worry

The chrysanthemum is regarded by Chinese people as strong, graceful, and with no  desire for fame or gain. Over time many other poets have written about how the chrysanthemum flourishes in autumn, and maintains its delicate scent despite the cold wind attempting to sweep it away. For Chinese people, these are values to be held in high esteem.

The peony is another flower prized in Chinese culture. It is enjoyed for its stately color and heavenly fragrance. Due to its grace and poise, it is a fitting symbol of splendor, wealth, and happiness. Among others, it was proposed as the national flower of China.. Peony has been endowed with the quality of indifference to the powerful and the influential, and strength to stay true to its own principles.

Narcissus, the water fairy, is considered special because it grow in clean water and exudes an elegant and pure fragrance. Due to these attributes it is regarded as possessing pure and refined qualities.

 Peach blossoms are thought to represent pretty ladies.

The Lotus ,due to the fact it grows in mud but manages to achieve to be visually pleasing, lotus stands for grace and purity. .

The seed of the red bean shrub is a token of love. (handpicked, wild flower describes a woman one has an affair with. A popular Chinese song includes t line "Don't pick a wild flower by the roadside", meaning it is better to stay faithful to one's love.

	There is a new book titled The Splendid Garden.It is an illustrated compendium on the classic gardens of China. It explains the history of the garden, the traditions and beliefs they represent, their aesthetic and the techniques used to create them. Also included are chapters that survey the great gardens of China, the gardens tourists love to visit and gardeners dream of seeing and exploring. "Chinese gardens are the imitations of natural landscapes,"says Hu Jie the author. The first few chapters are a history of China, starting about 3,000 years ago,and how it relates to the building of gardens. the reproductions of historical Chinese nature paintings gorgeous,but the book includes diagrams of gardens lost in history  .

Pa-pa-paparazzi!

It was a perfect day and since I was feeling some better ,we thought what better way to get a little exercise then head down to the county park (Circle B Bar Ranch) for a ride.

The Circle B Bar Reserve was jointly purchased in 2000 be the Southwest Florida Water Management District and Polk County's Environmental Lands Program. Their intention was the preservation  of the Upper Peace River. The city water drains into successive locks in the water purification process which also provides habitat for migrating and native birds and wildlife.It also has an education center.The oak hammock, freshwater marsh, hardwood swamp and lake shore have many walking and bike paths.

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One of the Eagle scouts  put some of these QR codes out here.

                                                A Roseate Spoonbill takes flight from the duck tree

                                                                 The Sandhill Cranes

Roseate Spoonbills 

  A dinosaur keeps watch for a delightful fowl dinner and across the way a mother watches her July hatchlings who perch on her back.

Then the paparazzo spotted the celebrity residents and started stalking them!  They darted this way and that hoping to avoid the lens.thier glimmering feathers flashing in the light and red heads darting back and forth.The sound was a barely audible warble.

                                                   
                                                                     this way or that?

Oh no,which way!

 this way guys!

                                                                     we'll follow you!!

                                                                                                  

My painting of the scene

What a great day to be alive and pain free (thanks pretnisone) I am thankful to be young (ie not in a home) and have a partner who takes care of me (for the long haul)...... and  buys me mika bars...and to be able to PAINT!

I mostly have to laugh at all you northerners......getting your seeds together and writing lists in anticipation and generally in a "mark, get set, GO!!" attitude about the end of winter...... And it feels like Spring already here...Boy, am I gonna dread the heat come April!

2013- a mixed bag so far

Yes, it's 2013 and a new year is upon us. A whole year of posts to start thinking about. I'm off to a bad start! I have not posted of late as I have been ill.

 "How's the weather?".you ask. People have been noticing the unusually warm weather here in Florida We have  had record temperatures  .It's been in the 80's and hasn't been this warn since 1973.  We will soon be Zone 10 if this keeps up.  Anyone reading here doubt the global warming still? So, I bask in the hammock with not a thought of writing. I am the Lazy Woman. after all!  The yard has taken care of itself. But the trees and plants really think it is March. (like these plum trees) And who knew grass could actually grow in January?

Can anyone tell me the name of this succulent? When we were kids we would pop these flowers before they opened



On a positive note I have completed a painting.And after I was done I had it for lunch! The title is Pears and Brie Inside of Me.

Greetings from the Sunshine State

 While you are all inside knitting and crafting and reading, I thought I would gloat about the fine weather and make you jealous...But the truth is I would love a little snow for a change of pace.

The signs of fall are subtle but here a few trees turning yellow...or brown in the case of the Cypress. Our Curcuma, Peacock  and the Dancing Lady Gingers have died back. The swamp had dried as it was the driest November on record. The temperatures are blissful.

If you haven't heard these are our state symbols.....
tree- sabal palm
flower- orange blossom
bird- mockingbird
animal-alligator,Fl panther,and manatee
butterfly- zebra longwing
song- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOObPhTYi9I

I took a drive into the big city and along the way I stopped to take a few shots of .........well, plants of course!

Strawberry Fields Forever!

Bouganvilla

The Silk Floss Tree is a wonder with its Spiky killer trunk....not real popular with animals! 

But the loveliest thing are the huge,pink,extravagant blossoms.

Huge blooms and so many!! what a wonder in December! The Silk Floss tree!

Boy, I wish to know what kind of fungus these are!
















 This is a shot of my Night -blooming Jasmine..this wonderful perfume wafts over the neighborhood as we take our walk every mild night...Geez, are you envious yet?







   

sow shall you reap....of cabbages and kale

The blossoming of a flower is the time of   the revelation  of the secret  that every seed  contains.......

 Seeds, seeds, magical seeds ,they contain everything they need to know to become  a plant a huge as the Sequoia.  Inventive design lets them fly with wings (like maple seeds) and float on the breeze. The coconut can travel thousands of miles on the ocean current. 

the largest seed in the world

--the Ccoc-de- Mer 

 

Parable of the Sower at Canterbury Cathedral

Today I was  reminded of the parable of the sower.

 

"And it came to pass, as he sowed, some fell by the way side, and the birds of the air came and devoured it up. And some fell on stony ground, where it had not much earth; and immediately it sprang up, because it had no depth of earth: But when the sun was up, it was scorched; and because it had no root, it withered away. And some fell among thorns, the thorns grew up, and choked it, and it yielded no fruit. And other fell on good ground, did yield fruit that sprang up and increased"
     The symbolism was referring to the knowledge of the spiritual word .They knew full well when cultivation began, that the soil must be fertile, the crop demands water, weeds must be pulled and fertilizer increases yield. And  I thought about the parable and how it relates to relationships as well. The seed of our connections yield fruits of our relationships.

 

Sometimes we meet people  they may have something in common, some need unmet but we will never know because they go by the way. Maybe others snap them up. Can we see past the stereotypes? Do we even know what gifts we are passing by? We never know what we missed.

 

We may meet others and feel a connection, the possibility and have good intentions.... ...but never take the time and imitative to share and develop the relationship (the lack of depth).  So when  the honeymoons over, it comes to a "rocky" quick end.

 

Then others grow well at the beginning. We feel the good earth of sharing, the sunshine of appreciation, and the cool water of hope and begin to connect souls (buds grow). But sadly, they are crowded out by the thorny trials of life, lack of cooperation (intimacy) and boredom...even the thorny wall of secrets and lies (lack of cultivation and elimination of the competition). Maybe we can't handle anothers needs. (no fertilizer) We end up with misunderstandings and excuses. And sadly, a beautiful bloom  fades away and all the potential "fruit" with it.

 

We have lost community here in the modern world, as we revel in privacy and isolation. Fear and selfishness makes us impotent . Those seeds of a fractured world yield unripe stunted fruit of disconnection. But sometime, just maybe only one time, if we are very lucky (or make our own luck)...we can grow the fruit called love for all our sacrifice and that's the sweetest and most beautiful fruit of all

 

 

Somewhere the flower of farewell is blooming.

Endlessly it yields its pollen, which we breathe.

Even in the breeze of this beginning hour we breathe farewell.--Rilke

This vine i lost due to lack of protection from cold and my severe pruning...

 


Here in Florida we have started our second growing season.Our commercial crop includes citrus, of course ,and strawberries  and tomatoes..but we grow lots of other things as well. I'm doing my regular basil, peppers and asparagus as well

 

trick or treat? OMG! I've been nominated!

Say what? I discovered I was nominated for the beautiful blog award by a blogger I admire who calls himself the "Nitty Gritty Dirt Man" Check him out at http://nittygrittydirtman.wordpress.com/. Thank you Kevin.

So the first thing I wondered is... i Just what happens next?......I  learned that the nod from my benefactor was indeed the honor and I was one of 14 others.

Then I learned of my new responsibility!  Oh yes, and that was to  list 7 things about myself  (could  I be possibly interesting enough?)  and to pick of all my favorite bloggers to nominate!...

What makes a great blog?? Large beautiful pictures, interesting thoughts (insights,  experiences, poetry, humor, a good layout, maybe some artwork by the poster and varied types of posts.(ie tours of other gardens). I have a low attention span so I don't read wordy blogs with a lot of technical information (all worthwhile to be sure). To me,the best bloggers are those who give of themselves and are open and I really like the ones who comment!

First up ,about me

1. I love Thai food and have been to Thailand during the Water Festival
2. I love elephants, been "kissed" by a baby and bathed the adults at the Elephant Nature Park.
3. I raised a squirrel named Freddie and racoons named Fred and Ethel
4. I caught a "wrist strong band" on the Stephen Colbert show taping and went to :the Rally to   Restore Sanity/Keep  Fear Alive
5. I swam on the barrier reef with Wally the Maori Wasse (a huge friendly fish)
6. I saw the latest Pope in a car after we did the Scavi tour under the Vatican
7.Once sat next to James Carville  in business class from Heathrow.
extra....I played the french horn

PICKING IS HARD!

Now to nominate.....

1.Through the Sapphire Sky..... http://through-the-sapphire-sky.blogspot.com/
2.A Tidewater Gardener....http://atidewatergardener.blogspot.com/..great photos
3.The Anxious Gardener....http://theanxiousgardener.com
4.Tales from my Garden...http://talesfrommygarden.blogspot.com/..just beautiful
5 My Weeds are Very Sorry!.....http://laurries.blogspot.com/....very clever indeed!
6.The Iris and the Lily..   ...http://theirisandthelily.wordpress.com/...stunning photos
7.Gatsys Gardens.....http://gatsbysgardens.blogspot.com/
8.The British Gardener......http://www.thebritishgardener.com/
9. Three Dogs in a Garden....http://threedogsinagarden.blogspot.com/
10 Amateur Bot-ann-ist....http://seedcollector.blogspot.com/
11 Fortrum Gardens   .....http://deanneart.blogspot.com/
12.A Southern Eden......http://asoutherneden.blogspot.com/
13.A Plant Fanatic in Hawaii..... http://aplantfanatic.blogspot.com/
14 A Gardener in Progress....http://agardenerinprogress.blogspot.com/


Well I am sure I have overlooked a real favorite... and some great site. but some gardeners are award free and others maybe awarded enough already...I just really just got tired of agonizing... hahaha   There you have it!

restoring fear with my  ?

Award winning carving!

 

                                          Happy Halloween !!!