Living in paradise

I am always busy, but never too busy for beauty. Yesterday I stopped the car while driving down our hill to shoot this photo of a cherry orchard in bloom with the Willamette Valley and Mt. Hood beyond. I never tire of our view, and the camera never does it justice.

"Blue blooms" are in - speedwell and rosemary. I planted the former among the daffodils, thinking it would spread and provide a nice ground cover after the daffies fade. It hasn't performed as hoped, in part because it is not as unpalatable to deer as reported. The rosemary, on the other hand, is a star. It's tough, evergreen, long-blooming, untouched by deer - and it tastes good to boot! The one pictured is a weeping variety; its half-barrel home is falling apart so I just bought a new pedestal pot to showcase it. I also bought four little "Arp" rosemary plants to put around an electrical box (not the pole) in the island bed. It looks like most of the dwarf rhodies I planted under the double-flowering cherry have died, so I may just replace those with "Arp" rosemary, too (they only grow 24"-36").

The sheep are "blooming," too. See how tight Rechel's and Dinah's coats are, and the tummies on those two girls? Don't worry; I've ordered bigger coats.

That's it for now at . . .