Our Yard, March 2012

We have constant blooms opening. It's as if the slow growth season didn't come this fall/winter. Twice this year I have felt up to doing a bit of yard work, then of course, relapsed with health and paid dearly, immensely for it as I lay flat in bed for days after, unable to move, eat, anything. However, working in the garden, if only to water flowers or pull a few little weeds, restores my inner soul. I will never know what it is like to have a gardener or housekeeper, cook, a lifestyle like that :) So if I don't do it some how, it will not get done, and our house will look like the Adam's Family house (from the 60s sitcom).

Yellow Hibiscus

I had just cut a few branches off the main bush, and had a ready filled pot nearby. I slid about 4 of the branches into the planter, watered, and will wait to see how they do. The blossoms are so much larger than my open hand!

Kona Coffee!

We only have about a dozen trees. But they fill up with cherries (2 beans in each cherry). When they are deep burgundy red, we pick them - completely fresh, then dry them in the sun. It's easy - I can't baby anything, so they have to survive on their own or die! If you ever drink Kona coffee please know that the pure 100% Kona coffee is THE coffee to drink. You have no way of knowing what people 'put' into the 'blended' coffees. They say it's 90% 'other' and 10% Kona coffee. What does that mean exactly? No one really knows. It is a big issue here in Hawai'i.

Here are the Kona coffee blossom or 'snow.' All it takes is one rain in the winter and out they come. Then the bumble bees and honey bees come around to pollinate the blossoms. They have a faint sweet fragrance to their white petals. It's so beautiful!

When I went out back this weekend, I saw this praying mantis out of the corner of my eye :) They stand ever so still, waiting... later I saw a little gecko there. I have no idea who won or who ran off. But geckos are a brave, fierce little bunch!

On to more beauty ~ New Guinea Impatiens 

I didn't formally plant these here - they just started ... growing underneath the downstairs lanai. So I water them and there is a bush of them now. I'm so glad because all they are growing in is pulverized red lava pumice type rock, not any dirt! So it's very pleasant to see a bright color where nothing else was growing. All it wants is some water now and then.

Apple Bananas

The bananas are 'hanging in there.' After a couple of fierce wind storms that knocked out our other banana trees this winter, these will have to do... unless something else takes this one down, too.

Busy Bees

The coffee blossoms smell oh so sweet! How can the bees resist :)

White pineapples = mmmmm!

They're growing again!! Yay, probably the best part of growing fruits in Hawai'i, the white pineapples have no zing, no tart sourness, no chewy core - just pure, delectable soft sweet sugar.

Organic Tangerines

They get so big, full of sweetness!

Hydroponic Tomatoes, all year round.

Bruce set up a pipe around the top level lanai. He has grown all kinds of vege's in this. Right now we have two, maybe 5-6 feet tomato plants that have given us dozens and dozens of juicy sweet tomatoes. 

Surprise orchids

I have a few plants on our bedroom lanai that I water a bit each night when I fill the bird feeder. This morning, I noticed something yellow and fluffy - and there they were, blooms of orchids all over the plant. There are two dozen unopened ones, and about 8 opened already. I didn't even see it coming! What a sweet surprise gift! I put them in my bedroom for now to enjoy their beauty.

Whew, tired. That's all for now! (there's more, just too tired)