Strange and unexplainable things always happen in gardens. It’s one of the reasons we keep coming back for more.

Canna lilies shot up like a rocket reaching for the sky

This fall the canna lilies in the courtyard garden reached over eight feet high to the top of the garden house roof. Without staking they were still standing tall in late October.

The rotting wood and moss was all the coleus needed to germinate

A coleus seeded itself in the moss at the base of an ornamental birdhouse. It has been growing there without soil and regular watering for several months. How did it do it?

The nest was hidden by the foliage and flowers of the rose

A bird built a nest in ‘Miederland alba’ rose bush. It was just above the fence and only four feet from the ground. What could the mother bird have been thinking? They were an easy target for our cats and the raccoons.

What was this bird thinking putting its nest in this box?

Another bird built a nest in an open box on the top of the shelves in the garage. I didn’t think I left the garage door open long enough for that to happen.

The bright red leaves are poison ivy

Poison ivy played possum all summer and I didn’t notice how far up the tree it had grown until it’s turned bright red in the fall and grinned at me. It smartly twined with Virginia creeper so it is hard to tell where one vine turns around another.

A six foot praying mantis can take you by surprise.

             Passionate individuals following their heart, design the most interesting gardens. Yesterday, I stumbled upon one quirky example, owned and designed by Dr. Virgil Place in Hawaii. It is on Kona, the Big Island, and it is named Pau Mau Place.  The public is welcome to tour this Botanic and Sculpture garden, even bringing a picnic lunch if that appeals. 

Children will be enchanted by the larger than life bronze sculptures of native bugs and exotic animals.  They can sit on the tortoise and spiders and have their picture taken in front of a six-foot high praying mantis. Actually adults like that too. It could be next year’s Christmas card.

I'm not sure sitting on this bench is restful.

I was captivated by the scent and beauty of the Singapore plumeria. Native Hawaiian plumeria drop their leaves during the winter months, even though the temperatures don’t vary much throughout the year. They look like a bunch of sticks in winter.  Singapore varieties bloom year round, which is why Dr. Place imported them.

Dr. Place’s purpose in making the public garden was to prove that a garden could grow on the desert side of the island. There is a wonderful botanic garden on the rainforest side. Brackish water from a 400-foot, deep well is used to irrigate. 

Fifty year old Singapore plumeria bloom behind the spider.

Dr. Place’s determination is evident in the pictures at the visitor’s center. In the 1990’s both fire and an earthquake destroyed the garden.  There is no evidence of either now.  It is a marvel of nature; its ability of recovery.

January 3, 2009

This cement pot held ornamental grass and canna lilies during the summer.

I employ a few tricks to keep the garden interesting through the winter months. Since empty containers emphasize the missing flowers I fill them up with cut greens.

One large container in our courtyard garden sprouts an ornamental grass year round. In the winter I thread the grass through the center of a pine wreath. The diameter of the wreath is the same as the container’s. Then I embellish the wreath with golden conifers, berries and pinecones to perk it up.

This December the container was whipped by several brutal snowstorms, which is unusual.  The dried stalks of grass were knocked down. My picture doesn’t show the complete devastation. I stopped photographing after the second storm. I didn’t think it could recover. HOW WRONG I WAS!  Most of the fluffy seed heads were knocked off but the blades stood tall once again. Isn’t nature amazing?

The container on December 8, 2008 before a snow storm.

 

After three snowstorms the dried grass recovered and stood up again on December 28, 2008.

Even an empty container is improved with a garland wreath around the edge.  Instead of tossing your Christmas wreaths, recycle them this way.