It's a beautiful start to the week here in the foothills with mild, sunny weather.
Mr. Cardinal looking for sunflower seeds beneath the hanging feeder.
What a face.
Our neighbors have a pine tree in their backyard that over hangs part of our pasture behind their house. As is the way with nature, the pine cones fall and the cycle of renewal begins, again. I love nature the way God intended it.
So, I recently dug up 10 free pine trees in our pasture that started from their tree. I do love free trees. I'm going to keep them in pots until fall when I can set them out along our back fence line without having to carry water to them during a long, hot summer. I might share a few, also. ;) We are still hoping to sell our house, but if that doesn't happen we will probably have new neighbors behind us, eventually. A nice row of pine trees will soften that situation a bit for us, methinks.
Update 6/9/14: I decided to leave the trees to winter in their pots since they were so small last year. They would have been lost in the grass at the back of the pasture so here they are a year later with nearly a foot of spring growth. I plan to set out them out in the fall this year for sure. The 8 that survived our bitter winter, that is.
Love these petunias on the front porch. Nothing says welcome home to me like pink petunias.
Authentic Indian Chai ... our youngest granddaughter says it tastes like a good donut. I say hold the milk down to a dribble and make it spicier, but you might like it as is. Anyhoo - give it a try, you just might like it. We added a sprinkle of cinnamon on top for a little added zip. Click the link, there's a cool story about this chai recipe that I like nearly as much as the tea itself. And did you know that a cup of chai tea will help if you're having an asthma attack? Yes, the spices help open the airways.
Until next time ... hope there's plenty o' lilies in all of your valleys. :)
Linking with
The BackYard Farming Connection, The Art of Home-Making Mondays
nice that you're starting the pines for future use! love those lilies of the valley!
ReplyDeleteThose little trees sure look healthy. I think Mr. Cardinal will approve. Have a good week!
ReplyDeleteHi, there, Toni!
ReplyDeleteThe lily of the valley is almost ready to pop!! And we love chai, but not quite so sweet! Yum!! I didn't know you were moving...can you say where? Are you on FB, perchance?
Hi Jacqueline! I don't load my chai with as much sugar as that recipe called for, either, but I did want to try what is considered "authentic" chai. In other words, I gave the recipe major tweaks. Actually, my favorite chai is the Stash brand from the grocery store.
ReplyDeleteI am on FB...sorta, but I rarely sign in. I'll give you a shout there, however.
We had pine trees when we lived in VA. Unfortunately, they made it harder to keep a nice lawn (all the needles that fall)...
ReplyDeleteI used to sprout pine trees, I need to do some more.........Love the cardinal and the pretty petunias!
ReplyDeleteLove the pictures of the cardinal! The baby pine trees are so cute. :) And your petunias are beautiful! I am going to check out the Chai recipe.
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful day!
:)Vicki
E' un posto bellissimo!!! Complimenti per le piante !
ReplyDeleteBeautiful pictures. I have only seen 1 cardinal in the wild and that was at my aunt and uncle's in Maine. They are my favorite bird.
ReplyDeleteWOW~ what a great post! Loved all your pictures... I hope your little pine trees make it. And your petunia and Lily of the Valley look so pretty...
ReplyDeleteMr. Redbird is looking quite dapper... I'm sure all the lady redbirds swoon over him. :)
And I've never tried chai... I've started to on occasion at Starbucks but always wind up getting some goofy thousand-calorie chocolate lava drink. *bwahahaha*
Hope you have a wonderful weekend, dearie!
We have little pines like this under our Norways, but they are only and inch or two after several years...we are keeping some to move one day, but it'll be awhile :) Blessings in the name of the Lord !
ReplyDeleteHow did you sprout your pine trees? Your lil' cardinal friend is adorable!
ReplyDeleteI planted some lilly of the valley's this year and hope they come again.
ReplyDeleteHi Daisy! Thank you so much for visiting my blog and leaving a comment. The pine trees, actually, started on their own from the parent tree. I just dug them up to transplant.
ReplyDeleteHi Annie, Thank you for stopping in and leaving a comment. I'm sure your lilies of the valley will be back - they are very easy to grow.
ReplyDeleteHappy Monday. Those wee trees are looking very healthy and I am sure they will grow very well under your care.. The Lillies of the Valley are lovely. The Cardinal is such a very pretty bird. Hugs Judy
ReplyDeleteWe love free too! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeletePlease join us again Thursday at:
http://summersacres.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-homeacre-hop-23.html
~Ann
Love your relocation of trees idea! We just sprouted an avocado pit into a tree where we are planting to get shade for some of our animals. We probably won't get fruit, but the potential foliage, emergency future firewood potential, oxygen giving aspect, makes the free tree concept a wonderful thing! Also, when we purchased our property, we had no neighbor to the left, but when we moved in, one popped up. Heartbreaking! And so we began to plant a row of tree curtains to soften our blow... Slowly but surely! Thanks for linking up with us :)
ReplyDelete