Spring Dreaming #3

course I will... awww, Brittany is so cute... how could I say no to her mom? I am curious about something, hooked... Do y'all ever have really warm weather up there? I have seen some beautiful pics of your part of the world, but I have heard that y'all seldom get really warm... Where I am it gets really warm, but the water here never heats up... we have ice cold creeks and rivers year round... the water that comes up from our well is COLD.... lol...

Thanks, is that the same as awww....NOT! LOL That's okay, enjoy!
Yes, it gets REALLY warm about two weeks out of the whole summer. Just when you think you need the air conditioner on, it cools off. I love Maine's three sesaons, it's the fourth that I dislike!
The same here. I don't think the water ever really warms up! Of course as a kid when June came, we (6 brothers and sisters) were ready to go swimming!
I guess my favorite season is Fall, no bugs!
Bonnie

For another New England perspective. Massachusetts. What a few hundred miles can do. We usually need air conditioning (except last year) for about a week or two. The water is refreshing, not cold. I love Spring and Fall. Winter is too long. Although this year has been pretty good-a very late start and long Fall, a few awful snowfalls to cover the garden all winter(very important), only about a week or two under 0. Lots of sunny days in the 30's. I think icy roads and below zero temps for many days on end make me nuts, here. Hooked, kids don't care about temps as much as oldies don't you think??

boojum, I think I have seen some of your beautiful pictures... was a while back... in fall, I think... Your area is flat gorgeous, too... but only two or three weeks of warm? (shiver)

hooked, fall is a favorite of mine as well... no bugs, no snakes... just crisp mountain mornings!!! and gorgeous breezy days....

I would like to see both of your areas in person. But I am probably where the climate most suits me. It is not as cold as the north, not as humid as the south, and not as hot as the west.... our snow seldom lasts longer than a week... two at the outside... and we get quite warm all summer long... but not mosquitos!!! (I really really hate mosquitos, growing up in mississippi they used to drive me nuts)

I guess that is what makes the world go round! It would be pretty crowded if we all liked the same climate!
boojum my mother was originally from MA., some 60 years ago! We don't really have Spring here, we call it MUD season.
fsr333 your state sounds very nice! Low humidity is GOOD, and it must be nice to be able go see the ground most of the year! I have been south as far as FL., but have never been west pass W. VA.! It sure would be fun to take a road trip and visit all the wonderful gardens across the country!

Walker the Devil dog got out while I was trimming trees yesterday. He decided to visit a big Black Lab he's been trading insults with all winter. Walker ran barking insults up the hill and back down with his tail between his legs! About time some dog knocked him down to size. Old Whitey is big but too old to do it at 14.

Is Walker a bird dog? Brittany is just an over weight loveable pet!
Winter better get over soon! She and I both, could use soon back yard digging!! Now if I could just train her to dig where I need to put those new plants!

hooked, when you decide to do a road trip, stop by here and say hi... spend some time in the Ozarks... I have never seen the northern and eastern states except in pictures... but oh, those pictures of fall sure do draw me in...

I think I would just love Old Whitey... he sounds so much like Baxter... Baxter was my brothers dog (a great big yeller lab). When John died in an accident, I brought Baxter home with me. He became my dog as much as he had been my brothers. He died last year at the age of 15 years, 7 months, having lived half his life with John and half with me.

Baxter was a lucky dog to have 2 loving parents!

Thanks! If I ever get to do that, I'll be sure to look you up!
It's very hard to loose a pet! My son had a blue tick hound that he got as a pup (only about 6 weeks) and my son just lost him a few weeks ago! He was 13!

Thanks, boojum and hooked...

BTW, boojum, I was looking online at pet adoptions and I found almost a twin for your namesake.. He is colored very similar to your dear little boojum... He is so cute...

Wanda,

You're always there with a breath of spring.

And Neil,

So are you going to buy Shortman's again for old times sake? I noticed it too. More brilliant than any other Iris on the site.

Cute grandkid too.

Doss, I did buy Schortman's PATIENCE from Argyle Acres last summer. I just hope it is true to type and name.

Tell Muhlestein said he "hated" Patience bloodlines, but I had an absolutly beautiful, very well-branched, silk-textured amoena from Patience X Whole Cloth that should have been introduced. It bloomed for a number of years at my folks' place in Idaho, making a good sized clump and just kept on being as good as it was.

I never did take a photo of it--I had hundreds of iris slides of everybody else's seedlings, and didn't take one of this or several others I wish I had now.

Neil Mogensen

Neil, The Iris Farm has Schortman's Garnet Ruffles. How does it compare? This is the link to the page.

http://www.theirisfarm.com/index.cfm?Page=1&Search=S.

Have you used this firm before?

Nice irises ! My addiction thanks you for the link, doss.

I got some daisy in a pot from KRU and look what came up instead .
I Reticulata , I have never had this and most i have seen is light blue or dark blue This even though fancy smancy camera does not show true color it is a deep royal purple . to who ever thanks .I love surprises like this

Wasn't mine, but it's a pretty purple! nothing blooming here yet.

Now, Tazzy. Did you remember to name & store that one in your iris folder?
:)

Looks like Harmony. I have lots. Love them and must have them!

it is in a sub- folderin Iris which is in a folder called garden .it sure looks empty when i go in and see 5 folders instead of thousands of numbered Flower pots

Gee, bout time you put something in there???

Tazzy, when you have the "Iris" folder open, you can create sub folders of "Siberians", "Louisiana", "Dwarfs" etc.

I have sub-folders of pictures of iris I have on order so I can remember what I ordered & when ("Argle Garden3/05). I have trade folders with pictures of iris I'm expecting in trade & name of trader as a sub-folder name. When the iris arrive, I add pictures to my other files & delete the empty folder.

So, have you gone blind from the sorting yet?

yes ? now about my bedroom closets if i put my red shoe box inside of my Black shoe box and label it shoes i will have more closet space ? LOL

"By George, I think she's got it ! "

Wanda, you know I was struggling with the organizing business before. Well, I've finally figured it out! I copy photos out of websites of items I'm ordering. Then I make a spread sheet. I have the Iris name, the amount, the vendor, the color, height, season etc. Then I can sort on any of these items and print out a report - or just save it as another file. It's working great. I keep all of the pictures I'm ordering by color so I can tell what I'm getting and what is a repeat - and I can compare if I need to make a choice. I can almost always find a photo on line. If I only have a picture, I photo that.

I'm loving it. No shoeboxes anymore.

Boxes inside of boxes inside of boxes.... Tazzy, you may not get organized, but You'll be so busy moving stuff around that you'll stay out of trouble! LOL

doss, I store all my garden digital images in sub folders of my "Garden" folder. The machine stores alphabetically for quick reference. I also have an Excel database stored & printed out for each of my major collections: iris, daylilly & Lilies. The printout of each database is in the front of the appropriate photo album where I store the seperate collections by color.
It keeps me from re-buying the same color iris, daylily whatever whose only difference from what I have is a name.

Can yoiu tell I like to be organized? LOL

Yep, it's the only way to be. My memory is so bad that my garden looks like a marker field when things are dormant. I can't remember "Pansy" if someone asks. Your system seems about the same to me. I just haven't been taking digital photos until this year. So it will be fun to see the Iris bloom and take photos. Concertina already has 3 buds on it but I had to stake it. It's not sure what it's doing - I've never had it bloom with the tulips and the daffodils - although Leonora Pearl and Harvest of Memories are still blooming like mad. All at the same time that the Hellebores and Camellias are blooming. What a strange spring.

And my yard still looks dead....

At least you can see your yard! Mine is under 3 feet of snow and more on the way for tonight! So please keep posting your Spring goodies! It will be a while before I see mine!
Thanks
Bonnie

hooked--I sympathize with you. The scattered warm days just make me itch to MOVE something, but it's too early. I'll have to be content with garden clean up, edging beds & removing more sod. :)
SPRING WILL COME TO US TOO!

SOON I HOPE!!
It will be awful if I have to shovel snow off the beds to plant all those DLs I have coming!

Its beautiful today here !
I'm still so sick with head and sinus went out watered in greenhouse they were pretty dry haven't been out since Sun. and took a couple of pic , i lost balance twice and fell. Fell very gracefully ? SURE !
am in house pouting > Have no balance with this crude , IF I die DH will go to Prison for Murder i am black and blue all over from walking in to door facing .falling at least i don't have to crawl up to ceiling fan to spin ? do quite well just setting in recliner )) round and round she goes ((

LOL! Lord I hope not! And I want to get at some of your historic iris...

Doss, you asked how Schortman's Garnet Ruffles compared with Patience. I can't answer that, as I haven't grown SGR or seen it in the flesh. I am delighted to know it still can be found.

I'm working in this general color range, as there seem to be few irises of strongly red-side violet irises. I happen to like the colors, and find the ones that pop up from various crosses of particular interest. I'm just getting started with the type, so am very intereted to see where advanced generations may take the venture.

Neil Mogensen

Hooked :
here some spring for you ? Small dwarf peach red leaves max,HT 5 ft.

green leafed dwarf peach Max. Ht. 3 ft.

crocus mixed colors
not Iris yet ? but springis sprunging here . LoL

Thanks Neil. I was so surprised that "Schortman's" had passed through twice in quick succession. Garnet Ruffles, if it is anywhere near the photo is pretty vivid. It's a rebloomer - but only to zone 8.

Oh Tazzy! Thank you!
How sweet of you to share your Spring beauties!! I really appreciate it, as it is still snowing here! Sooo! sick of snow!!

Na -Na>
I got to spend 4 hours with hybridizer Brad Kasprek ?
well me and 50 other people . He taught our Iris judging school today .I made it 4 hours
had one more hour to go to go but , DH had to bring me home fever came
up and started staggering so came home and wen to bed >
He has a wonderful sense of humor . What a treat .

Tazzy and Brad :
THE GUN I HELD TO HIS HEAD TO GET HIM TO POSE WITH
ME ISN'T SHOWING , IS IT ?

Lovely neckalace, Tazzy!! Did you make it?

What did you learn new in the iris field?
Hope you feel better. That crud that is g oing around is one mean dude.
I really don't need it as the fibro has been acting up along with sciatic pain.
You know the kind where you wish you could walk away and leave the pain some place else?

Maxine