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Monday, January 11, 2016

Blue on Blue, January 11, 2016

Welcome to my blog, today I am linking with-

Today's Flowers hosted by Denise

Saturday's Critters hosted by Eileen

I'd Rather B' Birdin' hosted by Hootin' Anni

In a Vase on Monday hosted by Cathy

Macro Monday 2 hosted by Gemma and Magical Mystical Teacher

I Heart Macro hosted by Laura

The blue Steller's Jays have been showing up 5-6 strong lately.  They tend to run the smaller birds like Chickadees, Juncos, and Nuthatches off.


They like to hammer at the seeds to open them

Fancy feathers-


My little perennial seedlings have finally been getting transplanted.  Pulling the tiny plants apart without damaging the root systems is a delicate operation, but rewarding.   The pinkish color is my new red and blue LED plant light.  Here are Lunaria, 4-6" tall-

and Dahlia 'Harlequin'-


And for my In A Vase On Monday entry, looking high and low around the house for something to put in a vase this week, in pursuit of Cathy's challenge, I decided on a few of the flowers from my Polygonum capitatum (AKA Persicaria capitata) that I grew from seed.  It turned out to be marginally hardy here, so it lives in a large pot with a small lemon tree and trails over the pot.  I picked just a few since I enjoy their long-lasting little blooms and chevron marked leaves.




Here the tiny flowers are displayed in a petite demitasse teacup in a blue onion type pattern by Blue Danube, for the pinkish photos I used an added lens cover that was tinted, marked FLD, I like the colors-

I'm not a pottery expert but I suppose it is copying the matching Hutschen Reuther teapot-


We bought the teapot on a trip I and The Motorcyclist took to Europe BC (before children), where he purchased a BMW motorcycle in Bavaria, Munchen, and we rode it up through Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, and to The Motorcyclist's uncle's house in Sweden, north of Stockholm, where the sun only kind of gets a little dark between 11pm and 1am.  I have always wished we could have gotten to Paris on the way up but we didn't make it.  But the trip was also complicated by having to get required servicing when breaking in a new motorcycle, and it was very difficult to find a shop that could do the maintenance on a moment's notice.  We did manage to take a large suitcase on the trip and bought a number of collectibles, toured castles, observed how different countries mowed and baled hay, ate lovely pastries and wonderful little scoops of German ices, swam in the Bodensee at night looking at statues, and met my husband's Swedish cousins.

And now a few of the vases I posted last year for In a Vase on Monday-

Crystal vase-

my ceramic vase-

ceramic vase and chicken-

mosaic glass vase-



 Vase from my MIL-

 My ceramic vase and Mexican box-

Red mosaic glass vase-


Iridescent mosaic glass vase-


My ceramic vase-

What are you planning for your garden next summer?    -Hannah


©Weeding on the Wild Side, all rights reserved.   I enjoy reading your comments, and will visit your blog and leave comments there if possible, but I am not able to do so if google + is the only option.  I would like to return your visit so leave an URL to your blog or email address.












22 comments:

  1. Beautiful vases...I think my favorite is the one from Mexico. I hear ya about finding someone to keep up with the maintenance on a road trip....it IS difficult.

    Now for the Stellar Jays.............beautiful blue and some I don't get to see this far south in Texas. Thank you for adding/sharing this post with us birders at I'd Rather B Birdin' this week Hannah!!

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    1. ps...I forgot to ask, the pink rose in the crystal vase, do you know the name of it? I'd love to find a rose bush of the very same, I LOVE Old English Roses.

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    2. That is the very elegant small rose Clothilde Soupert. She is great in a hot dry year like last year, but in the typical wetter year we usually have, since she blooms toward fall when it is likely to be raining, she balls very badly in rain. But last year she was magnificent!

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    3. There are a number of Old Garden Rose nurseries, one I like, that took over when Sequoia Nursery (where I got a lot of my OGR's) quit can be contacted for inquiries about available roses at-

      BurlingtonRoses@aol.com

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    4. The helpmefind site's rose section lists suppliers for roses so you can look Clothilde Soupert up on it and find nurseries that carry it, another one is Rogue Valley roses that I have also ordered from.

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  2. Hello Hannah, I love your Stellar Jays. They are similar to our blue jays. Your vases, teacups and flowers are lovely. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Have a happy week!

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    1. Thanks, Eileen, it's fun to think of ways to display flowers, and I enjoy watching the birds.

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  3. Thanks for reliving your European trip with us - you must have had an amazing time! That little persicaria is so sweet but I guess if it is not fully hardy for you it would not be hardy in the UK? Could't work out exactly from your blog where you are based... Using the teacup was a great choice and it was so intriguing to see many of your vases from last year again too.

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    1. If sitting on a motorcycle watching the fields go by for 4000 miles in three weeks appeals to you, part of the time with a head cold, then yes. But I did enjoy the trip otherwise, very memorable. The Persicaria is hardy to zone 7, I got the seeds from Swallowtail. Theoretically plants hardy to zone 7 should make it here but I live at a little higher altitude and get freak cold temperatures every few years, like first frost coming Dec. 20 and plunging down to 6ºF / -14.4ºC in 2 days, which killed a 10' eucalyptus tree hardy to 0ºF. One year I lost all my regular Hydrangeas hardy supposedly to 0ºF, while 7 miles away they are fine. So I try to buy things hardy to zone 5 as a safeguard. I'm impressed with the mildness of your climate, I would think it could make it there. The problem I have is finding Persicarias beyond Painter's Palette, Red Dragon, and affinis. I guess the local nurseries think they are invasive but there are so many I would like to grow, the red ones like Blackfield, Lance Corporal, or Firedance. They are hardy to zone 5 or even zone 3, so safer for here.

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  4. Beautiful pictures - especially the Stellar Jays. They really are stellar!

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    1. Thanks, Dorothy, they are fun to watch but being larger makes them bullies.

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  5. lovely arrangements! beautiful stellar's! would love to see one in person some day!

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    1. Thanks, Theresa, I'm amused that I used to see them when I went camping in the "mountains" 50 miles east of San Diego.

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  6. That must have been a fantastic trip on the back of a motorbike Hannah. I love your photos of the birds, the flowers and those beautiful teapots. Thanks for sharing :)

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    1. Thanks, Denise, it was a memorable trip, but 4000 miles on a motorcycle in 3 weeks is not my favorite thing. The Motorcyclist has put me through the wringer on the BMW a few times, like when we were moving from Detroit to Denver and he couldn't find a motel in Nebraska so we kept going until 4 or 5 am to get to Denver. I learned then I could sleep on the back of a motorcycle. I AM a very light sleeper, and don't thrash around. Don't try this at home, kids.

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    2. Sounds very grueling and something I know I wouldn't have been able to do even back when I could do it :)

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  7. What a pretty bird, I've never seen one like this before. Your flower displays are so lovely! Thanks so much for sharing the love up-close with I Heart Macro ♥

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  8. Thanks, Laura, Steller's Jays are a west coast high altitude bird. Thanks for hosting! At least winter won't have us in its grip forever.

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  9. The jays are gorgeous! I love all your vases as well. Have a great week ahead!

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    1. Thanks, Gunilla, it was fun doing the vases. I'm looking forward to more fun finding flowers next spring and summer.

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  10. Fabulous array of vases...and a cute entry for this week. I haven't started my sprouts yet. And oh I love your jay! Gorgeous blue colors.

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    1. Thanks, Donna, at least the blue jay is really blue unlike some "blue" flowers. The flowers are slim pickings at this time of year.

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