Birds and Blooms

This little area has been the center of my focus lately.  When I came here almost two years ago, this area was neglected and overgrown.  Mike has refered to it as the Tennessee garden several times.  I just thought it was because of the sprinkler which looks like a UT football helmet, a gnome wearing orange, and a rock with a big T on it.

I have pulled weeds, chopped, raked, and sprayed weed killer to get it to this point.  I still need to get that vine growing on both of the stumps cleared away and another bit of weeds out but it is getting near to where I can mulch, sit back, and enjoy.  I've added a yellow iris which came from my grandmother Noland, Muffa.  It won't bloom this year, I'm sure, but I'm glad to have one of these irises here with me. 

She planted them all along the fence at the farm on Carothers Road when they lived there.  The farm is now sectioned off and multiple houses are there.  Her house, the barns, the pond and most vestages of my grandparents are gone.  However, those irises remain there growing along the fenceline near the roadway.  Several years ago my mother went over and dug up a few of them so that we could each have one in remembrance of Muffa.  It bloomed a couple of times when I lived in Rover and I was sentimental about it.  So, I pulled one of the tubers when we sold that house and have plopped it out there in that little patch of wilderness. 

I opted not to put it out here in this crescent where Mike has loads of 'flags' already because I wanted to be sure I knew which one was the "Muffa-iris."  It is full of blooms of all colors and varieties right now and is really beautiful with the spiky leaves, the grey woodpile and row of laurels in the background.



I hope to have black-eyed susans and some other perinniel bloomers which attract butterflies come up and add a riot of color here this summer.  I guess I've ruined the concept of it being a Tennessee garden with my plantings.  I realized when these irises bloomed that they were orange in color and the garden was refered to as the Tennessee garden because all of the plants were orange and white. 

Oops!