Till next year... sweethearts of mine....

till next year sweethearts of mine, these lovely peonies... sigh

Ladies! Its time for some Flower Child Fun!

Flower Child Fun Day! 

Coming soon DTBA

God's beauty... so healing.. breath in... breath out

Dahlias are just beginning..

Surrounding myself with beauty .....so healing, peace flows, concerns fade up in prayer, grace comes in

Zinnias and the battle of the Japanese Beetles

So far the Zinnias are winning the battle of the beetles. 

I go out each day  to the garden and knock the Japanese Beetles into a bowl of water with dish soap in it. They usually fall as their protection, so it works fairly well just holding a bowl under the leaves and help guide the  little creatures into their water and soap bath. I then leave the bowl out in the garden to ward off other beetles. It seems to work quite well. Crunching the little guys in between my finger tips has become a regular practice too. Although this tends to make most a bit squeamish, my hard heart towards these little imps wins out. Grandpa T. (he was about 80 years old then)  taught me this on potato plants and potato bugs  when I was a teenager. Applying the same techniques with the beetles seems to work very well. 

One year, I got on the band wagon of the traps. They worked exceptionally well for calling in ALL the Japanese Beetles from miles around.  

I do not use them now!

These pests can be very destructive. Don't ignore them. Counter attack! Pay the 8 year old down the street to go out and get 'em. Give the brave kid a nickel for each one squished or in the water bath. Your garden will thank you. 

Snap dragon photo by Sue koons

zinnias  from my first gardens here at the new location