So, okay. I’m seriously not a Snow-White-and-The-Seven-Dwarfs-in-the-Garden kinda girl.
Garden gnomes you won’t find here.
But I have garden friends. I do!
Birds, horses and butterflies…..
A green frog playing a bass serenade to the hosta.
A wind chime whose own song soothes our hearts, and tells us when it’s a windy day outside.
Faces that steadfastly oversee the garden….
And welcomers for the newly bloomed clematis flower…. Namaste to you….
The nice thing about these friends is they listen to your troubles and never criticize. They never say: “Leave those weeds alone! And it’s 11 a.m. Isn’t it time you got out of that tattered old houserobe and put on some decent clothes?”
Mind you, I’m glad for human friends who visit and make me laugh.
Like Pia, who insisted on getting a string to tie back the uber ex-uber-ant clematis that threatened to strangle her and all others who passed.
And Vito, our vintner-neighbour who claims that flowers are useless because – unlike grapes and vegetables — flowers can’t be eaten. It’s an ongoing argument and I think we both like that.
~~
Dedicated to all who love gardens, and your garden friends too.
Photos by Hamlin Grange.
Cynthia Reyes 
I like your kind of friends & your garden!
Thank you!
Every time I see shots of your garden, I want to come live there. You don’t mind, do you? 🙂 And second, what lovely friends to have . . . friends who get the whole green connection. As you know, not everybody does!
I know.
Thank you for the nice compliment! I love this garden. It’s formal, yet wild in parts. And very soothing.
Bliss to have everything but garden gnomes, n’est-ce pas?
Oui, c’est vrai! Merci.
A very beautiful garden, with or without gnomes. If you would like a resident gnome, I’m available. A quiet, remote corner will do.
Do you recall that some people used to have a Hermit’s Cottage on their grounds? Would you like to be a Hermit here? I much prefer that idea than your being a gnome!
Sounds great.
The Hermit’s Cottage sounds lovely. When will it be finished? 😉
Hah! I know you like small houses, Aggie.
Words and pictures that warmed our winter hearts down South. Say hello to the friends for me.
Will do, will do!
I love seeing your gardens, Cynthia. Are you sure there aren’t any gnomes hiding in all that garden lush? 🙂
Actually, you could be right. Maybe what I think are wild rabbits are really gnomes? Mind you, I haven’t seen the wild rabbits this spring. Better munching elsewhere….
I’ve got a baby rabbit eating my purple cone flower leaves. Hoping it stays out of the vegetables. There’s also a large rabbit hanging around but haven’t seen it in my yard, just my neighbors.
Ya need some clover in your nice lawn. They tend to like that and ignore the flowers.
Absolutly beautiful! Those fir trees make a perfect backdrop for all the other lovely inahbitants of your garden. I just read on another blog that butterfles were originally called “flutter-by’s”, which makes alot of sense.
Flutter-by’s. I like that! Those blue-green evergreens are priceless. As you say, a perfect backdrop. Thank you, Beth.
You have a magical garden! Just beautiful!
Thank you, kind Ma’am!
What lovely shots of your garden.
Thank you! We are a mutual admiration society of each other’s gardens.
I like your garden and its friends. Also the weathervane!
Thanks on behalf of them all!
Your garden is looking great. Mine also calls me to come out and my first trip is always in my robe! My furry garden friends can’t wait very long for their breakfast.
Atta girl! Thanks for saying that.
You have a beautiful garden and lovely friends too Cynthia. I like your wall faces, I’d be talking to them too, if they lived here. 🙂
I bet! thanks for the compliment. OK – my dear husband thanks you, because it is almost entirely his work, helped by a gardener now and then.
Looks like a very friendly garden where you are never truly alone.
Friendly and quiet – except for songs from birds and wind chimes – both very welcome sounds.
Ms CR you can talk me down outa them trees anytime, you certainly know how to mix them words and letters together.
one love
Hey, kind Sir: I thank you for these nice words.
Garden ornaments add a touch of play and personality to our gardens. I’m glad you have fun in your own way Cynthia and human friends who visit too. I need more of those! Thanks for sharing your joy and bringing a smile to my face. You might remind Vito that there are many edible flowers. 🙂
http://www.treehugger.com/green-food/42-flowers-you-can-eat.html
Thank you, Brad. I keep telling Vito about edible flowers, but he just gives me that little smile that says “not on my plate!”
Oh well, we can enjoy them regardless. 🙂
Your garden is lovely, Cynthia. Though you can no longer do much gardening (except secretly when no-one’s looking!) your influence is still strong. Your planting schemes are still there – it is still your garden. We don’t have gnomes but when Elinor was very small she insisted we got some little stone creatures to put under the shrubs. I wouldn’t be without them now.
Great that you still have the little stone creatures! We have a stone rabbit and we blame it for attracting the wild rabbits.
I am going to have to stop the rare secret weeding, because when I can’t get up, I have to wait till Hamlin comes into the garden! Serves me right….
Such a shame but…..
Hmmm…..I think I may be with your vintner friend but I suspect he doesn’t have NEARLY as many great photos of his plants as you do!!
Well, Tina, Vito has to have someone on his side. He is a very smart and well-read man, who has probably researched every edible plant on earth since we first had this argument, but he may never admit to it unless pushed.
So pleased to meet your garden friends. They are charming. Who is the friend who keeps the beautiful bird bath so clean and sparkling?
Hey, that photo was taken on a ‘clean’ day! I often forget to wash that birdbath.
Phew, so you’re not perfect after all. 😉
I am past imperfect….
😀 😀 😀
C’est sûr : si on est amoureux des jardins on ne peut qu’aimer celui là ! Et pour sûr, les fleurs sont utiles, même pour le raison(vive les pollinisateurs) et elles peuvent(bien évidemment pas toutes;-) ) être consommées 😉
Tres vrai, Christiane. Les fleurs sont utiles et aussi, elles sont tres jolies!
We make our gardens our own, with these quirky, personal details, don’t we?
We sure do!
I adore how you’ve populated your garden. Such a welcoming place.
It’s all my husband’s work, but I’ll take the thanks on his behalf. It is a very welcoming place; thank you, SK.
My oh My….your garden is so lush, full of color and beautiful!!!! I like the little cowbirds hanging around too. I have one that is still sitting on my feeder everyday looking in our window. We have named him “Earl”.
Earl? What a name for a bird! Who named him, and why that name?
Well my kids like the song Duke of Earl so they chose that name for some reason. Probably because he’s been hanging out at our feeder for a month. You can see pictures of our little Earl, who is pecking at the window as I type this, on my facebook page from a month ago lol. He likes it here apparently https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1604702379743711.1073741912.1515956535284963&type=3
He is so cute. Did he finally leave?
He was there almost all day. He leaves and comes back a few times a day. Crazy little bird!
It all looks pretty magical to me;0) Johanna
That’s a good word: magical. I think you’re right, Johanna. So much magic in a garden.
Great garden pictures, Cynthia! Great people pictures too 🙂 Enjoy your beautiful garden!!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Thank you, Patrick. Your garden is pretty fabulous with all those lilies and other beautiful flowers.
I absolutely love your garden. My father-in-law is just like Vito, he refuses to plant anything in the garden unless it bears fruit 😉
Thank you, Dianne. Vito likes fruit trees too. But not so hot on flowers.
I like all those smiling faces and lovely winged creatures who both grace the garden and never criticize … the most perfect garden inhabitants ever!
If they could speak, I wonder what they would say!
Hi Cynthia. Nice garden. Thank you very much for liking my poem The Pledge! Peace and Best Wishes. The Foureyed Poet.
You are very welcome.