God Shines

There is a light that God shines upon the glistening trees.

You can’t imagine God’s light until you bend your knees.

There is a light that God shines that sparkles in the snow.

You can’t imagine God’s light until you come to know.

There is a light that God shines from on His throne on high.

You can’t imagine God’s light until He draws you nigh.

Flowergardengirl January 2012

Filed under: Foilage as interest, Garden Photography, Poetry in the Garden ]]> http://fleamarketgardening.com/2012/01/24/god-shines-upon-the-glistening-trees/feed/ 3 snow scene in North Carolina flowergardengirl snow scene in North Carolina http://fleamarketgardening.com/2012/01/21/bluebirds-nesting-early-in-2012/ http://fleamarketgardening.com/2012/01/21/bluebirds-nesting-early-in-2012/#comments Sat, 21 Jan 2012 21:22:12 +0000 flowergardengirl http://fleamarketgardening.com/?p=11490 ]]>

The Bluebirds are nesting early in 2012. Here you see one at my nut feeder. There are 4 in all that have been visiting my feeders for the past two weeks. Our Bluebird box is receiving a good deal of activity. This is early for them to start nesting but we’ve had a very mild winter. It’s in the 50′s today. I’m glad they are nesting early because it will give them a chance to get good and established before the wrens start their search for a home.

If our weather holds mild, we could see up to three nestings. Usually they lay 4 to 6 powdery blue eggs. Incubation last about 14 days. After hatching, they are in the nest about 16-22 days.

Everybody in the family feeds the babies. The parents keep the nest very clean. Mom will eat the shells after the babies hatch. They are certainly enjoying the peanuts we put out. They will eat bugs and nuts.

On the day that the last baby leaves the nest, remove the nest and clean the box with a solution of 1 part clorox to 10 parts water. Sometimes momma Bluebird will start her second nesting that very same day. You must hurry to clean the box between nestings. Discard the old nest far away from the current one in order not to attract predators.

It really is magical to see them visit and this year we seem to have a lot more.

In our area of North Carolina, Bluebirds do not migrate. If you feed them mealworms, they are most likely to stay in your area over the winter. Each year after the last nesting period they will just hang around and enjoy each others company. During nesting time they are fierce competitors.

Here’s a quickie,  —- made you look. I don’t know what these flowers are because I’ve completely forgotten. I know they were all over my garden when I planted them.

This is the year that I start bugging my husband about adding a split rail fence to our property line. The deer have gotten out of control and starting to eat my fancy hydrangeas. Of course a deer can jump a fence this height with very little effort except that I’ve got a few tips that will make it a more successful barrier.

Zigzagging the fence confuses the deer a bit. If they think they aren’t going to land on solid ground then they will avoid the jump. I’ll also add some rose bushes, large rocks, and other obstacles on my side of the fence to discourage them. They will look before they leap. If something is in their way–then they move on.

So I will build a split rail fence and zigzag it adding greenery and obstacles in an effort to move the deer along to other grazing destinations. That is the plan—hopefully.

If that doesn’t work—I’ll add some motion detector sprinklers to the fence. I’ve heard that works marvelously.

I took the photo at the Pioneer Museum in Staunton, Virginia. 

Hey, I’m the garden blog of Flowergardengirl. Today is my 10th birthday. Today is January 1st and I’m a garden blog celebrating 10 years online. I’ve been through a dozen or more changes. I’ve been hosted at 10 different sites with WordPress being my favorite. I’ve grown to include several urls and we have big plans for 2012. We have become a company with tax id and everything.

We have never been anything more than a garden blog or page in our earlier life. We aren’t a professional institution. We came up through the ages the hard way. We aren’t affiliated with anyone. Mostly we just change at the whim of our owner. Sometimes she blogs a lot and then she gets distracted and we go on the back burner for a few days or weeks. We don’t always stay on topic and we love North Carolina. There will be more stories about North Carolina in the 2012 garden blog subjects.

The Flowergardengirl garden blog is going to get a huge dose of creativity during 2012. Read on:

1. It will host another blog for Best Garden Blogs. It’s called, a Garden Around the Corner.  Best Garden Blogs is under construction but you can follow the link for a sneak peek. Best Garden Blogs has been around for over a year now and was moved around in an effort to find the best and safest place to host it. The first year it was open—it was hacked and all the files were duplicated causing a nightmare for Anna. There is currently a backlog of blogs wanting to get in and will be included on the new website. So if you have requested to be included—be patient–it will happen. For now–go to our Facebook page and join! Garden Bloggers and Friends

Garden Bloggers and Friends will have a magazine which is part of the ongoing Best Garden Blogs magazine which has 3 issues already published. It too has seen growth and currently has over 1,000,000 views. The first issues are as follows: Toil the Soil, Toil the Soil With Chickens and More, and Toil the Soil March Issue of Kitchen Garden.

There is a spring 2012 issue planned and will focus on garden sheds. If you would like your shed considered then please use the contact form at the top of this website and send flowergardengirl a link to your blog. If you don’t have a blog then send her a photo of your shed and a brief description.

2. Flea Market Gardening is hosted here at the Flowergardengirl blog. Some of you notice when you arrive that the url changes to that address. Right now there are a few posts in the categories which cover the 2011 topics but there is so much more planned for this subject. Starting with—a mini magazine on Mason Jar bouquets. Watch for this to be released the end of January 2012.

If you would like to share your Mason Jar bouquet then email me a photo with your info to annalooper at gmail dot com. No entries after January 15th, 2012.

Subscribe to my site for future topics for these mini-magazines. See our first magazine here! Flea Market Gardening

3. Flowergardengirl will be posting daily again to this blog.

Flowergardengirl is a writer but she is not an English major. Her expertise is in computers, design, gardening, and flea market gardening. Should you find a grammatical mistake or misspelling….move along….and forgive. She wishes to blog and do her best in these areas of weakness but it’s just not her strength. Some folks choose not to write because they are afraid of mistakes. Anna chooses to write and not be handicapped by it.

Anna has a technical degree in electronics and produces her blog, magazines, and books on a MacBook Pro using numerous programs.

What jobs has Anna accomplished in her life:

Wife of 33 years, mother of two grown boys, mechanic on the flight line, cheerleader in high school, biology teacher for 10 years, waitress, owned a Service Master franchise, taught adult education classes to Air Force wives, career Air Force wife, pitcher for the women’s Air Force softball team, self published 4 magazines, built websites and community pages, managed a garden center, made moonshine, driven a race car, worked on a race car, water ski champion, driven cross country, designed a house, designed several gardens, designed container arrangements, won yard of the month in 3 states, podcast producer, produced commercial for local television, and the list goes on….

Some of her stories and photographs are published in known magazines, online publications, and professional materials. She is currently writing a historical novel about gardening and a children’s book about gardening for the deaf.

Looking forward to seeing you every day in 2012 and thank you for following my blog, my projects, my dreams, and my gardens. Hugs to you all—Anna

you can follow me on Facebook

Almost everywhere you look along the back trails of North Carolina, you’ll find an old barn like this. Gives me a strong desire to look inside. Such takes me on a journey to a good story and beyond. I’m in the middle of writing two good stories these days. One will take me the better part of a year to finish and the other is almost done. I’ve always been a story teller and there is a long list of them in my family. We don’t just tell them from made up imaginations—-we tell them from historical truths and juicy research.

For my novel Singing Behind the Trowel, today’s research took over to the theory of energy fields. The main character of my novel is a young woman named Hyacinth Wiles. Hyacinth was raised by Ida Hopper a real genuine Wildcrafter. Hyacinth was raised in a rich environment of mountain medicine and natural cures. Ida has many techniques in which to return balance to nature with one of them being the mysterious field of energy both in plant and people.

Singing Behind the Trowel involves teaching the reader of old folklore traditions and marrying them with the research done today to prove those methods. Hyacinth and Ida live in 2011 but they practice remedies and recipes tried and true from as far back as the 1600′s. Methods brought to this country and saved through the marrying and immigration of generations past. Ida herself is a descendant of Pocahontas. The book is chocked full of recipes and concoctions that cure gout and coughs from the same bottle.

There is real fear by some who believe witchcraft involved as part of the methods used by Hyacinth and Ida but when modern medicine and science prove their results……….fear is removed and acceptance opens a new field of treatments. New discoveries are born and Hyacinth bridges the gap of confusion surrounding the subject. She is the voice that will bring attention to their once quiet life.

While writing this novel, I’ve been lead down a path of remarkable revelation and discoveries. You know you are on to something when the Lord shows up and things fall in place. Knowing what I know about science, mountain life, folklore, wildcrafting, and the skittish approach by some—-I think the timing for this novel is perfect. Technology has revealed and measured some pretty amazing energy activity never before seen. Proof that some have more energy emitting abilities to make a change in things around them. Kinda like you knew a negative person put you on edge but didn’t really know why—–well science can now measure that response. You can actually see the response on a computer screen where the touch of one gifted with gardening talents can provoke cellular activity in the energy of the plant. You can see the glow of energy forces vibrating between the two. Just can’t be measured in someone not interested. There is now scientific evidence that talents and abilities are God given and very real.

I know a great deal about my ancestors and our nurturing character. I’ve known for a long time that I was meant to write down the stories for they are written in my heart. I will reveal in the ..notes about the author section— of this book about how it was written in my genetic code long before I was born. The facts will blow you away. A book you won’t be able to put down.

Follow my blog and you’ll continue to get a few updates every so often. And do be looking for my little book about Oliver to be coming out soon.

When I heard that my neighbors Bob and Alamedia were going to Alaska on a halibut fishing trip, I said take your camera. They go ever year and last year it was for salmon. Bob and I go pick out flowers for his garden beds and he often rewards me with some prized salmon or just recently his famous salmon cheese ball. So I’ll be anxiously awaiting the recent halibut trip. He remembered to take some flower photos for me and now I’m sharing with you. That blue is gorgeous.

Alaska has the most beautiful hanging baskets and flower beds right on their busy city streets. The long sunny days and cooler temps are the perfect ingredient for huge healthy flowering annuals. Sure makes me want to visit.

**** Anna is currently working on a novel called Singing Behind the Trowel and will be doing lots of research about it over the next year. You can read some introduction material about it HERE.

Singing Behind the Trowel will be the next book released by Flowergardengirl. It’s a fictional love story concentrating on the nurturing qualities of the young and beautiful Miss Hyacinth Wiles.

Hyacinth was born in the Appalachian Mountains and raised by a Wildcrafter ( fictionally based on a wildcrafter such as Ila Hatter) named Ada Hopper. Ada is a descendant of Pocahontas.

Tremendous research is done for accuracy and believability where needed. Respect of the folklore and ways of the Appalachian people is preserved and honored threaded throughout the story.

There are times of laughter and sorrow though you will most likely blush a time or two as Hyacinth speaks her mind openly and tenderly. Ada has raised her to be true to self and seek what Hyacinth truly yearns for passionately. Hyacinth’s been raised knowing the heartbeat of nature. She’s been raised on the harvest of the land. Hyacinth never expects to find a man who can match her passion in life because Ada had never been married.

The story tells of how Hyacinth comes to live with Ada. A story that takes you though the growing, canning, drying, and making of mountain medicine. Ada and Hyacinth are loved by the people and unknowingly hold an important secret that impacts the future of modern medicine.

How will the ways of old meet the inventions of today? The book audience is for 18 years and older. Due to the mature nature of ‘mountain talk’ and the rough edges of the two leading ladies, it should be read by adults only.

~~~ This story will absorb most of my time over the next year. It has been fun to write my blog, but I have a yearning burning desire to write this book. See you all next Autumn as the author of…….. I Sing Behind the Trowel………

Warning, viewing this post could cause an elevated heart rate and a serious case of being green with envy. My lime green dried hydrangea wreath of gigantic proportions comes to us by way one hydrangea paniculata cultivar and one grapevine wreath.

Cut the blooms approximately 2 weeks before you want to use them. Let them sit in a vase of water for the two weeks. Remove them from the vase and stick in the wreath. It will look like this indefinitely. I’ve even spray painted them blue, pink, gold. I got the wreath at a second hand store and it was covered in gosh awful flowers. I just pulled off the old flowers and repurposed the wreath. The whole project may have taken 30 minutes.

The colors in my home are always warm and monochromatic. The dog is always sleeping.

Thanks for visiting my home in North Carolina today—the temps are getting cooler and the sun is slanted different in the sky. I think it’s time to get out the decorated pumpkins and make it all autumn-esque.

View from my front porch last autumn

Sunny yellows and blues welcome guest to a hearty breakfast at The Baird House in Valle Crucis, North Carolina. Deede Pope prepared comfort foods like applewood bacon, scrambled eggs, hash brown casserole, and country-style biscuits with fruit preserves. Good food that sticks to your ribs and sustains you through a day of treasure hunting and sightseeing in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Every now and then, I think a person ought to have a big country breakfast. You need to set the table with napkins and pretty place mats. Eggs are easy to fix and biscuits come frozen these days with a quick pop in the oven for just like grandma made.

Pick a sunny place and add shouts of color in the serving pieces. You won’t believe what it will do for your happy gauge. Make sure there is an activity planned afterwards or you’ll drop off to sleep till evening.

If you decide to set the table and serve up a bountiful breakfast, come back and let me know how it changed your day. If you have a breakfast recipe you’d like to share—I would love hearing about it. Just leave a comment for me.

The book will not be released until next year….sorry for the inconvenience but it will be worth the wait.

The newest book in the works at Flowergardengirl is Oliver, The Praying Mantis. Oliver came to live with Flowergardengirl in a fresh flower arrangement. He went undiscovered for more than a week while hiding amongst the monochromatic greens. Anna purchases fresh bouquets from her local grocery store on occasion and they sit on her kitchen table. She’s never seen a living creature suddenly appear.

Being that she is Flowergardengirl, she was delighted to discover that Oliver was actually praying he would find a way to visit her gardens. Anna did not know she could talk mantis language until Oliver started using American Sign Language. Wait till you see his adventure from the flower farm where he was born to his home in the gardens of Flowergardengirl.

Oliver, The Praying Mantis is co-authored by Michael Looper. Michael Looper is Anna’s son and chose ASL as his second language to achieve his degree in Media Studies with a focus on writing from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Michael is a talented writer, award winning actor, and very animated at ASL.

The book is about a little praying mantis who journeyed from a small flower farm, to the grocery store in a bouquet, and then to the gardens of its dreams. The family who tended his birth garden were deaf farmers. Oliver learned to sign by observing their communications.

God cares for every creature both big and small from beast to man. He cares that a praying mantis would pray for a garden so grand. God is full of purpose and set a mantis in the gardens where Oliver could be heard, be seen, and be appreciated. Flowergardengirl gardens organically and Oliver will work his days as an important part of balance in nature.

This book will be out in time for your Christmas gift list. It will be a favorite book that bring together gardeners, grandmothers who wish to delight little ears, people who find a handicap in their life and wish to be heard and seen, mom’s and dad’s who yearn to communicate kindness and love in their children.

The pages are full of high quality digital images showing Oliver in his bouquet and perhaps–most likely–showing his home in the garden. The pages show American Sign Language in its action and beauty.

Please put Oliver, The Praying Mantis on your Christmas wish list. Watch the Flowergardengirl blog—right here—and we’ll announce the minute it hits the market. 

After seeing the little twig fairy chair and little fairy house, I had to find out more. Here is what was written about her in the local paper.

Helen Eyers has been growing and painting gourds for quite a few years and is self taught. She first examines the gourds and then determines the expressions for each piece.

Helen calls these creations the Little Round Ladies. They aren’t for sale. I did ask cause someone reading this is going to go nuts over them. The reason Helen does not offer them for sale is because she doesn’t like repeat work. Helen looks forward to starting new projects and seeing what the gourd says to her.

I was going to buy this immediately if they were for sale! What a gorgeous nativity and true that every face has its own personality.

Sacajawea above is one of my favorites in the album.

A Japanese Kokeshi doll in Helen Eyers gourd style.

Below—–Bliss, by Helen Eyers

Thank you so much Helen for sharing your gourd art with us.

And what does Helen call her garden?

Helen’s Website:

Little Round Lady Creations

This sunny sunflower mix was in a package sold in Kmart under the Martha Stewart name. They germinated well and were various sizes and kinds. Sunflowers really do make a cottage garden pop. If you have a sunflower garden, I’d like to see. Leave me a link to your album and I’ll come take a look. I’m putting an article together for the autumn issue of the magazine and I want to feature sunflower gardens. I’m also looking for scarecrows and pumpkin themed natural arrangements.

Let’s see what you got!

Today, my brain is fried from the heat and so the conversation that follows is somewhat of a sarcastic rant about the gardens. Next post will return to lots of fun educational stuff that you have all grown accustomed to at flowergardengirl. I apologize ahead of time.

In spite of the heat——Wow, I’m a freaking genius. I grew these hydrangeas from a 5″ pot and last year I whacked them down in the autumn hoping I had not killed them. Managed to fertilize them in February and it worked. Amazing the ferns have survived this blasted heat. The clock needs a new battery. Plant shade plants in the front beds next summer. Don’t cut the hydrangeas this year and see what happens next season. Make out with Mr D in the swing.

Wow, hoping the Bright Eyes phlox will be a huge bunch I can divide in the spring.  Looking at that bee balm knowing it will reseed like crazy and make me a seedling pulling maniac next season. I love my rock. I love everybody who loves rock. If you don’t like rock then I don’t like you. Well maybe I do like people who don’t like rock–let me think about it.

Coneflowers, phlox, petunias, verbena, and pine straw. Pine straw does best at keeping down weeds and people who want to walk barefoot in my gardens. Add more containers to the beds–I like containers.

And the big old blooms of the annabelle cultivars. Love the lime green. Don’t put a petunia in the shade. Keep the feeders full as the birds are depending on you while the sun bares down on the earth so intently. Like 100+ today and everyone including grandma–was sweating.

And painted pots…paint more pots in fun colors.

Some days–less words are needed and more pictures are the only thing that works. I’ve been writing about plants for the better part of 10 years. I’m allowed one random post.

Update–see the last photo for what they picked! 

Bob and Almedia are my sweet neighbors who let me do just about anything to their landscaping and gardens. Bob and Almedia have raised a gang of kids and neighborhood kids in this beautiful home. They are ready to change the outside shutters and go all white with the trim. They already thought I was pretty fantastic but this week I sealed the deal when I showed them a mock up with new color choices.

First we discussed having a rich dark red door and these shutters in Azores Blue. You can see I virtually  painted the trim white and painted the shutters this pretty greenish blue color.

All the options are below and so which one would you pick? I’ll be back to let you know what they think.
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And after meeting with Bob and Almedia—here is what they chose:

Shutter are Mahogany Brown and front door is Peale Green

Flowergardengirl has started two fabric lines from her garden photography. The two premiere lines are The Lace Cap Collection and The Flea Market Gardening Collection. You can preview these two lines at

Anna’s online studio.  The above photo shows a 2 yard fabric piece.

This is considered a fat quarter: 21×18 inches. 

The fabric above was created from Anna’s lace cap hydrangeas growing in her gardens. Different variations of this plant will be added to the collection. Solids, checks, and other textures will be added also so you can mix and match for quliting or other sewing projects. The above fabric swatch was created from this photo below.

This is dainty fabric for sunrooms and girlie outdoor spaces. Add a bit of lace to the trim and it becomes Victorian.

The other collection will be Flea Market Gardening and will be designed from the photos submitted to our facebook page atFlea Market Gardening.

This is a photo submitted by Jenny Boyer Alexander

The Flea Market Gardening collection is a creation of fun fabrics for a  unique way to make napkins, tablecloths, outdoor curtains, basket liners, aprons, and tote bags from junque themed garden decor.

These items are not available yet as they are incomplete collections. Complementary fabrics will join these selections and enhance the project. You’ll be able to make borders and contrasting blocks for a professional look to your design.

Watch here or our facebook pages for announcements on availability.

This hydrangea shows off all summer long and during its bloom cycle you can see multiple colors.

This hydrangea, Let’s Dance, gets between 6 to 8 feet tall and wide. It likes moist but not wet soil and morning sun. Mine is currently 5 feet tall and has blooms all summer long. It blooms on old and new wood.

I’m not really fond of lace caps but this one is an exception. I’ve moved it three times to finally find this spot where it is thriving. In our hot and even more hot—like today it’s a heat index of 111—this is protected from afternoon sun. It would die in a day if out exposed.

This is a good dried hydrangea too—I use it to decorate with in the winter. It will turn brown and beige–but it’s pretty. You could spray paint it when dried.

Botanical Interests Seeds has the most beautiful catalog. Not only do I grow their seeds, I recycle their catalogs. Sitting on my repurposed twin headboard bench, sits the aqua birdhouse embellished with little hearts.

Up there on Flowergardengirl’s porch and just to the left of the front door, sits a little birdhouse made by Anna. With the help of her son, Chris, they hammered, sawed, painted, glued and laughed like crazy to create this cute little chick house.

Sitting on a plant bench made by my husband— is the cutest little tin roofed bird house made from the leftover wood of her little shed, Copper Top Cottage. The twin headboard is one from our early married years. I’m glad I saved it.

The hearts are cutouts from the Botanical Interests Seed catalogs and the scrolls and such are wallpaper stencils leftover from another home project. I applied the hearts with Modge Podge. The stencils are rub-ons.

Painted hearts and such are glass paint.

The aqua paint was leftover from my Copper Top Cottage project. The whole birdhouse was varnished when done.

The Botanical Interests seed catalog offers the perfect sized art for these smaller projects. They are so colorful.

Don’t forget to add a door for clean out.

To add a really worn look, I slightly sanded the hearts after they were applied with Modge Podge.

That’s a two inch opening cause this is for display. I suppose a bluebird would like the home but the opening is too big for smaller birds. Check online for the right size opening if this is specific for certain species.

Some of the flowers at my front door this year are a gift from Ball Horticulture. They are doing very well. The marigold is called ‘Bonanza Deep Orange’. Just to the left is Petunia Shock Wave ‘Coral Crush’. I love that ‘Coral Crush’ immensely. The petunia down and to the left is one I purchased but also a Wave–’Neon Rose’.

I’m pretty sure the coreopsis is: ‘Redshift’ from this article I did some time ago. It will turn a more burgundy as shown in the article. This is a good photo to show you how the ‘Neon Rose’ and ‘Coral Crush’ differ in color. Hopefully you can see the coral color coming through.

The hydrangeas on the left of my porch are just about to bust wide open. Thanks for visiting NC today. It was nice having you at my home. I’m in zone 7a.

Below, are my back gardens last year when I grew ‘Summer Solstice’ by Botanical Interests–love their catalog and their seeds.

As you can see, there are oil cans, heaters, plate baskets and more out of the ordinary appearing. You must be a good collector of junk to have this assortment of planters. They were selling very well.

This gas powered container is fun an functional. Keeps the van cool and helps advertise the family run landscaping business.

Chicken wire holds it all in place and I’ve been told that the plants will grow fast and start filling in down the van. I think it will be pretty when it overflows.

Looks a bit top heavy but they say it drives well enough to get the advertisement down the road and to the next event.

The van hauls this trailer down the road. The trailer has a full rock water feature. The whole convoy looks pretty clever when you see it in action. It certainly draws a good crowd.

So head out to see them next weekend for the Wautauga farmer’s market in Boone, NC.