Gardener's Roost

Snapshot View of the MOBOT Japanese Garden

2013-05-05T12:33:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was an overcast, drizzly, chill-to-the-bone kind of day.

Perfect for a trip to the Missouri Botanical Gardens!

Here is a shot I took using my phone in the Japanese Gardens.

Hope your views have also been beautiful.

~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - Spring at Shaw Nature Reserve

2013-04-10T07:16:00.000-07:00

The daffodils were smiling all over the hillside this weekend at

Shaw Nature Reserve, Gray Summit, Missouri.
Yes, Spring has arrived!

For more Wordless Wednesday images from around the world,

click here.

~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - Happy Spring!

2013-03-20T13:30:00.000-07:00

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click here.

Happy Spring!

~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - This Morning

2013-02-20T13:36:00.002-08:00

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from around the globe.

~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - Butterflies and Flowers

2013-01-30T13:40:00.000-08:00

Photos taken at the Sophia M Sachs Butterfly House,

Chesterfield, Missouri, USA

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from around the world.

~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - Cardinals

2013-01-23T14:41:00.003-08:00

St Louis (County) Cardinals and snow.

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from around the world.

~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - Sedona Sights

2013-01-16T09:21:00.002-08:00

Arizona in November

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Wordless Wednesday images from around the world.

~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - Shades of Purple

2012-11-07T14:54:00.000-08:00

Callicarpa americana

Hydrangea

Shades of purple for Mom and

Pancreatic Cancer* Awareness Month.

To learn more, get involved, donate, or ask questions,

here is a link to a BBB accredited charity,

Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.

For more Wordless Wednesday images from around the world,

please click here.

~Aerie-el

*Pancreatic cancer is the 4th ranked cause of cancer death in America.

Wordless Wednesday - Signs of Fall

2012-10-17T11:26:00.003-07:00

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please click here.

Happy Autumn, Northern Hemisphere folks!

~Aerie-el

Butterfly House, part two

2012-10-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

In Butterfly House, Part One,
the butterflies were the stars.

Part two features the plants in the Sophia M Sachs Butterfly House.

There are 150 tropical plant species exhibited here,

at this Attraction of the Missouri Botanical Gardens.

It is gorgeous and lush, a perfect environment for the butterflies.

The orchids would make anyone go gaga.

Whether you visit for the butterflies, the Grand Hall living exhibits,
to attend a class, or just to picnic and play,
the Butterfly House is a magical place,
one that will draw you back to it.

Again and again.

~Aerie-el

Butterfly House, Part One

2012-09-30T14:00:00.000-07:00

Finally settling into the new digs just outside of St Louis, Missouri.

There are so many things to do here, especially if you enjoy
outdoor activities like hiking, birding, and gardening.

So far, I've only been on the tram ride through the Missouri Botanical Gardens
(MOBOT), so that is a future adventure and blog post.
The image above is of some Chihuly glass in the gardens.

The MOBOT also owns and operates the

Sophia M Sachs Butterfly House attraction.
While visiting the Butterfly House,
I snapped the images below to share with you.

Entry garden area,
"Mysterious Monarch" sculpture by artist Bob Cassilly

"Lopatapillar", artist Bob Cassilly

"Cockroach Encounter" in the Grand Hall


Flower Beetle from Africa, in the Grand Hall

From the entry area to the Grand Hall,

then travel into the Tropical Conservatory.

There are nearly 2,000 butterflies in free flight.

They fly singly, in pairs and in groups, similar and dissimilar.

As they do so, they flutter past you,

leaving behind the slightest whisper of air movement.

It is difficult to capture images of the 80 species of butterflies on exhibit,

but patience is rewarded in small doses.

Near the exit from the Conservatory is the "Miracle of Metamorphosis".

Below are some of the mounted chrysalids,

and the beautiful creatures that emerged.

Spider on sign

This seat beckons one to take a moment to soak in the beauty here.
One butterfly at a time.

Stay tuned for Butterfly House, Part Two,
featuring the tropical plants in the Tropical Conservatory.

~Aerie-el

Skywatch Friday - Stormy St Louis

2012-09-28T08:25:00.000-07:00

A couple nights ago, on the drive to the Hill neighborhood in St Louis,

the skies opened, lightening flashed, and a double rainbow appeared.

It seemed the cars were driving right through it.

I hope you enjoy this version of a classic...

Please click Skywatch Friday for more images from around the world.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!

~Aerie-el

Wordless Wednesday - Comparing Clouds

2012-07-18T11:56:00.003-07:00

near Seattle, June 30, 2012

near St Louis, July 2012

What a difference a place makes.

For more Wordless Wednesday images from around the world,

please click here.

Happy WW to you, from my cell phone and me!
~Aerie-el

Watery Wordless Wednesday - Reflection

2012-06-06T07:18:00.001-07:00

Reflection, the first week in St Louis. June 2012.

For more Wordless Wednesday images from around the globe, please click here.

Watery Wednesday is here.

Wordless Wednesday - Wasp on the Water

2012-05-30T05:13:00.001-07:00

Something of Beauty or to be Feared?

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Wordless Wednesday - Peony

2012-05-16T09:36:00.000-07:00

Peony with Sambucus nigra

in a friend's garden

taken yesterday with my camera phone.

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please click here.

Wordless Wednesday - Destination...St Louis

2012-05-09T11:03:00.002-07:00

The Gateway Arch, St Louis

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Wordless Wednesday - Shadow

2012-04-25T13:00:00.000-07:00

Taken at the Desert Botanical Gardens, Phoenix Arizona

March 2012

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Wordless Wednesday - Taken By Storm

2012-01-25T21:48:00.000-08:00

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please click here.

I hope you are all safe and sound, whatever your view!

~Aerie-el

Skywatch Friday - Sunrises near Seattle

2012-01-06T10:22:00.000-08:00

A beautiful, cool, serene sunrise on Dec 22, 2011

There is a sliver of the moon in the upper left corner.
Please click on any image to enlarge it.

One hour later, these crystal beauties came to light.

And then came 2012.

January 2, 2012

January 4, 2012

For more Skywatch Friday images from around the globe,

please click here.

Wishing all of you a happy and healthy 2012!

~Aerie-el

Skywatch Friday - From coast to coast

2011-12-02T08:53:00.000-08:00

Travel has been my middle name lately;

it gives me an opportunity to take more photos.

Here are some images of the November sun

setting on Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

Below are some from the west coast,

sunrise to sunset...

Please click here

to enjoy links to other images from across the globe

at Skywatch Friday.

~Aerie-el

October SAGBUTT at Soos Creek Botanical Gardens

2011-11-11T10:17:00.000-08:00

Seattle Area Garden Bloggers United To Talk (SAGBUTT)

met at Soos Creek Botanical Gardens

one chilly morning in October.

Some of the group couldn't make it because of illness,

some due to children's sports games, or scheduling conflicts,

but three of us did, and were treated to an intimate tour of the SCBG by the owner.

SAGBUTT signature pose

Please stroll with us on our tour;

documented below
with lots of pictures
and very few words.

Ever wonder what a snapshot of a fall in the forest would look like?

Wonder no more.

Hydrangea aspera leaves--HUGE!

The Acer Yvonne dubbed a VW Bug

Morris called this the Snake Bark tree.

Does anyone know the botanical name?

'Squid' rose hips

Trachelium blooms

Gunnera, orb, and SAGBUTT member

Next SAGBUTT gathering is scheduled for

November 20, 2011, 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.,

at The Volunteer Park Conservatory in Seattle.

Come join us, won't you?

~Aerie-el

Egads, Ghosts?

2011-10-17T21:28:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year, and I'm getting into the spirit of things

by taking a departure from my 'normal' blog post by

participating in the Blog Carnival:

True Spooks 2011: True Ghost Stories

organized by Tui of Mental Mosaic.

My next post will be back to 'normal', and feature a tour of

Soos Creek Botanical Gardens in Auburn, Washington,

where some of the members of

Seattle Area Garden Bloggers United To Talk (SAGBUTT)

enjoyed a docent-led tour this past weekend.

Without further ado, let's get to some supernatural talk!

My story begins in
The House on Elm Street

I'd say I was between 8 and 10 years old, when this happened to me.
I wouldn't call it a 'ghost sighting' but more an encounter with the other side.
We had moved into a 100-year-old home on Elm Street in a small quaint town in Massachusetts.
The house was HUGE and had lots of nooks and crannies to explore,
especially as a curious young kid.
Spider webs, bugs, critters, mud, nothing deterred the inquisitive spirit.

Home alone with only my Mom one day, I was on the 3rd floor (attic) exploring and I spotted a thick book up on a high shelf in one of the closets in one of the bedrooms there. I grabbed a ladder, climbed up, and gingerly lifted the book from the shelf and carried it down the ladder. I rested it on one of the steps and examined the aging leather-bound cover. It was a Bible, with a print date of 1833.

The book today

As I flipped it open, I found an old photo, a Daguerrotype image, of a family--a man, woman, and 2 children. Since moving into the house, I had wondered about the people who had lived there before us, and thought that these were the people. I was so excited about this discovery and of course I wanted to share it with my Mom. However, I wanted her to see how I found the book and its contents, exactly.

Today

So I gingerly placed the book back where I originally found it. I ran downstairs and as I barely contained my excitement, I shouted, "Mom, come up here and see what I found!" She immediately joined me and we went back up to the attic together, proceeding to the closet where the newly found 'treasure' was located. I climbed up the ladder, carefully removed the book, and showed it to her. I told her about the photo as I opened the Bible to show it to her. To my surprise, it was no longer there. We then looked all around the closet, even lifting floorboards to see if the photo had slipped between the cracks. That day, and for years after, I continued to look for the photo, but it has never been found.

The attic window

That was the first of many unexplained occurrences
that I recall experiencing in The House on Elm Street.

And here is a sample of what we found at Soos Creek Botanical Gardens:

both an orb (maybe?) and a giant Gunnera next to Yvonne.

Wordless Wednesday - Autumn Orange Rhodie Blooms

2011-10-05T07:48:00.000-07:00

For more Wordless Wednesday images from around the world,

please click here.

~Aerie-el

Through the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh

2011-09-23T02:04:00.000-07:00

A few words and more images of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh,
taken August 31, 2011...

A welcoming path

Striking colors

Female monkey puzzle tree

Click here: Araucaria araucana

or here for more information.

Male monkey puzzle tree

(as identified by docent)

Pretty in purple-pink

Endangered plant bed

No snacking here

Poppy and ...I thought this pollinator looked different

from most of those I see in the US Pacific Northwest.

Pretty poppies against a lovely sky that day

Example of cover crops or green manures

Rather formal lines, no?

Bright, bold colors

More splashes of color coordinated

Glass house--look at the top right.
Do you see the palm that has almost outgrown its space?

The docent said it may be moving next year.

Where fish swim and gunnera grow

Eryngium giganteum
Click here to read more about how it came to be known as
Miss Willmott's Ghost.

Sea of Crocosmia 'lucifer', looking as if reaching towards something,
or just blowing in the wind.

First of the fall bulbs shining brightly.

And I wanted to throw in this image because

I thought it was a perfect example of perfect pruning cuts.

Beautiful!

Pruning...the perfect segue...

to explain that for this post
I've drastically pruned down the number of images displayed

compared with the number I took at the Gardens.
I know. You're shocked, right?

Okay, maybe not!

So, fair warning! Don't be surprised if more pop up in a future post.

Until next time!

Happy Autumn in the Northern Hemisphere
and Happy Spring to those in the Southern!

~Aerie-el