When bad things happen to good dogs….

…Life stops for the good dog’s owner.  I’m an artist and this is my busy season. The galleries and shops that sell my work need me to produce new work for their customers who want to purchase beautiful gifts.  My annual studio sale is coming up which adds to the chaos and mayhem in the studio this time of year.  But this is about my dog…I’ve pondered whether or not to publish this post and decided yes to share my story with you, my gardening friends, because this can happen to anyone…

My busy season.  Usually I’m in the studio up to 12 hours a day this time of year but make time to take my inquisitive dog, Treasure, a Belgian Tervuren out for a walk. We walk anywhere from a quick mile to three miles. Sometimes we hike down the mountain, but last Sunday we took a medium, 2 mile walk. Or at least that was my plan.

Just under one mile away from home a pit bull mix came sauntering out of a field. Always leery of loose dogs approaching us, I backed up but didn’t want to appear nervous or afraid and let them sniff noses. Everything seemed fine but before I could blink, the pit mix grabbed Treasure! In shock and horror, with both Treasure and I screaming, I tried pulling my dog away while kicking and pushing the aggressive dog off.  It would not stop or let go.  Trying to keep my brain calm and THINK what to do I recalled reading somewhere to release my leash if an attack like this ever happened, so I did.

Screaming at the top of my lungs I realized no one could hear me and although there is usually debris laying about on the road there was nothing to pick up to use as a weapon. All I could do was continue kicking at the dog until I saw a large tree limb as we moved up the road during the attack. Managing to break off a small branch it was no better a weapon than my feet or fists. Then suddenly the attack stopped but the dog stood there and I feared he would start up again, so I continued screaming at him to get away and shook the stick as menacingly as I could muster.

Finally a car came around the corner, my neighbor Chris as it turned out.  She began yelling at the dog and honking her horn until it finally disappeared back into the field. I quickly checked Treasure’s injuries, grabbed my treat bag & leash from the road & anxious to get home gratefully accepted a ride from Chris.

Treasure’s injuries were too significant to treat at home, so I finally found an available veterinarian on a Sunday afternoon and rushed my dog down the mountain and up to Mt Hood.  Dr. Kathy was wonderful while treating Treasure, reassuring, methodical and thorough. Bandaged and medicated we arrived back home and spent a very long night as Treasure wouldn’t or couldn’t sit or lay down for long without yelping in pain, so stood almost the entire night.  She has a large gash on her side, multiple punctures and severe bruising.  We spent the next day and night trying to keep her quiet and resting, giving pain medication to keep her comfortable.  Monday night I realized the bandage was possibly pulling her hair, keeping her from lying down, so we went to see our regular vet to remove the bandage and check progress that the injuries were healing.

Treasure is now Sleeping Beauty with the bandage that had covered her large gash removed.  Dr. Kerry advised the best treatment plan was hydrotherapy!  A brief shower twice a day to gently wash away any bacteria & keep debris out.  This along with antibiotics, anti-inflammatory and pain medications is speeding her recovery process.

The police report and letter sent to the dog’s owner will say ‘potentially dangerous dog’ and list the address. It will remain in that status until/unless it bites a person. Then it’ll be listed as a ‘dangerous dog’ & the owner will have to contain it in such a way that it cannot dig out; carry a huge insurance policy and keep it muzzled. If it bites other dogs it will still just be listed as ‘potentially dangerous’.  I hope and pray it never bites another but fear it will.

Needless to say, my life and work has stopped for a moment while I tend to Treasure and her needs.  Besides the physical mending she is glued to my side, moving with me when I leave for any other room in the house.  Occasionally a routine noise causes her to shake uncontrollably.  As she recovers from the physical injuries I’ll look for ways to reassure and help her over the emotional trauma as well.

Questions:   Is danger lurking everywhere & I simply never noticed?  Are my safe rural walks and hikes tainted forevermore?  Will Treasure greet friendly dogs as enthusiastically as before?  And how will I know that it’s a friendly dog?  To post or not post since this is not about my garden?

Lesson: Carry mace and cell phone always on our walks!  I suggest you do too.

Final notes:  As of this Saturday morning posting, Treasure is ready to play again.  We are still trying to keep her quiet as the gash in her side isn’t healed yet (it looks a lot better), but she is raring to go.  I’m teaching her new tricks and playing thinking games and hide and seek games with her instead of run, chase, and fetch games.  I slowly walk her up to the mailbox and we roam the back fenced yard.  Yesterday we walked as far as the neighbor’s driveway but it was not planned and I felt a bit nervous about not having mace in my hand.

I’m thankful it wasn’t worse…..and thankful you stopped by to read about Treasure instead of my garden this time.  Please take care on your journeys out…be aware of potentially dangerous dogs…  Until next time……

Beckoned by a Red-breasted Sapsucker

This is my busy season with work, so a leisurely visit to my garden is a luxury not often enjoyed right now.  I notice changes quickly along the driveway as I speed in and out making deliveries and picking up supplies.  Mostly I see a blur of brown with a tinge of green from conifers as I come and go.

My dog insists we take a daily walk, so I take a different route through the garden each day trying to catch hints of progress, or should I say demise as she pulls me forward trying to get me to move at a faster pace, more to her liking.

Last week, as we re-entered the property, much to my surprise and delight I noticed a Red-breasted Sapsucker!

I ran in to grab my camera & he waited for me! I snapped as many shots as close as I could get until he flew into the fir tree across the garden.

As long as I was there with camera in hand, I began searching for color and looking to see what else was new since I last explored.

The first to be noticed were maples changing colors and conifers.

And conifers changing color.  My Dawn Redwood  will drop her needles soon.

I see I forgot to put away my yellow chairs.  How could I have missed those bright cheery yellow chairs?

As I looked up into the trees, I noticed all the berries still available for interested birds….

The Poke berries,

Mountain Ash berries,

And the few berries left on my Red Twig Dogwood.

As my gaze shifted from sky to earth I saw my heucheras were still looking good, including my current favorite, Peach Flambe!

Growing near it more Liriope blooms were pushing their way up!

And sweet little cyclamen!

Not to mention several patches of fall crocus still blooming!

As I ambled further into the sunny area I was delighted to find Zebrina smiling at me!

Imagine my surprise when I found this lone Nigella!  It is Autumn, is it not?  Someone forgot to tell her!  Or perhaps someone thought I’d like this reminder of summer, knowing I wasn’t quite ready for Fall!!

Sad Face Cement block that I made several years ago indicates my reluctance letting go of summer.

Thanks for stopping by.  Until next time….

Surprise!

Daphne odora

September & October have been very rushed and busy with work, causing me to almost miss the best part of fall.  In my last post, I managed to catch a little of it and yesterday I caught up with a little more.  I didn’t know Daphne odora bloomed in the fall!

Cyclamen hederifolium

My friend Angela at Parkdale Gardens Design Service is a plant collector and gave me this Cyclamen as well as many of my perennials.  She owned Parkdale Gardens for decades and now offers local and internet design services after closing her nursery.

Anemone

As I strolled through my garden, what a surprise to find so much in bloom since our day of snow last week.  The temperature has soared back up into the 50’s giving my garden one last breath before it’s winter sleep.  The anemone above was given to me by a friend long ago before I knew what I was doing and has managed to survive my many mistakes.

Tricyrtis

The toad lilies are finally blooming!  At least one of my varieties has opened her beautiful eyes and honored me with her presence before a hard frost hits.  Glad I didn’t miss one of my favorites!  Not sure which variety this is as I’ve moved them from place to place and managed to lose all their tags in the process.

Three Birds Flying

I believe this is Three Birds Flying, given to me by another plant collecting friend, Judy.  It can become rampant but is easy to pull out and blooms late spring through fall for me.

Blue Salvia

The last bloom of the Blue salvia that I picked up at Le Tour des Plants.

Echinacea

Even found a small clump of Purple Coneflowers in bloom.  The weather so strange this year, left me with few flowers from this otherwise prolific bloomer.

Aster

I love this tall pink aster.  It’s so bright it glows and calls me to it.  Even though my clump is small I divided it a few weeks ago to add it in other areas of my garden.  If I had time I’d rush out to the nurseries right now and buy more!

Gaura 'Whirling Butterflies'

The wispy Gaura is a great segue between plants.

Gaura lindheimeri

I love ‘Siskiyou Pink’.  Gaura is another of those plants I plan to buy more varieties of.  Yes, even collect them!  I can’t help myself.  Why have only one when you can have ten.  Or twenty for that matter!

Buddleia davidii ‘Honeycomb’

Another surprise as all my other Butterfly bush flowers are gone now, was to find ‘Honeycomb’ still blooming away.  Nothing like cheery yellow added to the fall reds and oranges to spice up the end of season.

Pink Rose

Even the deer surprised me by leaving yet another rose for me to enjoy during these last days.  That’s two for me and … er…ummmm…. hundreds for the deer!

Baby's Breath

Another pink, although a much smaller scale is the sweet ‘Baby’s Breath’ that I started from seed.  It grew into a robust shrub until I moved it to a new location where it’s remained rather pouty for two years.  I look forward to seeing it next year, fully loaded with little babies.

Hollyhock bud

I think my biggest surprise was finding this Hollyhock bud!  I didn’t know they bloomed this late!!  I’d better go check to see if it survived the deer last night.   In case you’re wondering why I haven’t sprayed liquid fence, I’ve simply run out of time due to my work schedule.

Unknown pink flower

Last but not least another gift from my friend Judy.  I don’t know what this is, other than a low growing summer bloomer.  It seems familiar and I should know its name but alas I don’t.  If you know, please tell me!

Thanks for stopping by!  Until next time….

I See Red…

Blueberry leaves

…Red and pink, yellow, green and lavender that is.

Mountain Ash berries

I’ve fallen behind in my studio and garden.  While catching up in the studio, I looked up on Tuesday to see snow falling and realized Autumn had descended  …  without me!

Sedum

After the rain melted the snow I went out searching for damage only to discover I almost missed the glorious fall color!  Oh I’ve enjoyed seeing the color changes along the roadsides as I travel here and there, but hadn’t been paying attention to my own garden.

Euonymus

I’d better hustle!!

Green Goddess? Another Garden Fairy hanging about!

I have tools to put away, and need to clear out the water lines.

Barberry berries

Certain tender plants must be covered with straw if I want to see them next spring.

The pinks & purples of Poke

My glass and ceramic garden art should be packed up and stored.

Black-Eyed Susans prevail

I have a few homeless plants from my last plant shopping expedition that need to find a hole for the winter if I can’t place them now!

Single rose bud left after deer munched off all the leaves.

There are still a few daffodil bulbs that haven’t been put back in the ground yet.

Frozen Empress Tree

And there are rock piles that need to be cleared out of the way, left from the last beds I dug.  (You remember, I have to dig rocks out of the soil before I can create new beds to house new plants!)

Lovely lavender Beautyberries

And so I begin my panic that fall is once again here before I am ready for it.

Fall begins her descent...

Thanks for stopping by.  Until next time……

Hello Yellow, Goodbye Summer!

Sunflower

Who doesn’t like yellow, the sunny happy color?  I waited all summer for my cannas to bloom & they finally did the last week of September with fall hot on it’s heels.

Canna Lily

This has been such a strange year for all my blooms, leaving a normally lush bountiful garden with just a few spots of color nearing the end of the season.

Detail

I don’t have that many cannas this year, as I’m not so good at overwintering them, so I buy them annually at Horn Canna Farm.

Kniphofia 'Vanilla Ice'

I love the yellow kniphofias and have been searching for a raspberry pink ever since reading about it.  Do you know where I can acquire one?

Bird Food

We had butterflies swarming our yellow butterfly bush this season.

Yellow Butterfly Bush

Decided to include a yellow Goldfinch, one of my favorite birds!

Mamma feeding Baby

Not to mention my yellow birdbath the goldfinches love:

©Steider Studios

And a sunny yellow coreopsis:

Coreopsis

And more of my yellow work hanging around:

©Steider Studios, Garden Fairy

She’s a little pouty because she’s a summer girl and is NOT looking forward to being covered in snow.  Wouldn’t you like to have a little glass fairy hanging around in your garden?!!

Thanks for stopping in.  Until next time…

Dahlias to die for

Cloudburst

My friend Charlene and I went to the Le Tour des Plants, a nursery hopping expedition along the Willamette Valley in Oregon.  We had a tremendous day of fun and found great plant bargains.  The idea is to visit as many nurseries as you can, get your passport signed, buy plants, then on to the next nursery.

Fascination

We turned in our passports at the last stop to be entered in a drawing for fabulous prizes which neither of us expects to win, but it’s fun to think we might.  We ended up with only  four stamps on our passports as we were sidetracked by a number of non-participating nurseries between each of the participants!

First Kiss

We only quit when we had to…the nurseries were closing.  We seriously could only have fit 2 more plants in my car if Charlene held them on her lap.  One of the highlights of our day, although not on the tour was Swan Island Dahlias.

Purple Taheijo

It was just starting to sprinkle as we arrived, so we tried to be quick but were soaked anyway within an hour.  Smitten by the color of all the gorgeous dahlias in bloom, we were both happy to have been there rain or not.

Sugar Lips

These photos represent only some of the list of ‘must haves’ I made up to purchase in the spring.

Red Devil

All but one from my half of our carload of plants has been planted after a week of planting.  You now know that the process of planting in my garden is more complex than simply digging a hole.  The perfect location for each new beauty is either already inhabited by another lovely, or an undeveloped section of my garden.

Lindy

If the location is already inhabited, it means relocation.  Finding a better spot for the current resident, which could mean an entire series of plants must be relocated!  If the perfect location is undeveloped, of course it means taking the time and energy to dig out rocks, add compost to the soil, then locate and add companion plants for the newest ‘had to have it’ plant!

Brushstrokes

In the end, I expanded three garden sections into the undeveloped areas surrounding them.  Fortunately we’ll soon be entering our rainy season so I won’t have to worry about rearranging my sprinklers until next spring!

Glamour Girl

It’s going to look fabulous around here next year.  I can’t wait to see it!

Bed Head

And just when you thought all my dahlia selections were pinks and purples…into the mix comes a tangerine!  I love all colors but as you can tell was drawn by the pinks & purples at Swan Island Dahlias!

Swan Island Dahlias

Thanks for stopping by.  Until next time…..

Oh So Ornamental ~ It’s Grass in my Garden!

'Morning Light' Miscanthus

The subject for September’s ‘Picture This’ photo contest at Gardening Gone Wild is ornamental grasses.  I’m once again throwing my hat in the ring as I’m known for not being afraid to take a risk.  The other participating bloggers have turned in magical photos and I’ve waited until the last minute, but here it is shown at the top.  ’Morning Light’ Miscanthus coincidently shot in the morning!

Room with a view

Judging this month is Nan Ondra who’s written several books, only one of which I have but it’s a favorite ~ “Foliage“.  Her book  Grasses: Versatile Partners for Uncommon Garden Design is now on my list to acquire since I’ve found some ornamental grasses that I adore so I’d better learn more about them.

The prize is being awarded once again by High Country Gardens, another favorite!

Miscanthus sinensis 'Variegatus'

I’ve only recently begun adding grasses to my garden as it took me years to dig out the football field of grass that once covered it.  A couple well meaning friends gave me ornamental grasses in the beginning stages of my garden, but they were thugs that wanted to run rampant, so I dug those out too.

Japanese Blood Grass

Until the last two years I’ve avoided anything grass like the plague.  Didn’t even want to look at it in a nursery!  Now I have several varieties that are lovely and well behaved so far like ‘Northern Lights’ Hair Grass, ‘Shenandoah’ Switch Grass, Variegated, ‘Morning Light’, and ‘Cabaret’ Miscanthus, Silver Feather Grass and Japanese Blood Grass to name a few.  I’m sure I’ll want more after reading Grasses: Versatile Partners for Uncommon Garden Design!  Do you have a favorite non-invasive grass I should put on my list to buy?

'Cabaret' Miscanthus

Thanks for stopping in.  There’s so much more to tell you next time!

Sunrise

Sunrise! Thank you God.

Spectacular morning!  Thought I’d share it with you while you’re waiting for my next post.   I’m writing about the wonderful time I had touring the Le Tour des Plants put on by the Oregon Association of Nurseries.  Coming soon.  I promise!

Thanks for stopping by!  Until I get the next entry finished up…..

Blotanical ~ A Must for Blogging Gardeners!

Upper section of my garden, near the road.

When I began my garden blog it was really just for me.  A tool to share my garden progress with friends who were just starting out as well as my mentors, to share my achievements.

Shortly after I started, I wondered how many other garden blogs there might be & when my search revealed 1,110,000,000 for ‘gardening blogs’ I knew I’d never read them all!  I started on page one, looking at many of the sites and noticed over & over that my favorites contained the icon for Blotanical.  My curiosity sent me to check it out and what a find!!  I joined immediately.

I had to use Blotanical for a while before understanding all the avenues I could traverse because there’s so much content.  I am now having a lot of fun and truly enjoy the other blogs & blotanists I’ve found there.  Mind you, I’m still ‘new’ to it, and am continually learning, but everyone there is very friendly & encouraging to newcomers.  You can choose favorite bloggers, favorite blogs and favorite posts.  You can send & receive messages to other gardeners, and ask questions (or answer them!) in the forums.  There’s so much more, but these are the basics that I am now comfortable using.  I just figured out how to edit one section of my profile, so you can finally see the ‘about me’ next to my profile picture.  Thanks to Diana for helping the technically challenged!

This time of year there is a vote for the 2009_Blotanical Awards.  There are so many blogs from which to choose for each category!  And so many categories that no blog gets left out!  It will be difficult to choose the best of photography (you know I love big colorful photos, and there are so many talented photographers who are blogging about their gardens!).  How can I choose the best blog design (I have it narrowed down to my top three!) or The Best Blog Name?!  There’s also a Newcomer blog of the year (wouldn’t that be ME you ask?  No, silly, I can’t vote for myself, so hope YOU will, tee hee!!).  A couple of the big votes are Garden Blog of the Year, and Blotanist of the Year – I have my favorites, but how does one decide among them???  There’s even a category for the favorite blog from each state and eight countries!  Yes, Blotanical is an international connection for gardeners of every kind.  If you don’t see me for a few more days it’s because I’m checking out each blog to vote for my favorites!  While I’m doing that, you should go check Blotanical.com/ right now!  Be patient if it takes a little time to load, the wait is worth it!

Thanks for stopping by! until next time…..

In the Pink!

Cosmos with visitor

As summer nears it’s end, I find myself wandering the garden taking in as much as I possibly can to sustain my memories during the winter months, just around the corner.

Pink Veronica

Breathing in the fragrance and gazing at the surrounding color, imprinting the lovliness into my soul.  I’m already planning for next year as I go through, eyeing the changes I’d like to make, which plants will be moved to a new location and what new plants I need to buy to fill in empty spots.

Osteospermum

I think I’ll go buy those new plants now!  The Le Tour des Plants is coming up, September 12 through 20th.  It’s put on by the Oregon Association of Nurseries and last year I had so much fun and brought home so many bargains that I cannot wait until Saturday to go nursery hopping!

Yarrow

While I go back to planning my shopping list, I leave you with the current blooming PINKS from my garden.  Pink because that’s the mood I’m in when shopping for plants.  In the PINK, even though I hope to find more blue flowering plants, something with reddish foliage and I need lots of shade loving plants, whether pink, red, purple or yellow!  I need groundcovers for the sunny and shady sides of my garden, but nothing invasive as I’ve done my share of digging out invasives!

Oriental lily

What I’d love to find are tallish shrubs and smallish trees that can withstand dense shade.  I want to build a natural fence using plant material, but so far most of what I’ve tried fails to thrive along my densely shaded zone 5 border.   I’d love to hear your suggestions of what can grow under fir trees.  I have a Japanese maple that’s doing well, two varieties of Ilex, an Elderberry, a couple of Ribes, and a Mountain Laurel, that are growing ever so slowly.

Gaura with Sedum

I have Rhodies fronting this area with plenty of Hostas, Ferns, Brunnera,  Epimediums, Lily of the Valley, Columbines, Arum, and Asaram.   I have Astilbes and Astrantias, Heuchera’s, Tiarellas and Heucherellas.  Pulmoneria and Bergenia, Rodgersia and Spiderworts.

Sedum

I have lots of other tiny plants that will eventually fill in, varieties of Saxifragia, grasses on the smallish side, little vines and evergreen groundcovers.

Poor Man's Orchid

What I really need is a large backdrop to block out my neighbor’s property and dense enough that the deer will look for a way around instead of through it.  Suggestions anyone?

Pink Turtlehead

Thanks for stopping by!  Until next time…….

Phlox, Poor Man's Orchid, Black Eyed Susan, Pink Butterfly bush