After my last week post about roses, I was excited and decided to capture another montage to share with you.

There are several rose gardens in the country. I have been fortunate to visit some of them. Some are good and others are just hanging in there.

However, one of my very favorite or perhaps the favorite is the Biltmore Estates Rose Garden. Located in the mountains in Ashville, North Carolina, roses of all types enjoy an all-year-round good weather to keep them looking mighty sharp.
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The photos in my post today are not from Biltmore, however, they sure can compete with their roses, don’t you think? 

I love roses, however, I think that they have a mind or their own and right there, they feel as do they are the most important flower in the whole wide world. They are picky and moreover, they are pretentious and arrogant, smile.

I tried many times to grow them and many times I failed to develop a “WOW” rose garden. Therefore, I gave up and now I just enjoy other people’s rose gardens.
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Fall and spring are the best time for roses, they are in their element; beautiful and arrogant, SMILE! Enjoy these beauties now before winter hits your neck of the woods.

Unfortunately, this is the last montage of this series. You can set aside some time this weekend to stroll around your neighborhood and uncover the beauty of what the neighbors came up with this year to ensure that kids as well as their parents enjoy the fall before the winter season begins. Smile!
HAPPY FALL!

I am so amazed at the imagination of the residents in my and nearby neighborhoods. You can enjoy the various montages they display in front of their homes during the season. The displays range from the simplest to the most elaborated. Thanks for your efforts and originality, I enjoy your decorations daily. Smile!

​Fall is a good time to find natural materials in the garden, parks, road, anywhere really. I just realized that my huge fern went dormant this year earlier than in others. I guess that a reason could have been the awful drought that we had and continue to have this year.
 
Anyway, when I saw the dried mess it came to me that I could use it in an arrangement either in its natural form or sprayed in gold.
 
Well, here is the end result. A trip to Walmart for 3 small pumpkins, an old .25 cents yard sale find and a flower and scarecrow that I had in my craft room. Boom, an arrangement was born, smile.
 
You will need: Total ($6.11)
1 small or med. size basket and oasis to stick the flowers. (.25)
Any dried natural material, ferns, astilbe, leaves, … (0)
A seasonal silk sunflower (.40)
½ yard of green ribbon (.50)
1 small about 12” scarecrow ($1.99)
3 small pumpkins @ .99 cents ea. ($2.97)
 
Directions
Stick the dry material in the basket oasis.
Stick the scarecrow and the sunflower.
Tight a bow on the basket handle.
Place the 3 pumpkins in front. DONE!

I love to see how many neighbors adorned their homes with lovely fall designs. They make my morning walks so fulfilling, therefore, thanks so much for your efforts.

Today we are looking at a series of amazing simple expressions of art. It doesn’t matter how big or small the fall decorations are; they have a meaning to the owners.

Good example; my cover photo is so simple and yet so special. It has two small pumpkins under a beautiful American flag, even Mr. squirrel made an appearance, smile.

This design gave me the chills when I walked by the house. It reminded me of our men and women in the military, who leave their families and risk their lives to protect us. It reminded me that I was born in a country where we have so many freedoms, an amazing constitution and government structure.

We are blessed to have communities across the nation that cares for the elderly, the homeless, mentally ill, disabled, the environment and even those who come to our country for seeking protection from their own countries. I am so proud to be an AMERICAN!
GOD BLESS THE U.S.A

 Well, either if you love it or hate it, the 2019 FALL Season is already here. I don’t feel it yet, since the days continue to be hot, the trees are still packed with green leaves and the almighty rain is being missing since I don’t know when. It’s been a dry, almost total drought in many areas of the country.
 
The sad reality is that we all have to roll our sleeves and start working on gardening chores. Here are some of my hacks for the season:

​FALL HACK # 1: LAWN CARE

• Seeding, feeding, watering… (Oh, and this is my husband’s advice, since I am not a lawn guru, smile)
• Rake those leaves, please and collect them. They are not good to sit over your lawn and another benefit is, they don’t fly away to all your neighbor’s yards, smile.
• Since there is little to no rain, you must water the lawn at least 1 to 2 inches per week and up to 3 times/week.
• Is best to water it in the morning, however, if you work and come home after 5, do some watering then, is better than nothing.
• Finally, before cutting the lawn, raise the mower a bit higher to avoid injuries as the result of dry conditions. 

FALL HACK # 2: FALL FLOWER ARRANGEMENT MATERIAL

• Collect all the flowers left to make your last fall flower arrangements. Your garden may have an abundance of astilbes, roses and hydrangeas.
• If they are not totally dry, hang them in a dry place, (your garage or basement) until ready to use.
• Collect different types of pinecones, and acorns for your fall/winter arrangements.

 
FALL HACK # 3: SERIOUS GARDEN CLEAN UP

• Discard dead plants and shrubs, rake leaves.  
• Clean your outdoor furniture, decorative items and put them away until next spring. 

Well friends, this is the last post on mailboxes for this year, smile. Unless I find other mailboxes worth of sharing with you.

The fun of these photos reflects the personality of the owners. Nevertheless, I have seen only few boxes that are in scary need of repair.
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However, the best part, as ironic as it sounds, is that perhaps only about 2% never get to repair them. Therefore, as long as the other 98% care enough to have them looking mighty good, I am fine with it, and my photos are clear evidence that they do care about the “look” of their mailboxes.

As we all know, the primary reason why we select Hosta's for our gardens is not based on their flowers but rather on the beauty of their foliage.

Now don’t get me wrong, they bloom a tall spike with few blossoms and incidentally, are pretty, delicate and unique.

However, they bloom for about a week and then before you know it, they are done blooming for the year.

Hosta's are basically selected for their variety of their beautiful leaves; the green, yellows or white or variegated tones.

Anyway, I always try to capture their short bloom time, cut few spikes and leaves and bring that beauty indoors. Therefore, my flower arrangement today looks pretty decent, don’t you think?

​And it was FREE! BOOM.

Yes, we all have them. Some are pretty, others not so pretty, some look like fortresses and some are about to fall down. Notice the bases, as some folks plant low level flowers or built wooded frames around or beautify them with flower pots.

The interesting thing is that most of us try hard to make them look good to complement our properties. It only takes a little effort to make them stand straight or surprise them with a little paint or plant material that don’t cover them.
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The outcome of that effort? All the neighbors (and the mailman/woman) will notice the big change!