...taking-out-the-trash-day playtime

tomorrow is trash day...[at 0dark:30, I might add...]
so I always put it out the day before...
[and that would be today...]
so I pushed the cans to the curb...



and placed the ubiquitous "green" extra bag tags...
on the bags of leaves...
and said, "enough..."

after cleaning out the 'fridge...
"doing" the trash and cat boxes...
totally filling the trash can...
to the point that it "hurt" to get it to the curb...
I decided to "rest" from my back yard labors today...

so today...it's "flora catsingerus"...
[aka plants around the place...]

enjoy...



a couple of "Joseph's Coat" roses, blooming in the front...



my trio of very happy, newly potted ferns in the back...



the Mandarin orange & fig trees...in their new spot...



accompanied by the Japanese maples...
[yes...JAPANESE MAPLES...
I KNOW what shape the leaves are...
I KNOW what it LOOKS like...
if you only knew just how allergic I am to pot...
you would never doubt my veracity...
about this, anyway...]



this is the cutting from Mom's old lilac...
[the one with the small leaves...]
it has survived a year in the ground...
after surviving a couple of years in a can as a cutting...

there is also new growth from the older lilac...
Mom gave me...also a cutting, but from the larger leafed one...

Mom's lilac bush [older than me] was basically...
the old fashioned, small leafed kind...
but new shoots often came up with the bigger leaves...
which is what she gave me...

on my last trip to the ranch...
I made sure that I dug up a small leafed shoot...
[much harder to do... deeper roots...]
so now I have an heirloom one too...



this is my "long suffering" asparagus fern...
my really old one finally died several years ago...
so this one took its place and has NOT had an easy time of it...
though I believe that it will love it's new spot...



this is one of my Staghorn ferns...
it seems to flourish here...
on the eastside of the garage...
amidst the creeping ficus vine...



and of course, it wouldn't be right...
to overlook the giant oak tree I planted 20 years ago...
as it dominates the yard...
and gives me endless "photo ops"...



making my way back around front...
I stop to appreciate the "creeper"...
actually doing what I planted it to do...
and that is, turning colors as the seasons change...



finally ... the last sculptural flora on our tour...

the orchid I couldn't resist...
with nearly all it's blossoms open...

I had one "keep" blooms for nearly 6 weeks once...
this one came home with me with only a few blooms open...
so as long as it is "happy"...
I have high hopes for its continued state of "in bloom"...