
Japanese Maple, found in our front border in 2010 when it was a seedling, and nurtured ever since. April 2017
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November finds me sifting through the year’s photos in search of our favorites for the coming year’s calendar.
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Out of the thousands of photos I capture each year, sixty-one may come to be selected, re-cropped, and published in our limited edition ‘A Forest Garden’ calendar.
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We set parameters. First, I use only photos taken here in our own Forest Garden. All of those photos taken while visiting and traveling never have a chance to make it to the calendar.
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Next, I decide on certain types of photos each year. One year, I wanted a photo of a bird for every month.
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I always want to use photos of butterflies, bees, dragonflies, and the other interesting creatures who have visited our garden during the year. We love watching them, and plant to attract and feed them.
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Our 2018 calendar’s theme is ‘Flowers Every Day of the Year.’ I focused more on photos of flowers, and a little less on beautiful foliage. Selecting the year’s favorite photos requires a major investment of time and thinking.
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It is instructive, as it illustrates the garden’s annual progression of growth. I watch the colors of our garden shift from month to month and season to season.
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I learn so much about our garden by reviewing the year’s photos. This discipline of studying the photos also helps spark fresh ideas, and clearly shows where a little extra effort may be required!
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Now that my holiday efforts are complete, there is time to look one more time through the photo file I compiled while working on our 2018 calendar.
I hope you enjoy this retrospective of the past year in our Forest Garden.
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If you would like to have a copy of our 2018 “A Forest Garden” calendar, they are available through The Nurtury in Gloucester Courthouse, Virginia. As in past years, this is a working gardener’s calendar. Moons, solstices, equinoxes, and first and last frost dates in Zones 5-9 are noted. Each month features gardening tips and reminders.
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This week between Christmas and New Year, this longest night of the year, remains one of my favorite weeks of the year. It is a time for looking back at fond memories, and also for looking ahead to those plans and projects on our personal horizon.
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It is a time for favorite friends, favorite activities, favorite keepsakes, and favorite memories.
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Woodland Gnome 2017
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April 3, 2017, and our Magnolias have put out both leaves and new blossoms after a late frost in March.
For the Daily Post’s
Weekly Photo Challenge: 2017 Favorites
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