PURPLE DATURA

Seed pod open on 12-6-2010

Normally when my Datura bloom they only last for a few days and fall completely off.  This year, to my surprise, two seed pods have stayed on.  The pictures here show one bloom, a seed pod, and then the seed pod as it opened!

Purple Datura bloom on 9-24-2010

Seed pod on 10-20-2010

Aloe ‘Kyle’s Grandma’

 This has been an amazing plant for me.  The story behind this plant is located under the Cactus and Succulent page.  I don’t know the actual name of it, but I call it ‘Kyle’s Grandma’ because Kyle Hall, a friend of mine, brought me this plant as a baby taken from his grandmother’s plant.    When this picture was taken on September 15, 2010, it was 35 inches wide and 17 inches tall.

At the end of summer I move the pots of plants from the back yard to the front porch and sunrooms to get ready for cooler weather.  On October 20, I noticed that ‘Kyle’s Grandma’ had a bud!!! 

This was a pretty exciting thing!!!

This picture was taken on November 3, 2010 of the top of the flower. It continued growing until it was over 4' tall!

This picture was taken on 11-15-2010. There are smaller buds under the big one on top.

FIRST HARD FROST OF 2010

December 6 marks the date for the first hard frost here.  Last year we were zapped on December 5.  I had already moved all the potted plants from the backyard to the front porch, the sunrooms, and the den.  I also has moved the last remaining passion vine to the den on the south east side of the house.  Last year all the passion vines died with the frost on December 5.  Luckily I had one remaining in a pot which I kept inside.  In the spring I replanted it into a larger pot and later moved the pot next to a fence where the vine grew like mad.  I knew the frost would likely kill it, maybe for good, so I removed the vine from the fence and drug the whole plant into the sunroom.  I now have it happily growing on strings.  Well, maybe it wasn’t that happy at the time, but I think it has a different opinion after last night.

I have many pictures to get on the blog…  Like the picture of the Aloe and its bloom that reached 4′ tall. 

Thanks to everyone that is reading the blog and thanks for all your comments!

CLEANING WINDOWS

Over the past several months I have been cleaning the house and the windows.  When I first started, I complained about how filthy everything was.  The grease on the walls, ceiling, and the cabinets in the kitchen was so thick it nearly had to be scraped off.  The windows all around the house looked as though that had not been cleaned in 20 years (or longer) and the painters had left the paint on the glass (as well as the varnish on the inside).  I have spent months working on all the windows on the first floor…  Now they have all been cleaned on the inside and I just have a few to go on outisde.  Actually, I have to re-clean them because I had kind of gotten a little tired (A LITTLE!!!) of cleaning all these windows.  I decided to just use Dawn Dish Soap and just rinse off the windows…  Well, now I have a sunroom with streaky windows. 

I guess I am appologizing  for complaining about the former occupants not cleaning the windows and leaving such a mess of paint on them.  I would imagine they became overwhelmed, frustrated, tired, and bored with the whole idea!  Well, the first floor is done and you can forget me getting on a ladder for the second story!  NOW the windows need to be re-puttied and painted!  OH, and the spiders just build new webs that have to be continually removed.  Once I get all finnished, I just have to start over again.

QUESTION!

I have enjoyed the comments from everyone and really appreciate the feedback.  I try to answer everyone but am curious about how YOU get the answer.  Does the reply just show up on the blog or do you also get an email with the reply?  IF you aren’t getting your replies, I may have to also send you an email…

GARDEN UPDATE

This summer has been a hot one!  It has been so hot and dry the mosquitos haven’t been so bad.  The okra and egg plant have been producing up a storn.  I planted Ichiban and Black Beauty Egg Plant and they have grown taller than me.  I really didn’t think they were supposed to grow that tall.  The Clemson Spineless Okra, according to “most” seed catalogs. are supposed to grow to around 5 feet tall.  Well, mine are over 7 feet tall!  I wouldn’t even want to guess how tall the Cow Horn is this year and I haven’t measured it.  The tomatoes are a joke this year so I am not even going to mention them. 

A month or so ago, at around 2 A.M., I heard something HUGE running around in the back yard.  It sounded like some big dog chasing something.  It was dark and my flashlight batters were almost dead so I couldn’t get a good look.  Finally it ran through the garden toward the sidewalk where I could get a good look at it.  It was a very small Armadillo!   I discovered it’s den behind the goldfish pool.  I still see the critter about every night, and then one night I saw two…  Of course, that must mean more trouble.  I think I need to relocate them.

I have also noticed a chipmunk off and on.  Hopefully they are lkess destructive!

MORE ADDED TO THE “MY JOB WITH SUZANNE” PAGE

I have been pretty busy with the garden and getting the house cleaned since the auction.  SO, I haven’t been working on the blog as much.  I have added more to the story about my job with Suzanne because several people have asked me to finnish it.  Well, it isn’t quite finnished yet, but there is more.

NEW UPDATES COMING SOON!

I have many pictures to take of the garden and I am very anxious to get them on the blog.  BUT, since I have been using the computer at the library instead of the mansion it is kind of a pain in the neck.  I have a limited amount of time and I can’t get the computer there to cooperate with me! 

I have completely rearranged the garden and have made a trellis for the pole beans from galvanized pipe and drove them in the ground two feet!  Last summer I had to stand the trellis back up several times because it kept blowing over.  I didn’t have tall enough stakes so I tad to tie several together which would break.  Forget what you have read about certain varieties only getting to a certain height and add a few feet!  They don’t actually stop growing until the frost which wasn’t until December here in Mississippi!  So, if you have never planted pole beans before, just be prepared for all the heavy growth and be aware that there is a possibility of them blowing over in the wind.  You need to put poles together like a teepee or a tent or something to help keep this from happening.  Well, my trellis made out of galvanized pipe with the poles on the end drove in the ground two feet should do the trick…  We’ll see!!!

I am glad to say that all the Hosta came up and have new pictures to add later!  I was also worried that the Angel Trumpet wasn’t going to come back up, some of tham have started coming up now.  The Black Game Cock Iris is blooming right now and it is a beautiful dark purple, almost black in color. 

I have been building a brick border along the old brick sidewalk in the back yard to put some of the potted plants on.  I have also put one on the west side of the garden.  I added a raised bed for some beans and I took the old bed that the strawberries were in and placed it along the west side of the garden.  HOPEFULLY my bush beans will go in it.  I have also planted Park’s Whopper Tomatoes, some Egg Plant, and Big Bertha Bell Peppers.  I have two rows of Clemson Spineless Okra also coming along.   Of course I also planted Cow Horn Okra and it will be transplanted where the the Amaranthus was last year. 

The snow peas are growing up their trellis just fine and have almost reached the top. I have to get pictures taken of the onions, leeks and Elephant Garlic.  The Elephant Garlic has made some GREAT looking plants and you could plant them almost anywhere for a really neat effect!

Just keep checking back, because alot of excitement iSplanned for te Mystical Mansion and Garden for 2010!  Still lots of builds to build, and since most everything in the mansion will be sold, I will have to add allot of stuff to replace it!

FIRST AUCTION TO BE HELD ON APRIL 24

The first auction will be held on April 24.  The auctioneer will be Billy Nail of Cloverleaf Auctions and Antiques.  It will definitely be an auction to remember!  I hope to have Taste of Chicago set up to prepare their great sandwiches! 

I have taken more pictures of dolls and hand-painted items, but I have to go to the public library to upload them on the blog.  This is a real pain because I only have so much time and uploading is somewhat different than my own computer!  Just bear with me!

NEW PAGE FOR DOLLS ADDED!

Madam of The Mystical Mansion

I took the page about Dolls and Statues and made it a page exclusively for dolls.  I still have more pictures to take and add.  I was kind of taking pictures of the dolls and hats at the same time, so I had the same problem with the rooms getting darker because of the clouds.

I am not sure how many porcelain dolls Suzanne has in her collection, but I know there are many!   Some of the dolls are very old, and all are unique.

Alexandra, Czarina Of All The Russians

Alexandra, Czarina Of All The Russians.  She was the first doll ever created by the House of Igor Carl Faberge.  She is gowned with imperial opulence in regal velvet and satin.  Embellished with precious jewels, 14 karat gold, and cultured pearls.