June 12, 2013 · 12:17 AM

Not quite Summer in full swing.

The days are becoming humid with temperatures in the mid to low 80s. It’s just about Summer here in the Mid-Atlantic states.

The spiderworts (Trandescantia) are finishing their Spring bloom cycles but are developing fungal leaf spot, which they always do when the humidity is high. That’s ok. They tend to fall over after the blooming season and look best when cut back to the ground.

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After only a few days I grew tired of all the leaning Rose-of-Sharons from tropical storm Andrea so they all were trimmed back to about knee high. They will shoot back up about three to four feet by Fall. They will just bloom later than normal.

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The hydrangeas along the drive are beautiful, as always! They all were cuttings from one plant which I found behind the old shed when I purchased the house ten years ago.

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While walking around the JC Raulston Arboretum at North Carolina State University we saw a beautiful fox! He wouldn’t sit still long enough for a good picture and I only captured the below picture of him running away down a path.

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That’s ok. The perennial border looks wonderful as we have had tons of rain! The dahlias are blooming now with the lilies budding out for their next show!

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I am just waiting for the vegetable garden to begin producing some veggies for some fresh and new recipes!

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June 9, 2013 · 7:05 AM

Turmeric lassi

If you have eaten at an Indian restaurant you might have noticed a drink of yogurt and fruit. Lassi is commonly used to cool the mouth and throat after eating spicy food of the Indian subcontinent.

It is usually just a mix of yogurt and fruit with maybe a few spices for flavor. Mango lassi is very common. It has a tangy bite from the yogurt and sweetness from the fruit. It’s very filling.

Turmeric Lassi

2 cups yogurt
2 ripe bananas
2 tsp graded ginger
2 tsp honey
Juice of half a lemon
1 tsp vanilla
3 tsp ground turmeric
4 ice cubes

Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Add more yogurt as needed. Serve in large glasses with a sprinkle of turmeric on top!

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I used the yogurt which I had in the refrigerator, a strawberry Greek yogurt. It had a wonderful banana-strawberry flavor with the tang of the Greek yogurt.

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Adapted from the Green Kitchen app from IPhone.

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June 8, 2013 · 10:12 AM

After tropical storm Andrea…

Tropical storm Andrea pass through the area Friday. She left more than 5 inches of rain and downed trees and flooded lowland areas. The power flickered but did not go out in my neighborhood.

As I arrived home from work about 6:30 pm I pulled slowly up the drive expecting to see many limbs in the yard. There was only one dead pine limb about 5 feet in length in yard. I was relieved.

As I arrived near the end of the drive, next to the house, I see the rose of sharon Altheas were not as lucky. They were all leaning over.

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They usually stretch toward the sky with long and thin limbs which heavy winds or rains often bend to the ground. They will often pull themselves back up over several weeks. If not, they will get a hard trim back to up right wood.

The patch of Black-eyed Susans were hit hard, too!

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Along the street, many plants were leaning but survived.

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And the yucca near the mailbox garden now has a leaning flower spike!

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The hydrangeas along the parking area made it through the wind and rain mostly unscathed.

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There are many plant with new blooms, too!

Passionflower

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And an unusual bicolor spiderwort.

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Once the sun come out and warms the ground, everything should begin a quick period of growth stimulated by the rain as we were in a very dry period before the storm.

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