Permacuture is my new best friend...

A lot has been going on in Florida
plantings and more plantings...

A ton of mulch, fountain grasses
lavenders and perennials...I don't like grass
I'm building a food forest...
a permaculture...

I'm amending the soil and planting
bunches of fruit trees...avocado, papaya,
guava, mamey and black sapote, olive
mango, bananas, lots of perennial spinach
ground covers, pumpkins and sweet potatoes...

I'm planting a forest of edibles and a
local grasses to feed the soil, to add
nitrogen to the sandy surface...

Fakahatchee grass will be chopped and
dropped to help with the recovery...

Lots of bamboos for windbreaks,
Lord knows we have winds...

I brought many artifacts back from Iowa
a few months ago, I am having way too much
fun here...

And this was the beginning, an empty palette...
I'm in love...

The memories...

Thank you for the memories...
as my lil' pink shack is readied for sale...
I think I have a buyer who loves this ol' gal(1889)
as much as me...then it's off to pursue my
dreams of permaculture in Florida...
more adventures coming!

I've become one with Florida...

First buds on my beautiful cymbidium orchid
beginning to bloom...

 I'm beyond amazed...

Then, to my surprise my plumeria starts are
beginning to send out leaves...

These giant sticks were were the result of Hurricane Irma's wrath,
My cousin's tree was blown over and she asked if I would like
the tree, hell yeah...I cut them into chunks and let them
scab over during the winter months, then when
it started to warm up I put on root fungicide,
dug holes and poked them in the ground...
so excited...!!!

Then, the aloe vera I brought from Iowa is
sending up a bloom spike...WOWZA...
this plant is 25 years old and I thought I lost her
due to frost and freeze several times on the
way to Florida, but she persevered and will
delight me with a magic wand...
can it get any better...

It must be Spring...

 Spring sky reminds me why I love Florida,
it's the sunsets...

 The bees are busy collecting lavender pollen,
gonna be some tasty honey somewhere...

 Azalea blossom peaks through the fern...

 Beautiful blue sky vine reaches toward her namesake,
what a beautiful blue climbing my Norfolk Island Pine...

 A sampler in the making...

Plants are growing and garden is expanding...
I don't like grass, gimmee flowers...

 Another day is at it's end and I'm still pinching
my psyche...can't believe I live in Florida...sigh...

Lucky finds...

 I had a most excellent day of shopping,
two funky pieces found at the Habitat store...

 This amazing piece had been stripped of
it's shiny surface, I love it...

 I wasn't going to keep it, but once
I found a resting place for it in my home,
I decided it was a keeper...

 It's a perfect place to stash some of my crap
and a great place for the computer...who knew...

 And I like crap...I my call my style, British Colonial,
Safari, West Indies, Ernst Hemingway meets
Ryan Matthew Cohn...
I love me some strange...

 And I love my coral fireplace...

The chest of drawers, well, the finish
was perfect, I didn't change a thing...
Lovin' my Florida livin'...

Progress...

 Been busy painting the house, I
decided on an adobe color...
with the awnings the same rose terra cotta
as the carport...

 Painted the floor the same adobe, but
wanted one wall to be different and I
needed to pull a pink color in as well,
but didn't want the whole house pink...

 All of the trim is painted, the dormer too
and all the trees around the house have been
trimmed back...I came to terms with my fear of
heights, as I scaled the walls to paint the gable
and trimmings...it wasn't so bad...

 I'm going for a SW feel with a touch of Tuscany,
the floor looks so much better
painted adobe...

 Planted bunches of hibiscus,such
amazing blooms...

 The air unit on the right will eventually
come out and as the plants grow I'll
have some privacy, especially from
my olive tree in the huge pot...

 Finally got the lanai wall and floor painted,
I love it out there...

 And spend a lot of time in it...

 The other side of the room is my studio,
I hope t get some painting done out here...

And in the meantime I'll have an awesome view
of the lake while I work...