Growin' Susan: At the end of the day...

...I have to shake my head. Sometimes nature throws me a curve ball.

Some years ago MIL gifted us with a red Dogwood sapling and, later, a Redbud sapling.
The Dogwood sat in its' pot for a time on our deck. Buster, the squirrel, would come occasionally and roll in the soil that was in the pot. I would watch him from the window and chuckle about Buster and his antics. When I finally got around to planting the Dogwood, I found Buster had left me a present. He had buried one of his treasured acorns in the pot.

I worked at keeping the Dogwood watered and fretted when it looked wilty. I can remember stnading on the hill where we planted the sapling, filling the Tree Gator hoping that the tree would get enough water.

When Mom brought us the Redbud sapling from her yard I was delighted. I loved its' heart shaped leaves and beautiful red/puprle blooms in the springtime.

The trees are only now coming into their own. They have had enough time in the yard to develop and begin to really shine in the landscape.   Well, I should they WERE coming into their own. I walked down the hill this afternoon with prunings from the Butterfly Bush. Um. Where are the trees? I went inside to ask G. if he knew what was going on. My inital thought was that maybe he had accidentally cut them down not knowing that they were the Dogwood and Redbud. Or had one of the kids who use the walkway in our side yard chopped them down as a prank? G. and I walked down the hill to where the trees used to stand. Upon close inspection it was clear: the beavers had made their way up the hill from the creek and hewn down the only trees we had personally planted in the yard.

Beavers!!! They are ugly little rodents. One confronted me on the back patio some years ago. Thankfully, I was indoors looking out the sliding glass door at it. UG-LY! I mean scary ugly. I will never forget it staring me down with those beady little eyes. And that ugly whiskered face.   And now they have devoured our trees.    Live and learn.   Three feet of hardware cloth around their trunks would have saved them.

At least the houseplants were less of a shock. The pleasant surprise of my Apple Blossom Amaryllis blooming was wonderful! We had traveled out of town recently and I was expecting that it would bloom while we were away. Instead, it waited to put on its' show now that we are home. YAY!

I have to include my a ( I think ) adorable little "finds". They are with my houseplants because I can't bear to leave them outdoors to get beaten up by the elements. Blue Boy and Big Red. Who would not love those faces, I ask you!?? I love Dollar General for my little garden tcatchkes, gew gaws, kitschy goodies, whatever you might care to call them.

What is left of the red Dogwood.