Participating to win

I am still fairly new to this blog thingy and although I enjoy it immensely I need to find the time to view others and figure out how this all works or should work. One blog I visited this week and is now listed here is "Blacksheeps bit of web".  I found this blog not only entertaining and informative but a connection in that the talk was of a porridge spurtle ( my Scottishness) and The Choir ( a show I have been watching on public television starring Gareth Malone who does an amazing job getting a community to sing together- you need to watch it).  Now Edgar that writes the blog has a giveaway coming up and to win you have to submit a comment to his blog and then a draw will be made from those that have entered. This I am assuming gets the visitor to comment and hopefully to visit often...in his case I am not sure it is necessary as I will visit just to see what Edgar has to say. But I did comment to enter for the prize as I want to participate as a blogger and let him know I was there and that enjoyed his musings.  Also, if I mention his blog on my blog I get an extra chance to win...am I participating yet? The Blacksheep site was listed on Starry Eyed Stitchers blog as well as a few others I have visited, so it is popular one, and the odds of me winning may be stacked against me....now that I have told you..

It's a start!

This is the first post on my blog.  Pretty exciting stuff.  I have lots to share but not sure where to start.  As we are into the month of May I am guessing my garden and garden design thoughts may be appropriate.  The garden is coming along nicely as the plants are all maturing.  The oldest beds are five years old and the side bed is now starting it's third year with a nice collection of hostas ( which I rename after friends and members of my family- an endearment you could say).  We planted a Linden tree in this bed and there is a Maple tree in the corner.  It  looks quite full in the two year old picture above. This year the beds now need some major tidying up and the borders need to be redefined but that is the fun part and then you can sit in the warm afternoon sun and admire your work.  My gardening interests started when I was very young and was the passion of my Mother's brother ( my uncle) who somehow managed to pass that passion along to me.  How grateful am I.  I have learned so much from gardening including colour, texture, scale and proportion.  The trees in my neighbours yard look like Harlequin Maples which are a variegated variety.  I am sure on a garden tour many years ago I heard you had to keep lime in the soil to keep the tree coloured.  I can't back this up and recently read that you had to cut the "revert to green" branches off to keep the tree from turning solid green.  I hope he doesn't read up on that or we will have "half" trees to look at as one side has already "reverted".

Well that's a good start for a wee shy lassie.  I will continue and hopefully get used to this idea.

Cheers,
Maggie O