Another perfect day in paradise # 1839

Not a cloud in the sky. It was hot - 61F - but there was a cool breeze which made it bearable.

I gave the dogs the bones from the T-bone steaks to chew on the lawn. It was so picture perfect that I went and got the camera to take some snaps. (Click to enlarge.) Corrie is left front but you can hardly see Digby (the black blob on the right) sitting in the shade of the Alder tree on the white English daisies in the lawn and almost obscured by Miss Piggy the Buff Plymouth hen.













Of course all the chickens had to come over and start scrounging for bits from the bones. This is one of my favorite spots in the yard: the purple and white Lilacs and white South African Calla lilies in front of the chicken coop.













The big chore of the day was digging up the salal berries and blackberries that had started choking out the Rhododendrons. This Rhodie had never bloomed before. In fact it had almost died a few years ago. It is such a dark red that it is almost black.





















Then I decided to take a stroll around the garden and take some more snaps. This is a purple Aquilegia aka Columbine (which is native to Oregon) and a pink Ixia (South African "corn lily"):























A close-up of the Ixia: