Along the Garden Path ~

 

 

 

Front path in late August...come ride with me.

 

 

 

 

Should I, or Shouldn't I ~

Skin care has been very important to me most of my adult life, strongly influenced by my Mother who even at 100 years of age had the most beautiful skin.  I remember as a child going with her to purchase her face cream...at that time it was Eterna, by Revlon, which has long ago disappeared from department store shelves. 

I have developed my own favorites, things that work for me and I wouldn't want to be without. First, a good sunscreen worn everyday, no matter the weather. I am a total believer in prescription grade Retin A ( my mother used this too). At night I cleanse my face with a Perricone cleanser and every week I use Clinic's Seven Day Scrub to exfoliate.

So this leads me to my dilemma, and one that I would like your opinion on. For quite a while I had been thinking about trying a Clarisonic, and I bought myself one as a birthday gift, but it is still sitting in the box because I am not completely convinced it is worth the cost and isn't just a bit of a gimmick. So...

...before I commit I thought I would ask

your opinion. Do any of you have one, and do you think it is effective?

I don't expect miracles but will this magical little brush really do what it is supposed to?

Will it leave my skin as dewy and fresh as this rose? (Well that's carrying it a bit too far at my age but I wanted to included a close-up photo of this rose) 

 Seriously, I really would appreciate your imput...it's not to late to take it back. Should I or shouldn't I give it a try. What do you think?

This post has been linked to: http://howsweetthesound.typepad.com/, http://ivyandelephants.blogspot.com/, http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/

,,

Cooling Off ~

I was at Home Depot buying lumber for the arbor I am trying to build and spotted a whole table of these wonderful asters. I really love asters but some of the taller ones are true garden thugs ~ this one however is a low growing variety called Henry I and it only reaches 15-18 inches. The real attraction though was the wonderful color and on a day reaching 112 degrees it looked positively cool.

I fell into temptation and brought one home, it was so pretty that I decided to put it in this soup tureen and keep it in the kitchen for a few days. Every time I look at it I feel a bit refreshed.

Covered with such lovely masses of flowers!

According to the weatherman it is supposed to  cool down a bit in the next few days and then I will plant it in the garden. This is really not a good time to plant but with little extra care it should do okay...

...I think I will go back and get a couple more, I don't want it to be lonely and three would make quite a display next year.

And now for a Miss Twiggley moment, she has become my blogging companion, I can't get near the computer without drawing her attention...and what she thinks is help.

Poor baby, I think she is trying to tell me it is time to take a break.

Thank you for stopping by to visit. I don't know about you, but the cooler fall weather is looking awfully good to me right now!

This post has been linked to: http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/

The Wonder of the Ordinary ~ Lantana

August is a difficult time in my Southern California garden, the constant heat and intense sun of summer not only cuts down on flower production, but also leaches out color from most of those hardy plants that do continue to bloom; sometimes I wonder how anything manages to survive at all.

But there is one wonderful exception and that is lantana, verbenacanase. Many gardeners look down their noses at this very common plant. But if you want something to add color and interest in a variety of ways through the dog days of summer, this is the plant for you.

It comes in several hybrids and forms. Here in a dry, semi-shady spot in a front sitting area is in one of my favorites: each flower sports a combination of light yellow and pink.

 In the gravel garden this bright yellow lantana is growing happily with succulents, I find they have very similar watering needs, always a good thing in a garden.

Out in front curbside this orange lantana scrambles up the rock wall, adding softness and color, even on the hottest days. This plant is very robust and need lots of pruning to be kept in check but I think it is worth the effort as it blooms year around.

Lantana is one of the plants I remember from my childhood, I love it's spicy fragrance and it always seems to have little brown butterflies hoovering around which I have always found fascinating.

There is a place for exotic, new plant introductions in the garden, and trying new plants is one of the fun things about gardening but  there is also a place for the common and ordinary plants that have earned their spot through dependability and performance. One of those in my opinion is lantana!

Thank you for visiting

This post has been linked to: http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/, http://maleviksrosentradgard.blogspot.com/, http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/