Happy Birthday to Me and the Garden, 2013

Time for my annual self love festival. It's always amazing to see how the garden looks from year to year on the same date, and to do it here on the blog for easy reference (here's a 16 month daily timelapse vid). The 1,500' garden started in July 2007, and looked decent in 2009, then came into its own in 2010. Since then, each year plants shift, fade away, reseed and come back. Natives crowd out non natives, because in the early days I did not know what I was doing (fyi, come get my iris next month please). So, let's go on a tour in pics, then at the end I'll have a link to a video tour.

Purple prairie clover is busy this year

Liatris are pretty neat pre bloom, too

Mourning dove momma and youngin' in grape arbor

And a short video tour:

If you're in or near Omaha tonight, 7/15, I'll be speaking at the monthly meeting of the Plattsmouth Garden Club at the First United Methodist Church on Main Street in Plattsmouth. 6:30pm. I'll have books for sale. Bring cake.

My wife and I will also be at the Old Cheney Farmer's Market in Lincoln on Sunday 7/21 with, hopefully, butterflies and caterpillars, info on native plants, native plant examples, pictures, other fun stuff for kids (and maybe adults who act like kids). Look for the Monarch Gardens tent.

And might I direct your attention to the photography gallery slideshow on the right? You can purchase my photos (better ones than the above) and print them lots of cool ways.

Otherwise, birthday wish list remains much the same:
1) 50-100 acres somewhere on the eastern Plains, complete with a passive 100% off the grid home, two artist residencies, shed for speaking / teaching / events / education, small native plant nursery.
2) Book deal for any of my memoirs, Morning Glory or Turkey Red, or maybe something rant-ish on native plants.
3) A job this fall. Preferably teaching.
4) More speaking gigs. More garden consults.