We've Got the Blues

When we moved to this house in 1997, our former neighbor gave us this blue salvia (salvia guaranitica) in a pot. It has grown to fill a large area of about 8'x4' and is about 4' tall. Each of these blue clusters sits upon stalks that are about 10 inches long. It got enough rain this spring and is now a very happy bloomer.

It is showing off, but we don't mind.

Mailbox Monday: A Mailbox Fit For the King

http://www.castleotttis.com/

Oystercatcher

This oystercatcher was wading at St. Marks the last time we were down there. I think they are such cool-looking birds. 

I read that, like cuckoos, they are known to lay their eggs in the nests of other birds, such as gulls, and leave them for that mother to raise.

Perhaps, not what we typically think of as model mothers.

Finally: Phlox!

For years, I have admired the native phlox along the roadsides of Florida. And for years, I have been trying to get it started for us.

Finally, last year, we had a small success at our vegetable/flower garden and this year, it is what I had hoped for! We have a large patch  of the mixed colors. They hybridize themselves and it is interesting to see all the different ones they end up with.

The Potatoes Are Blooming

Wild and Windy Day on the Water

The wind and the waves were impressive at Vilano Beach last Sunday.

We watched amazed as a sailboat headed out of the port from St. Augustine. These pictures were made using the zoom lens. It was quite a ways out but the troughs and breakers were formidable.

Below is a poor shot through the car window as we drove the Vilano bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway. There seemed to have been a regatta going on, but it was much more protected here.

Checking Out the Moat

We went to St. Augustine last weekend where they had about eight inches of rain in a couple  of days, bringing flooding to low-lying areas.

The normally dry moat around the Castillo de San Marcos was filled with water. The moat is typically mown. In this shot you can see the grass-- now flooded. One would assume the grass to  be St. Augustine?

I do not ever remember seeing water in the moat but I like the look.

At this curve the wind was pushing the water creating a current until the wall of the fort blocked the wind.

This is a link to see the paddle-boarder who found the flooded moat to be a temptation not to be denied.

http://m.staugustine.com/node/64361/photos