Posts filed under ‘garden’
No Limits-BK 2-Chapter 12- Beyond the Vale
Forward: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/02/03/no-limits-bk-2-forward-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter One: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/03/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-1-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Two: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/04/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-2-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Three : https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/05/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-3-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Four: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/06/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapter-4-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Five: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/07/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapter-5-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Six : https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/08/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapter-6-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Seven: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/09/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-7-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Eight: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/10/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-8-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Nine https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/11/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-9-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Ten : https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/12/03/no-limits-book-2-beyond-the-vale-chapt10/
Chapter Eleven : https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2024/01/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-11-beyond-the-vale/
Garden Nights????
Whilst all sorts of “happenings” were going on at my daughter’s home, things were quite here in Chris’ home. We weren’t getting sounds, or aromas. It just seemed to be things showing up through the camera lens. We progressed from the kitchen to the back garden. When I say we, I meant my husband, he would spend a lot of his time just taking photo after photo , click, click click every second or so. What the neighbors must have thought I dare not ask.
As soon as he started his nightly vigils with his camera, things started appear. It was as though he was noticed. Since we couldn’t really explain , not being photographers etc. it was decided to see if we could find logical explanations, such as ” Lens Flare” . Following the photos taken in the back garden ( previous Chapter 10)(light and dust) which of course was a possibility. We decided to experiment!
To that end we decided to try and get Lens flare . Another night in the garden at the same time of day as the previous photos pointing the camera at the willow tree no lights or orbs on that evening No light source we could see.
Pointing the camera at the neighbors house did show a streak, but it was obviously the flash bouncing back of the little plum tree branch, if you look closely you can see the buds. We discounted the tree branches .
Next we turned back from the back yard facing south , to north and then we got lens flare .
but not on the willow tree.
My husband then ( not being computer savvy.. something that should be remembered in later chapters) decided to make a photograph album of the photos recording times and dates etc. He printed out the best ones but he took thousands of photos . I have hundreds of a dark willow tree and the back yard all the same with nothing on them , night after night. But then … the mists , since we were in the cold months we then decided to make sure it wasn’t our breaths. I would stand night after night in cold , whilst my husband took shots of my breath. Then he decided it might be coming from him so he brought one of those helmet cameras and walked around in various times an temperatures breathing in and out and letting his breath out of his nose and mouth.
As I have mentioned before I think we wanted to convince ourselves of our own sanity.
As some of you are aware we have a couple of decent sized garden ponds. We kept them open during the winter months due to Chris’ mothers Day present the Ghost in the Pond. https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2010/03/19/the-ghost-in-the-pond/
Maybe the mists were due to
“A thin layer of air above the pond is warmed by the pond water. Water evaporates from the pond’s surface into this thin layer. The thin, warm, moist layer of air over the pond then mixes with the cooler air from the land. As it cools, condensation occurs and a fog forms.
Or even the warmth of the ground and ground moisture causing condensation like a wintery dew ? Beautiful though it is , it not our “mists”
Could it be condensation from the furnace outlet , no how about smoke from some unknown source maybe next door drifting over, although there was never any smell and you couldn’t see our with your eyes , just through the camera. But we lit a torch just to see, no! you could see and smell that.The same with the dryer vents…ours and the neighbors…
Ou mists , only visible through the lens and on the downloaded jpgs could NOT be seen by us, the same with the plethora of orbs???
The closest we ever came to reproducing the “mists” was candle smoke from a lighted candle BUT again you could see and smell it…
Since those shots of the mists started to appear, and we have dozens of photos I will give you a hint as to what is to come… mists do not hover they move and move quickly, very very quickly……
No Limits-bk 2- Chapt 11 -Beyond the Vale
Chris Ritchey Source
Forward: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/02/03/no-limits-bk-2-forward-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter One: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/03/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-1-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Two: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/04/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-2-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Three : https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/05/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-3-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Four: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/06/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapter-4-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Five: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/07/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapter-5-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Six : https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/08/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapter-6-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Seven: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/09/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-7-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Eight: https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/10/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-8-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Nine https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/11/03/no-limits-bk-2-chapt-9-beyond-the-vale/
Chapter Ten : https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2023/12/03/no-limits-book-2-beyond-the-vale-chapt10/
Questions no Answers……..
I wish I could tell you after all these months and years the answers to the questions we all have after we lose the person most precious to us. All I can tell you is what happened , what happens and that through this whole “experience ” we have tried with all due diligence to find other explanations…..
Apart from the kitchen orb and a few others, that we were informed are camera or reflection issues , lens flare nothing much was happening in this house.
My husband, after his orb experince and Toby Keith happenings in the kitchen ( see previous chapter) continued to take dozens and dozens of photos. He then decided as it got warmer to take photos outside, hundreds and hundreds of them.
The three pictured at night a couple of months later on in that first year surprised us….
Maybe there is some sort of technical explanation as to the light streaks in the shots. but they didn’t appear in the photos before or after taken from the same spot. He just would click away with a little cannon camera, nothing fancy night after night, nothing but then things were happening at night in that back garden , Of course we were puzzled and if my son was an orb or even a streak of light , he definitely wasn’t alone!!!
The one night he pointed his camera toward the Willow tree and took shot after shot you can see where the flash light up the hedge leaves where he was standing and yes if you look carefully there is an “orb” or dust??? top left hand corner click on to enlarge … None of these photos have been enhanced or photoshopped in anyway
The orbs would appear and then disappear , but I bow to the explanations given by many such as
However, as you will see when they are combined with other happenings, the dust particles pollution argument in this house and Nikkis falls short!
And the streaks of light ??? Well there are all sorts of explanations , lens flare etc. but our streaks of light didn’t – to our desperately wanting a sign from Chris minds and eyes – didn’t seem to cover what we were experiencing.
Anyone, even the most skeptical of souls , when you lose someone you love with your whole being, as much as you deny the existence and poo- hoo; I know they will still look for signs their loved ones are still somewhere. And you can’t believe in Heaven and not picture your loved one there , wherever that is.
All those that go to their various churches and don’t believe in ghosts or spirits. Well I guess I would say then
what is it that goes to your Heaven??? And then there is “resurrection” what exactly is the part of your loved ones that are resurrected?
https://www.britannica.com/topic/resurrection-religion
All I know is that we as a family looked for explanations, and received none. Oh in the very beginning we tried the
“give us a sign that it is you’?
Nothing in those early weeks and months, just toys going off at Nikkis , and orbs and flashes of light in the very beginning at our house apart from the Christmas finding and a gift from my son!!! I still was scared to believe .
She probably thought I had lost the plot .
Well you wont’ find him cleaning a junk drawer
she said, more than a little annoyed I think and worried about her child me!
I finally threw all that needed to be disposed of into the fire, tidied the desk and watched as the flames died down. My mum called again
“Are you feeling any better , should I come over and make you something, Loraine, Chris would not want you making yourself ill”
As she carried on speaking I noticed caught under the side of the couch and up turned envelope, one of the many that had been relegated to the fire, that I had missed. I picked up the envelope to throw it into the dying flames when I realized there was something in it I turned it over and on the front it had Chris CIA in his writing. My mum was still talking but I wasn’t really listening. I didn’t recall seeing this before , but I gingerly opened the envelope, inside were slides a just three. I told mum I would call her back, ran to the den and found the little portable slide holder.
And there they were. I HAD seen the photos before BUT not as slides or in an envelope. As Chris walked across the stage at Clevland Institute of Art the day of his graduation and when he was most happy, receiving his BFA.
The students had to express themselves visually that day as to who they were , what was important to them and this was done on a huge screen behind them in sequence. These were the slides that had been used…I never knew they existed before that day or after.
What was most important to my son :
Who I am- Freedom Speaks – art work Christopher Ritchey
by Chris Ritchey Freedom of Speech
“Speech Can Separate You From Everyone” poster- Chris Ritchey
I cried, again, but this was a different sort of tears – they relieved. Whether by accident or design I didn’t know but I had received a gift from my son once again on a Christmas Day .... “
and then more and more as we paid attention things ” started “clicking” .
What I will say at this juncture , whatever happens doesn’t happen because we reach out and ask it to happen. Whatever the energy is or comes it is in its own time.
I truly believe that because this little family was in a self imposed “lockdown” we paid attention to things around us more than is perhaps usual for most. and so it began the journey of sight, hearing and yes aromas….. all to come…….
A night in the garden just three of 0ver 188 shots taken in succession 2010
The first shot was an orb in the willow tree. The 2nd a click later and the third another click later
and 
How does your garden grow? Part Three
Part One – https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2019/08/18/how-does-your-garden-grow-part-one/
Part Two – https://thatwoman.wordpress.com/2019/09/22/how-does-your-garden-grow-part-two/
I haven’t had much time for “writing” ,what little time I have had has been trying to get the ponds and the garden winterized. The large pond that had to be Heron proofed needed to have all the floating vegetation taken out . This meant all those water hyacinths and water lettuce had to be removed. They had protected the fish from the evil eyes of the Heron, denying them breakfast, lunch and dinner.
The pots and shrubs , such as the raspberry bushes that had seeded themselves around the edges had to be taken out before their roots compromised the liner.
They have done their job of denying the Heron a place to land The Yellow Water Iris cut back. This was all done because the frost would blacken and kill the plants in the pond and cause toxicity as they decayed.
The water is crystal clear thanks to three pumps and an aeriator , clear enough to be seen by those high flying angels of death to my fish . I am crossing my fingers they are “fishing elsewhere”.
I was surprised after losing half of my fish to the Heron some must have still managed to procrerate. In the clear water I saw at least 4 tiny black fry and three larger fish that had turned to gold/orange. So life goes on in the pond.
My Mothers Day Ghost Koi present from Chris 10 years ago continues to remain the King of the Pond.
The one thing I was pleased with was the fact that I was able to pick some of the wildflowers ( that are still blooming) this autumn bringing memories of those two little boys sewing the seeds with abandon.
My mother’s balcony, this time last year, got the minimum of clearing away. I threw away most of the smaller pots but never got around to clearing out the dead petunias and pansies.
With all that happened in Jan/Feb/March and April with health issues and hospitals I didn’t do anything on the balcony apart from placing a pot of pansies in remembrance of my mum. I certainly didn’t have the energy to plant up the remaining window boxes and plant stands.
I was amazed when I went to put out the seat cushions the Petunias, yellow Daisy types flowers and Pansies had come back from the previous year.
Well, I was flummoxed , February’s winds and temperatures had seen us losing the ornamental plum and lilac bush that were well established. How could such delicate petunias and annuals have managed to not only survive but to flower beautifully in abundance ? Once again the answer came not from the supernatural but from Monty Don. https://montydon.com/
Apparently my 2nd floor balcony faces south and the house has protected the pots and plants from the winter winds , coupled with the fact the frost stays lower down and the fact I didn’t have the energy to dump out all the pots before the winter as had been done in previous years. I have left the boxes and the grasses that also survived . Weeds they might be but I did notice the birds had a lovely time eating the seeds all winter. In fact I left one window box to the birds
The hedges clipped beautifully by my neighbor has become a sort of Hotel for nesting pairs of Morning Doves, Cardinals, and dozens of sparrows.
On the other side of the garden where the hedge remained unclipped and left to blossom attracted bees both solitary https://www.buzzaboutbees.net/solitary-bees.html and honey. In fact with the birds coming in to drink and bathe in the water fountain that area was very “busy” all spring and summer
All in all with just having the grass cut and the goodness of heart by my neighbor in cutting back the hedge , grandchildren planting wildflowers and sunflowers, the garden ,considering our lack of daily maintenance Mother Nature gave pleasure to not only the birds, bees and wildlife but to me as well. Fragrance of Lavender, Honeysuckle and Roses help to soothe the troubled mind and give some peace and energy during some very rough times this year
To be continued in the Spring! ( I hope)
How Does Your Garden Grow – Part Two
Well it has been a strange summer, incessant rain ( as I remember it ) in June and then sun , sun, sun and now September and I am sitting here on the 22nd of September in the air-conditioning watching the trees and flowers wilt in the intense heat and sun shine.
I love September, usually because the warm days , cool nights and some rain give the flowers their last burst of colour. Not so in the garden this year. The pots planted around the pond to keep out the dreaded Blue Heron ( my angel of death) look stringy and awful. They did their job but hid the water and fish not only from the Heron but from me.
Before the Heron
After the Heron
The roses reacted to the damp and wet and cold in June by getting black spot and another fungus which meant cutting them back and giving them medication. My mini – orchard suffered, mostly the cherry trees they look decidedly problematic. https://www.canr.msu.edu/news/yellowing_leaves_and_leaf_loss_reported_in_tart_cherries
There isn’t a lot I can do , not being young and agile enough to climb ladders and spray and prune. Needs must and my energy is used up inside the house at the moment. So fingers crossed the trees are strong enough to survive. The towering Sycamore looked awful earlier on in the spring with its blight but after a few weeks regained her leaves and looks healthy enough, so fingers crossed.
Although the blossoms on the fruit trees were plentiful and gave much pleasure to eye I am afraid, the birds got the cherries ( I managed one and it was delicious) I also managed one plum, a couple of apples and two pears . The peaches, although so heavy they bent the branches , by the time they were full and ripe disappeared overnight, squirrels played havoc and then the Puckwudgies. ( Groundhogs to uninitiated to this blogger) crept under the fence from the blue house and had their fill, same with the apples . It was almost like the squirrels were working for the groundhogs!
I live in hope that next year I can get at least some cherries and plums. The raspberries also went the way of the birds but they also kept the Heron from landing so it was a tradeoff.
Not all was frustrating , following Monty Don’s advice https://montydon.com/ I decided to have the grandchildren scatter wildflower seeds and sunflower seeds in the unused garden. Apparently weeds love good soil but wildflowers can thrive in poor soil and can out produce the weeds. Well why not give it a try, I certainly could not weed this year and even getting the grass cut on the now double lot has been a chore. Happily, the boys , took to their task with gusto only the seeds were sprinkled with great abandon, not paying any heed to boundaries . Hence wildflowers popped up everywhere even in the gravel .
And Yes the wildflowers did keep the weeds at bay, this is part of the garden planted with the wildflowers
and the missed part … the weeds
I guess Monty was right and so since the wildflowers did their job of keeping down the weeds and bringing in the bees and pollinators they will have an even bigger spot in the garden…………. to be continued
How does your garden grow? Part One
I love flowers , eating the vegetables and looking our the window at my garden and the ponds BUT I hate gardening. In the long before the turmoil that has struck this home especially in the last few months I would , in the springtime, have a blitz for one day in the garden. Usually it was to get my husband to move the stuff that had accumulated over the fall and winter and tidy up. I really don’t like weeding , digging in the dirt and getting all hot and sweaty but I love the results when my garden looks full of flowers and the pond and the waterfall wakes up in the spring.
The pond I have written about and the Ghost Koi
Purchasing the vacant lot next door in 2015 was a huge drain and investment of time and energy.
Illness interrupted the rehabilitation of the now vacant lot, my ideas and wants had to be put on hold but eventually thanks to the help of two little boys who moved so much dirt the ground was level. I was amazed at how much these two little tots worked and how much help they were. I am still amazed!!!
The once vacant lot was divided into two sections and the back section I decided on a mini orchard with still ponds , plantings consistent with non filtered and pumps water gardening. In other words letting the plantings in the ponds filter the water with no fish.
Considering we are two blocks from Lorain’s downtown this was a bit of a novel idea for Lorain, Ohio. After a season of raw builders dirt used for fill where the previous little house had been ,
dodging the concrete and rubble that had been dumped in what was a ravine and small rivulet that runs under the property next door we managed hit and miss plantings of the trees for the orchard.
My husband would use the back part of the original lot as his vegetable garden, we flourished with tomatoes, peppers, potatoes ( planted by the grandchildren ) corn and asparagus.
And so success for a couple of years, the planted orchard of two cherry trees, one peach tree , one pear tree, two apple trees and a plum tree blossomed beautifully. It took a couple of years but this year they all bore fruit and that is another story to come in this urban orchard.
The front part of the vacant lot was planted more formally I envisioned climbing roses on the fence and archways, the side rockery full of roses, butterfly bushes and lavender for the fragrance as we opened the windows.
We have a lovely balcony and it was my mother’s pride and delight to empty the containers , refill with new soil and planted fresh every year with all the plants she received on Mother’s Day. Of course watering was an issue as the balcony is in full sun and south facing. Mum, being mum was forever weeding out the errant weeds that somehow made it to the containers and would water twice a day.
Last year as she fell into decline at 99 she did not have the strength to plant and water so that job fell to me. My mum loved those flowers and her bedroom was off the balcony so she would sit and enjoy the garden from above and sit amongst her flowers.
It has been a terrible few months one way and another , my mother passed in October and January found my husband extremely ill ( as has been documented in the series )
Time and weeks slipped from dead of winter to spring whilst the garden lay dormant , my thoughts were not of how to manage the garden or ponds.
Trips sometimes twice a day for hours dealing with medical issues left me tired, frustrated and lacking energy . I admit it took what was left of any energy to keep the house running and laundry up to date. I had no time or desire to deal with anything else.
In order to wind down before bedtime I would watch my British murder mysteries and also programs from Britain on gardening, basically because they took me back to the land of my birth, to familiar places and happier times . One such program and presenter / gardener extraordinaire is a chap called Monty Don, https://montydon.com/
he has numerous garden shows but the one I would watch every week on Britbox
is Gardener’s World
https://www.gardenersworld.com/
and there by hangs the rest of the tale on how my garden grows this year and the way Britain is rewilding and cultivating the pollinators one flower pot and meadow at a time !!!!! https://www.housebeautiful.com/uk/garden/plants/a28574537/wildflower-seeds-garden/
‘Wildflowers are often capricious so if you have the space, create varieties of habitats within your garden – shade, dampness and wild. You can also, within reason, harvest the seed of our more common wildflowers from the wild.’
More so now than ever, gardeners are being urged to transform parts of their garden into wildflower meadows to help save the bees. The UK has seen a vast decline in the number of bees, and with 75 per cent of all food crops requiring pollination, the rapidly declining bee population has been cause for serious concern.”
and help the sunflower kisses
To be continued
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