9/11 -- Never Forget

Here are the links to a couple of my favorite 9/11 tribute videos. Very different in content, but I find them both quite moving.

http://attacked911.tripod.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3eQmzw6n3k

Greek Salad

Tonight I enjoyed one of my summer favorites, a Greek salad.  I love this combination of flavors. What made it taste even more delicious, is that most of it came from my own garden.

Hollyhock Ladies

As I was writing about the rose of Sharon yesterday, it brought back memories of my childhood.  When I was young, we had a rose of Sharon tree that grew outside our living room window. It had been grafted, so that different branches had three different colors of flowers, red, white and lavender-blue. As is typical of rose of Sharon, when it bloomed, it had loads of flowers.

Favorite Flowers: Rose of Sharon

Rose of Sharon blossoms

Allergy Index Scale:  4
Deciduous shrub, zones 5-9
Full sun-partial shade, 10-12' tall

As I have been watching for the hummingbird moths this week, I have most often found them visiting my rose of Sharon bushes, which at this time of year,  are simply covered in flowers.

Hummingbird Moth

Hummingbird moth visiting flower

For the last several days, I have encountered a tiny winged visitor to my garden flowers; a visitor that hovers with flashing wings as it sips nectar from the flowers.  At first glance, I thought it was a hummingbird, but then realized that it was really tiny, with a stockier body than hummingbirds have.  My little visitor is a moth rather than a bird; one commonly called a hummingbird moth.

Tonight's Harvest

Marvelous Melons

Today I picked two cantaloupes and brought them inside. Cantaloupes, like tomatoes, have far more flavor when home-grown and picked at the peak of ripeness. When cantaloupe start ripening, it's one of the highlights of my summer garden.