Porch Gardening: Braided Tropical Hibiscus

This is one of my all time favorite blooming bushes. There are dozens of varieties and lots of beautiful colors.
And I don't know why it works for me but as soon as I get one blooming, the yard fills up with humming birds. They love them. Well they do in my yard anyway. Here on the Falana farm we will have humming birds till late November.
The only downside about this plant, the blooms only last one day.
They come, they shine, they die. Luckily this thing buds all summer and well into the fall.
Down here you see them in yards a lot, but they die off in the winter. I bring mine inside, (or maybe that greenhouse I've been asking PB for) in the winter time. My last one lasted me five years.
Tropical Hibiscus

Porch Gardening: Calla Lilly

Not hard to grow at all, I forgot I even had them, hidden in a pot behind the chicken coop all winter. And now I have doubled the amount in the pot.
I have better luck with plants I forget about then those which receive all my loving, smothering attention. ;0)
Calla Lily

Chickens:Growing fast

As you can see the chickens are growing at a very fast pace. They have been on a full ration of the grit now since they were about a week old and it has definitely helped them out.
They are only two months old and they are huge! And no, no hormones added. They are just spoiled rotten. PB has already started giving them scraps from potatoes, tomatoes and any other vegetables we have on hand.
When you walk out the door, they watch your every move, wanting you to bring them something, anything, they don't care. They really are people friendly.
I think I am going to have to start wearing my boots out to the pen. When I go out there they pick my toes, underneath my toenails, try to pull my toe ring off. They love shiny stuff!
As you can see from the picture the white chick is back to her old self, just shakes her head a lot like there is something in her ear.
We are in a debate about whether or not she will lay weird eggs due to her dilemma. I'm thinking square or triangles. PB thinks I'm as nuts as the chicken ;0)
The black and white one is still the prettiest chicken out there. And she must know it, she is already starting to show dominance over the other chickens. And they all back down from her, except for that one crazy white one. I guess she figures she lived through getting stabbed in the head, she should be boss. I'm with her on that one but the glam chick don't get it!