Sunday, December 7, 2008

Elements of a garden

What are the basic elements of a garden? Why, the same as for everything else ... Earth, Fire, Air, Water.
They keep showing up in everything I plant or see thriving in my garden.


Earth-hewn fungi, daughter of the dark monsoon days.

A blaze of red-hot French Marigolds burning the flower-beds with their intensity.
A dash of fiery chillies ... the smaller, the spicier.

A cloud of Skyblue Clustervine billowing over fence and gusting over trees.

Look! they even have stars in them!

Cool, cool water in a natural rock bird-bath for hardworking Magpie-Robins to splash in before heading home.

35 comments:

  1. Sunita, you have a real gift with words and these photos are beautiful. And we have another thing in common, I have that turkey tail fungi in my yard too! It never ceases to amaze me that although we are on opposite sides of the earth we share some many species of plants and fungi.

    Eric

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  2. A super way of looking at gardens. Sounds just like the Japanese type gardens. Your comparisons are very nice!

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  3. Beautifully said! And the photos--gorgeous!!

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  4. This is very interesting. I have never seen a chili plant so that's something new for me:) Neither have I seen a magpie robin. They don't have them here in the US! Love the blue clustervine too!

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  5. First, an apology... I'm sorry if this post looks too abrupt but my finger hit the 'Publish' button before I was ready. But looking back, maybe it was better this way?

    Eric, is that what it's called? Yes, I can see where it would have got that name. How funny!
    I wonder which other plants we have in common. I'm sure we'll keep seeing more of them in each other's blogs :)

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  6. Thanks, Tina. I love the serenity of Japanese gardens but I'm afraid my garden is too wilful and scatter-brained to ever aim to be one :(

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  7. Jan, the chilli plant is so common here that I keep forgetting that it may be exotic for temperate gardeners. I have a real job keeping it in control because it keeps sprouting all over the place.
    The Magpie-Robin is a vey cute, perky bird. I guess they got that name because the colouring is like that of a magpie and the shape/size is that of a robin. I wish it had got it's very own name, though. I have quite a few of them in my garden and they always stop to take a dip in the bird-bath (which is actually just a depression in a rock. I keep it filled with water and its a stopover for all the birds in this area and all the migratory ones too)

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  8. The Cluster Vine is so pleasant to the sight! I thought that was a shell at first sight. I've seen strange mushrooms that only make me say ewww... (dunno, never liked them much) but your make me say 'wow!' Magpie definitely looks happy.

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  9. Hi Sunita,
    I like this post, and the lovely photos, too! It is cold here in Nebraska.

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  10. love the fungi picture! beautifully composed and captured!!

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  11. Chandramouli, that Clustervine is special... my sis-in-law gited it to me when it was a small little potted plant. I planted it near my fence and it just took off! It has already conquered the fence and is now trying to take over the cashew tree which grows nearby.

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  12. Sue, I hope those pictures of the French Marigld and the chilli will warm things up a tiny bit for you in cold Nebraska. Hold on to warm thoughts!

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  13. Thanks magiceye! I didnt think it would come out so well.

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  14. adding your blog to my list..best wishes..

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  15. Ramesh, thanks again. See you here again soon.

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  16. Darla, isnt it gorgeous? It's one of the most cheerful flowers in my garden :)

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  17. Is that what we call blue daze? It's very similar, guess I'll go look it up.

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  18. Nope, don't believe it's the same but it is very close. Oh and the little red shed was white and it was the girls playhouse, they quit using it so I took it over, they are having fun helping me with it, they did most of the painting so it still feels like it's theirs.

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  19. It does look similar doesnt it, Darla? But the skyblue clustervine is a creeper from the morning glory family.
    Good choice about the shed :)

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  20. Hi, are you using a filter on the marigold image? It's alive! Beautiful photos!

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  21. That natural rock bird bath of yours looks good for dragonflies. I recommend you to erect a few tiny sticks there to get some of your garden dragonflies to land on them.

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  22. Enjoyed your post. Trigger finger a little too active?! :) I have had that problem, too.

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  23. CG, thanks!
    No, there's no filter, no Photoshop ... nothing but natural sunlight and the marigold's fiery colours and the Digital Macro setting on my Canon IXUS 950 IS (a point-and-shoot with a few manual settings thrown in).

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  24. Really, Amila? That's interesting, I must try it out . Anything for more dragonflies in my garden.
    This bird-bath is already a favourite hangout for a whole swarm of honey-bees. Reminds me of a herd of zebras at an African waterhole! :)

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  25. :D Barbee, isnt it the most embarassing thing? :D
    Trigger finger seems to be overactive while some of my other typing fingers seem to be too light a touch... all of a sudden I've been finding all kinds of typo errors in my posts. A letter dropped here, a couple added there... very annoying !

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  26. Wonderful post Sunita you really have a living garden, really great.

    My coming post 'flowers of India', here I need and would very much appreciate some help from my Indian friend. I haven't got any ID on my plant! I will post it on Friday (blooming friday)
    LOL Tyra

    New Post from Tyra - Leufstabruk

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  27. Thanks, Tyra. Living, breathing, jumping, slithering, flying ... yeah, all of it ;)
    Of course I'll help you out in any way that I can. I'll just wait till I see your post on friday, okay? BTW, what a great topic!

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  28. Hi Sunita, what a great theme you have chosen to showcase your gorgeous photos. You are so creative. Loved it!
    Frances

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  29. Thanks, Frances. Maybe you could take that theme and play with it too. I know you would have some amazing ideas and even more amazing photos.

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  30. Wonderful perspective on the things that constitute a garden. I guess that is what all living things are made of; Earth, Fire, Air and Water. After reading your post my appreciation of these basic ingredients has increased.

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  31. Hi, Green Thumb! I think most of the philosophies of the ancient world agreed that all matter, or rather, all humans are made up of these 4 elements in varying proportions. And the dominant element decided the personality of the person. I know that Ayurveda still propounds this belief and the Greek philosophers held this belief too.
    I thought it would be so fitting if this could be extended to my garden too. Look around your own garden... I'm sure you'll find a lot of these basic elements there too :)

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