Beautiful Bermuda

Last summer, I was approached via email by the president of the Bermuda Rose Society to be their guest at the society's annual luncheon (which was held last Friday).  I was told by friends that the Bermudians are warm and welcoming, and that their little country is a wonderland.  (Absolutely true, on both accounts!)  What follows is an attempt to share my trip with you.  

I left home in the dark last Thursday morning, heading for the Richmond airport.  Sunrise was glorious as I waited for my plane!

I flew from Richmond to Atlanta, then from Atlanta to Bermuda.  This was my first view of the country.

Hello, Bermuda!

My itinerary for the trip was packed full of commitments and garden visits.  First stop was to the Holmes's house, to see their garden and to make sure that my laptop would communicate with their projector for the next day's presentation.  (Always important to get technical matters out of the way as soon as possible.)  

"Peggy Martin"

Another "Peggy Martin"

Next stop, the home where I stayed during my visit.

View from the back veranda.

View from my room.

After I settled into my room, I had a delicious dinner with my hosts, George and Marijka ... after which we had drinks and talked till late into the evening.

Friday morning was relaxed ... breakfast, then preparing for my program during the luncheon.

We were greeted by this sign at the luncheon location.

Our menu.

The room was full!

The arrangement on my table featured 'Perle d'Or', 'Bermuda Yellow Mutabilis', and "Bermuda Windchimes"

It was a challenge to see the screen, because of the light in the room.  We made do.

My program was one of the most difficult that I have ever written, because I was asked to tell everyone at the luncheon about myself ... my history with roses, my garden, and the places where I volunteer.  As I struggled with this, all of the sudden I realized that I was introducing a foreign audience to my rose world in Virginia.  After I made this breakthrough, the program went together easily.

The rest of Friday was spent seeing the sights and visiting two gardens.

There were roses everywhere!  This 'Aggripina' was spilling over a wall in St. George.

Graveyard at St. Peter's Church in St. George.

'Archduke Charles' in the St. Peter's graveyard.

The Unfinished Church in St. George's.

(Forgive me from here on, because I was more focused on the gardeners and their gardens than I was on taking photographs.  There was even one garden where I didn't take a single photo.)

Michael and Michael's home.

View from the side veranda.

Entrance to their recently-completed Chinese garden.

The inside of the Chinese garden.

This Gnish was fabulous and perfectly placed.

Stairs to the upper garden.

Slat house full of wonderful plants!

This was the only photo I took at the second garden ... the beautiful harbor view.

Saturday morning, I was up and out early for a full day of garden visits.

Susan's home and garden.

Poinciana tree, which I was told has a spectacular display of red flowers later in the year.  It is lovely when it's leafless, too.

This is Sylvester.  He is a formerly-feral cat who adopted Susan as his human.  He follows her everywhere.

'Bermuda Yellow Mutabilis'

Jeanette's home and garden.

The yellow rose is an unknown rose that the Bermudians call "Elm Lodge".

'Aggripina' grows over the entry of Pene's home.

I was particularly taken by the graceful nature of "Bermuda's Kathleen"

She is gorgeous and I must add her to the garden this year ... as a memento of my wonderful whirlwind visit to her homeland.

Pene made a garden out of the quarry on their property, from which came the stone that was used to build their house in the 1800s.

"Elm Lodge"

Pene's house.

We stopped for a quick lunch at Pat's house (my morning chauffeur).

'Aggripina' again.

Distant ocean view from Pat's house.

After Pat's house, I was handed off to Felicity and Diana for the rest of the day.

Waterville.

Statue of Daphne in the Waterville garden.

Diana and me.  "Say Cheese"

'Mutabilis' is one of my favorite roses.

So lovely!

Hugh and Susan's garden, looking toward their home.

Same garden, looking away from the house.

Hugh is telling me about the roses.

Susan and I are talking about the huge Epiphyllum that is spilling over the wall.  (Mine is dinky.  I have to grow it in a pot so I can bring it inside during the winter.)

Hugh shows me how he decorates his wall with wonderful things he finds while diving.

January lilies, a form of Hippeastrum, were in full bloom.

Saturday night, the rose society hosted a dinner party.  I was very tired ... but excited to continue to get to know the wonderful society members.

Blurry selfie in my party outfit.

Sunday, last day, breakfast with my hosts was delicious.  Staying with them was a complete delightful, conversation was easy, and I truly enjoyed their company.  It was difficult to say good bye.

Quick snapshot of the aftermath.

Clare picked me up and went to see the rose society's propagation area at Tulo Valley.  Most of the roses on the island come from their rose sale each spring.

The last garden I visited was Peter's.

'Bermuda Yellow Mutabilis' in this garden, too.

Poinciana tree, overlooking the harbor.

From Peter's house, we went to Clare's house for lunch ... where I didn't take a single photo.  After that, it was time for me to go to the airport and head for home.

Beautiful blue sky.

Bye bye, Bermuda ... till next time.

Want to Hear Me Talk About Hollywood Cemetery?

I will be presenting my program about the roses at Hollywood Cemetery for the Ginter Park Garden Club on Thursday, January 11, 2018. at 10:00 am, at the Ginter Park Women's Club building, 3016 Seminary Avenue, Richmond, VA 23227.  (The building is on the corner of Rennie Avenue and Seminary Avenue.  Enter on the Rennie Avenue side.)   Click HERE for a map.

The public is welcome to attend.

Our Little Free Library, in the News

The story of the Little Free Library that my husband and I built is featured today in an article in the Potomac Local.

To read the article:  click HERE.

Little Free Library

Our neighbors, Jim and Beverly, next door at Hartwood Winery are very special to us.  I often say that they are family we were privileged to choose for ourselves.  Jim is a retired school librarian ... and I knew exactly what I could do for him as a big Christmas surprise.  A librarian needs to have a library, so we built him a Little Free Library of his very own!

The design of our little library is influenced by our red barn, which is clearly visible from almost everywhere on the winery property.  The actual plan is based on a Little Free Library at the police station in Fredericksburg.

I first found out about the Little Free Library program in this blog post by Karen at This Old House 2.  I instantly loved the idea ... to exchange books, take a book/return a book, as the sign says.

It took us about a week to build the library, and it cost very little because most of the materials we used were leftovers that we squirreled away after finishing other projects.  The body of the library is 3/4" plywood.

It's painted with the remnants of a can of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  (Primer Red, of course.)

The library needed doors and windows, to truly reflect the design of our barn.  It didn't take long to measure, tape, and paint them with acrylic paint.

The trim boards are cut out of scraps of 1x2 poplar from our front porch column project.  The little 'roof' over the door opening is a scrap of brick molding that we had lying around.

Couldn't resist adding this photo of our grandson, learning to use a brad nailer to attach the trim around the roof.

Roof shingles were leftover from one of our outbuildings.  We bought the white aluminum drip-edge.  (The biggest challenge in this project was to do everything possible to make sure that the inside of the library stayed dry.)

The door is made from 1x2 poplar, rabbeted to hold a piece of plexiglass (which is secured with glazing points and sealed with silicone).  We installed a piece of adhesive gasket inside the door opening, for further protection against the weather, and the door is held closed with a barrel bolt.

The library base is made from a scrap 2x4 and four shelf brackets, and it sits on a 4x4 post set in concrete.  Our neighbors were out of town last week, so we could work on this part of the project on their property without worrying about spoiling the surprise.

I see that I forgot to paint the bottom of the trim.  I'll fix that when the weather is favorable.

To make the library look extra festive, since it's Christmastime, I made this ornament for the door.  A $3 glitter deer head from Target, hot-glued to a $2 bell wreath from Michael's.  

To complete the set-up, I added a few books and a Christmas card.

All of our effort and sneakiness paid off, when Jim and Beverly came home the other day and saw their surprise!  Jim said that he is going to have a lot of fun with this ... and that was the whole reason behind doing this for him.  Those who have seen it have promised to support it by donating books and telling their friends.

Do you have a Little Free Library nearby?  You can check by searching the world map on their web site.  (BTW, this is the only one in zip code 22406.)   

Nonnie's Pumpkin Pie

My pumpkin pie is based on the recipe that came from my paternal grandmother.  We called her Nonnie.  

Gotta have a generous helping of whipped cream with pumpkin pie.

Seems fitting, with pumpkin puree on hand (made with the instructions in THIS post) that we whip up a pumpkin pie using Nonnie's recipe (which is the best that I have ever tasted ... even folks who say that they don't like pumpkin pie have admitted that this one is delicious.)

Nonnie and me, in 2004, when she was 103.

Nonnie's Pumpkin Pie

1 lb. of fresh pumpkin puree (or one 15-oz. can of pumpkin)
3 eggs
1-1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. allspice
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. salt (can reduce this, if you want, to as little as 1/2 tsp)
1/4 tsp. ginger
1-1/2 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Whisk the pumpkin, eggs, sugar, and spices till blended.  Add the milk and stir.  Pour into a 10" pie shell.  Bake for 90 minutes or more, until center of pie is set.  I err on the side of allowing more oven time when I'm not sure if the pie is done.  

(Can also be baked in a 9" pie shell for about an hour, but you'll have a bit of leftover filling.)

Serve with whipped cream.  Refrigerate any leftovers.

Enjoy!!

********************
Jessie Louise Toalson Stamp Stevens.  Born November 14, 1901.  Only child of Elmer Thomas and Pearl Mettie (Crowley) Toalson.

Nonnie gave me this locket, with photos of her parents, and her mother's wedding ring.

Nonnie lived a very long life.  She married twice, had four children (my dad is the youngest).  She lived many places as a young girl, then as an Army wife, finally settling in California, where she died in 2007 at the age of 105.  She is buried in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Long Beach, California.

Nonnie as a young girl, with her mother and grandmother (Susan Todd Crowley)

The American celebration of Thanksgiving is upon us.  It is a time to be grateful for what we have, whether it's a bountiful harvest or the faces of our loved ones around the table sharing together as a family.  Let's all take a minute to reflect on our blessings ... and eat pie!