Category Archives: Illinois

Come Sit With Me by the Fire and I’ll Tell You a Story….

Lots of changes happening at Lil’s Garden these last two months. We’ve moved to a new house, in a new town and adjusting to a new job while wrapping up the old life and filling Christmas orders at the same time. Very exhausting I’ll tell you, but we are adapting.
These changes have been in the planning for a long time and we’ve finally been able to realize them. We are very happy with our new place and I’m thrilled with my new, much bigger yard! And best of all, it’s a blank slate! I get to re-landscape EVERYTHING! I can’t wait till spring! I’ll be spending the winter scouring all my gardening and landscaping books for the perfect design ideas ( of course I have a few ideas already rolling around in my head).
There’s also room for a bigger greenhouse, yay!
The only drawback I see is that we are surrounded by woods loaded with wildlife~ including deer.
I now get to test all those deer resistant plants and anti deer theories in my new designs and hopefully, with the help of my two Labradors (who by the way have never seen a deer their entire sheltered lives!) I can keep the critter damage to a minimum. Wish me luck!

Model A

Life’s Journey….

Life’s journey is not always clear, yet we continue down the path to see what’s around the bend…. L.Davis

Welcome Home!

 (Not so) Patiently waiting for the Plane to arrive. 

 Color Guard at the Home coming ceremony

 Finally!

 Long Due Hug

Take me home guys!

Liquid Jewels

Busy as a Giant Black Wasp?!

I was taking pictures of my black-eyed Susans when I spotted this huge black wasp, busily sipping nectar from the last of the veronica blooms. This thing is about as long as my thumb!
Now I’m used to seeing the Cicada wasps flying around (unnerving as they are while they buzz around you if you get too close to their burrow), but since I’ve never seen this one, I did a little bit of research.
It is actually called a Great Black Wasp. I’d say the name fits, don’t you agree?
It’s also known as a Katydid Hunter or a Steel Blue Cricket Hunter.  Just as the cicada wasps hunt cicadas, the Great Black Wasp hunts katydids and crickets, burying the paralyzed insects in the ground with their eggs.
Interestingly though, the adults only eat nectar.

Hot Hibiscus

Unlike me, my hibiscus is just loving this hot weather!

While we’re at it, here’s a few more heat loving blooms from my garden…..

black eyed susans

Mandevilla vine

blackberry lily

gazania daisy
 Midwest-land in the dead of winter…burr!

If this heat keeps up, this is going to start looking good–>
and this Hawaiian ain’t very fond of snow….

Antique Powers

Steam and Diesel at the Illinois Railway Museum

Waiting for the Train

at the Illinois Railway Museum

Reaching for the Sun

Gazania Daisy (Asteraceae), thriving in this heatwave.