Influenced by NNM's Autumn Clematis!

It has been eight months since my last post here on Blogger and that entry was just to let folks know my web-designer, Chris Deatherage, had made changes to my website. 

Prior to that posting I had become very sporadic in publishing my blog posts which was out of characer for me. For after years of being very dedicated to regularly offering excellent written content that was accompanied by my photographs and or videos — I even received an award for my endeavors and an image of it can be found on my right sidebar — circumstances, upon circumstances beyond my control, interfered with my being able to produce content for this venue.

Those circumstances were mostly due to new and severe consequences of my battles with Neurofibromatosis (NF) a medical condition I've had since birth, which is discussed in one of my first blog posts as well as in many posts thereafter. (NF is also the subject of my book project, Imperfect Strangers.) A short video introducing the book can be viewed on Vimeo and/or You Tube.

In any event, I won't go into details of my forced hiatus from blogging (at least not within this post) for it was my seeing Nancy Nelson Mancini's photograph of her Sweet Autumn Clematis (a copy of it is posted atop this posting) that brought back bittersweet memories of my own beloved Sweet Autumn Clematis vines that I got in either 2004 or 2005, and ultimately blogged about in 2010 in an entry where I described their back story, (which I encourage you to read it and check out the pictures included in that post). 

Moreover, my Autumn Clematis vines were subsequently featured in my first garden-themed movie, The Kiwi Speaks! Fifteen Minutes of Fame... almost, which can be viewed on Vimeo and/or You Tube.

These vines ultimately survived being in two major garden upheavals (due to a couple of renovations ordered by my landlord) and one of those upheavls is discussed in volume two of my three hardcover book series, Words In Our Beak.

But getting back to NNM's image of her Autumn Clematis and my saying that seeing it evoked bittersweet memories, the reason for this is, as is that now, approximantely eighteen years of having these vines in my garden, they are gone.

I hadn't relized what a loss this has been for me until I saw NNM's image, and recalled my memories of having Autumn Clematis vines which never did well again after being hacked by my lanlord in 2021.

He had hacked the Autumn Clematis while standing on the building's rooftop and leaning over it to chop away my vines, This was not a safe action for him to take with my vines or with himself as he could've fallen off the building's rooftop.

Moreover, he had assaulted my Beech Tree, ruining her shape. 

The results of these violent actions are indicated in the red-bordered shapes which I've attached to the image directly above. It is also included in a post here on Blogger that I published at the time of the incident. It will still take quite sometime for the Beech Tree to regain her shape which she probably will, but the fate of my Autumn Clematis has not been good.

Initally, Juan V was able to redirect the vines' path and nudge them to grow on a custom built trellis as seen in the two pictures directly below.

But unfortunately they were begining to pull on the string lights that provide a "canopy" over my garden. I was concerned that the vines, given their strength, could yank down my string lights... 

... (which might cause a fire) and that fact, coupled with the truth that vines can harm brick and mortar, convinced me to have my Autumn Clematis vines (I had two) removed. 

For now in their place, a Clematis tangutica (she is indicated by an arrow affixed to the next photo) has been planted. She is a much less aggressive vine, but I feel she looks swallowed up by the big container and it will be quite some time before she eases into it. 

A couple of Amsonia plants have been placed there to keep the new vine company (as also seen in the next picture where a circle has been drawn around them)...

... but I don't like the look of their foliage, so I may need to plant something else there.

Not having my Autumn clematis is a big loss, yet I realize that is what happens when one gardens. Over the years, I've learned it's best to appreciate the flora when they are around as I certainly do, by meeting their needs for water and fertilizer, as well as by helping them to tell their stories through  my blog posts, my movies and my books.

However, given my new battle with NF and the limitations this brings, it may be quite a while before I can tell my flora's stories. Plus I need to concentrate on raising awareness about NF which I hope to do through my book project, Imperfect Strangers.

Saturday's Sequel (to my garden's flora and me being violated).

Yesterday Juan V came by my rooftop garden to assess the damage my landlord (FA) did to my flora this past Saturday evening (which I discussed in my 5-18-2021 post here on Blogger. It turns out he has really damaged my Beech tree. I’ve had her since the mid 2000’s and she can be seen within the rectangle affixed to the image of directly above posting. FA hacked at her so badly that he split her top in two. 

Moreover he took such a huge hunk off of her that the container she lives in now seems oversized. 

Additionally he ripped a good portion of my Autumn clematis’s (featured within the circle affixed to the aforementioned image) buds, flowers and foliage right off the vine and threw everything to the floor of my garden. I’ve had these vines for a bit longer than I’ve had the Beech tree and I included them in my garden-themed movie, The Kiwi Speaks! Fifteen Minutes of Fame… almost.

[This movie can be viewed within my Vimeo and/or You Tube Channels.]

I am truly grieving re the loss of these flora varieties whom never hurt anyone. Plus I’m shaken up by the violence and invasion that I’ve experienced.

Just as one might do when they lose a pet or a loved one, I’ve been going through my photos of the Beech tree. It looks like that even though I’ve had her since the mid 2000’s, I did not take a picture of her until 2010 (a copy of it can be viewed directly below and I've affixed a rectangle to the picture to indicate her location.

I got her at a nursery in Brooklyn and carried her home on the subway. She thrived in my place and her container had to be replaced a few times as she out grew it. I’ve had her in various places of my garden and had she been in another spot during the attack, FA would not have been able to reach her.

I’m truly frightened by the fervor of FA’s hate-filled mission as it is very dangerous on our building’s rooftop and easy to fall off — especially if you use a cane which he does.

On another note, I’ve spent my grieving time going through photos of her, which I guess is what one does upon losing a living “thing.”

My Garden and Visiting Birds Were Violated! Tuesday's Truths WK 216

The photo atop this entry features a very compassionate Mourning dove (visiting my garden today) seemed to be "feeling the pain" of a lone American robin, also visiting my garden and who was staring forlornly at the area where my landlord violently ripped off my Autumn clematis vines this past Saturday. I'm now thinking there may have been a nest there. 

My garden as well as the insects and avian community who come here mean so much to me that it broke my heart to know such violence was done to them.

This is not the first time the landlord has hacked my flora, in 2019 he destroyed a large portion of my kiwi vines which I've had for over ten years. I'm doing my best to recover from the assault and to think of any recourse I might have.

On another note, and as some of you know, my garden is the setting for my three volume series hard-cover book series, Words In Our Beak.

MY BOOK SERIES

They are directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. Over twenty-five bird types are featured in various books of the series, including Mourning doves and American robins.

A Recent Visit By Cardinals

Last Monday, shortly after Juan V left from working with me in my garden, I had a visitor who happened to be a male Northern cardinal. He is featured in the image atop this entry which is very aimilar to the ones included in this past Tuesday's (5-4-2021) blog post.

As I stated in thse entry, "This incident was most welcome after having made my place more beautiful with yesterday's plantings. In any event the handsome creature is featured in the sequence of images atop this entry which serve as a play-by play to his discovering peanuts I had placed in a small petri-dish-style bird feeder, that hangs in close proximity to my lush pair of kiwi vines."

In any event this male cardinal's visit was followed by a visit from an array of other avian creatures including a very young female cardinal.

Bird Day 2021 (Tuesday's Truths WK 214)

Yesterday shortly after Juan V (JV) left from working with me in my garden, I had a visitor who happened to be a male Northern cardinal.

This incident was most welcome after having made my place more beautiful with yesterday's plantings. In any event the handsome creature is featured in the sequence of images atop this entry which serve as a play-by play to his discovering peanuts I had placed in a small petri-dish-style bird feeder, that hangs in close proximity to my lush pair of kiwi vines.

One of these vines is the narrator of my garden-themed movie, The Kiwi Speaks! Fifteen Minutes of Fame...almost, which can be viewed on my You Tube channel and/or my Vimeo channel. 

In this mini movie, the vine talks about what it is like to live within my rooftop garden which is located on the Upper Westside of Manhattan.

A few years after this kiwi vine experienced nearly fifteen minutes of fame by talking about my place, a wildbird, known as a female cardinal named Cam, also expirenced fame by narrating a three volume book series about my place.

Arbor Day 2021

I’ve had my dear crabapple tree (a detail from her foliage is featured in the image atop this entry) growing in my garden since March of 2016 and she continues to bring me pleasure. 

This year after a rough winter, she came back in March and I wrote about this fact here on Blogger. Moreover, I published another post about her this past Friday.

She is one of the the four trees growing in my place (the others are a Beech Tree, a Japanese Larch and a Japanese Red Maple).

Out like a lion?

Today, in NYC, March is kind of going out like a lion, albeit not all that of a ferocious one, just chilly and rainy. But — as evidenced in photos atop this entry — she is leaving behind some colorful buds bursting from my crabapple tree. Buds are also appearing on my other trees as well as my shrubs and they are appearing on my kiwi vines as seen in the next set of pictures.

I have had my kiwi vines for 11 years! They have bragging rights for being featured in my first garden-themed movie, The Kiwi Speaks! Fifteen Minutes of Fame....almost. 

It can be viewed on Vimeo and/or You Tube. Moreover as some of you may know, my garden is the setting for my three volume book series, Words In Our Beak. 

MY BOOK SERIES

My stories are told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal, who visits it. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. 

Another 2020 Snow Day

MY GARDEN IS THE SETTING FOR MY BOOK SERIES

In my last posting here on Blogger, which was last Thursday, December 10th, 2020, I mentioned that we were having a snow day. That incident was a wet snowfall and the accumulation was not much, nor did snow stick on the ground. 

Yesterday, December 16th 2020, six days after the aforementioned event, we had another snowfall in NYC. According to news repors, including NY1, "This is the biggest December snowfall since 2009, when we [NYC] recieved 10.9 inches that year.  It also doubled New York's total winter snowfall from last year, with 10.5 inches at Central Park." 

Most of the snowfall has ended as of this blog post.

The atmosphere it created in my garden was truly magical as you might surmise from the photograph atop this entry which I took late last night. In the next image you can see how my garden looked in relation to the buildings in close proximity.

MY GARDEN IS THE SETTING FOR MY BOOK SERIES

Unfortunately, the weight of the snow caused a portion of my string lights to detatch from the pole which as evidenced in the follwing photo.

MY GARDEN IS THE SETTING FOR MY BOOK SERIES

Hopefully once things melt, Juan V can stop by and reattach them.

ADDENDUM:

On 12-23-2020, Juan V was able to stop by and fix the broken zip tie (as seen in the next image)....

JV MAKING A REPAIR IN MY GARDEN
(THE PLACE WHERE WIOB* IS SET)

...which had caused the lights to come down.

Once he fixed that, he added lights to my a portion of the branches of my kiwi vines (as seen on the lefthand side in the next picture).

MY GARDEN IS THE SETTING FOR WIOB*

*WIOB is the abbreviation for the title of my book series, Words In Our Beak where the stories are set in y rooftop garden.

MY BOOK SERIES

Snow Day with Sparrrows

SPARROWS ARE FEATURED IN WIOB

SPARROWS ARE FEATURED IN WIOB

SPARROWS ARE FEATURED IN WIOB

We had a wet snowfall in NYC yesterday (December 9th 2020) and I was able to enjoy it by observing the reactions of a number of House sparrows visiting my garden during the occurance.

The crocuses's flowers are in bloom again! (Friday Followup)

CROCUSES ARE FEATURED IN V1

CROCUSES ARE FEATURED IN V1

This past Tuesday here on Blogger, I  mentioned that my white crocuses which share a home with my kiwi vines* are in bloom again.

The white crocuses are in bloom again! (Tuesday's Truths 166)

CROCUSES

On Sunday afternoon, March 8th, while in my garden, I noticed the crocuses that are planted in the large container housing my kiwi vines were beginning "wake up" from their winterized state of being mulched.

JULY 30th: That was the day that was! Tuesday's Truths WK 138

IMAGE CREDIT

Two weeks ago (July 30) in my 136th segment for my Tuesday's Truths series, I stated, "....As for my completing my projects, my work was truly disrupted by an unexpected major upheaval in my rooftop garden and at this time, I cannot even write about it, but I will do so in a few days, dear reader, after I've had time to deal with today's unfortunate situation..."

Now, before too much time passes, I'm using this week's Tuesday's Truths "episode" to catch up where I left off in that posting and tell you a little bit more about that unfortunate situation, which for now (and hopefully for the long term been resolved).

The situation I referred to in my July 30th entry is the fact workmen showed up on that day to replace the building's gutters (a repair that had been long overdue) under my rooftop garden (which is atop a roof extension). Their plan had been to attach a ladder to the railing around my garden, remove the old gutter and replace it.

In Honor of Ellen McConnell Blakemann

As I mentioned in a post I published one year ago today, "Normally on this day of August 3rd, I would be calling Ellen Rachel McConnell Blakeman to wish her a happy birthday. However, she died earlier this year and is missed very much by Cam and yours truly.

As some of you may know, volume two of the Words In Our Beak book series is dedicated to her.

I think of Ellen [who can be seen in the photograph atop this entry] often, but especially today and my thoughts are also with her family (including her mother, her sister Martha, Douglas McConnell, Susan McConnell and Bennett Paul) as well as her friends, especially Loris Damerow, whom Ellen often spoke about whenever we discussed various topics."

The last time she and I spoke by phone was late January or maybe early February 2018.

Everything's TRYING to come up crocuses...

THE STORIES IN MY BOOKS ARE SET IN MY GARDEN

I'm modifying the title of a song (Everything's Coming Up Roses) made famous by Ethel Merman for the title of today's blog post for  I'm inspired by the appearance of a lone white crocus flower (from the Jeanne d'Arc family) poking out of her home (which is a container she shares with my kiwi vines in my garden).

Crocuses are considered to be a sign that spring has sprung and they've been appearing throughout Central Park, but they seem to be hesitant to wake from their slumber in my place, as evidenced by the photo atop this entry, where you this flower type standing alone amongst the "pin-striped" foliage of other crocus flowers who may still be sleeping.

FLOWERS & FOLIAGE ARE FOR THE BIRDS! (Wednesday's Wisdom)

HOUSE FINCHES ARE  FEATURED IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

EMILY'S STORY IS IN VOLUME THREE

It is rather common knowledge that "birders who hope to see hummingbirds often plant nectar-bearing flowers to attract them, but hummers aren't the only birds attracted to flowers."

This truism (or wisdom) is certainly evidenced by the photos directly above (taken in my garden a few years ago) where a male house finch seems to be enamored by my blooming Crabapple Tree while a female Baltimore Oriole is spending her time in the midst of my roses.

HEY! HEY! HEY! It's Garden Meditation Day!

MY GARDEN IS THE SETTING FOR "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

Earlier today I posted my tandem tale for the week and since that time it has been brought to my attention that today is Garden Meditation Day.

According to Holiday Insights (HI), "Per C.L, Fornari, the creator of this special day: Garden meditation day honors the fact that when we're working in the landscape we have the opportunity, if we choose to take it, to let the rest of the world fall away." 

Therefore. in honor of Garden Meditation Day, I've posted an image atop this entry which features a partial view of how my rooftop garden looks on this "holiday."

It's May! It's May! (Tuesday's Truths Week 82)

OTHER TULIPS ARE  FEATURED IN VOLUME 1

OTHER TULIPS ARE  FEATURED IN VOLUME 1

Welcome to the eighty-second week of my Tuesday's Truths series, which this week is coinciding with the beginning of the month of May, and as has been the case in bygone years, a song (It's May! It's May!) from Camelot is on my mind.

Birds + Cold Feet ("bomb cyclone" Follow-Up)

MALE CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN VOL 1

MALE CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN VOL 1

MALE CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN VOL 1

As of today, January the twenty-sixth, it has been a little over three weeks since a winter snowstorm that has been categorized as a "bomb cyclone" hit NYC with a vengeance. The three photographs atop this entry were taken during that storm.

They feature the same lone male cardinal perched upon the branches of the kiwi vines growing in my rooftop garden; alighting upon a metal railing that surrounds it, and "standing" on the ledge of one of my bird feeders (which is a "House Feeder" variety).

Upon seeing these images, dear reader, you may be asking yourself the same question that I asked myself: Why Don’t Birds Get Cold Feet?

My question led me to do some research on the matter and I found a number of helpful articles, including one posted by The Cornell Lab of Ornithology, which you may refer to by clicking here.

One of the facts the aforementioned article points out is: "... songbirds do get very cold feet: the surface temperature of their toes may be barely above freezing even as the bird maintains its core body temperature above 100°F (38°C). But most birds don’t succumb to frostbite because there is so little fluid in the cells of their feet, and their feet are mostly tendons and bones with little muscle or nerve tissue..."

In any event, we've had some very cold days here in NYC since that storm, but that hasn't stopped wild birds from getting out and about. I can almost here them mimicking Frank Sinatra singing the lyric lines from the song, New York, New York: "If I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere, it's up to you, New York, New York..."

MALE CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN VOL 1