This photo has a simple subject, but the complication is that I don’t know what the plant is. First I thought comfrey, but I looked it up, and no. Then I thought Lambs’ Ears, but I looked THAT up, and it doesn’t grow in rosettes like this one. So, I don’t know. If anyone can enlighten me, I’d be grateful. It’s growing in a neighbor’s yard near my home in Seattle, Washington. [It appears to be Mullein. Thank you, Ms. Toastburner!]

For more ruminations on the theme of Simplicity, visit Thursday Challenge. And because I’m pretty sure it’s an herb, and that qualifies for Thinking Green, visit them for more ideas about being green.

Taken from the shady part of my yard, looking to the sunnier area, you can see there’s no problem with having flowers in shade, thanks to fuschias, wax begonias and red impatiens. I love that they need almost no care after planting except watering. The coleus (those spiky things) grown easily from seed did very well also. The sunflower is a volunteer from feeding the birds.

For more flowers around the world, visit Today’s Flowers, and for more scenic shots, visit Scenic Sunday.

Well, the tomatoes aren’t too big, but in Seattle any ripe tomato is a wonder some years. The little yellow ones were from a volunteer plant in a flowerbed, unlike the started plants I bought and planted in black containers back in May, and sure enough, the volunteer is far bigger and happier in every way. It’s a puzzlement, because the plants in the ground last year refused to ripen, even cherry tomatoes. Sigh.

There’s also broccoli rabe in the basket. I planted seeds pretty early, and they were so spindly, went to seed right away, but THOSE seeds grew and now I have these huge, healthy plants, yielding like crazy. I like it steamed with olive oil, soy sauce and lots of garlic.

Happy Ruby Tuesday!

Even with the warm weather we had this summer, it’s not too easy to ripen tomatoes in Seattle. But of course, I must try. The small ones seem to have the best shot at it, but I’m still learning with tomatoes, as with so many things. These are Husky cherry tomatoes, and the plant is particularly strong and sturdy. The tomatoes aren’t bad, either. I slice them on a sandwich, even the small ones, for flavor that can’t be beat.

Interesting fact: See the little star-shaped caps at the stems? There are five points. Fruits (and tomatoes are fruits, I think actually berries) that have patterns of fives, like an apple’s seeds if you cut it crosswise, are USUALLY safe to eat and not poisonous.

Visit Think Green Thursdays for more ways to live lightly on the earth, besides food gardening, that is.

My sister drove me past this field on Friday. It is her favorite. She loves the faint magenta color of some of the plants, and the way there are soft drifts of color. When I asked her to stop the car so I could take a picture, she said, “I KNEW you’d want to do that.” She does know me, I guess.

For more scenic photos here and there and everywhere, visit Scenic Sunday.

These are also called digitalis, and I love them. They bloom in shade or, up here in Seattle, in sun also; they reseed, and they are so showy! These are from seedlings I brought from the other house. They bloom the second year, like most perennials started from seed, but if you know in advance, that’s fine, as their leaves make a lovely rosette pattern all by themselves. Actually the foliage looks a bit more gray-green than in this photo, but I just liked the photo the way the camera saw it.

For more photos from around the world, visit Today’s Flower in Brazil.

A recent sunny day yielded reflections on a pond for us all to enjoy. For other watery delights, visit the Watery Wednesday meme, filled with fascinating water photos from all over.

Watery Wednesday is here, and all is dry today here in Seattle, but a few weeks ago this pond told a different story.

Again, anyone have any CafePress.com experience to share?

This is part of my backyard, and my neighbor’s yard beyond the little fence, just two weeks ago. The show is over now, but with the magic of photography, the moment lives on. I am happy that I planted all those bulbs last fall, even though it was such a short, but intense, pleasure. I feel that gardening is a very green activity, and if you’d like to see other photo interpretations of the idea of green, visit Think Green Thursday.

I found this new meme called Think Green Thursday and I had just the perfect photo for it. My daughter took this of my seedlings on the windowsill, ready to plant outside, and they are so cute and GREEN that I had to jump in and join the meme. Good luck to the Pagan Sphinx for a great idea.