
Just finished most of the cleanup from Hurricane Idalia. Things looked like they could get pretty bad as it headed north and became a Cat 4 storm early this morning. It made landfall to the southeast and tracked away from us so impact was minimal.

It has been six months since we drove down to Old Town, Florida to pick up our newest furry family member, Bogey. Bogey is a red-merle Australian Shepherd. Owning a pet brings about significant changes in one's life - love, responsibility, and challenges. Bogey has certainly changed ours. Although there are days when we question our ability to handle it all, he never fails to do something cute, funny, or smart that warms our hearts.

We have a ten-foot hedge of Ligustrum Japonicum, commonly known as "privet" or "Japanese Privet." This hedge grows a foot or more every year. I prune it back every summer before the buds set to try to keep it at about ten feet. Even at this height, it is a challenge to prune.

Still way too early to know what TS Idalia is going to do, but looks like it could be a bit of a challenging week here in North Florida. Time to run through your checklist and be prepared.

We have an annual family tradition. Every year, we get the same tee shirts and wear them on New Year's Day. This year's are a light gray. From our family to yours, we wish you a happy, health, and prosperous new year!

Hurricane Nicole made landfall in Florida today just to remind us all that Mother Nature sets her own schedule. We spent the night last night "battening down the hatches" here at our home in Tallahassee. Looks like will just be a rain event with 20-30 mph winds here. Hope everyone stays safe and has minimal impact from the storm.

We live on the 12th hole of Southwood. There are 3 or 4 lost balls in the yard every week. Someone finally managed to break a window a few weeks back. Lowell's was out and had it repaired in less than two weeks.

Not that many plants bloom in August in Tallahassee, but the wet summer has helped strengthen the lawn and kept it a deep shade of green.

My wife and I worked on the camellia and agapanthus beds on the south-facing side of our home this past weekend. Got some help from the visiting sister-in-law and another "local"....

This weekend the weather pattern finally changed in Tallahassee. I took the opportunity to start a bit of "spring cleaning" out in the garden.

Transplanted a large camellia that was in a weird spot last year and planted two more. All thriving and putting on quite a show this year.

One of the things we are enjoying about living in Tallahassee is the variety of things that grow across the seasons. Even though south Florida was warmer, the choices were more one note.