Bottle Tree Copy Cat!

I had my husband make this bottle tree after I saw Aiyana's and just loved it. My tree is modeled after hers, as I like the more southwestern look more than those more suitable for the Midwest. I had the eight foot rebar rod with the rebar arms set in cement and put in place while waiting for the cobalt wine bottles that I won on Ebay. This was my birthday gift, just as it was Aiyana's. I know I'm a copy cat, but I really liked the way it looked in her garden.

My garden is much smaller than hers and I'm not sure if it really belongs here. I hope that the HOA doesn't look my way and send me a letter telling me I have to take it down. I'll just enjoy it while I can and hope for the best. If they complain, I'll just move it to the side yard behind a plant!

I have decided that I won't paint the side block wall the three bright colors that I had picked out. The vine that I planted to help hide the painted wall has been slow growing and after Lowe's couldn't mix the paint color I wanted--the color mix filled it too full after they spilled a gallon of it--I thought maybe I should just rethink my plans. I tend to over-plant, over-do, over react, and then, change my mind!





The first sunflower of the season is always perfect! I have six plants that are about five feet tall, all ready to bloom. The other sunflower seeds from the Great Sunflower Project arrived last month and were planted. They are about four inches tall now. After they bloom I will collect data for the project for as many months that they flower. I will record the bee arrival time for each type bee that visits, and record the temperature at that time. Last year the Project ran out of seeds, and so sent some out too late in the season to plant, but this year they seem to be more organized and hopefully we can get the data needed.