The Witch in the Woods

 A while ago, Christer at : http://thecottagebythecranelaketwo.wordpress.com/ showed a photo of a garden he visited where someone had placed a witch hat on the stump of a tree.  I had cut down this tree last spring and was thinking of placing a bird house on it but once I saw that witch hat, I knew that was the perfect finish for my stump.  I found this ceramic one recently at a thrift store and though it is smaller than I would like, it will do until I find another. The witch that lives in my woods uses this as her hat stand!

I went down to check out the lower gardens and saw that my lavender is still blooming.

Teddy likes to join me on these walks.

Chows have trouble with steps because they are missing a joint in their legs like other dogs have.  They have what are called stifled hocks.

She stops to look for "bad kitties".

I can't get enough of these beauty berries.

Apparently, I still have dandelions growing too.

I am keeping my fountains running and the stream flowing until after my party in two weeks.  Keeping up with the falling leaves is proving to be a major chore.

We have to skim them out of the ponds several times a day.

I have copper mushroom lights all along the path.

When Teddy gets a drink out of this pond the fish come right up to her.  They think she is going to feed them.  Little do they know how close they come to getting eaten.

Click for a closer look.  These are the only kinds of ducks Teddy will tolerate.

I have new fig trees growing up from where I buried the old ones last winter.

My espaliered apples gave me two delicious apples this year for the first time.

Roses still growing against a background of changing leaves.

The big Japanese maple by the lower pond is changing colors too.

I must clean the front porch at the guest house before the party too.

A gargoyle peeking out of the ivy.

A moss covered stepping stone in the stream.

Paper Bark Maple.

More copper mushroom lights.

And the hat again.

I just planted 300 daffodil bulbs amongst the stones for next spring.

Autumn sedumn.

And what monster do I spy through the early morning mist?

A very scary one.

Here she comes after checking out every square inch of the lower gardens.

A job well done by the protective puppy.

It's a long haul up the steps for a puppy with short legs.

She stops for a rest.

Then carefully crosses the creek.

Being careful not to slip on the stepping stone.

Then back to the top.

To guard the main gardens.

There are lots of places for bad kitties to hide.

The end.