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Jardin des Plantes, Paris in panorama mode. October 2012 (click to enlarge photos) Jardin des Plantes in October exceeded my expectations with grand displays of color, especially through salvia, tropicals and grasses. This is my favorite garden in Paris, but all of my prior visits were in the spring  when the tulips and forget-me-nots formed low carpets of color. All of my photos were taken with an iPhone 4s with OS/6. Today, we went to a social hosted by realtor Adrian Leeds (you may have seen her on HGTV's House Hunters International ). "Eye Phoned Paris" was presented by professional photographer Michael Honegger  who introduced us to a few applications to edit and enhance photos taken with an iPhone. After I shot these photos, I played around with CameraBag and Iris Photo Suite , so some have been edited with filters. For true inspiration in photography, be sure to take a look at Michael's website. We spent very little time in the gardens today as it began to sp...

Photo taken using iPhone with IOS 6, Panoramic mode. October 2012 Double trouble? That's my wonderful husband (aka "The Musician") on the left, then he walked behind me and stood on my right while I scanned the scene in the panoramic mode with my iPhone.  (click the photos to enlarge)  To take the panoramic photos, you'll need to upgrade your iPhone to IOS/6. Cool trick, huh? The Musician then took my photo in the Tuileries, outside the Louvre Museum. We're celebrating our tenth wedding anniversary and having a great time catching up with expat friends and eating far too much. That said, we walked at least six hours today. À bientôt! That's me with the umbrella on the left and again on the right. Who else wears sunglasses in the rain? Louvre from the Tuileries. View from terrace atop Galeries Lafayette. View of Île de la Cité. Words and photos by Freda Cameron , Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel . All company or product or patented names mentioned are regi...

Cottage garden. May 1, 2012 Shades of purple and pink tumble and intertwine along one of the paths in the cottage garden. In the correct zones, these perennials are reliably drought tolerant and will provide a long bloom season. To recreate this combination in a hot, full sun location, use the following plants (Click the links for each plant to read previous in-depth articles) : Perennial heliotrope ( heliotropium amplexicaule ) . Zones 7-11, deer resistant Wine cups ( callirhoe involucrata ) . Zones 3-9, NOT deer or rabbit resistant Salvia greggii 'Diane' . Zones 7-9, deer resistant Salvia nemorosa Bordeaux 'Steel Blue' . Zones 4-8, deer resistant View Part Two. Words and photos by Freda Cameron , Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel . Deer and rabbit resistance varies based upon the animal population and availability of food. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or p...

The deer are here, too. The garden grows and so does my book.  I'm using up all my creative brain cells writing the words for a fiction novel.  Writing eight to ten hours each day over the last eight weeks, I'm revising the novel that I wrote over the last year.  I love writing fiction.  The practice of weaving narration, action and dialog into each scene is rewarding. My travel experience has provided me with locations for my novel.  The first half of the book is based in Colorado.  The second half is in France.  It's fun to put my characters on the streets and inside the restaurants that I've visited. My exercise is walking with running intervals.  I come back inside and can't wait to fill novel pages with the scenes that I write in my head while I walk.  I wake up in the morning and write before I read the news.  I edit in the evenings. Although revising sounds painful, it isn't.  Each time I cut, I believe I'm improving my book....

Coreopsis 'Star Cluster' in bloom with companions Eucomis 'Sparkling Burgundy' (foliage left)  echinacea (multiple varieties back)  and purple phlox 'Nicky'. Three plants of Coreopsis 'Star Cluster' PPAF were added to my cottage garden in 2011. I was so impressed by the performance and beauty of this coreopsis, that I purchased five more plants this spring. This 2010 introduction in the Big Bang ™ series is from Darrell Probst. For several years, I've happily grown his taller Coreopsis 'Red Shift' in the deer resistant meadow garden. 'Star Cluster' is shorter at 18-14 inches high and wide, making it more suitable for the scale of my cottage garden. A few months ago, Darrell sent me an email about my experience with the color of the 'Star Cluster' here in the southeast. As expected, the coreopsis begins to bloom a creamy white and the deep purple eye spreads from the center during the cooler weather in the fall. Deadheading isn...

These "green" disfigured coneflowers were removed and destroyed. I didn't plant any new "green bloom" echinacea cultivars, so what's wrong with a few of my coneflowers? While most of the coneflowers in my garden are blooming and thriving, I watched three delinquent clumps and wondered: Did voles eat the roots? No Are they getting shaded out by the other plants? No Is it aster yellows disease ? Yes As difficult as it is, there's nothing to be done except to remove and destroy infected coneflowers to keep the disease from spreading by leafhoppers feeding on the plants.  Out with the bad to save the good. Words and photos by Freda Cameron , Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel . All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

First bloom of 'Little Lime' Hydrangea. June 28, 2012. What's the most refreshing bloom color on a 100°+ summer day?  My vote goes to the huge, cool snowballs of 'Little Lime'™ hardy hydrangea from Proven Winners®.  I know! I know! I'm obsessed with refreshing lime and refreshed  light green  garden benches to cool down my garden! After seven years of waiting for shade, I finally have a spot for hydrangea, my favorite summer shrub. At previous homes, I grew so many different varieties, but here in my small cottage garden, the small sliver of all-day shade requires a small shrub. In late May, while on a plant shopping trip to Big Bloomers in Sanford, I asked for 'Little Lime' and they had it in stock! Fortunately, with deep watering, it is well-established in time for this run of triple-digit heat. 'Little Lime' is not that tiny—the height and spread will be between 36-60 inches. I'm totally okay with a bit of overlap onto my path and through...