How Great Thou Art Moments

Our Chaste Tree is in full bloom now, and has never been prettier!

 

One of my favorite landscaping trees, the Chaste Tree, has gorgeous blue spiky blooms during late spring and summer.  The flowers grow in 6"-12" spikes, and our tree blooms two or three times during the summer months.

Some of you may know the Chaste Tree as Texas Lilac, or Lilac Chaste Tree, because its blossoms are reminiscent of the common lilac.

It's a sprawling plant that can grow to be 10-20 feet tall and about as wide.

Butterflies, hummingbirds, and bumblebees love the bright blue blossoms ... and I was delighted to see this little guy happily flitting from blossom to blossom, practically ignoring me and my camera.

Although he was keeping an eye on me, he didn't seem to mind having his picture taken.

He couldn't get enough of the nectar ... and I was delighted to have the opportunity to capture him as he darted from blossom to blossom.

He was a happy, happy, happy little hummer!

The next picture is my favorite. His delicate, gossamer wings are truly awe-inspiring.

I like this picture, too ... I don't see hummers with their beaks open very often.

Bumblebees love Chaste trees, too ... and will even spend the night on the flowers. However, when I took these pictures, they were too busy gathering pollen to bother me.

As I snapped pictures of the bees, I noticed that this little fellow had "globs" (for lack of a better word) of what appeared to be pollen attached to his back legs.

I was curious about how a little bumblebee could carry that much pollen around on his legs and still be able to fly, so I turned to a blogger's best friend, Google, and discovered an amazing thing:

A bumblebee's legs are covered with sticky hairs that help it collect pollen.  Hollow holders on the outside of each back leg, called pollen baskets, are yellow to red when full of pollen, as shown by this sketch by Sheri Amsel ( Bumblebee: Exploring Nature ).

I think this little guy's pollen baskets were about to "runneth over!"

As I captured these pictures ... of the chaste tree, and the hummingbird, and the bumblebee ... I couldn't help but experience several "How Great Thou Art" moments.

Who ... but God ... could have created such an awesome tree -- its glory and beauty brightening the hot summer months, and its glorious blossoms a nourishing source of nectar and pollen for the smallest of His creatures.

O, Lord, my God,

When I in awesome wonder,

Consider all Thy hands have made ...  

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,

Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee,

How great Thou art,

How great Thou art!

I wish you a week filled with God's Grace and countless "How Great Thou Art" moments.  They are everywhere, if we just take the time to "see" and appreciate them.

Hidden Jewels

I spent a pleasant half hour or so in my yard yesterday afternoon enjoying a gentle breeze and admiring my flowers.

I think our patio and courtyard is prettier this year than ever before, and I decided to capture the flowers at their peak before the long, hot summer takes its toll on them.

Our Lilac Chaste Tree is one of my favorite plants in the courtyard, and this time of year it is at its most glorious ...

The hummingbirds, bumblebees, and butterflies love it, too.

I am so glad I tried the new Sunpatiens (a new variety of Impatiens that tolerate sun). I wasn't sure they would do well in the courtyard, but they are thriving ...

And the Snapdragons are flourishing ...

I went back outside just before sunset and took this picture of the waterfall when the lights came on (you can click on all these pictures if you'd like to get a closer look).

And speaking of "closer looks" — I haven't used my macro lens in a while and thought I would practice a little and get a few close ups of the flowers in the process.

White Sunpatien bloom ...

I love the little heart-shaped center in this bud. Isn't it sweet!

I've never had much luck growing Petunias, and although the leaves on this one look rather anemic, it makes up for it with its blooms.

Have you ever looked at a Petunia up close?

Let's look a little closer ...

Look at the beautiful little "jewels" that were almost hidden deep in the center of the flower.

You just never know what "jewels" you might find if you take the time to get a closer look at your surroundings — not just in flowers and Nature, but in people, too.

Blue Grow the Lilacs

With the promise of Spring in the air, I find myself daydreaming about spring flowers and plants for our yard and patio.

Today I'd like to share one of my favorite landscaping plants — the Lilac Chaste Tree (Vitex agnus-catus). We have one in our courtyard, and during the summer its bright bluish-lavender flowers add a "coolness" to the landscaping.

It is a perennial and needs to be cut back during the winter months, or early spring. Here is the way our tree usually looks around the first of April ...

The flowers grow in 6"-12" spikes, and our tree blooms two or three times during the summer months.

A word of caution: Bumblebees love this plant, and will even spend the night on the flowers. However, when I took this picture, they were too busy gathering pollen to bother me.

To learn more about the Lilac Chaste Tree, you can click on the link to read an article by Southern Living magazine's "Grumpy Gardener."

If you live in the South, I think you would enjoy one of these colorful trees somewhere in your yard or garden.

Lilac Chaste Tree

One of my favorite landscaping plants is the Lilac Chaste Tree. We have one in our courtyard and it is in full bloom right now, covered with bright bluish-lavender "spiky" flowers.

It is a perennial and needs to be cut back during the winter months, or early spring. Here is the way ours looked around the first of April ...

The flowers grow in 6"-12" spikes, and our tree blooms two or three times during the summer months.

A word of caution: Bumblebees love this plant, and will even spend the night on the flowers. However, when I took these pictures, some of which were up close, they were too busy gathering pollen to bother me.

I took this last picture in 2008, before we put the stone bridge across the pond.

To learn more about the Lilac Chaste Tree, you can click on the link.