I have been too busy lately with cleaning things out, appointments and meetings, and I have not had a lot of sewing time. Yesterday I went around the property and took some pictures so I would have something to talk about today. I noticed the mountain laurel has a lot of buds, and is just coming into bloom. Some of the flowers are open, most are still closed. These are such pretty things, with clusters of pristine white flowers with little red lines emanating from the center.
The shrub has a lot more to come, as it is heavy with pink buds.
I found this pretty thing inside the Carolina room as I was moving plants to the veranda. I carefully enclosed it while it rested on my hand, and placed it on the grass. I am baffled as to how it got in there, unless it spent the winter on one of the plants as a chrysalis. I looked around, but I didn’t see the remains of one on the lemon tree or any other plant. This is a Limenitis arthemis, or red spotted purple butterfly. The red spots are on the underside of the wing, faintly visible at the top edge. Why they call it purple when it is mostly blue and black is beyond me. The underside of the wing is mostly brown.
A cardinal pair have made their home somewhere nearby in the forest and they both stop by regularly now. The goldfinches are nicely sharing the bounty of sunflower hearts.
We have these tiny daisies in the back, several clusters of them. The flowers are smaller than a dime.
Speaking of small flowers, these tiny purple flowers are blooming on a little fern-like climbing vine. I have done searches and more searches, but cannot identify this plant.
Along the driveway, the azaleas bloomed and faded very quickly. I didn’t get a photo of them this year, but they pretty much looked like this from a previous spring.
Out front and in the back, we have wild blackberries blooming now. These are not the big, fat berries you think of when someone says blackberry. These are little things, hardly worth the effort, but the bears will eat them, and so do the birds.
Some are on the edge of the forest, where I could possibly pick some. This view is behind the house looking west. Just past the downed tree, the mountainside dips down to the cove below.
Inside, the orchid is making slow progress, not much to show yet. I still have hope that the two tiny buds below the first one will actually flower.
The first amaryllis blooms have faded, and the second bud is preparing to open.
We finished cleaning the veranda and moving all the plants out front last weekend. I have the hanging baskets full of purple petunias, and I hope the hummingbirds come by soon. Mornings have been lovely lately, cool and clear with low humidity. It is just so delightful to sit out here in the morning with a hot cup of coffee and a book, listening to the birds sing.
I made more progress on the koi fish project, and I’ll show you that on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, I am giving a free demo of EQ8 software at Beginnings. If you’d like to come, just call the shop. Then on Tuesday, we have to test drive a route for a car club event, and I have another meeting on Thursday. Busy week coming up! But, I’ll try to get some creative things in where I can.
***************
Just in time to order for a Mother’s Day gift, or treat yourself! Milk Street is having a sale on select items up to 80% off!! No code necessary, sale prices are online. Click on Milk Street Mother’s Day Sale, sale ends tonight at midnight.
Fat Quarter Shop has new specials for May! Get 20% off the Basic of the Month Bella Solids by Moda, 30% Off the Notions of the Month from Olfa, 30% off Patterns of the Month from Elizabeth Hartman Patterns (paper only) and see the Book of the Month – The Strawberry Garden Quilt Book by Fig Tree Quilts. Check out Today’s Flash Sale and see the Precuts of the Week, plus The Cross Stitch Sale of the Month from Q Snaps!
Sign up for the free Patriotic webinar on Sulky.com! Join us LIVE on May 13, 2025 at 2pm ET as we take you through the steps to create a pieced, patriotic-themed quilted panel using a gridded stabilizer technique. This innovative piecing technique allows you to create perfect points, rows and columns every time. Arrange the precut fabrics to showcase a heart or flag that has patriotic flair. Then quilt the finished piece and display it as a mini quilt, wall hanging, table topper, fusible appliqué and more.Use the panel in myriad ways – as a focal piece on the back of a jacket, as a garden flag, as the center of a larger quilt, or as a table topper & more! As a thank you for registering, you’ll receive a FREE “America” machine embroidery design from Sulky, which you can use to embellish all sorts of patriotic-themed projects. Get the kit on sale now for $39.99 which has a 42 piece charm pack, stabilizer, threads and more!
From My Carolina Home 
I love mountain laurel’s pretty blooms. That is amazing about the butterfly. Happy Sunday, Carole!
Love the red spotted purple butterfly!!!
Good morning.I believe your litt
Maybe the little vines are Vetch? It is considered a weed around here.
{link to photo of a pygmyflower vetch removed as it was an etsy site – perfect match for my plant}
Love seeing your pretty blooming trees and bushes, and, of course, your bird photos! That butterfly is a beauty, too. You do have to wonder if he went through his metamorphosis right there in your Carolina room. The veranda always looks like a lovely spot! We’re getting to outside porch time of year here, too. Have a relaxing Sunday, Carole!
I just got back from planting begonias in the cemetery. Our weather has been so uncooperative this was the 1st visit in 6 months, every weekend has been nasty. Even today’s weather was questionable, it was in the 40s & sprinkling. Classic case of lowered expectations, compared to last week’s windstorm it was OK. Maybe the purple butterfly was named for the color you get when you mix blue & red.
What a sweet surprise to find the butterfly – I’m glad you were able to get it outside. The little purple flowering plant also reminds me of vetch, we also have it here in central Texas. I use a plant id app called PictureThis that works remarkably well – perhaps that would help. Our weather has been quite nice for this time of year, so I’ve been outside as much as possible and doing very little sewing. I hope you have a wonderful week!
I love your veranda at this time of year – it is such a peaceful place to sit and watch the birds and listen to them sing I bet. When you have said over the last couple months that you need to downsize and find a smaller place I wonder if this spot will be what you will miss the most.
It’s looking beautiful in your world — inside and out! The veranda is great. And that butterfly was, I think, a gift. Simply lovely. I’m glad you brought it back into the natural world where I’m sure it will find so many bright flowers to attract it!
We’ve been having ‘blackberry winter’ in Louisville!
Climbing vine with the purple flowers is a wild sweet pea (May 4th email). Lathyrus is the name to search for. Types are: Vestitus or Venosus or Palustris .
Happy gardening, Flora
Hello from New Hampshire, I love your posts and can barely wait for the next one. Back when you made the Animal Alphabet children’s quilt I was so envious of the fabric, and then recently I inherited some. It is so clever and fun to pick out the objects in each letter. I have two at the quilter’s now for gifts. I tried to find your pattern for the “pot holder for the pot handle” that you created, but have been unable to find it. After my son’s fiancee burned her hand on a skillet handle I decided to make her some. Hopefully I can find the pattern this week. I don’t know if anyone has given you the information or not, but to identify plants, if you take a photo with your phone and then click on the photo you have taken, across the bottom there will be some symbols. If you click on the “i” in the circle it will identify and show different photos of what you have taken a photo of, as in plants and animals. Yes, I was shocked to get this information too, because I had looked and looked for the identity of a plant before someone told me about this feature. I took a picture of your photo and my phone says it is Common Vetch. I hope this helps. Thank you too, for all you have done with your Hurricane Quilts. They are all so beautiful and you have been so considerate acknowledging all those who send them and dispensing them, as well. I cannot imagine going through what the people in the Carolina’s and other areas effected by the hurricanes and floods have gone through. It definitely does not even come close in comparison, but a flooded basement was more than enough flooding for me to endure. Thank you, and keep up your inspiring posts. Jenny Truenow
>
The little purple vine is called wild sweet pea in Southern Ontario, Canada. My grandmother grew these vines on little trellises in her garden.
The photo with the tiny purple flowers (and its foliage) reminds me of wild peas. Unsure when their bloom time is in my area — maybe before long — Portland, OR, including our coastal areas. If growing in a clean area (away from traffic, etc.), wild peas are edible. Their blooms look similar to sweet peas and about the same size blossom — maybe you will share another photo of your plant when its blooms are farther along to tell what they look like.
I first learned of edible plants (flowers, foliage, etc.) 25 years ago when I attended, daily, for a week at a Raw Foods Festival in my city. It was a fun experience to learn many things and preparations of raw foods — growing micro greens, sprouts and learn all matter of recipe types. I didn`t get too involved back then, but enjoyed the experiences. Anyway, wild peas was included in a foraging class I sat in on.
Now in very recent times (about 2 yrs.) I got interested in what plants, besides the Dandelion, growing voluntarily in my own yard, are edible. I learned many are (we call them weeds). I decided that weeds is rather insulting to all these plants. When you learn a little about foraging and get more curious about what is there, I prefer to refer to them as herbs. Many are good for something in our lives — like medicinal uses, as well as other common flowering plants we grow because we like them — some them we know are medicinal and have important properties for health. Our ancestors foraged alot, so there is a rich bounty of knowledge to learn what all is around us that have disdain in urban settings. I like natural environments really, so have relaxed some attitudes about the other intruders that show up. I have not put the time to making useful things from plants, but have been eating dandelion greens from my yard — steam them with other leafy greens or on their own in a meal.
I have discovered people make many interesting sounding foods from the yellow blossoms of dandelions. Maybe one day I will have enough blossoms to try making something from them. Have read on a dandelion site many things people do with them. It is motivating. And I am a nutrition and health buff anyway, —- motivated back in years to learn what all has been bugging my well being over my adult life — just enough annoyances to interfere with some comfort at times, but not life threatening things, at least not getting potentially worse as I began to learn about the body, which became quite prevalent through time, but has paid off for the interest and dedication and brought positive results, so now into my upper 80`s, I have avoided medications and procedures, — grateful for that. Learning alot about diet habits and about the whys of health challenges, taking quality nutrients are positives for the functioning body. Have had my challenges and still do, but not life threatening or restrictive in daily life — just some cautions now around balance in some activities. I don`t regret what became a passion of learning — helpful to find out why I have had/do have the journey I have with my body and how to support it.
Enjoy being on your mailing list. I am working on finally being able to let go of excesses in my sewing world — fabric, patterns — accumulations beyond accomplishing what my easily attracted mind and ideas would think `I can make it myself` for some things I see, (and I can — I sew clothes for myself and some small projects in the quilting world, but those thoughts and desires became way more than I can accomplish for the inventory I have here. Not sewing near as much as someone who really does love the thoughts and accomplishments that attract me. So time to pare down. Will still do sewing, but not as expansive as I let my mind influence me for years.
Good I cannot browse stores easily any more, but I had stopped that anyway some time back. Not so tempted anymore for some new fabric. In my area over some years now, the fabric stores have dwindled way down, so temptation got less convenient naturally, plus I still have a small store here already with fabric I still like.
I admire what I view and read in your emails about your involvement in so many artsy things — your strong focus in the quilting world. I could not keep up with all the more pricey equipment anyway — still am in the more simple areas of sewing and admire things by others. Regards, Nancy L Wells
The garden is looking lovely. And that is a stunning butterfly.
Good morning Carole, Your little purple mystery flower is Common Vetch. Enjoy. Althea
Hi. I think the purple flower you posted in your email is common vetch. I hope this helps. I enjoy your emails very much.
Thank you so much! Several readers have identified it as vetch.
Could the yellow flower be buttercup?
In my posts, the photo is below the description, not above. The yellow flower is a daisy, as noted above the yellow flower. The wording regarding my search for an identification refers to the purple flower below, and it has been identified as a vetch.