petals from the past

sounds like a great story title doesn't it? titles like that at times make me pick up books, like "cherries in the snow". i forget the author now, but i bought the book simply based on the name. but, in this case it's not the name of a book (or a blog) but instead the name of a wonderful plant nursery in jemison, alabama. the place is located out in the country and is a lush, wonderful escape from the city. they grow antique and heritage plants (especially roses) that you can't just find anywhere plus a lot of plants native to alabama.

the store is a converted country house and is surrounding by examples of their plants and trees. it looked like a wedding was taking place later in the day in the rose arbor. after wandering through the grounds (of course i took my camera) i sat with my sister and listened to the droning of the bumblebees as they flitted and fought. i got to see the wonder of a mated pair of bluebirds for the first time. bluebirds are special (just like chickadees) to me because each time my mom saw something with bluebirds she would say "bluebirds of happiness" and we would smile. funny the simple things...

fresh strawberries locally grown were bountiful and luscious. the blueberry trees were laden with berries that will ripen in a couple of weeks. there were rows and rows of strawberries blooming and will ripen and the fig trees were blooming. this is exactly the life i would want if funds were unlimited and available. all that was missing is woven hammock hung under a full shade tree and a glass of lemonade. they did, however, have coke in the tiny bottles i remember from childhood - - - and it tastes just as i remember from a glass bottle.

after ambling around...we had lunch at a barbecue place down the road (a piece as we say around here). bountiful and wonderful, but the very best part? freshly fried pies - peach was my choice. yum.