Blue Rose

I have two blue roses in my garden.
And this is the photo of one of them.

It is not real blue, I guess.
But it is too hard to make real blue roses.
That is why, "blue moon" means "non thing".

Bluish roses are mysterious and I'm always attracted to them when I see them.

Rose

Roses in my garden are blooming!
I love rose, especially drab-orange rose in this photo.

This rose's name is "Julia". Its name is also beautiful, not only appearance.

To be honest, I didn't like rose before I got this because I thought rose were hincty, fiddly and self-assertion.
But I crushed on it when I found it.

My husband's grandmother on his mother's side bought me it as a housewarming gift and I planted it in my new garden 5 years ago.
Unfortunately, she is due to the advanced age and lives far from here, so she can't see it.
So I sent a printed card to her.
I hope she will be happy!!

My holiday

I stayed at my parents' house with my husband for 4 days.

During our stay, we drove to Morioka city and "KOIWAI FARM".
I took this photo there... it was a beautiful day so rape blossoms shined brilliantly in the eyes of me! 　　　　　


This is Mt. Iwate.
We could see it at the farm.
There were no trees and grasses before, can you believe me?
Mt. Iwate is active volcano, so this place was covered with lava and volcanic ash.

I can't believe it though...

A kind of Iris

It is an endemic plant to Japan.
We call it "Hime-shaga" and it doesn't have English name.
But it is a kind of "Iris", so many people have seen this shape, I guess.

"Hime" basically means "princess", and sometimes expresses "pretty" "cute" and "small thing".
It is very small... its plant length is about 20-30 cm as its name suggests.

There is only one blooming "Hime-shaga" in my garden.
I hope it show me many flowers next week.

Blueberry blossom

Blueberry trees are coming into buds right now!
I planted three trees to get berries at first.
But now, they feed my eyes (*^^*)

They prefer acid soil, so I have to regulate acidity every year.
But it is not so hard because I only have three trees and I have never thought that it bothers me.

I can get berries in a month.
I'm looking forward to it!
But... I have one big problem(T-T)

There are many birds around here and they always watch for a chance to get berries when there are many berries.
I know enclosing with the net is the best way, but I don't want to do that.
If I do that, this place will have a gloomy atmosphere.
That's why I chose the competition with birds.

Wisteria

I went to my parents-in-law's house yesterday.
There was a beautiful wisteria ( we call it "Fuji" ) in their garden, so I took this photo.

I like this colour... "Fuji-iro".

"Iro" means "colour", maybe people in the past thought that wisteria is representative of light purple things, and used its name as an expression of light purple.

It is familiar flower to Japanese people.
And some people... especially Sumo-wrestlers frown on wisteria.
Because wisteria has downward flower and is associated with a negative image of their results.

Wisteria is sometimes used as a motif of family insignia.
But it is never used as a motif of their ceremonial aprons.

Hosta

I want to introduce "Hosta" to everyone.
Hosta is common in Japan too and there are many kind of them.
Of course, we can enjoy their flower and their leaves feed our eyes all the year round.

I got them from my mother-in-law.
There are several types of them in her garden.
I chose this one because this flower was the most cute among them.
The other hostas which she has grown also have beautiful leaves, but this is my favorite!

It is not, but Japanese people sometimes eat a kind of hostas.
We call them(eatable) "URUI" and eat them boiled.

A lily of the valley

I took these photos in my garden this morning.
They are "Suzu-ran(lily of the valley)"... very small and cute!! I really love them.

The flower appear the shape of "bell", doesn't it??
Japanese people of the past thought so.
"Suzu" means "bell" in Japanese(*^^*).
Incidentally, "Ran" means "orchid".
Can you fully understand?

I planted them a few years ago, and I haven't taken care of them.
But they show their flower to me.
They seem frail on the surface, but might be strong, I guess.

　

They thrive in shade.

They always look down shyly.

This flower is common in Japan.
How about your country?

my staple dish

I sometimes cook this dish during summer.
Because it is very easy to cook and not heavy.
I can eat it on very hot days even though I suffer from the summer heat.
It was hot day the day before yesterday, so I wanted to have this dish and cooked it.

1. Boil sliced pork.
2. Cut some SHISO (beefsteak plant leaf) , MYOGA (Japanese ginger) and SYOGA (ginger) into strips.
3. Make dressing... mix SU (rice vinegar), SATO (sugar) and SHOYU (soy sauce) = 3:1:1
4. Serve pork and herbs and put dressing on them.

I think it is very healthy but sustaining dish.
Pork contains B vitamins which can relieve our tired bodies.

Golden Week holiday

Golden Week holiday is unique to Japan.
There are 4 national holidays a week.
In addition to these holidays, we can take a day off on weekend as usual.

But unfortunately, my husband had to go to work on several days during Golden Week.
That's why we couldn't take a long trip.
I wanted to visit my parents, but we put it off for 2 weeks.
At first, I got discouraged because I really wanted to see my dog!
But now, I changed my mind(*^^*)
Because the traffic always gets heavy during Golden Week.
That's why, I think that it was the right decision.

I only went to a park which has a lot of flowers with my husband and parents-in-law!
But I enjoyed these Moss phloxes and I am satisfied now.

Festival in my hometown

It's a festival in my home town.
I couldn't go to see it this year...

It is the most beautiful festival I have seen so far!!
And it is familiar to me because I have seen it since I was very young.
Of course, I sat on that parade float when I was 9-year-old.
I wore a beautiful KIMONO ( maybe... purple ) and hair accessories and I sounded a small drum to the music.
I'm proud of this festival!!
If I have a daughter... I want to attach her to this festival(*^^*)