Great Week-end

I finished the two new gates on the west side of the house...actually, I have to get a sheet of lattice yet and screw some to each of the gate fronts, but we're close. Gayle got a small red cedar from her kids, and it was loaded with cards and gifts. She took the goodies off and we planted it next to our bathroom window. We drove out to Groveland Friday afternoon; it's about 30 miles west of Orlando. There was a bamboo nursery there and I had my eye on a variety to replace the palm tree I had cut down. This nursery was about 15 acres and neatly put together. When we got on site, I had the feeling that there was a whole 'nother area of plant life that was waiting for me! I was looking for a clumping bamboo called Black Timor. It has black culms and gets 45 ft tall. The proprietor, a woman, asked some questions about the space we had, what our yard was like, and the led us on a tour of a number of bamboo varieties. She explained the pros and cons of each and steered us to a number of more upright varieties -- one was the Black Timor. Gayle caught a glimpse of a yellow variety with a green stripe called Asian Lemon. So we got one of each, Black Timor and Asian Lemon. The Asian Lemon gets about 25 ft high and grows quickly. The Black Timor is a slower grower and is somewhat sensitive to cold. All in all, I think we have a good combination of bamboo for a small back yard.

Saturday we took a trip on the bike with three friends. We left at 7 AM and rode north to Orange City and Blue Spring State Park. Because of the cool weather the previous few days, the manatees were back in numbers; we saw over 50 in the spring's waters. We rode north for another 30 minutes to Barberville, the kitsch capital of Florida. There is a business on the corner of the main road that has more statuary and goofy welded stuff than any two other places I've ever seen. Our friends were suitably awed and we moved on east to Ormond Beach. We had Elevensies and then rode the Ormond Loop, a 23 mile trip up the beach and then back down along the Halifax River on a two lane road lined with Southern Oaks that have overgrown the road...beautifully Kodak! We then drove south on US 1 to New Smyrna Beach and then back to Orlando. We had rain a few times, but it did nothing to dampen a great day. Got home around 2:30 after 185 miles, tired and happy.