Springtime in Mississippi with Blueberries

We've enjoyed a mild winter and spring and will remember the cool temps when the 100-degree days hit us. It's the end of May and already in the 90s. My pot of narcissus (paperwhites) put on a nice show. I am following the instructions to save the bulbs for next year.

My favorite amaryllis had two stalks of five and four blooms, one stalk following the other, which gave a longer period of bloom. A heavy rainstorm threatened to damage the first stalk, but I devised a way to protect it with an umbrella for a couple of days.

The caladiums Mark and I planted the last day of April are looking promising, and I have added some bedding plants and even some lettuce seeds.

My back porch roof has had a pesky leak for several years. The roofers finally came to fix it. They had to replace the roof all the way to the studs over this part of the porch. So glad to get this done before the extremely hot weather gets here, mainly because it's even hotter on the roof than in the yard. I have so much shade that the grass struggles, but I'm happy to have those tall pines.

I have one scrawny blueberry bush, but it produces enough for me to have a little bowlful occasionally when I can get to the ripe ones before the mockingbirds do. My next-door neighbor has a huge bush that hangs over my fence, so I consider these mine, too.

My bush

Neighbor's bush

Mississippi Ag Museum in Bloom--Finished

After seeing this project in various stages for several months, it was quite exciting seeing the five completed sections displayed together. We met May 7 in Jackson and showed the pieces and decided on a name: "Mississippi Ag Museum in Bloom," with each section bearing the name given by its maker. Each section measures approximately 24" wide x 36" long, with a little variance to accommodate the lettering. The design source for the piece is a photo in the Ag Museum archives. Here is the finished piece hanging together. Click on any image to enlarge.

Mississippi Ag Museum in Bloom

Here are the five sections, from left to right.

The Birdhouse, by Marcus Weekley, Gulfport

The Mule Barn, by Martha Ginn, Hattiesburg

Wagons & Roses, by Cathy Reininger, Madison

Small Town Mississippi, by Julia Graber, Brooksville

The Print Shop, by Rita Warnock, Madison

We will display the finished piece in Vicksburg at the Old Man River Quiltfest in August and then in Hattiesburg at the Pine Belt Quilters Fiber Art & Quilt Show October 7-8-9.

After a year of referring to our group that Julia Graber began as "our art group," "art quilters," "our little art group," "our SAQA pod," we decided to call ourselves "Southern Fiber Artists." Rita Warnock has graciously agreed to chair the group for a while with the help of others picking up duties, and we will continue to meet centrally at the Electric Power Association of Mississippi, in Ridgeland, rather than trying to move about the state.