"Did Someone Say ----?"* : The Sequel!**

The aftermath of an orgy in the pond Lake.  Disgraceful!

 

 

* Answers in the comments, please.

** To this post from a year ago.

 

 Hello!  Here I am!  I don't have much to say, so I will just bombard you with gardening-related photos (mostly) which may also serve as a prompt to start photographing your own gardens and/or green patches for the 16th annual Lady Garden Presentation

 

I N F O M A N I A C

Garden Photos Event

later in the year.

 

 But first some music to accompany your scrolling, from the Project Hail Mary soundtrack, Daniel Pemberton's "Amaze Amaze Amaze (Life on Erid)": 

(I loved my birthday viewing of this film - and the soundtrack - so much that I went to see it again on Tuesday afternoon!  The similar, but not quite as euphoric "Amaze Amaze Amaze (Fist My Bump)" almost made the cut here.)

 

MARCH

The 15th to be precise...

 

The Echiums (pininana, I believe - AKA Giant Viper's Bugloss) made it through the winter.  Phew!

The Freakin' Green Elf Shorts have claimed their 31st victim!

 If you haven't already heard, Ms Nations (AKA Steve. Because 'Steve' is almost as nice a name as 'Paul' was.) has become the Freakin' Green Elf Shorts 31st victim! 

 Commiserations Congratulations, Ms Nations!

 

 Rimpy Rimpington, the Official FGES Historian (and Commissioner of the Cloned Second Pair), has updated the Continuing History of the FGES which includes some 'deleted scenes' from his recent tenure with them.  And I've updated the FGES Travel Map - as you can see above. 

 

 That is all. 

WARNING! WARNING! This is Your Garden Photos Event Final Reminder

 Yes, in just over a week's time, on 31st October, the Terrifying Triffids will be released heralding the 15th annual

 

I N F O M A N I A C

GARDEN PHOTOS EVENT

 

 I hope you've all been taking photos of how your expansive grounds | bijou courtyard | overgrown wilderness | rampant houseplants | tasteful city garden | impenetrable jungle | potted paradise [delete as applicable] has grown over the year, as I'll want your carefully curated selections - along with terse or verbose captions - in my in-box by Wednesday 29th October, please.* 

 And remember also to include a photo or two of a particularly spooky plant in your collection - or, failing that, a rather more mundane plant which has been snapped at an odd angle/close-up/while drunk - to join the rest of the Terrifying Triffidery on Hallowe'en.

 This blog's gmail address for sending your photos & captions into is in my profile on top of the Sideboard over there.  Or, if you have the Host's personal hotmail address, you can use that instead.

 

☙❧

 

 For anyone new to this/with only a few houseplants/concerned about your gardening abilities (etc.) who may be wondering if you can take part: Yes, you can!

 As you can see by looking back through previous Garden Photos Events (see my handy GPE Page) pretty much anything goes - and the more the merrier!  You don't have to provide dozens of photos - one or two will be fine - and there'll be no judging or negative critique.  After all, in the exasperated tone of the GPE originator herself, The Very Mistress: 

 

May I remind you that the Garden Photos Event is NOT a competition!

 

 If you have any questions, thoughts, or ideas about the GPE, please sound off in the comments.

 

 

☙❧

 

 * But, because I am a soft touch, as long as some of you send in your photos by then, the rest of you lallygaggers can have a bit longer.  But not much longer, mind!  I have things to do, and I don't want to be curating photos all the way through November.  (I'll leave it up to you to decide who's going to be in my good books by getting their photos in on time, and who will earn under-my-breath mutterings and a spectacular eye roll come 30th October.  Or later.  Almost certainly later.)

 

 (As of this writing, we've received Triffid photos from five of you, and garden - indoor and out - photos from three of you lovely Bloggerati.  The rest of you - get your skates on!)

  

See you and your triffids - good or evil - next week!

Not The Infomaniac Garden Photos Event

 Yes, that's right, this is NOT the Infomaniac Garden Photos Event.  Because, as you all know, the GPE doesn't begin until the end of this month - Hallowe'en, in fact.

 It is, however, a reminder to most of you - and a wake-up call to one or two - that I'll need your garden photos by Wednesday 29th October if you'd like to take part.  Your Terrifying Triffidery photo/s MUST be submitted by the 29th so that I have time to put them together for the Hallowe'en post.  I may allow a little leeway for the main event photos because I'm a soft touch - BUT NOT TOO MUCH!

 More on that at the end of this post, but for now, here are some photos from Thursday's visit to the Old Vicarage Gardens at East Ruston: 

(In the vicinity of the) Winter Garden #1

 

(In the vicinity of the) Winter Garden #2

Filling gaps and softening edges

 Here are some photos from the garden today.  I had intended to go through the garden photos I've taken throughout the year and select some for the upcoming Garden Photos Event-

 From the beginning of November, people!  We hope you've been snapping away at your green stuff?!

 Anyway, as I was saying, I'd started to select some photos for the GPE, but nieces descended upon us, so that went out the window leaving us with just enough time to slap together this post of a few hastily taken photos of our tired, end-of-season greenery.

 There's not much in the way of colour, but there are a few splashes here and there, like the pale purple (mauve?) scabious and yellow geum above.

Hey Hi Hello

Alison Goldfrapp - Hey Hi Hello

 

 

 I think it's about time for a Garden Photos Event reminder, don't you, Very Mistress?

 

The House of

 

I N F O M A N I A C

 

Garden Photos Event 2025

 

 As with previous years, this year's GPE will be held throughout November, with the event kicking off on Hallowe'en with the now traditional Terrifying Triffidery exhibit.  This leaves you little more than three months to take photos of your green spaces (if you haven't already made a start) and curate them before emailing them to me by the end of October.

 

 Infomaniac Bitches should already know the score, but for the muddled, forgetful, and easily startled/distracted - not to mention anyone new who'd like to take part - there's a potted history of the Infomaniac GPE on its own dedicated page at the top of this blog so you can see what you'll be letting yourself in for/getting involved in.  And despite some comments to the contrary, the GPE is NOT a contest, so your gardening efforts (or lack thereof) will not be judged and there will be no winner.  This means you, Savvy!

 There's no particular theme this year - we'll accept photos of pretty much anything garden-related, whether selected prize specimens that would make Monty Don weep or breathtaking vistas of your expansive grounds, to the potted dwellers on your balcony/windowsill, to a resilient plant that you haven't managed to kill yet. 

 And if you have a straggly and unruly bush that you suspect may be a weed but fascinated you enough to wonder what it is, the Official Plant Spotter of Hexenhäusli Device and its Extensive Witchdom, nay, All of Blogdom Itself, Jon, should be on hand to identify your unmentionables. 

 

 Right.  That's that bit done.  Here are a few bits & bobs from my garden this month to goad you into action:

 

View over the Circular Paysho from behind a hebe.

Garden Photos Event update

 Well, the deadline for sending in your garden/graveyard/windowsill/duck photos has come and gone, and I'm surprised to have received entries from as many as six Bloggerati (thank you all).  I am not surprised that dear Savvy's entry wasn't amongst them...

 

 Anyway, you still have time to get your photos in if you want to take part (into the first week of November, if absolutely required), but please note: if you have a Terrifying Triffidery photo, you MUST email it to me by midday tomorrow UK time.  That's anywhere between 5am on the US west coast to 8am on the East, I think?  And 1pm in Franconia...  (The expected Australian entry is in, but if there are any more you'll have to work the time out yourselves as your country spans too many time zones for me to be arsed to list).

 

 Everyone is welcome - even newcomers, friends-of-friends, lurkers, Lady Goldberg-DeWoofs etc. - so if you'd like to take part, please do!  This blog's gmail address can be found in my profile up there on the Sideboard to the right.  If you have any questions, please ask away in the comments.

 

Hope to see you and your  I N F O M A N I A C  Garden Photos Event snaps soon!

Incoming! GPE at Two O'Clock!

Or is it ten past twelve?

Who knows?  I think Witchface must've been having a moment when this title came to mind.

 Oh, all right.  Forget the time/direction, then.

the House of

I N F O M A N I A C

Garden Photos Event

 

is almost upon us!

 When you say "almost", what exactly do yo-

 Christ!  Shut up!  I'm doing this and I don't need any of your 'help'.

 Well, I just don't want anyone to start panicking because of a misunderstood deadline.

 They should be panicking.  There're less than two weeks to go!

It sounds like you're the one who's panicking...

A few deep breaths later...

 Right.  As I was saying: it'll soon be Garden Photos Event time so I hope you've all been taking photos of how your expansive grounds | bijou courtyard | overgrown wilderness | rampant houseplants | tasteful city garden | impenetrable jungle | potted paradise | graveyard that you frequent [delete as applicable] has grown over the year, as I'll want your carefully curated selections - along with terse or verbose captions - in my in-box by Monday 28th October, please.* 

 And remember also to include a photo or two of a particularly spooky plant in your collection - or, failing that, a rather more mundane plant which has been snapped at an odd angle/close-up/while drunk - for the GPE preview Terrifying Triffidery on the 31st.

 This blog's gmail address for sending your photos & captions into is in my profile on top of the Sideboard over there.  Or, if you have the Host's personal hotmail address, you can use that instead.

 

☙❧

 

 For anyone new to this/with only a few houseplants/concerned about your gardening abilities (etc.) who may be wondering if you can take part: Yes, you can! 

 As you can see by looking back through previous Garden Photos Events (see my handy GPE Page) pretty much anything goes - and the more the merrier!  You don't have to provide dozens of photos - one or two will be fine - and there'll be no judging or negative critique.  After all, in the exasperated tone of the GPE originator herself, The Very Mistress: 

 

May I remind you that the Garden Photos Event is NOT a competition!

 If you have any questions, thoughts, or ideas about the GPE, please sound off in the comments.

  

☙❧

* But, because I am a soft touch, as long as some of you send in your photos by then, the rest of you lallygaggers can have a bit longer.  But not much longer, mind!  I have things to do, and I don't want to be curating photos all the way through November.

(I'll leave it up to you to decide who's going to be in my good books by getting their photos in on time, and who will earn under-my-breath mutterings and a spectacular eye roll come 29th October.  Or later.  Almost certainly later.)

 

See you and your triffids (good or evil) next week!

An Oddity or Two

 You can thank Madam Arcati for this post, for if she had not seen fit to furnish us with her August flowering foxglove, you would be hastily scrolling through/clicking past a Star Trek fan art post featuring a barely clothed Rutherford.*

 Except for the first photo, here are some late blooming floral oddities from the gardens of Hexenhäusli Device this morning:

From yesterday's Bitey walk: A foxglove in the wild.

Sorry.  Please ignore Bitey's fluffy bottom, and focus your attention on the rather lacklustre foxglove.

Reminder: The Infomaniac Garden Photos Event 2024

If the previous post wasn't enough of a prompt, here's an official reminder:

 

 

the House of

 

I N F O M A N I A C

 

Garden Photos Event 2024

 

is only two months away!

 I hope you've all been snapping away in your green spaces this season in readiness for the event of the year?  If not, you'd better get to it as I don't want to have to get my wand out and turn you into one of these:

☙❧

 

  Let's have a bit of musical accompaniment, shall we?  I've only recently discovered Sophie Ellis-Bextor's cover of Propaganda's "Duel" and, needless to say, it's fabulous!

All Hands On Deck(s) - Star Trek: Lower Decks

SaveStarTrekLowerDecks.com

Calling all Lower deckers!  On April 12th Paramount+ announced the upcoming 5th season of Star Trek: Lower Decks will be its last.  The cast, crew and fans have all expressed a strong desire to go beyond this season.

 

As Mike Okuda, a graphic designer best known for his work on Star Trek, posted to social media:

 

One of the ways that the success of a streaming show is measured is by the number of minutes that each episode is streamed.  If a lot of fans replayed each episode a lot, it is conceivable that that could make a blip in the ratings.

 

Our goal is to make that blip!

The INFOMANIAC Garden Photos Event 2024 Primer

The 2024

 

I N F O M A N I A C

 

Garden Photos Event

 I thought it was about time to get up off my quince and do something about this year's GPE.  I mean, Savvy's already on it, for Christ's sakes!

 I am sure that you all know what the Infomaniac Garden Photos Event is and why it's held here rather than at The Very Mistress's hallowed blog, Infomaniac, these days.  But for anyone new here, or for any Blogorati/Bloggerati* having a senior moment or just waking up after a cooking sherry bender that began two days ago while making a trifle**, my GPE Page explains all.

 

 Anyway, forget the trifle for now (If you can.  Mmmmmmm... trifle!), this is all about the GPE.  There's no theme this year, not least because I've left it far too late in the year to foist one upon you, but also because I can't decide between the handful I've thought of.  So, all you need to be thinking about - and doing - is preparing your expansive grounds, modest gardens, compact courtyards, payshos, balconies (juliet or otherwise), windowboxes and/or indoor pot plants and taking photos of them in their entirety, and/or specific/favourite/interesting views, planting schemes, specimen plants/leaves/flowers, or any other aspect of your greenfingering that takes your fancy.

 As with previous GPEs held here, there will also be a pre-event Terrifying Triffidery exhibit at Hallowe'en, so be sure to take photos of any particular scary, unusual, or downright rude (because we know what you're like) plant, too.  Or, failing that, photos of a perfectly ordinary plant taken while drunk, close-up, or filtered/photoshopped to Hell!

 And remember, the Infomaniac Garden Photos Competition is NOT a competition, so there will be no judgey comparisons or winners/losers.  The Event is open to all no matter your gardening skill level or plot/pot size, and you can submit just one photo or many.  I usually ask for photos to be emailed to me by the end of October as the Event will be held throughout November, but I'll confirm dates & email address etc. later in the year.

 

 Finally, for any friends-of-friends, lurkers, irregulars, or newcomers reading this, it would be lovely to see some garden photos from you, too.  Lady Goldberg-DeWoofs, I know you've moved to a beach front house recently - Have you found some suitable specimens?  Sixpence, how does your garden/terrarium grow?

 Right.  Now that's out of the way, here are some GPE preparation photos from Hexenhäusli Device's grounds to get you in the mood:

For The Very Mistress, Ms Scarlet, Mitzi...

...and anyone else who's a fan of Noel Fielding:

The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin - as discovered at Reactor

 

And, as brought to my attention by The Very Mistress, here's a bonus video of Noel as Kate Bush dancing to Wuthering Heights:

That's all for now.

Yes, You Did Win Yet!

 Well, with nearly three of you esteemed Blogorati taking part, I declare the "Did I Win Yet?" Grand Quiz of 2024 an unmitigated success!

"Success"?  Is that the word we're going with?

Yes.  It is.  And just leave it at that so we can get on with this, hmm?

Fine.

 Before we get to the winner, here's a reminder of the questions, with the answers (almost all of which were from 2023's end-of-year round-up The Year of Looking Glam Even Without Nail Varnish) provided by The Host:

 

1. In which month did LẌ visit The Very Mistress from beyond the grave?  And for a bonus point, which two posts was he first at?

The answer is February.  And if you'd clicked the link to The Very Mistress's Infomaniac blog, you will have seen that the two posts were "Keep Your Pants On" (22 March 2010) & "Filthy Friday - Holiday Photos" (18 March 2010) and would have gained a bonus point.

 

2. We all know that Dinah looks glam even without nail varnish, but what couldn't she do without in order to look like movie star, Joanna Cassidy?

This one may have flummoxed those of you who have not seen 1982's Blade Runner.  Joanna Cassidy's character, replicant Zhora, is an erotic dancer and performs with a snake.  And so, in April's photo of Dinah wearing nail varnish, it's the carpet snake that she needed.

 

3. How many freckles are there on-  No, just kidding!  How many men did Mistress Maddie-  Ha!  Kidding again. 

 Really this time: How many ducks - rubber or otherwise - feature in The Year of Looking Glam...?

The Freakin' Green Elf Shorts Make America Great Again!

 Yes, the Freakin' Green Elf Shorts are back! 

 

 The 29th winner, Janie Junebug, is holding the FGES Caption Competition RIGHT NOW!  So, why don't you pop over to her place and leave a witty/pithy/disgusting caption to be in with a chance of winning the detestable polyestables for yourself and joining the elite few whose nether regions have been where no one has wanted to go before!

A little tease of Janie's FGES photo

 And look!  The current FGES Travel Map:

 And, yes, I've informed Rimpy, the Official FGES Historian, so we may get an updated Continuing History of the FGES quite soon!

 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

EDIT 21 December 2023 : Rimpy has only gone and won the FGES!!!  Congratulations, Rimpy!!

Mr Tonking, you had a very lucky escape!

Here's the updated FGES Travel Map (1st 2023 edition):

GPE 2023 : Mago's Garden Com Post

 Ah, you're right on time for...

 

M A G O:

 

Where No Plant Has Gone Before

 

☙❧

I snapped some photographs last night [Hallowe'en, spookily enough - IDV]:

 

GPE 2023 : Ms Scarlet is a Big Pink Bush Tease!

 Ah, how lovely to see you all again!  This time on the Infomaniac Garden Photos Event we have:

 

M S   S C A R L E T' S

Abundance of Blossom

(as well as her infamous Big Pink Bush, of course).  I will pass you over to Ms Scarlet to introduce her garden photos:

 

☙❧

 

 You will notice that Devon had an abundance of blossom in Springtime - Cherry blossom, and soooo much Hawthorn.

 I have included a tease of my big pink bush, along with a couple of pots of pansies. And then there are several arty photos of my hydrangeas.

 The hot spell in late September has given me a little crop of strawberries, which is very odd - the bonus being that I don't think there are any birds around to eat them if they ripen.

Garden Photos Event Final Warning

 

the House of

I N F O M A N I A C

Garden Photos Event

 

opens on 1st November,

but not before we've hosed down and cleared up after Hallowe'en's

Terrifying Triffidery

So, for those of you taking part, please email me your photos by Saturday 28th October* (my blog's email address is in my Blogger profile on top of the Sideboard on the right there).  Everyone is welcome, from Infomaniac Bitches of yore, to newcomers, friends-of-friends, and lurkers.  More information can be found in the previous post, but if you have any questions, please ask away in the comments.

Oh, for fu-  Ignore Bitey, look at the lovely blue cornflowers.

☙❧

* But, because I am a soft touch, as long as some of you send in your photos by then, the rest of you lallygaggers can have a bit longer.  But not much longer, mind!  I have things to do, and I don't want to be curating photos all the way through November.

(I'll leave it up to you to decide who's going to be in my good books by getting their photos in on time, and who will earn under-my-breath mutterings and a spectacular eye roll come 29th October.  Or later.  Almost certainly later.)

 

See you all next week!

Garden Photos Event Countdown

 

D A N G E R !

the House of

I N F O M A N I A C

Garden Photos Event

 

WILL DETONATE GO OFF IN T-MINUS 10 MINUTES 30 DAYS!

 

 

 Or something less dramatic.

 

 So, anyway, yes, it'll soon be Garden Photos Event time so I hope you've all been taking photos of how your expansive grounds | bijou courtyard | overgrown wilderness | rampant houseplants | tasteful city garden | impenetrable jungle | potted paradise [delete as applicable] has grown over the year, as I'll want your carefully curated selections - along with verbose or terse captions - in my in-box by Saturday 28th October, please.  

 If you've managed to capture on film any visting non-domestic fauna (however big or small) to your garden please include those photos as well, as the (entirely voluntary) theme this year is Wildlife.  More information about this can be found in the previous GPE reminder, here.

 And remember also to include a photo or two of a particularly spooky plant in your collection - or, failing that, a rather more mundane plant which has been snapped at an odd angle/close-up/while drunk - for the GPE preview Terrifying Triffidery on the 31st.

 This blog's gmail address for sending your photos & captions into is in my profile on top of the Sideboard over there.  Or, if you have the Host's personal hotmail address, you can use that instead.

 

 Right.  Let's have a look at some photos from Allotment Device to get you in the mood, shall we?  

 

Some of the various allotment visitors/permanent residents

(and, yes, the common black diving beetle is in a bath)

The Birds and the Bees: A Garden Photos Event Q&A

"What if my wildlife photos have critters in them but you can't see the plants/flowers because the critters are sat on a patch of grass or open space?

Does that count as a submission, nonetheless?"

 

asked The Very Mistress in the comments of the previous GPE reminder post.

 

 Yes, it's reminder time again for:

 

the House of

 

I N F O M A N I A C

 

Garden Photos Event 2023

 Well, The Very Mistress raises a good point, and one that's been on my mind lately as I've taken some close-up photos around the garden, but without background for context, they could have been taken anywhere.  So, I have come up with a couple of solutions:

 

I spied this variety of ichneumon wasp (Amblyjoppa proteus - at least I think that's what it is?) while enjoying a G&T in my shade garden

Bitey wishes it to be known that these rather tiny, ambulatory anal beads do NOT belong to him.  And they're certainly not mine, either!