Baby Bear

This is the last of a series of five gorgeous Maine Coon cats submitted by Leonard Foltz of Dancing Oaks Nursery in Monmouth, OR.

"This is our youngest. He is Grizz, aka on his formal record as Kodiak. I wanted to name him Romeo because as a kitten he always wanted to jump on the bed and give me kisses during the night, but I lost out on that name. He is an Oregon native and is a silver tip black with auburn highlights depending on how much sunbathing he does. But of all the five cats we presently have, his favorite domain is in the house. He can be content in here for hours unlike the rest of the pride. He is one of the largest and longest, but still not huge, at about 16 pounds. His purr is like an old Mercedes diesel.  He is very shy with more than two people around. He is a sweet guy, with not an mean bone in him."

Swahili for "Lion"

This is another gorgeous Maine Coon submitted by Leonard Foltz of Dancing Oaks Nursery in Monmouth, OR.

"Simba is a native Oregonian who came to the farm the same day as Griz. Fred thought we were going to get one kitten, but I had a hunch we'd meet two that we couldn't separate. I think both of them are 7. Or 8?"

"Simba is very handsome, but doesn't know it one bit and is not the least conceited. We wish he would have more confidence as so many want to just give him a few strokes of admiration but he makes a run for it. He is very photogenic and always seems to be striking some pose. He loves finding hidden baskets in comfortable nooks to sleep the hours away during the winter rains.  Summer days find him sunning himself in the beds opposite the nursery shop. Thankfully, he appreciates a good session with the grooming brush. We donate Simba's locks of love to the birds for nest building in spring."

The Huntress

 

Here is another gorgeous Maine Coon submitted by Dancing Oaks Nursery in Monmouth, OR.

"Natascha it the lightweight of the group, but she doesn't know it. She is queen of her domain and a rapacious hunter. She has challenged over friendly dogs 10 times her weight. Very independent like Charlotte, but Natascha always likes to know what is going on and who is arriving. So she greets customers - 'oh don't pick me up, I just want to know who you are' - and then prances away. She loves getting a lift up into the loft of the potting shed to patrol for mice. She likes to check in with you often with a very sweet meow and bounce on her way. If its cools, she'll sit still on a chair next to the wood stove or on a stool near the propane heater. Natascha and her brother Vlad came from Idaho about 11 years ago."

Queen Charlotte

This is another gorgeous Maine Coon submitted by Dancing Oaks Nursery in Monmouth, OR.

"Charlotte is one of two kittens that we brought back on the plane with us after a tour of nurseries in North Carolina. She was born in South Carolina. Her brother Raleigh died at a young age of an enlarged heart."

"She has the longest ear tufts of any Maine Coon we have and her tufts would measure up well against many at the shows. With those spiky ear tufts comes as spiky, saucy personality that takes no guff from any of the other male cats. Only Natascha the other female tells Charlotte what side her bread is buttered on.

"She can be very affectionate one-on-one, but makes herself scare for most of the day. Nursery elves count it a lucky day when Charlotte consents to being touched or even held. In summer, she can be gone on camping trips for a couple of days, though I don't think she goes far into the woods. She is truly a free spirit and a bit of a wild thing."

UPDATE:

Dancing Oaks Nursery  has just let me know that they are now offering a shiny new cat calendar, where you can enjoy Charlotte and their other kitties:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/leonard-foltz/the-cats-of-dancing-oaks/calendar/product-21920211.html

And they also did a plants calendar:

http://www.lulu.com/shop/leonard-foltz/dancing-oaks-nursery-2015/calendar/product-21932457.html

A Tsar is Born

This gorgeous Maine Coon was submitted by Dancing Oaks Nursery in Monmouth, OR.

"Vladamir is the oldest male and he is also the most well-adjusted cat we have. He is very congenial walking up to customers and not too afraid of many things. His favorite pad is a little pocket of shade cloth in one of the greenhouses that creates a snug hammock over the top of the door. He can be lifeless there, so lots of people ask if he is alive! He is a great cuddler and likes to watch movies. He can be quite a gregarious clown and on garden tours and steal the show from the plants we are talking about."

We'll be sharing more Dancing Oaks Nursery cats in coming weeks, so be sure to check back here every Saturday/Caturday for our latest post.

Cruise Control

Rindy O'Brien of Washington, DC, shared this cat photo. She said, "He is a regular in the Green Seed Garden on Capitol Hill — loved cruising around the manicured pathways and sunning himself in the community gathering area outside the vegetable fence."

The Very Curious Kitten

I stumbled upon this garden cat statue in a neighbor's yard in Takoma Park, MD, while out running errands. I just adore the expression on this very curious kitten and find it very life-like. What do you think?

We Three...

My cousin, Jessica Eikenberry Paullus, took these photos in Indiana of three barn cats playing at a farm. They are approximately four-months-old and are full of vim and vigor.

Frankie Baby

Frankie belongs to Thornton W. Burnet Jr. of the landscaping firm CONCEPTS & CONTOURS INC.. They live in Arlington, VA. She is 14 years old and is still full of vim and vigor. Here she is waiting out an early autumn rain under the back porch.

Cat Door

I saw this sweet little piece of useful cat art last weekend when I was on a local garden tour in Washington, DC. This house was not on the tour itself, but that little iron cat caught my eye. It appears to be a boot-scrape and is very striking in its simplicity.

Garden Tour Casualty

Beware kitties that would nap in a garden when the Garden Writers Association comes to visit! This sweet thing was innocently getting a little sun, when several hundred garden communicators came to visit his Pittsburgh, PA garden this past August. What a sweet thing to put up with the plant paparazzi and much petting!

Mini Water Garden meets Big Cat

Janit Calvo of Two Green Thumbs Miniature Garden Center in Seattle, WA, shared this photo on her Instagram page and wrote: " Happy Caturday! Puppy-Cat checking out the new pond in the new miniature garden."

Happy Cat

Kathryn Blom, Supervisor, Howard P. Rawlings Conservatory at City of Baltimore, MD, shared this neighborhood cat that visits her garden. She writes, "He has discovered my catnip...he's a really happy guy."

A Chic Combination

This black cat and orange-red azalea blossoms are just a stunning combination don't you think?

Again, am not sure of the original source, but I was able to at least track it down through Pinterest to this Tumblr blog: http://gatta-cicova.tumblr.com/

Lindy Hop

Alys A. Milner, of Organized at Heart. (My Gravatar:  Alys on the Web),  sent this gorgeous kitty in:

"This is Lindy, also known as Lindy-Lu. We adopted her from the Silicon Valley Humane Society nine years ago.  She’s a big kitty at 16 pounds, mellow, and easy-going. She even gets along with the neighbor’s cat who comes calling. She turned 12 in June."

"This was taken in San Jose, California at www.gardeningnirvana.com.

"We have a cat fence-in system, so Lindy is free to roam the back garden, but she can’t get out of the yard. It’s the best of both worlds."

13 Eco & Cat-Friendly Gardening Tips

Over at Catster.com, Karen Nichols shared "13 Eco & Cat-Friendly Gardening Tips." Most of the tips are common-sense for any pet they may join you outside in the garden, such as avoiding pesticides and dumping out any standing water. She also that cocoa mulch is a problem for cats that may roll in it and then clean it off their fur. While much more toxic for dogs, they is a good reminder to check what materials you are using in your garden to make sure they are all pet-friendly.

Cat Landscaping

Cat Landscaping was shared on Stray Cat Alliance's Facebook page and various Pinterest feeds with no link, credit, or sourcing. After much online sleuthing, I kept hitting a dead-end.

Thanks to Beverly Carragher, I now know the source: it is Rich Saunders who posted it to Flickr.

Rich says, "The huge topiary at this stately home in Beaconsfield suggested a sleeping animal, so I comped in a photograph of our cat Tolly, taken especially to match the shape of the bushes."

Check out his Flickr page to see the original planting without the cat overlay.

He Left a Kubby Hole in Her Heart... and Now He is Back!

Brienne Gluvna Arthur is pictured here with her garden cat, She writes, "Kubby is such a special kitty! He wondered to Camellia Forest Nursery in May 2011. He was instantly a great nursery cat, catching rodents and greeting customers. He came to live with me in March of this year. He was at his new home 6 weeks, and suddenly disappeared... For 2 months! He walked 8 miles and was found living in a tree. The kind people took him to a vet where he was scanned and we were reunited! This sunflower picture was the four-week anniversary of Kubby's return home."

One Cute Cookie

 

 

Saunya Connelly of Washington, DC, submitted this photo. She wrote, "This is Oreo. He is a feral cat that lives in my sister's beautiful garden in Brookland neighborhood of NE DC. After three long years, he has deigned to allow me to photograph him."

Ergo... Pergo

Michael McConkey of Edible Landscaping shared this photo of his kitten, Pergo, in the 'Provence' lavender. He wrote, "She's about one year old in this pic. She wasn't destined to live long. She was very small. She had a breathing problem and had surgery, even made the 'cat of the month' in Crozet, VA, with one of the local vets. But she didn't live long."

Guardian of the Garden

Main Street Landscape of Haymarket, VA, posted this lovely photo to their Twitter feed recently. Main Street Landscape wrote, "Caught a picture of a pretty cat blending in with our fieldstone wall and planting installation in Leesburg, VA."  

Jennifer Lewis, Landscape Designer/Project Manager of Main Street Landscape, Inc. said, "The picture is of fieldstone walls and plantings that Main Street did, one of my designs and installations. I’ve been working with this client for years. The cat does not actually belong to my client but rather to her next door neighbor.  The cat’s name is Frankie and he is part Maine Coon. He’s beautiful as you can tell from the picture. My client calls him the ‘Guardian of the Garden’. He lives outside all year round. The neighbor just has a bed in the garage for him. So my client made a nice bed for him on her front porch, a blanket-lined basket and that’s where he sleeps. He basically spends most of his time at my client’s house where he gets lots of attention as well as some leftover fish and chicken."

A Meow with Wow

This is Meowser. Jeroen Koeman of EcoTulips in Brightwood, VA, said: "Today, exact a year ago this guy showed up at our screen door, never thought I was a 'cat' person, but I have to say I really like him! He's a love bug."

Milo and Friends

Milo is the garden cat of Taffy Turner in Silver Spring, MD. He is 15 years old, but does not act a day over 5. Taffy says, "Milo is my garden helper as he is always out in the garden with me and follows me around as I work." His home garden is also filled with many cat icons to keep him company when Taffy is busy elsewhere.

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