Top Posts of 2015 on the Cats in Gardens Blog

Looking back at 2015, we had four posts that performed heads and whiskers above the others. Here they are in reverse order:

3. Welcome to my Catio
http://catsingardens.blogspot.com/2015/07/welcome-to-my-catio.html
The new trend for indoor-outdoor cat spaces was an attention-getter and not surprisingly, this post went viral.

2. Cat Grasses and Other Kitty Treats: You Can Grow That!
http://catsingardens.blogspot.com/2015/08/cat-grasses-and-other-kitty-treats-you.html
This guest post by Claire Splan was a stand-out as it appealed to home gardeners and cat lovers alike. No need to pay lots of $s at chain stores to buy tiny pots of cat grass. Indeed, you can grow that!

1. Thirsty Cat       
http://catsingardens.blogspot.com/2015/08/thirsty-cat.html
Perhaps it was the hot August timing or maybe people just love orange tigers, but this blog post of a cat drinking from his neighbor's water garden was a winner and our most viewed photo of the year.

And on bonus:

A Gentle Giant
http://catsingardens.blogspot.com/2015/07/a-gentle-giant.html
This post missed our top three ranking by just one measly visitor, so we thought it deserved mentioning along with the others. It features Daryl Pulis' sweet cat, Alex, who is full of personality.

What were your favorite Cats in Gardens posts of 2015?

How to Submit YOUR Cats in Gardens

Being enchanted by both cats and gardens, I decided to start this blog for fun to combine the beauty of both. I know that many of you share my interest in and I hope you will submit your own images of your cats in your gardens.

 

Here is how to submit your image:
- Email to KathyJentz (at) gmail (dot) com
- Put "Cats in Gardens" in the subject line
- Attach your image
- In the body of the email include:
  ~ your name or you can choose to be "anonymous"
  ~ the cat's name
  ~ where the photo was taken (city, state, country)
  ~ if you have a blog or web site you would like to be linked back to
  ~ a note about the cat or your garden or both, we love to hear your stories

Faerie Friends

I found this illustration from an old children's book and added my own caption. Then I started to research the relationship between cats and faeries. I just knew there had to be one as they both are such friends to gardeners everywhere.

On the RavensShire blog, it states: "The Celts believed that cats had their own fairy court, and their own magical powers. In other words, in their fairy tales, cats were often a type of fairy, rather than simply another animal." What a wonderful concept! Those of us who live with cats have all glimpsed these faerie-like powers and attributes including hoarding treasures (must often cat toys) and dancing in the moonlight. 

Learn more about cats and fairy tales from this terrific blog post here.

Petscaping for Cats

Landscape designer Julie Orr wrote about petscaping on her blog awhile ago and I liked that she did not ignore cats. Here are a few of her tips for landscaping with cats in mind:

• Low shrubs and grasses that they can lounge under are perfect. 
• Another cat favorite is to roll in dry, warm areas like pavers, flagstone, or even better, gravel or gold fines. 
• Always protect your kitty from dangers of the road, cat fights and other animals. 
• Use a cat enclosure in the garden or simply keep your cat indoors- my cat has live happily for 17 years indoors.
•  A pondless ceramic fountain can provide hours of entertainment with visiting insects and birds while also supplying fresh, moving water to your feline. Be sure to always add fresh water either manually or via your irrigation system and never add chlorine.
• Consider your aging pets needs and put in ramps or steps for cats that can no longer leap to their destinations.

 Please share your petscaping for cats tips in the comments field below.

Photo source: "Patio" by Gjerickson (Own work) 1982
[CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kitten...

Eva Stern writes: "This cat is Raindrop. He lives at my aunt's farm in Lothian, MD, USA. I am not sure of the history on Raindrop, but he and his partner-in-crime, Katrina, have been around for at least 10 years. They are tame barn cats with access to a heated space in the winter and all of the regular house-cat perks of food and treats."

Nontoxic Plants for Cats

Here is a lovely graphic I found on Pinterest that leads to the ASPCA.org and shows several safe or nontoxic garden plants for cats. With so much about what is dangerous for cats, I thought this was a good list to have for a cat-friendly garden or when making an indoor bouquet.

This list includes:
- Zinnia
- Orchids
- Snapdragons
- Hollyhock
- Fern
- Rosemary
- Roses

To it, I would add:
- Wheatgrass
- Basil
- Mint
- Calendula
- African Violet
- Cosmos
- Nasturtium

And here is also a link to another safe plants for cats list, that seems well-researched.

Deep Roots

Meet Dandelion. "This Southern Belle enjoys eating vast quantities of dry cat food instead of mice, lying in the shade to watch you load wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow of compost, and prowling the tomato patch to be sure you cut out all the blight. She does not enjoy getting out of the harvest bin or dieting."

Pamela Hess, Executive Director of  Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture, in Alexandria, VA, writes, "Dandelion enjoys jumping in your car, biting your arm, and tricking you into giving her extra food."

"She dislikes: when you kick her out of your car and when you don''t give her extra food."