Mid May, and All is Well

Haven’t had much time to post to the blog lately, but the garden is marching on.  Being preoccupied with other things, and unable to do much heavy lifting, this spring I’ve depended on the garden to do its own thing and it has stood up to the task.  One problem has been that the early spring encouraged things to grow faster than they perhaps should have, so some things were set back by the frost last week.  A couple of hostas lost most of their emerged leaves, as did the ginkgo tree.  Even some of the most timid of the native plants got stopped in their tracks.  Most of the shoots of the Joe-Pye Weed got fried/frozen.  I expect the plants will make new growth, but they will be set back. 

Had to take in the plants that were out on the deck and on the front porch for a couple of days, and it is still pretty cold at night for them.  After all of the effort to keep them alive over the winter it is a shame to let them go due to a couple of cold nights.  But what a hassle to bring the in and put them out every day.

But now we are looking at a ten day prediction of rising and above normal temperatures, and by the end of that span the normal will be quite warm.  So I think it is fairly safe to begin acquiring new plants, and acclimating the old ones to the outside.  Maybe even plant the deck planters this weekend or next week. 

I have a bunch of wave petunias to put out to take the place of the spring annuals.  And I’ve been finding some interesting annuals to put in the deck planters.  Lee and Lin gave us a beautiful Mandaville plant from Florida, and I think it will be safe to leave outside soon.  It needs a bigger pot for sure, and something to climb on.  Planted the Cannas last week, but nothing has emerged yet. 

The Shooting Star is in full bloom and so is the Prairie Smoke.  The Ajuga beneath the Willow has really taken hold, and is gorgeous in the spring.  The Pagoda Dogwood on the South side of the house is getting more and more robust and beautiful.  It will bloom soon, as will the dogwood bushes along the creek.  The Pagoda is becoming one of my very favorites.  It is a bit too close to the house, for sure.  But it is beautiful in every season, and not at all difficult to take care of.  What a wonderful plant.