The Birds are Really Singing

The morning cacophony of birdsong is just amazing, especially on these warmer days. With temps above freezing already at 7:30, there is so much singing it is almost hard to hear the highway noises in the distance. What a shame.

My friend Janet has helped me realize that I have a huge flock of Pine Siskins around here as well as the various Finches, Juncos, Chickadees and Sparrows. Together with the crows, the ducks testing flight patterns, the many Cardinals, and the Mourning Doves, the yard is certainly active. Wish the snow would go so I could get out there easier. I take the occasional walk around, but it's tough going and hard to see much.

Note for this spring (when it really comes): consider pruning the lower branches of "Charlie Brown" to allow more space and light for plants underneath. But move the sedum clumps that are there now to the west edge of the garden under the bedroom windows. Kill the clump of New England Asters there, they always flop by August.

Early June, Finishing Up

Well, my predictions of finishing all the planting last weekend didn't quite come to fruition. And of course, it is impossible for me to stop buying new things this early in the season. So, there was plenty to do today. I decided to put the elephant ear in the new deck planter. As I dug it up to transplant it from the flat it was growing in to the planter, I was surprised to find out that I had planted it upside down. I just don't have a good sense of how to handle the bulbs/rhizomes/tubers/?? of this plant. I'll have to study up on it. Despite being oriented incorrectly, they were growing pretty well, so I think they'll take off once the hot weather comes. Had a couple left over, so I planted up a pot full of them to move to a blank spot later on.


I threw away the agave plant that I've had for many years, having brought it home from Arizona. I think it was from the yard of the old man across the street from Mom & Dad's first house there. But its really meant to get much larger than I can afford to let it, and so it never looked good in that pot. I saved the single crown of a Queen Victoria agave, which is smaller and more well behaved. We'll see how that goes alone.

Planted allysum under the red cannas, put the two seedlings of 4 o'clocks in that bed also. 6 plants of Sundial Fuchsia moss roses in various cracks under the gazebo. I had a flat of marigolds that I couldn't find a place for, and finally put them under the correopsis among the ageratum. Added an eggplant to the vegetable garden, and also plunked in a single cleome seedling that had been among the elephant ears. Shopping at Steins this morning I found some beautiful hardy mum plants that were of sale for a pretty good price. So I bought 8 of them and put 6 into the tricorn garden in front. I hope they really are hardy.

Put the Sago palm that I've had for many years out onto the front porch to get it used to being outside. Usually I do that earlier in the year, but this year it was actually making new leaves during May and I didn't want to risk it. It looks pretty on the front porch, with the heuchera in full glory, new leaves still vibrant and young, but fully grown

Looking for rain as I write this. We had an inch this week, but then a hot dry very windy day yesterday took it all out. There are storms around, but so far nothing except enough to make it hard to sit out on the deck.







Also blooming this week: the wild viburnum in the woods are beautiful. Anenomie Canadensis, Japanese Lilac, astilbe that didn't get "frosted", Iris, Wiegalia, hosta in front, shorter larger allium near pond, beautiful columbines - many colors, all over in full bloom.

Planting Week 2008

The last three days have been pretty much nonstop planting and finalizing the Summer of 2008 look for the gardens. The frost on Wednesday was the last hurrah of the winter, and now I am confident that the weather will hold. I'm still seeing damage from the frost, but I trust that the things I plant out now will survive.

Finished the basic planting in the garden: tomatoes, peppers, cucumber have joined the broccoli, onions and potatoes that went in three weeks ago. I even put basil out into the herb garden. The flower gardens are evolving: put out the wave petunias, some alyssum, planted the pots for the deck. Finally decided what to do with the tall, green cannas, and put them out into the garden in front of the deck. Finished weeding and chipping the beds around the back yard, and am ready to finish tomorrow with any luck.

The dogwoods are blooming beautifully this week. Also in bloom: Bachelor's Button, wild geranium, swelling buds on the viburnum along the creek. Finally got a shot of the mother duck and her ducklings. Very cute.

The last tree to break leaves and begin to create shade is the Mullberry that I got from our friends Tom and Bea about, oh, ten? years ago. Took home a two foot sapling from their yard and planted it at the edge of the woods. Now it is 30 feet tall, and at least 5 feet inside of the treeline. I guess, as my father urged us when we first bought this property, we have let the treeline e dg e out into the yard,. It's not like we don't have plenty of lawn still. Less each year, perhaps, but still a large amount of monoculture to keep up and mow. Some day this will all be gardens,with only a tiny bit of lawn to create paths between them.

There are very interesting formations on the Austrian Pines that I've not noticed before. I think they are inflorescences, may mostly fall off with a few becoming cones if they are fertilized. Never noticed them before.

Busy Spring Day

The last three days have been pretty much nonstop planting and finalizing the Summer of 2008 look for the gardens. The frost on Wednesday was the last hurrah of the winter, and now I am confident that the weather will hold. I'm still seeing damage from the frost, but I trust that the things I plant out now will survive.

Finished the basic planting in the garden: tomatoes, peppers, cucumber have joined the broccoli, onions and potatoes that went in three weeks ago. I even put basil out into the herb garden. The flower gardens are evolving: put out the wave petunias, some alyssum, planted the pots for the deck. Finally decided what to do with the tall, green cannas, and put them out into the garden in front of the deck. Finished weeding and chipping the beds around the back yard, and am ready to finish tomorrow with any luck.

The dogwoods are blooming beautifully this week. Also in bloom: Bachelor's Button, wild geranium, swelling buds on the viburnum along the creek. Finally got a shot of the mother duck and her ducklings. Very cute.

The last tree to break leaves and begin to create shade is the Mullberry that I got form the Hoffmans about, oh, ten? years ago. Took home a two foot sapling from their yard and planted it at the edge of the woods. Now it is 30 feet tall, and at least 5 feet inside of the treeline. I guess, as my father urged us when we first bought this property, we have let the treeline edge out into the yard,. It's not like we don't have plenty of lawn still. Less each year, perhaps, but still a large amount of monoculture to keep up and mow. Some day this will all be gardens,with only a tiny bit of lawn to create paths between them.