Sue's World

Bulbs, Bulbs Everywhere!

In this past week, I've dealt with more bulbs than ever before.  The day after Thanksgiving I put up Christmas lights at home.  The next day I put them up at the cabin.  And today I FINALLY finished planting the last of the flower bulbs.

I planted at least 200 bulbs today:  daffodils, muscari, iris, and freesia.  With the warm weather I thought this was a smart time to finish the job.  I should have had these in the ground at least a month ago but things kept getting in the way including cold snaps and rain.  But today there was no excuse.  I still have a few pony packs of plants and winter vegetables to go but those can wait a bit.

I've already enjoyed the Christmas lights and before I know it will enjoy the late Winter/early Spring flowers.  Now we just need a little more rain in the near future; I'm already going to pay the price for not watering the sweet pea seedlings at the back of the yard.  I suspect most of those are too far gone to resuscitate.  

P.S. Yesterday I did something fun:  I raked leaves!  Yes, the gardener comes tomorrow and would have taken care of it, but the big sycamore leaves strewn all about the front yard and driveway were irresistible.  I wished we lives in a place where it was okay to have leaf-strewn yards but...

Nature's Beauty at The Garden Center

Okay...one last little blurb.  I always love the wildlife when I go to my favorite plant nursery.  There are always birds and hummingbirds whizzing by.  On my last visit I saw a beautiful butterfly and managed to snap a shot of it.  I didn't look at the picture again until today; stunning!

Dizzyland

Today I devoted a chunk of time to downloading photos from my phone to my computer.  I had pictures on there from the past six months and it was time to start deleting but not until I stored them safely.

Most recently I had a few shots of last Friday's visit to Dizzyland, all decked out for Halloween. 

While we were in line for the Haunted Mansion I couldn't help but enjoy the landscaping.  They are so clever!  I enjoyed the use of succulents and ground cover to draw attention to pieces.  One day I'm going to have to try some of it.

Maybe next year we'll have a little pumpkin scene in our side yard where we can enjoy it each night with lights and such.  I'm not decorating for Halloween so much anymore, but jack-o-lanterns and some cats have to be a good exception.

I barely had time to snap this at the Matterhorn, our last ride.  We even went through the gate with the St. Gallen flag!  I'm still grinning from that ride; what fun!

Hey, how did a picture of our house get in here?  Oh, wait...

Lizzie

One of the delightful things about this time of year is gardening in the middle of the day without fear of heatstroke.  I worked 3 hours and then took a planting break.  Time to plant up front.  I started with the area next to the walkway leading up to the front porch.  The planter was filled with coreopsis since Spring.  We had masses of gorgeous yellow flowers and plenty of dark green foliage but now it's time for something new.  Since it's a perennial, I decided to prune it and then transplant it out back.  I cut off the old growth to discover healthy new growth.  I made 2 lizards mad.  One is full-grown and the other is half-grown.  I come across them several times a week, usually when i water.  At it's smallest, the little one was maybe 1 1/2" long (with tail) and I'm guessing it's now about 3".  Both were still as statues when I uncovered their hiding spots.  I worked around them as long as I could and then they finally moved at some point.

The coreopsis was replaced by a few different snapdragons (both tall and dwarf) and some orange icelan poppies.  I resisted temptation to add more in between; they'll fill in soon enough.  I then planted more snapdragons and a bit of lobelia in front of rose bushes next to our neighbor's house.  I used crimson, burgundy, pink and something in between but next to the walkway I also added yellow for some punch.

I put the garden art that was there (a.k.a. Lizzie hiding spots), added snail bait and compost then watered.  I also pulled the few weeds as I went along.  I managed to resist the strong temptation to keep planting up front.  It was close to noon and the sun was pretty strong and I wasn't wearing sunscreen (I was in the shade most of the time).

I really wanted to just come back inside but since I went through the "trouble" of keeping the coreopsis, I knew I needed to transplant them.  I put them out back on the East side of the yard in between lavender.  I was bold and didn't wear gloves.  I wanted to feel the rich, moist soil between my fingers.  Lovely!  There's room in between to plant other things; I pruned the lavender down to new growth so they're not unwieldy monsters.

Finally, I gave everything a good soaking.  That included the stuff I planted a couple of weeks ago and in the past few days.  I was unhappy to discover a plant I'd just planted a foot away from its hole.  I suspect the nasty raccoons and adamantly put it back in the hole and watered. 

I smile as I look around.  Freesia greenery is popping up everywhere and today I saw the first daffodils poking through the ground.  They're all from previous years' planting adventures but I will soon add to their number.  I still have daffodil, freesia, iris and muscari bulbs to plant and hope to get everything finished in the next week. 

There is beauty no matter where you live and right now I'm happy to be where I'm at where days are warm, skies are clear, and it's the best time of the year to plant.  I'll have to wait a few months to see the fruits of my labor, but I have the gorgeous pyracantha, viburnum and myrtle berries to keep me thrilled through the Winter. 

When last I saw the adult lizard, he/she was in the garage.  There's a space under the door for it to get back outside and I know it will soon be back in a good hiding spot, hopefully eating up nasty ants and maybe even a grasshopper or two. 

Now I'm contemplating if I want to do more computer work or if I should clean up and get a pedicure.  Hm....there's probably time for both!

Fall Planting Continues...Big Time!

Yesterday morning after awakening from my post-Dizzyland coma, it was time for a trip to my favorite plant nursery.  I'd already done big planting but now that the weather looks like it is getting cooler (under 90 degrees...), I decided to go for it.

I decided to focus on the pony packs of plants though I ended up with the quart size for one type of plant.  I wanted to focus on interesting plants and flowers.  We have plenty of shrubs but really it's time for a more colorful garden again.  I came home with over 30 pony packs and knew I had a long haul ahead.  I even was bold and bought brussel sprouts and beets; I want to try Winter veggies again and now that I know I like beets that seemed a decent bet.

I was smart about it again.  I focused on a smallish area and put in plants, bulbs (daffodils and freesias) and seeds (two sizes of zinnias).  The plants included some flowering perennials and some groundcover. 

This morning I put in more groundcover in the back where I'd planted recently.  I stopped before I did seeds and bulbs back there because raccoons were in the yard last night and dug in a couple of places.  I didn't want those rascals to snack on bulbs. 

I would say that at least half of the plants I bought are for the front, but I just concentrated on the back.  And, as usual, I decided to work on something new and before I knew it I'd dug up some shrubs and pruned a bunch of lavender plants.  The green waste bin is overflowing and my regular bin is nearly full.  Honestly, that's what made me come inside.  I would have been tempted to keep at it.  So now with some stuff gone, that leaves more room for flowers.

I admittedly have kept a couple of things in the ground for too long.  Escallonia used to look nice but I've been bored with it for a few years now and today I decided enough was enough.  In the past I planted shrubs too close to the lawn.  I want shrubs in back, flowers in front. 

So now I'm inside and it's time to get cleaned up so I can do my grocery shopping before my 1:15 football game.  We've been going to church Saturday nights and that makes Sunday one giant day of rest!  <yawn>

Fall Planting Begins!

Nearly every year for the past several, I take a week off in October for Fall planting.  I officially had this past week off but it wasn't as exciting as it was intended to be.  First of all, I had hours to make up at my job so I did some work.  A week off doesn't mean all of my non-work activities are halted.  And then there was the heat wave.  You don't plant in 90-100 degree weather.  So I patiently waited, resisting the urge to buy plants.  By Friday it cooled off some and I decided to concentrate on the back of the yard.  I originally had plants to fill it with low-maintenance California natives but nearly all that I planted earlier croaked.  So I selected dwarf myrtle (I love the berries they produce and loved that the dwarf variety only grows 3' tall), lavender, trailing rosemary, and thyme.  All will be perennially green and then there will be some color in the blooms and berries.  I am confident the bees and hummingbirds will be happy and most of what I planted is fragrant which is pleasing to me!  I didn't want the view through the back fence to be covered so I think I made wise choices.  In between, I planted 100 drumstick allium bulbs and 2 dozen King Alfred daffodils.  I'll be planting more bulbs this week.  I left a strip about 3' deep between the planted area and the lawn so I can think of what else to plant.  I am thinking of some bedding plants but wanted to wait until it cools down.  Oh, I also planted sunflower seeds near the fence.

This morning I got busy in one part of the side yard.  Each year I've been adding a couple of plants to my columbine area.  I started some plants from seed in peat pots in August and transplanted those and then I also planted some giant columbines from pony packs.  In front I planted coral bells and in between I planted some sparaxis bulbs and a couple dozen single freesias.  There are already some bulbs in that area so I think I'll leave it at that for now. 

Before I came inside, I did some deep watering.  First of all, it was needed and I'm doing some of it in anticipation of planting more.  When I pulled out my bulb stash my eyes bulged; I have a LOT of bulbs to plant in the coming couple of weeks.  A LOT!  I also replaced bulbs in the needs-to-be-trashed-lantern.  I figured we could benefit from some light in the evening until we figure out what we're going to replace it with. 

As I sit back inside, I have to chuckle to myself a bit.  Nearly every year I move something around and declare I'm satisfied with the area.  And then at some point in the future I find that I'm not at all satisfied and it's time to move stuff again.  I'm thinking of moving some agapanthus around and moving my herbs to a sunnier spot.  We'll see.  But for now I will sit back and be satisfied with the work I completed, knowing the green waste bin is overflowing and I can't do much more until after trash day.  I'm proud that I concentrated on smaller areas and didn't go hog-wild buying plants like crazy.  That gives me time to ponder other small areas; I think I make better decisions when I approach the garden that way.

Now I'm off to nurse the blister that I discovered on my hand.  I don't even know where it came from.  It's a small price to pay for the reward...

A Different Kind of Gardening

I'm on a roll.  I've been running errands the last couple of days to get stuff in order.  I have been looking for pots for my succulents.  My first ideas was to put each plant in its own container like my friend does.  She buys fun mugs and bowls and all sorts  of little containers.  It's a great look.  But each time I look at bowls there's been something in my head holding me back. 

I bought a beautiful, bright green glazed strawberry pot.  At the time we agreed it was too green for succulents.  I bought it on sale last week with the intent of planting herbs instead of having them spread out all over the place.

Today there was another sale.  I got an electric pole saw like the one I borrowed from my dad.  I bought potting soil and herbs, all on sale.  Ever get the idea I love a good bargain? 

A few weeks ago, I found a sort of greenhouse.  It's a tray that holds 6 "peat" trays with 10 holes each.  The idea is to plant seeds in them, water them, and then cover the whole thing with a clear plastic lid.  It acts as a greenhouse to germinate seeds and then you can transplant the seedlings into the ground.  I got two of those; I paid $1 each.  :)  About 10 days ago I filled the first one.  With the exception of Columbine which take a long time to germinate, I have many 1" seedlings.  Yesterday I planted the other tray.

Today's mission was to transplant a house plant into a bigger pot (just found exactly what I wanted Thursday; finally!  Done.  I then filled my strawberry pot with the herbs:  Italian parsley, cilantro, thyme, lemon thyme, sage, and oregano.  I will need to find something to plant in the top opening but that can wait.  I have the pot temporarily sitting inside a terra cotta pot because there was nothing but dirt in the pot.  It doesn't bother me one bit that the pot and the plants are the same color.  I love the look of the pot; it's bright and cheerful.

That left the succulents.  I had cactus soil but no containers.  I decided to use the pot that the houseplant outgrew.  Then I found another couple of pots in the garage and one in the back yard that my dad make when I was in high school.  I will eventually put some of my ceramic "rocks" on top of the dirt for decoration but I'm pleased with how the project came out.  I put them on the front porch in front of our big pot of succulents. 

I've always liked the idea of having hanging baskets of plants and maybe I will try that idea with succulents.  The giant succulent we have proves that they thrive out front.  That was once a housewarming gift from my parents and it came in a much smaller pot.  I trim it every year. 

I did some traditional gardening yesterday but it was fun to do something different today.  It didn't take much time and the result added pops of color and texture.  I came close to buying pony packs of mums today.  I had them in my cart but put them back when I remembered how hot it's supposed to get in the next day or two.  I still have to plant about 2 dozen packets of seeds but will defer that until after the heat wave as well.  The only seeds I've planted in the ground were sweet peas and those have already started coming up. 

Seedy Business

I went to my source of inexpensive seeds and poked around.  They didn't have the usual brands they carry in Spring but I found a nice selection of really dirt cheap seeds:  20 cents a packet.  Not sure if I should be surprised, but all of them said to sow the seeds between September and February in our area.  Lo and behold, many of these are things I remember having oodles of in the garden years ago but that have failed miserably in recent years.  Maybe I originally planted them in Fall.  Hmmm.

At 20 cents a packet, I wasn't shy about stocking up on waht I wanted:  3 types of Zinnias (from dwarf to giant in a variety of colors), sunflowers, cosmos (a nice pink mix and then a hot mix of yellow and orange), bachelor buttons (pink, purple, white), columbine (pinks and purples with yellow centers) and pink alyssum.

Truth be told, the zinnias I planted out front from pony packs are spectacular right now and the ones I started from seed earlier this Summer are growing steadily but won't be ready for bloom until at least September.  So I can grow zinnias.  And I have a lovely patch of columbine from pony packs that come back year after year.  But there is nothing so satisfying as growing flowers from seed and having the pleasure of watching them germinate then grow in front of your eyes. 

My only contribution to the garden today was moving 10 cubic feet of organic compost from the garage to the back yard.  It's a spectacular day, just over 90, but afternoon is not the time to start the labor-intensive process of spreading compost.  That will be a treat for tomorrow morning.  For now, I'll just satisfy myself with the knowledge that I'll be planting soon. 

Oh, the first gourd is now about 1" in diameter.  We have several plants growing up an obelisk/trellis and they're starting to flower. 

Slugging It Out

Almost forgot one gross little detail.  I stepped on a slug with bare feet.  Yuck!  I hosed my foot and the patio off, but the shower was another excuse to make sure it was all gone.  YUCK!

Gratitude

I am incredibly thankful to have the luxury of working out of the house just one day a week.  I came home today around 3 and that was after a 34 mile commute with a pit stop at the local Garden Center to pick up 10 bags of organic compost.

This Summer I have enjoyed long periods of hand-watering the yard and today was no exception.  The last little session lasted only about 1/2 an hour but I was able to watch the few clouds in the sky go from red to black as the sun set.

I am determined to have things properly watered and growing to get ready for Fall planting season.  Yes, that's a good 6 or 7 weeks away, but there's nothing like getting the ground good and ready as the date approaches.

My beloved California gardening book tells me that August is a great time to plant seeds and I think I'm going to do it.  In the early years of the garden, I recall planting masses of wildflower seeds and having masses of gorgeous flowers in the Winter/Spring.  I have no recollection when I planted them but I'm guessing it was well before the end of the year.  So I think I'm going to try again AND even have the guts to plant some sunflowers.

Another benefit of my schedule is having leisurely time to cook dinner and have it ready when hubby gets home, or pretty darned close to that.  There's plenty of time to eat and clean up and the evening is still young.  No more stressful rushing through the front door late and then banging around tyring to get something on the table in under 1/2 an hour and still being stressed because I never got a chance to breathe after leaving work.

The cats still give me the hopeful eye much too early and move closer to position as the evening progresses.  Once I'm done with dinner, Zorro doesn't let a second pass before he's sitting on my chair with a great view of the cleanup process.

After the sun set, I realized I still had the compost in the car (windows cracked) and decided to empty it so the car wasn't stinky in the morning.  I was wearing a sundress and got dirt on it so once that was done I decided a shower was in order and now I'm clean and cozy and slightly sleepy.

If I'm lucky, I'll dream about masses of flowers cropping up.  I am thankful for these little pleasures and treasures.