Zinnia and Cosmos 
Jul21
Category Archives: gardening
Jul21
Gorgeous Daylily
This daylily is gorgeous. I almost forgot about it. It’s a buttery yellow and is ruffled like a ribbon flower.
Jun30
Some of my favorite places-my gardens…
This fairy/gnome garden use to be my rose garden. There are some mini yellow and orange marigolds plus some snapdragons and blue lobelias on this side. On the other side (referring to the other side of the ancient stone birdbath) are the gnomes and some trailing herbs and a big plant of babies breath. I found those cute mini bed posts at Kohls one year and they are on either side of the garden (get it-‘garden bed’). The bush you see in this photo is a pink spirea. I love the red mulch and use it in 5 areas around the yard. 
Jun30
Pond area
This is my little pond. I mostly have flowering plants in pots like sunny pale yellow petunias, mini orange marigold and lime green sweet potato vine. That is a neat gazing ball, like a champagne color and it’s crackled. I do have purple and pink flowers (salvia, lobelia, dianthus) planted around the gazing ball. I an see the waterlily blooming it’s deep pink flower in the middle of the pond. I added some Japanese irises to in between the stones near the wrought iron fish. In the background you can see the butterfly bush (under the bay window that faces this area, the backyard). There are some tiny white petunias, a yellow coreopsis and a hanging pot of more petunias and portulaca at the corner of that area.
Jun30
Herbs and such
This is a corner of my house next to a metal basement door (the kind that opens up) that needs painting. I ripped out a ton of viney growth and added some herbs, dianthus, marigold, daisies and even some eggplant, a couple of yellow pepper and a roma tomato. As you can see it’s very English garden like right now, which I like. The big pot is full of red & white candy cane striped petunias. The other plant that you can’t see is in a sofa table that lost it’s glass. It has petunias and portulacas in it.
Jun29
Invasion of the Japanese beetles
As a gardener, I dread the destructive Japanese beetle. For such an unusual and almost pretty bug, they are a nightmare. I see nibbles everywhere. I got out the bug juice and even sprayed my sunflowers, and about 4 of the beetles came to the top of the leaves and I could almost see them coughing from the spray.
I know some history about Japanese beetles. I can’t believe they were actually brought to this country! Why not throw some locust in too! I bet they came from foreign soil also. Eat everything that people grow!!
The Chestnut trees are dropping their fuzzy bombs all over everything now. What’s falling is like a skinny animal tail about 6″ long. And this year we have a bumper crop of them. In the fall the needle-like burrs with the chestnuts inside come a tumbling down followed by the leaves. We had a Lowe’s gift card and I was pushing for Brian to get a chainsaw-no luck! Just give them a little trim, please?
Jun29
Sweet potato vine
Lime green sweet potato vine with some mult-color portulacas hiding underneath.
May31
Red!
brilliant red dianthus and pink daisies next to some parsley and other herbs.
May27
Seed planting
Just a little while ago, I finally got my first few packages of seeds in a circle garden that Brian dug up for me last night. It’s where we use to have a satellite dish (yep, one of those huge ones) and there’s a hunk of cement left there. I did the same thing last year and it looked pretty. I usually plant flower seeds every year anyway. I sprinkled some wildflower seeds in first followed by Cosmos, Zinnias (including lime green ones), and Marigolds. In the center is a raised up little container with colored glass and water. It got dirt in it from the rototiller, so I should have cleaned it out first before I planted anything.
I do have another circle garden for sunflowers. Last year the deer and probably groundhogs too ate almost everything in there. I’ll try again. I just don’t like breaking my back for wildlife who have acres and acres of vegetation behind my house to munch on.
I did a lot of running around today. I mailed off a few items, got a piece of posterboard (the store I went to doesn’t sell uncut mat board), gas (the van was running on fumes), strawberries for a picnic tomorrow at a produce place and finally I hit the grocery store. I can’t stop buying plants! I got some gorgeous geraniums-day glow pink, white with a pinkish center and dark burgundy. I got some coleus-some are similar to a few I saw on a fellow gardener’s blog-reddish orange, but they are a mixture. I also got some feathery celosia. Not many places have the portuluca I want for my yucca bed. I may get Brian to go with me to the garden center tomorrow. He needs to plant tomatoes and green peppers as they are sick of being in their containers. First he should add peat moss and manure. Ah, the joys of country living!
May17
Getting in the swing of things…some day
I’m sitting here with a cat behind my back. I didn’t want him on my lap as I am wearing shorts and he kneads me with his claws on bare skin. He is purring like crazy. By the way, I have a blog just for my cat because Cos is such a character. I think it’s pretty funny what he is doing right now.
I have so much to do both inside and outside. The inside tends to get neglected when I garden. I have a storage problem on the main floor with the basement area bursting at the seams. My younger brother and his wife really work well together to keep their home in order. I wish Bri and Sean would help me more with our house. For instance, I misplaced a large box with a fairy birdbath in it that goes in my little garden. It’s about 3 feet tall and I can’t find it. So frustrating. I know it was probably moved when ‘I’ was cleaning up for the new dryer last fall.
We have spent quite a bit of flowers and veggies. I thought Brian would have given up on the tomatoes and green peppers as deer and groundhogs are getting in the garden and munching everything. I refuse to plant in the veggie garden as it’s backbreaking work for nothing. So what if they eat a few flowers? I haven’t had problems with that lately. Bunnies were seen eating flowers a few years back. So I need to get out and finish up the planting my annuals. I always love seeing flowers like Sweet William make an encore appearance the next year. I have a lot of them out in the various beds. Sean even planted marigolds in his garden. He’s had one for many years. Originally I dug up a spot for herbs, but gave it to Sean when he showed an interest in planting things.
Mom is off to the doctor as she hasn’t been there since January. She takes pain pills for her sciatica daily. I am hoping he tries something that isn’t a narcotic. I told her to try some arch supports in her shoes. I bought them for our Florida trip and I believe they saved me in the long run. Yesterday I wore flip flops and my feet were hurting in the evening.
My 20 yr old nephew is getting tested for Crohn’s Disease today. He is a tall 6’8″ and we hope this isn’t the beginning of medical problems for him.
I better go get busy doing something constructive. I can’t go anywhere as Sean is taking the van two days a week until the end of the school year. It keeps his mind off getting a car for a few weeks at least.
Collages & Creative Goodness 