Planted Hyacinth

Planted 12 hyacinth -- mixed colors -- today, a day that started at 39 degrees and go to 60 or so. Some light frost in October, but also went swimming in the Bay at the first of the month, so it's been a mixed fall. It followed a rainy summer and the fallout of two hurricanes, Florence and Michael. The first spawned tornadoes that had us sheltering at the library; the second took out that glorious oak at the top of Bryan Park.

One hydrangea still offers the stray blue bloom. The giant white hydrangeas were a little spindly but not bad after the severe pruning. The deutzia bent and snapped and will need lots of maintenance this winter.

Mom, for scale

Mulch Happened

50 bags of small nuggets, I guess is what Southern States called them, Being lighter, spreading it did not do me in; spent an hour or two at it across 4 or 5 days last week. As ever, not enough, especially with the duetzia wacked back so much. At least the peonies got to bloom enthusiastically! (And then it rained enthusiastically for 4 or 5 days...)

Reading

Enjoyed a skim-read of Restoring American Gardens and delighted to learn that George Washington knew smoke bush (Cotinus coggygria) - its entry is on page 113 of the encyclopedia section of this book. I must have trimmed mine just right last year: it set lots of blooms! It surprised me that deutzia was introduced in 1840. The author cites a Victorian source that observed that it "may be sheared into a perfect globe." That's an approach I hadn't considered. Meanwhile, I still worry about what the 2-feet-from-ground whacking the tree company gave them will do. The limelight hydrangeas seem to be filling in happily.

My goodreads entry on the book, here.

Southern States delivered some mulch Monday. #weekendplansset

Went on the neighborhood garden walk on Sunday - here's a wisteria that lives on Pope Ave.

#bellevuerva Garden Walk

A post shared by Lisa K (@lisalib15) on May 6, 2018 at 11:47am PDT

May

Snow peas started sprouting the other day. Peonies starting blooming on May 5 - looks like they should have a great year; a benefit of the severe cutting the tree company gave the deutzia. Also benefiting from more sunlight: monkey grass, vines, violets. 50 bags of mulch scheduled for drop off this week; willow oak bloomed enthusiastically this year, so now I will just cover all that mess right up.

Last Frost Date

Planted snow pea and cuke seeds, a tomato plant, some grass seed in bare spots -- and then it started to rain.

Day Lillies

Orange day lilies rebloomed!

A post shared by Lisa K (@lisalib15) on Sep 17, 2017 at 7:55am PDT

In the last week or so, my orange day lilies along the back of the house bloomed (bloomed again?). These might be ones I moved or that are spreading on their own.

At the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden plant sale I bought some "dragon curve" day lilies that I planted in there, too. I need to be sure to water them!

May's Almost Done

Tomatoes went in a while ago, and there's been some lettuce, but that's it for veg. Picked up various annuals today: dianthus to replace gaps left by bunny-eaten ones. There was some red yarrow on sale, and since the ones that came with the house didn't survive as it got shadier in the back, I got two and planted them in the boxwood gap (Desert Eye Deep Rose) where there's also a balloon flower. Impatiens installed by the storks; marigolds to buddy up with the tomatoes. Nothing innovative; quietly happy.

It's possible I fertilized the bulbs twice, the second time being a week or so ago.

Mild Winter

With the exception of those 2 - 3 windy nights when it was in the teens, and when the pipes under the addition froze (even though I've had them insulated), it's been a mild winter. That cold snap seems to have damaged the gardenias pretty severely, and maybe the daphne? The latter might be from snow last winter coming off the garage roof onto it.

Mild weekends have meant some good pruning. This time I didn't top the deutzia; took the thinning approach, with emphasis on the lawn side. I'm hoping that help the lawn guy. Still taking dead wood out of blue hydrangeas; maybe half-done. Took some pop shots at other things - will do more next week, as 60s-70s to continue.

This week I realized what a great surprise present to myself planting bulbs in the fall is. And I again forgot about the dwarf iris, which began blooming yesterday.

Cut back monkey grass today - both by the smoke bush and under the azaleas. The azaleas got beat up by the roofers, alas. I do need to stay dry, though.

Pruning Reminder

Cut the laurel early so bulbs show better!

Mild March

Jan 25 2016

Despite one monster snow, it was a mild winter. Both camellia bloomed early and often, though they get cold-browned every week or so when the temps drop again. Bulbs I planted last fall surprised and delighted. Daffodils just now starting.

This last week or so I tackled some shrub pruning, with mock orange getting the best care and smoke bush is ok. Did half of the deutzia today.

Need to order mulch.

July

The white hydrangeas looked awful last August - October. The tree guy suggested that the dead patches were from too much shade. So I need to trim them and neighbors?

Black-eyed susans on east side not blooming at all. Again: shade? Things have really filled in, I see, when I look at old photos. So these are from west side, plus some other small blooms.

Really pleased with this coleus! When I went to take this picture, I was surprised that the creepy jenny I had tucked in wasn't hanging out more -- I thought it had been. Then again, I did just spot a rabbit in the front yard.

Not quite a fairy garden.

Mulch

Bought 50 bags from Southern Season this year. Doing left side, mostly.

Later: Did whole lawn edge, top by compost pile, and started to cover massive weeds on teacher-house side, but barely scratched the surface.

Still later: picked up 5 bags at Lowe's (Honda trunk-full) - probably 10 more would cover up what I want covered on the teacher-house side. Le sigh.

Smoke Bush

Pruning and keeping the vines out paid off!

Late May

Finally got fertilizer and fertilized bulbs. Lettuce doing ok -- because of where it is, but it stays small. Green beans and tomatoes planted weeks ago.

Few peonies bloomed: most are in too much shade.

Planting

Last week I put in some lettuce starters: some in a pot, two by the back of the house. The same day I bought an entire flat of alyssum. Because it was there. A flat is enough to do: under the azaleas, along the edge by the front yard camellia, under the storks, and still have a couple for the front walk and a pot. Put some columbine that Mom gave me in the boxwood gap, by the fence where P. parks. The one I bought last year, that's by the storks, is ready to bloom. I've got marigolds to stick somewhere,  too.

Dogwood in full bloom, smaller azaleas about to pop, bulbs finishing, viburnum starting.

Saw a goldfinch.

Christmas "Portraits"

2014

2012

2009

2007

Could Get Frost

Could get a freeze this weekend, so I picked the palest tomatoes (some still out there), all the sizable pimento peppers. Also snipped oregano for drying. It and the hydrangeas had such bad winters I thought they were goners most of the spring, but both came back strong. Blue hydrangeas beginning to bloom, but I don't think they will finish opening in the house. Worth a try?

Planted some crocus bulbs.

Sweet

Sweet potato harvest. Some got chewed, some were on top of weed fabric so are too small, some are HUGE. Not getting a good grade for consistency.

Started raking lawn today. Still getting peppers and sungolds. Pulled up basil last week and microwave dried it (about 90 seconds in microwave, between paper towels).

Moved

2013

Split off parts the amsonia that's on the oak side of the top garden. If they survive OK, the way to do it seems to be to dig from the outer edge and let it break in the middle where it will. Trying to put the shovel through the center was like digging up a sidewalk with a plastic beach spade. Moved one to the sunny side; one closer to the fence and neighbor's maple -- took out a punk beauty bush.

October Bouquet

A couple of blue hydrangeas bloomed in the last few weeks. And that's about it for the entire season. Still getting sungold tomatoes; the big plants are mostly dead (drought? disease? can't tell).