A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion Landscape trials and triumphs What Did You Do In The Garden Today # 6

Oh, ok thanks

Today I moved the original mum a bronze to it's new location under my bedroom window. The red one that I had there didn't make it through the winter. Then I dug up all the blackberry canes and roots that were moving out from their bed and into the lawn. I hope I got all of the roots.

I planted my giant sunflower seeds and cozmos. I love this early time of year. I also planted the Dartura seeds I recieved from a member here. My hubby planted the cannas for me then it rained again. It was ok since I didnt have to do it.

TK--I think if you keep the soil really moist for awhile ithe canes will take root easily----I have even just buried a branch & after it took root I then cut it from the mother plant---worked l ike a charm.

In the back yardI bought & planted a line of Irish & Sotch Moss along my house under the water spigot. I also planred an ice plant6 & one gypsophila--(a pink one)

and just when I was going to go out & buy & plant this years offerings in the flower bed, they are predicting 30* temps for tonight-- -so I guess I will wait until next week at the earliest to plant any more flowers.
Meanwhile---
it is still way water-logged in teh far back yard--if this keeps up I will never get my potatoes & sunflowers planted for this year----at least with Tomatoes, I can buy larger plants if it gets lateer in the season....

I was just out covering my flowers & such with buckets, flower pots & whatever else i could find---now to remember to go out early in teh am to remove said coverings---
This is way too late in my estimation--I usually plant around the 5th of may--& today is the 3rd---cutting it kinda close I think---

I'm getting rid of the blackberries that are outside their bed not trying to add more lol.

I was at River Valley yesterday and picked up a pack of 4 of the burgandy petunias. I couldn't resist they are a great color. When my set blooms I'll take a picture.

Today i just looked around because it rained all last night and this morning so everything is very wet.

Woohoo! They had Japanese Painted Ferns at Wal-Mart. You better believe I snapped one up and planted it beside the garden bench where I had mis-planted the peacock orchid the year before. I was wondering what I was going to put in that full shade location. Now I have the perfect plant. I hope it does well there. So of course since I was then on a buying spree I got a half price well grown sedum for the ditch bed and a yellow primrose to add to the tree bed so I now have a total of three of them. I also picked up some sweet banana pepper seeds for next years garden.

Harvested my very first radishes today. One is kind of interesting. I'm not sure if it split into 3 perfect lobes or if it is "Simese Triplets". I plan to try it alittle later when I prepare a salad. It's either going to be woody or just fine. While I was out there I weeded that row of the veggie garden now I just have 3 rows to go.

I also continued with the blackberry war - digging up another 4 or 5 canes that didn't have any flowers on them.

The new lawn mower got a work out trying to cut some grass that is to tall. I'm going to have to weed eat the tall stuff so I can get at it with the lawn mower. I will get ahead of the game but it may be July before I manage it.

The fruit trees all have their fertilizer stakes now and they have all been weeded. One of the Cherries had a bunch of suckers and I got them all while I was at it.

I raked up the green that I managed to cut and got it added to the compost pile. I must say I love playing in the compost pile.

today I finished mowing the front yard and then I started the task of building a flower bed around my bird bath. The area around the bath is clay and rocks and not easy to dig through. I only managed about 3 inches deep and 2 feet around half of it today. Of course that includes screening the dirt and getting all the weed roots out of it and breaking up the clay so I can add compost. Then digging up enough rocks to make an edging around the half that I got completed. It's suppose to rain all week so that should soften up the clay enough that I can finish the bed before the rain ends and I have to go back to mowing the lawn lol.

This past weekend my granma came up to stay with me a change for her and some extra gardening advice for me. As I have a cooler climate, I still have new things popping up everyday. One plant comnig up I thought might be a hosta, it was a round tube though it kind looked like spiraled leaf.
She took one glance at it and was quite surprised. Apparently it a Jack in the Pulpit, it’s a cool looking plant, Just not common to find in gardens around here.
I also learned that I need to dig up all the tulips. I couldn't figure out why they wre so flat till grandma want to see a bulb, so we dug one up. The bulb is fine but about 15 inches down. I should have figure everything too deep after find that the top of the rock border on the garden was 4 inches under ground.

Garden savvy grandparents are a wonderful bonus!

Just now, in the mud, I planted the following flowers--
1) a week ort so ago I planted a trailing while osteospermum & a Lemon Symphony Osteo---then

2) I planted 4 tomato plants in my garden & transplanted a sunflower plant from my flower bed (thank you so much to my winering birds) a few days later--


3) today in the mud as I said earlier I planted a "Little Annie" Echinacea---my arizona suns seem to die every year--we shall see what happens with this one.
I planted a Purple striped summer snap dragon (angelonia)
and also a Dwarf Zinnia--"Zahara Starlight rose" as well.

it was chilly out & have I mentioned how I dislike MUD?? well I do----my gloves, hand spade & the flower bed itslef is a mess, with mud all around--- So after just those few, I came in.

Today I cut one swath of tall grass with the cartoon weed wacker (it overheats in about 15 minutes and melts the cartridge that holds the line.

I raked up the grass and added it to the compost pile and mixed it in good.

I planted a replacement San Mareno tomato for the one I lost.

I weeded all 8 tire beds.

I cleaned the bird bath and added fresh water.

I watered the birdbath flower bed (yellow Zinnias are planted there.)

And I watered all 8 tire beds after weeding them.

Good Gracious, Tammy--just reading all that you did makes me tired, I can only guess how exhausted you must be--but ::

"Good Job there, !!!!! I bet your yard looks great !!!!!

My yard is a mess lol. The weed wacker broke at the beginning of the season and the one I replaced it with can't handle the job and the Reel Mower I got to make up the difference can't handle the crab grass clumps and the uneven lawn. So the grass is up to my bumps in height.

And the weeds are having a bumper year to boot. I may never manage to keep up with everything.

I remember a year back when the girls were small---it rained so much that my cousin's DH (a normally very particular man) just mowed his whole garden down---the weeds just were taking over B/C of the rain & such---

I say plan for next year, huh???

My neighbor came over with her riding mower and mowed my entire yard. Isn't that fantastic? While she was doing that I managed to weed the sidewalk, half the foundation bed and the sidewalk bed. I still have a great deal of weeding to do but with the weeks repreve she has given me I feel like I might manage it. She is a super lady.

aw--that is SOOO very nice of her, tammy...

Good luck on catching up with the other stuff

I planted a "Red" arizona sun---2 snapdragons, a Zinnia, some mini daisies, a yellow varigated lantana, a daliah & I transplanted another galliardia-(just a small seedling as of yet)----but I did not do nearly as much as you---

Thanks JunieGirl Don't you love getting to plant stuff. I found an entire load of celosia out in the sidewalk bed. I can't wait for them to get large enough to bloom. There were also several petunias from a couple of years ago. I even have one zinnia that jumped beds lol. I'm looking forward to seeing what all the colors are of the volunteers.

This past weekend I planted Corn, Squash (butternut and hubbard), peppers (Cajun Belle), Spinach, Canaloupe and Dahlias. The Dahlias are going to be my wedding flowers I figured I can save a bundle by not paying a florist and growing them my self. I have a few family members growing them too in case they don't work out in one location.

My dog (Arco) discovered toads living in one of the flower beds and has decided that toads trump a no paw zone! So today I will be trying my best to tidy up that area.

I found one frog in my blueberry bed the other week. I think the rain has convinced them to come out around here. I've got yellow squash in my veggie garden. It's just getting adjusted to meing transplanted and started to grow.

I think it's great that your growing your own flowers. And that you've got your family members helping incase there is a problem with one bunch.

Tammy, YES I LOVE to plant stuff--and I love the returning flowers & plants as well---Sad to say I probably pull up a lot of my returning flowers as I do not recognize all of my flowers when they are seedlings...Luckily for me, I DO recognize galliardia---

Tonight I weeded & mulched around my 4 tomato plants and my lone sunflower plant.
Then I began to do the same around my herbs--

I then watered my flower bed in teh back & when I was done with that I filled the water dish that I have in my window well for my froggie. (& Rod removed my visiting turtle, thankfully.

lastly I found a rubbermaid container to act as a temperary home to my water lily so I could clean out the plastic pot that I keep it in. It has a leak so I needed to scrub it out & let it dry for 24 hours. Then I will repair it & then let it dry for another 24 hours before re-filling it.

Rod sprayed the dark cherry tree tonight with fruit tree spray & then made up some roundup to get rid of a few weeds...so then he gave some to me & I used a bit of it in my rocked areas.
Now I can get to re-mulching & rock adding that I need to do--YEA !!!!

well this evening I finished up adding annuals to my large flower pot that is on the front porch--I bought a medium pink Calibrachoa today & I took the Trailing Blue superbells out of the pot & put the pink in it's place---(the blue/purple was basically just sitting there doing nothing)--so now it has its own pot--I hope it likes it in there better---

Then I added a Black Gamecock Iris to my water lily half barrel---It is likley done blooming but hey the green leaves will add to the green of my lily pads, right ???

Then in a large pot I put a small Butterfly Bush---a "Buzz Blue Violet"--I was told a few years back that these smaller BB's take well to container growing--I hope it does.

Finally in my large flower bed I added:

A "Beyond Paradise" Copperleaf Plant
A white Ice Plant
A Amber Wheels "Gaillardia (yellow)

Plus I moved my Little Annie Echinacea--
my pink Angelonia
and
one of my small gaillardia that had come back from last year.

then I weeded a bit and watered some--

But now guess what ??? it is raining--(& thundering--again---). -----but then none of you are surprised about that are you ???--

You got a lot done, Carol. I only watered and fixed a couple of sprinklers today.

WELL I had a lot typed up--but my computer decided I should begin over, so it made all that I typed disapear. That is not gonna happen--
Suffice to day that tonight I changed around a few more of my flowers in my large flower bed & then washed out my hummingbird feeders & refilled them---now they are all ready for tomorrow.

I filled the birdbath.

I weeded the sidewalk, the sidewalk flower bed and the foundation bed where it runs along the sidewalk.

Tonight will be weeding the veggie garden, some how that wild rubarb just keeps sneaking back in and camouflaging it self

I have been doing a LOT of weeding & actually some watering as well---and some moving around of various flowers--with all the rain we have been getting transplanting was able to be done much later into the season this year--(yea!!!)

and yesterday after looking around at all of my available plant 'stores' & even a few box stores. I got on E-bay & ordered a White Swan Echinacea plant---I have the spot all picked out.

Very cool, Carol!

We have been doing major mowing! My grass got way ahead of me, all I have is a push mower, and I am not in the best shape, and I have a huge yard. So my bestest (only) son in law borrowed a Gravely and has mowed it all. Bless his heart! I did do some weed eating tonight, I hate my weed eater.. it's a junky electric one. Ugh. But at least it did some good.

I had to look up Gravely. Cool, Jennifer! I'm glad you got it done.

I looked it up too--ya learn something every day---good deal ya got there jennifer---

So far I have only cleaned out some of the muck from the bottom of my pond. And of course the stuff floating. In between the bottom muck and the floating stuff the water is clear and clean. Was, I should say. I stirred it up pretty good. It will settle gain soon.
I am slowly removing the rocks that line the inside of the pond to really get it cleaned up. It should be cleaned in time for the fall foliage to gob it up again. I may stretch a net over it for that season.
I should have waited for warmer weather to work on it though. We have some really cool mornings this week. I'm a little chilled.

Oh Tina--you have a pond--how cool!!!

Today I and my lawn sweeper cleared off the back yard----so now, my tomatoes, my herbs & my lone sunflower are mulched for the season. I was going to do the front yard tomorrow night but when I came in, Rod wanted to know why I raked up the back yard---so I guess I am done,--well, done for this week anyway

Yes, we put the pond in about 20 years ago.


It used to be irregular kidney-shaped about 6 ft X 12 ft and 4 ft deep. We made it a little smaller when we redid it.

Very pretty pond Tina!

Moving this up so Carol can see it.

This morning was sprinkler repair and hose repair. The critters are eating me out of house and home the last year or so. And then a trip to Home Depot for more parts to do the same again this afternoon. I also purchased a couple more hoses while there.

Thanks Tina for bringing this back up---it is so very nice-----I love looking at pictures, and esp of ponds !!! How many fishes do you have???

I would like to have a pond--but I guess my little half-barrel will have to do

I have no fish left. A stork came by last year and took the last of them.
Today it will be more fixing up of things and getting ready for the heat coming up on us. Lots and lots of water will be needed out there the next couple of months. I am almost ready for it.
I need to dig a ditch across a road today to bury a pipe. This is not fun at all.