Yard, Gardens, Birds and Critters

Many years ago we bought these planters that hung from the side of the deck bolted on the 2x6.  I tried many flowers in the boxes through the years and finally I settled on the Moss Rose.  I had a certain mindset back then. I didn't plant any flowers that weren't Red, Yellow/Gold, or White. You see, I am this huge Chief's fan (still am) and I decided I would only have those colors in my gardens. If you know about the Moss Rose they drop lots of seed and come up the next year.  The plants you purchase come in all different colors. I picked off the buds that were not yellow, white or red. Okay, call me silly or whatever, but that's what I did. These plants and seeds are so durable. You wouldn't believe what they have been through. The boxes fell from the deck several times. It's a squirrel and raccoon thing.  Jim or I would go down, check to see if the box survived the fall, scooped up the dirt and put it back in the boxes, then put them back on their hangers. ...

I had some fun today taking pictures of the Black Swallowtail Butterfly, the American Painted Lady and the White Cabbage butterfly. Then as I was weeding all down the line of potatoes, I was smashing potato bugs with my fingers and smashing the eggs that were on the leaves.  Figured out when the eggs are first laid they are kind of yellow and tiny. Then when they start to grow, the eggs turn more orange and are a dark orange later on. That's probably just before they hatch. Several beetles I missed, and they fell back to the ground. I did get some produce to take home: one tomato, picked four heads of broccoli and when weeding, one small onion popped out so got it too! There is some sort of wilt or something on the pumpkin plant, which could be caused by a bug.  I couldn't find anything but I believe they bore inside the stem. Black Swallowtail  American Lady Tassels on the corn Think these are older eggs on the potato plant leaf- Bright...

Don't know if you remembered or if I posted here or on my Facebook page. I broke off a pepper.  Not the critters this time, but me!  I figured the pepper would grow out from the joint just above or below the break. Have done it before. I took the broken top and pushed it into the soil and watered it. I was having a hard time keeping the chipmunk from digging holes and burying his seed, so I put a cage around it. Silly me, the openings are so large (to keep squirrels out and large birds) a two ton chipmunk could fit through them.  I planted the pepper May 9th, it was broken off not too long after that.  Then the other day the squirrel, I am assuming, used my tomato for a jungle gym. I probably let the dogs out and he took off. Or, then again, he might have just been eating it like I caught him doing today!  The tomato has sprouted from the side. The thing is now to see if it bears fruit. The story goes, no center stem, no fruit.  The top was broken out...

I had the rest of my plantings to do. I grab my planting tools and refuse bag and put it on the boardwalk, go grab the hose and start watering. Got most of the watering done and just had to stop and weed a couple of things. Got the hose and finished watering the items along the driveway and hard to reach areas with the other hose. Turned off the water and then turned it back on. Emptied the dogs and critters water bowl and filled it back up. Okay, now back to the planting. Got the holes dug for the 3 plants and decided the Vinca would be easy to put in. Planted them in with the tomato in the whiskey barrel. I needed some soil for the plants. Walked with the bucket to the North side of the house. The Coral Bells (Heuchera) were almost dead and I couldn't find my painted Japanese Ferns. I dug up the three remaining Coral Bells, put soil in the bucket, weeded the area and put the Coral Bells on top of the soil to carry up front. By this time, Jim decided to take the dogs for a ride. ...

Took out the Brussel Sprouts that I had planted with my tomato. Something was stripping the tomato leaves. I have no clue but the chipmunk has been in that planter before!  Pulled all the cabbage out along the sidewalk. Started the planting along the edge of the driveway up against the wall. I had to clean out the weeds first. Then put in the Vinca  (Pacifica XP Apricot). Pulled out some weeds in the driveway cracks then up into the front yard. Pulled the pansies out and put in one white Angelonia in center of each pot then put 3 of the Vinca in.  Next I cleaned out the roots and weeds and dead leaves from tulips on the left side of house, under the bay window.  I put the Coreopsis there. Might plant something more later. The name of the coreopsis is on the picture. This was a hard winter on many plants.  My thyme was half dead so had to do a lot of clipping out of the dead branches. I knew I was wearing down so went and put in the four posts of coleus to get th...

A month and a half of gardening at the house and I give up.  I already pulled out 3 of the cabbage and brussel sprout plants. Going to pull those up along the sidewalk in front and those in the 1/2 whiskey barrel. Too hot for them anyway and the bugs/worms have eaten so much they should be happy campers.  My tomatoes might make it, although the squirrels are ripping off the leaves. They will probably start tearing off the tomatoes like they did last year.  A bite or two, enough to ruin the tomato, throw it down and work on another.  Well, I tried to grow some produce here at home. Just isn't going to work.  I do have the peppers growing though. Couple of Plabano's can be picked soon unless I let them turn red.  I will put a couple of flowers in with the tomato in the barrel. Coleus is going in the other with the cucumber. Not going to fight it anymore.  Went to Longfellow's Nursery and purchased some Vinca, a small Shasta Daisy, a type of coreopsis, a ...

Trying to beat the heat. LOL!  I arrive and couldn't believe what Parks did to the road that splits the garden area.  I worked so hard by carrying all my rocks out to that road and put them in all the low spots so everyone wouldn't sink in mud if it rained.  That was a lot of rocks. Of course, it was a benefit for my garden to get rid of that many rocks!  They took a bulldozer down the length. There was one portion many gardeners worked on. It was the worse spot of all and guess what, it is again. Horrible! You can barely make it through there. My gardening buddy, Teresa, had told me there was wind and rain and the road was junkie so I was kind of prepared.  My corn laid over a bit due to the wind but not too bad.  First thing was to finish off the weeding between the two rows of tomatoes and the row between tomatoes and the flowers.  Then I grabbed my garden cloth and sat down and did the weeding and de-rocking of the back 25 feet of the garden....

Every morning, I go out on the deck and water my plants.  The bugs are eating the cabbage and the Brussel Sprouts. I have to go through every pot and weed out the sunflowers that were planted by the chipmunk. Not only that, it is now tearing off my tomato leaves.  Retaliating against me because he can't find his seeds back.  The silly thing is not aware the seeds all sprout.  He needs to learn those seeds he stuffs in his mouth for later are well planted and watered by me and therefore all of them sprout, no food will there be! The pictures are the sprouts that were in one of the 1/2 whiskey barrels.  There is 16 to 26 in each pile that the chippy plants!  Just think this many daily in at least 5 containers. 

Middle of June, back from Michigan, tons of "stuff" to catch up. Watering the plants in the yard and at the garden was number one on the agenda. When I went over to the river garden plots, I couldn't believe my eyes.  Not only did everything grow, some grew almost double their size, I kid you not!  Of course the weeds were horrible.  I got out the hoe and did some hoeing by the onions. Then I got my little ground cloth, my refuse bag behind me, my gloves are on, shovel in hand. Away I went! Down the 25 feet and back up the 25 feet. Went through the corn and pulled off the suckers, on the recommendation of my gardening partner.  I didn't know corn grew suckers!  Weeded and picked up rocks as I went along. Did the two rows over by the beans and tomatoes. That was another 50 feet total.  I am doing this all by hand and, yes, by this time, the wrist and hands are saying "Quit Already". So I did.  I was intending on watering but found out (thanks MFA) the w...