Wednesday Workday ... or Archaeology for the Urban Gardner

A freak storm blew thru last Thursday night - many of you got pieces of it, too.  Sadly, it took down our beloved plum tree.  

It was the first tree that we planted and had flourished for 16 years - even providing plums last year.  It had survived both Isabel and Gaston and a derecho last year, but something was different this time and over it tumbled. 

Our "tree man" has complained about it for years - he thought it was too close to the house (12 feet) and is sure that it had weak roots on that side and that's why it fell.  We thought it was a perfectly wonderful source of shade for the deck and loved the look of the red leaves against the yellow house.  Guess i need to find a good picture to frame and let it be a good memory. 

No matter what we do in the future, we have to get the roots out before we can do anything.  We may end up calling someone with a "stump eater" to just grind it up, but first we are trying to do it ourselves.  The tree man thought he was being helpful when he pushed the stump back into the ground and raked the dirt back around it - or, maybe that's just the professional way for him to clean up a job.  We would have preferred that he leave it alone, since we have had to dig out the dirt again to get to the roots. 

Normally, i spend about an hour each morning hoeing out dirt from the roots, and then Mitchell comes back later and cuts off as much as he can.  As you can see ... we have a long way to go.

But it's also an opportunity.  This has always been a shady place, but if we take the tree man's advice and not replace the tree, it opens up the space for another shrub and perennial border.  I think i need to go thru my class notes and look for shrubs and plants with long bloom seasons and fragrance - and things that we don't yet have somewhere else.  

If you don't have shade, at least you should have fragrance.  Don't you think?

Wednesday Workdays - Lots of them!

Clearly, i have not been hanging out at the keyboard keeping you up to date.  Rest assured that i have been either in the garden or learning more about plants, so that i can get back to the garden!

One of the things i love most about retirement is that i can do what i want, when i want ... within reason.  So, here's what i have been working on recently. 

The Veggie Garden.

Somehow, i just can't call it the "potager", even tho that is what i had planned.   It came out too rustic for that fancy colonial name.  When we left it in October, it looked like this:

and now it looks more like this:

I've been harvesting greens (lettuce, spinach, kale and arugula) since April, but also broccoli for a month now, and English peas for the past week.  We are loving all the fresh food, but experiencing the "farmer's dilemma of having to eat the same thing for many days in a row.  I really don't want to freeze any of it, but it may come to that. 

The tomatoes are setting small fruit and we may have many sweet potatoes in the fall - time will tell.

The Cutting Garden

Sweet peas were my big experiment this year and they have done well (see first photo).  I have cut two large bunches and hope to have two or three more small bunches before they are bloomed out.  The spot was good until early May, but as the sun has risen in the sky the shade has encroached.  (Retirement has also given me a lot more time to follow the track of the sun.  I hope that will help in future planning.)  I'll plant them (the sweet peas) again next year, but will move them to the back fence where it is sunny all day.

Dahlias and zinnias are up and will be blooming in a few weeks.  Meanwhile the roses and lilies around the yard are starting to bloom so i will have flowers for the house.

The Front Entry Garden

Have been working on this area for a couple of years and it's still "in progress".  The chrysanthemums have all died, so have replaced them with small everygreens and removed all the vinca minor.  i also did a big pruning on the azaleas to clear back the walkway and re-shape the entire area.  The dogwood has canker and is dying, but there is a volunteer crepe myrtle coming along fast to replace it.

A new plant for me - Distylium 'Blue Cascade' - whose new growth is red that "fades" to green and then to blue.

Other than that, it's been weed, weed, weed for the past month.  A friend recently described her garden as "oppressively green".  It's the perfect description for these last weeks of "cooler" weather before the heat and oppressive humidity of summer arrive. 

Wednesday Workday .... Cancelled!

Cancelled on account of much needed rain.

So, thoughts and some updates instead.

Retirement 101

This was my first official week of retirement.  It was nice to get up every morning, to to Jazzercise and then "retire" to the garden to work.  That was good for Monday and Tuesday and then the monsoons came.  We are not talking Texas-style rain, thank you very much, but the kind that gardeners love ... slow and steady and for two and a half days and counting.  It is supposed to move out mid-day tomorrow.  So far, we have 2.5 inches - enough to replenish the ground level water - at least for a few weeks. 

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The first hydrangeas of the season.  More than I had all last year.

There were several things on my "to do" list for the week, but they will wait until next week.

Replacing the Floors

Three days of hanging out at Starbucks and Panera while three strong young men labored at the house, and the floors are done ... again.  We like the results and actually like this wood better than the "old", so it's all good.  An added benefit was that we cleaned out a few things as we packed up all the bookcases.  

Now we just have to unpack and replace everything wherever it belongs.  The insurance company has been great to work with ... we were really lucky with that, I think. 

This is Why we Blog

In the mailbox today was a lovely box of apricots!  Home grown apricots from Arizona, thanks to the very wonderful Annika at Living a Dream!  I have drooled in her comments box for several years as her yield has grown annually, and she sent me a whole box - all my own!!  They are delicious.

Sweet and perfectly ripe.  Delicious!

But more importantly, they are a thoughtful gesture of friendship from someone i know only thru our blogs.
There's a great community out here supporting each other and caring about each others' lives.  You can't beat that.  It's reason enough to keep posting - even if one doesn't have anything to say everyday. 

Thanks so much, Annika!

Wednesday Workday

Finally.  Another project done.

Once I decided that the Emerald arborvitae was not coming back, I started planning to re-do the area.  Its death is totally on my hands.  I did a poor job of teasing out the roots and then did not water enough.  I know better.  They need two (two!) inches of water a week for the first six months - at least! - sometimes longer, and i forgot it last winter.  [That's the big drawback of planting in the fall.  Who wants to water in the winter?]  I promise to do a better job this winter.  Seriously.

The last couple of weeks in September were really gorgeous here, but i was unexpectedly busy at work and not able to steal extra time in the afternoons to work outside.

Two weeks ago - tiller all serviced and ready to go - i gathered plants and mulch and set to work.   First, tilling the entire area - which was not so easy given the large root system still under ground.

Then I laid out the plants.  The pot is a place saver for the tree.  Then I moved that large clump of 'Lady's Mantle' from the left side and spread them out to form the back "border" of this bed.

You can see the remaining root in the center.  Am hoping it will rot quickly now that I have tilled out so much of it's root system. 

This is a shady area with a few hours of sun in the summer, so i am trying to bring color using greenery and contrast.

In addition to the arborvitae [Thuja occidentalis 'Emerald Green'], i put in a dozen lilyturf [Lirope 'Variegata'] and three Mocha Heuchera [Heuchera x villosa PP 18386].  Then i have left enough room between the plants and the foot path to put in some annuals next spring.  Am thinking a begonia with the green and white variegated leaves. 

Unfortunately - actually it was fortunate - the rains came before i could get the mulch down.  It took two weekends, but the bed is finally done and mulched.  All that remains is to remember to water - two inches a week!

Wednesday Workday

Everyone could use a little grass ....

The most fun projects are those that just kind of pop up unexpectedly and then work out easily, and that is the story of the new grass.  Many years ago we had lovely clumps of grass, but as the garden grew and I dug new beds the grasses got replaced and we moved on.

  But, now the hibiscus have moved on, and I had a nice empty spot to fill - and at the back of the main planting bed where I could use something tall and something to provide winter interest.  It was clearly the place for grass. 

Over the weekend I checked out what was readily available and cleared the space.  Voila! an easy  project for this week.  

Sometimes I think that my favorite part of a new planting is laying out the pots and moving them around until I am happy with the arrangement.  This one was simple, but I moved the rose planter a bit and relocated the big sprinkler, too.  The only unexpected problem was the need to relocate about 15 iris, but that didn't take too long.

A few holes and I was ready to water it in.  Mother Nature did her part and sent me a rainy day to get it all soaked.  

We're still at more than six inches of rain deficit, so I'll need to keep up the watering for a month or more until things start going dormant.

Wednesday Workday

The sedums are starting to bloom.  Always a welcome addition at the end of a dry summer.

To mulch or not to mulch?  That is definitely not the question in this part of the world.  The more important question is, "Spring or Fall? or both?"

Obedient plant brings much needed color to the shadiest part of the garden.

We are hot enough here in the summer that one needs spring mulch to provide some protection to roots and  help hold moisture during the dog days of summer, but our winters can be harsh enough to cause significant freezing and heaving - anyone remember the winter of 2013-2014? - and therefore require fall mulch.  My normal routine for years has been to mulch heavily in the spring and hope for the best thru the following winter. 

Even the xeri-garden gets a shot of late season color.  Anyone notice that everything that's blooming at the moment is the SAME color?

This past year, tho, I waited too late to start and by the time I got started too many perennials were already coming up to do my preferred heavy coverage in the spring.  So I have found myself needing to do it again this fall. 

Nearly 1/3 of the back is done, with a couple more days to work on it.  The end is in sight!

So in addition to enjoying a few fall bloomers, I have been weeding, cleaning out beds and re-mulching since Labor Day.   In some ways it's a very satisfying job.  At least when I'm done things are looking neat and tidy for their winter rest.  Hope to finish up by next weekend ....

Wednesday Workday

You're probably saying, "hey! not much work going on this summer!"  and you would be correct.  I can't blame the weather - it's been delightfully cooler than normal and way, way, way less humid.  In short ... great gardening weather. 

May thru July I could easily blame work - and I did - but things slowed down in August and now I really do have time to spend outside in the afternoons.  Bottom line .... I'm lazy and have enjoyed a summer-long read-a-thon.  Until Saturday.  Was walking thru the nearby big box garden center when I saw this:

A huge pile of big, colorful pots - on sale!  Seriously, $6.00 for a 22-inch pot.  Somehow two of them came home in my van.  Imagine that!

And, they found good homes.

In the front, I replaced an older, boring gray pot.  It has a rust-colored chrysanthemum and and red sedum [i think it's Sedum 'Red Carpet'], so is just coming into its good season. 

Can't wait for the hinoki grass to get larger and fill in a bit more.   Probably need to order six more to help that process along a bit.  The ones I got from White Flower Farms have done much better than the ones I got locally, so will go back to them. 

In the back, I moved the blueberry bush into a larger home.  It is finally growing well - perhaps responding the the systematic feeding that I have done this season. 

You can see below that I put about half of the sedum here to help fill in.  And, while I was in the area, I cleaned up the weeds and dead leaves and mulched.  Now, I need to level up the pot! 

There is already a nearby patch of Sedum 'John Cheepers', which is very similar in shape and size, but green, rather than red.  I think they will be happy together.

Now, if I can just keep the birds from eating all the blueberries!

Wednesday Workday - The "New" Project

About a month ago, I focused on a new project.  

Renovate another bed.

We are lucky enough to have an American Elm tree.  I have pretty much ignored it, except for getting it trimmed every other year to keep the branches over the roof of the house cut back, and to keep the shape good.  Otherwise, I just love it and let it be... as you can see from how overgrown the ivy and  creeping Euonomous were around the base and up the tree. 

The plan is [was?] to clean out all the vines and then plant a less invasive (or more controllable) groundcover and perhaps some early spring bulbs - crocus and other tiny little things.  That pile of webb-dirt is still calling to me, so i was planning to build up the existing border (steel edging) using half bricks and then add a couple of inches of good composty webb-dirt to the outer parts of the bed - without burying the trunk of the tree.

The past two weekends have been cool enough to do some significant work outside - without dying of heat prostration!  So, i dived into the job.  After only one day, it looked like this.

And, after two days - like this. 

"So ... what happened?" you say.  

Clearly I was on a roll .... until the yellow jackets intervened!  

Yep! yellow jackets.  Somewhere under that last little bit of viney mess, is the entrance to their nest.  They made it very clear that they did not want me to finish the job.  

[Now, what are the chances that I would pick a place to start cleaning and then work both left and right and end up with only one small area to do and THAT is where the danger lies?  Well, that's exactly what happened!]  I read all the suggestions i could find on the Internet for how to handle a yellow

jacket nest - most had to do with pouring gasoline down the hole and many with following that with a lighted match. 

Not going to happen here.  First, it's an elm tree and I am not pouring gasoline into its root system.  Second, what about polluting my ground water?  Third, really?  get that close to a nest of yellow jackets?  It's not like they are just going to hang out and watch me do that!

So we shall call an exterminator and see what our real alternatives are.  I hate to kill them, but apparently they are not pollinators and are mainly beneficial because they kill other flying critters.  We have bats, dragonflies and several other helpers for that, so i think they will have to go. 

Could use any experience or suggestions you have, tho.

[Note:  Won't waste your time apologizing for not blogging for more than two weeks - same tired old excuses, plus some new ones!]

Cancelled on Account of Heat!

Absolutely no work was done this Wednesday.  Heat has rolled into Central Virginia like July, instead of June.  All that got done was watering the veggie and herb gardens.

Don't know what variety this clematis is, but it's always the last to bloom.  Some of the early varieties are into their second bloom already.

But we are coming into the prettiest part of the summer, so i did make time to visit a few things. 

These water iris don't last long, but are so pretty for a few days.

The "red" day lilies are starting to bloom.

Had planned to do a bit more in the top of this planter,  but the heat caught me.  If it cools off, I still may add something else.   This is Echinacea 'Double Scoop' PPAF - gorgeous!  All those spring bulbs are underneath.

Even the shade plants are cooperating.  This hosta has more than doubled this year. 

Hope things are pretty in your garden, too!

Wednesday Workdays

Not all the work is going on outside right now.  Changes are happening inside, too.

As soon as we got settled in our "new" house - 14 years ago - we put up valencies in the living/dining/great room as part of our initial decorating.

 A soft brocade fabric with lots of muted jewel tones.

We chose a muted print of  jewel colors in a "stained glass" print.  We loved the warm, cozy colors and it gave us a lot of possibilities for other fabrics and paint, but I knew from the start that someday I would also get "summer valences" to lighten and brighten for the summer months.

Over the past year, i returned to really, really wanting to get it done. 

In the magazines that pile up every month around here, I found lots of things I liked.  Mostly, tho, I realized that one of the big current trends is definitely for lighter, brighter colors and the use of lots of colors together.  And, that led to our "renovation".

They are really a Chinese type chrysanthemum, but have both a sunny feeling and a bit of sea creature - can't you see an urchin or even a many-tenacled octopus or squid?

We found a wonderful burnt orange and white print that pulls lots of summery color in to the rooms, while it echoes the shape of our sun/moon wall hanging. 

 

With Mitchell was out a couple of evenings, I spread out fabic on the dining table and cut, cut, cut.  And, then sewed, sewed, sewed and voila!

 

And, of course, I needed to pull it down from the tops of the windows into the main body of the room so a pillow or two followed.

 Now we feel positively modern ... and newly decorated!