It Worked!

The Garden Men used an old watering can, 

a garden hook and some solar lights

to create a nighttime waterfall

near the garden bench.

Lovely!

End of June Garden Chores

My 16 year-old grandson visited to help me with garden chores since I'm limited by the gradual mending of my broken leg. He makes a great "Garden Man" intern with his strong arms and legs and engineering mind.

His first project:  Put this bubbling fountain together and get it running.

Love it!

The sound is soothing and cooling

while sitting on the patio.

Second project (visible in the background above):

How?

How much?

Where?

When?

Okay?

Done!

Other projects too numerous to list

but some include:

pulling weeds

pulling up unwanted ground covers

planting 5 new plants

taping the birch tree trunk

killing gypsy moths

disposing of cuttings from pruning

sawing off one-third of bush at heartwood

scraping moss off patio pavers

laying fairy stepping stones

stringing fish line trellis

putting together replacement table on deck

taking packages to mail

WHEW!

Many thanks to our Garden Man

in-training who did two weeks'

worth of chores in two days!

To be 16 again...

Happy Father's Day, Happy Birthday!

The season has moved on 

from poppies and peonies

 to Mountain Laurels blooming.

This year is quite a show of bloom 

from the wild laurels across the street 

and the bed of Kalmia cultivars

we planted a decade ago.

The new mulched bed 

is helping with the weeds.

Raspberry Glow

Peppermint

Yankee Doodle

Keepsake

Sarah

The Astilbe are blooming.

But I do miss 

the watermelon Poppies.

The Difference a Day Makes

The Poppies popped out

before the Peonies!

Love this watermelon color.

And these are the Lilacs from ground level.

Yes, I could walk downstairs today!

Limited Gardening Still Brings Results

Hosta and Lamium and Lamb's Ear will always come up on its own.

As a basis for this year's Fairy Garden, it fills the mulch bed with color and texture.

My granddaughters arranged the accessories and put out the Fairies to play.

Photos from above on the deck since it's so hard to go up and down the stairs.

The Peony buds are about to burst.  The Poppy buds are ready to follow the Peonies.

The self-watering deck planters have been simplified this year with a single large plant

and a white petticoat under each.  The Mandevilla is red for the hummers.

The Hibiscus is yellow for the bees.

The Chives came back but I had to replant all the other herbs:

Rosemary, Sage, Italian Parsley and a Nasturtium for color.

The Siberian Iris are in their glory just now.

Looks like the Knock-Out Roses came back after the devastation by Gypsy Moths 

the past two years.  They will need some food to flourish.

New neighbors have moved in next door where I maintained a border.

Hardy perennials hold the soil and thrive in the heat and sun:

White Sage, Nepeta, Shasta Daisy.

It's a good year for the Korean Spice Lilac too.

The blooms look plentiful on top from the deck!

And William's Japanese Maple planted as a seedling from Sara's yard

looks sturdy and full 10 years later.

Thank goodness for a good backbone in my garden

this year when my leg bone is fractured and recovering!