Busy Day in the Dirt

 

Best day of all is when

you get down on your knees 

(with a cushion these days!)

and dig in the dirt, adding

compost and manure with

a little bit of long-lasting

organic fertilizer, Espoma.

I also spray painted the table,

the garden bench and a trellis.

Just sprucing up the garden!

It's been two years since I 

last was able to bend down

after the fractured tibia.

I slowly took a tour around the

beds looking for some

blooms or buds...

Newly painted trellis

with a small gazing ball

on top.

New meditating frog

and base to upgrade

the bird bath.

Poppies and peonies

primed for blooming.

New stake for the secret garden

sign where the fairy village

will appear soon.

And back to the table 

for a much-needed rest

and to view the rest of

the garden needing

some TLC.

Another Spring Project for the Grandgirls

The day before Earth Day

we planted lima bean seeds

in our little greenhouses.

We hung them in the window

for several days to watch for

roots and first leaves.

We also enjoyed some dirt dessert:

chocolate pudding with crushed

Oreo cookies mixed in with a

couple gummy worms too!

In five days, we had roots.

We needed soil as soon as

we saw the first green leaves.

More on these developments

coming soon...

A Beautiful Day in the April Garden

 

The pansies in the planter

on the front porch have

survived snow and frost

and freezing temperatures.

I did bring them in the house a 

few times in the past month.

But, I have also pinched them 

back and given them

some food for reblooming.

The spirea in the front is

looking great this year

after a pruning last June.

It is really striking with the

red tulips blooming at

the same time.

The color is coming into

the garden again!

A Real Garden Angel

 

                                        I need some bushes removed

                                        that are too big for the scale 

                                                of my small border

                                                and my aging spine!

                                     I called a professional gardener.

                                            to take care of the job.           

                                    These are the bushes coming out:

an Endless Summer hydrangea

too big for its spot

a butterfly bush

spreading too widely

And a fountain grass

spreading the wrong way.

The last bush is a

flowering quince,

almost ready to bud,

but just too spiny

to prune annually.

The Difference a Day Makes

Making birdhouses on Wednesday

and

waking up Friday morning.

That's April!

Good thing the next day

made the meditating frog happier.

 

What a Difference a Week Makes!

Blooms! Blooms! Blooms!

and some hardscape

My 2021 garden is coming alive. I can't wait for another season of the sequence of blooming and waning that is the garden as a symbol of nature and the cycle of all life.

After Easter Gardening

Daffodils on the south side 

of my neighbor's house are blooming.

Mine on the east side

are ready to bloom.

The poppy leaves are looking

wonderfully green but won't

bloom for many weeks.

The peony sprouts are showing

but have a long time until bloom.

The garden seems to be late this year.

We've had a week of nearly mid-spring type 

weather, so maybe we are just impatient.  

The local nursery experts

say we'll be back to normal early spring

with lower overnight temperatures

 for the next few weeks.

May 15 is the last frost in our area.

Hard to wait!

Just searching for color...