Gardens are better than books - they turn their own pages

Yesterday besides being the 30th anniversary of establishment of twins - was the equinox. I was outside in the daylight until 9:15 and came in because HOUSE was on the TV. I also figured out how to make the rain barrel drain and watered the hydrangea with the water and a few other plants in the front yard - - then I did sprinkle the impatience under the tree with the hose as they, the hostas and the tree needed water

Tonight I watered the garden with a sprinkler. I also carried around a bag of fertilizer and whereever I stopped I scooped some fertilizer in the soil. I can do this kind of thing - fertilize because for some reason I forgot about it totally last year and the plants were so listless.

I also fed the rose bushes and the day lilies... the ones I have been waiting and waiting for...

They are not blooming yet - but they are close. Here are the photos from the website - where I discovered - some are no longer available... so I had best keep these safe from the deer.

wayside king royale

wayside painted lady

welcome mat

vanilla fluff

wineberry candy

Aren't these great names - what fun.

Some of these are suppose to smell really great - but they are so full of deer scat - that the whole scent thing amy be lost this year! Can't put deer fence so close to the street now can we?

I will be focusing on the roses a little more over the next few days - I think they are feeling neglected - more so than even the year that we had the foundation dug - at least that year the heavens watered them and I did manage to feed them on schedule - there was no other plant in the yard!

Keep a good thought for tomorrow - this aging process and all the crazy tests we have to take - make you a little crazy - but we seem to take them in stride - sort of like taking the car in for a test to see the problem with the engine...

WEEKEND IN THE GARDEN - OH BOY!

A REALLY BOUNTIFUL HARVEST OF LAVENDER IN A 6 INCH DIAMETER VASE....

TO THE LEFT YOU CAN SEE LEEKS GROWING VERY VERY SLOWLY AND THAT PESKY CRABGRASS RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PLOT

TWO PURPLE PEPPER PLANTS ON THE DECK TABLE. THERE ARE 3 DIFFERENT BASIL PLANTS; 2 SCENTED GERANIUMS AND 6 ORANGE PATIO TOMATO BUSHES

THE SINGLE PLANT THAT LOOKS LIKE A TOMATO IS REALLY A GROUND CHERRY WHICH IS AN EXPERIMENT FOR THIS YEAR. There are about 6 total and several Wonderberry bushes growing too. More experiments....

SALSIFY, WHICH I HAD TO START AGAIN BECAUSE IT LOOKED SO MUCH LIKE GRASS THAT MOST OF THE FIRST BATCH GOT WEEDED OUT. THIS MAKES ME THINK ABOUT STARTING EVERY SEED I BUY IN A CUP SO I KNOW WHAT I AM GROWING.

That is what I have today. Soon there will be pictures of the day lilies that I have been waiting for two years to see. They do not bloom the first year you plant them and this year I have been spraying them with Deer Scat and putting dog hair all around them every time I empty my Dyson.

Any guess on the amount of knitting I have accomplished?

Sweet Dreams...

TIM RUSSERT 1950 - 2008

Life they say is what happens between the dashes.

Tim Russert loved life. He loved the game of politics. His tributes today have been without equal.

There is a large Tim Russert size hole in my life today. The whole MSNBC news family is in shock at your sudden departure and it showed on every face we saw tonight.

I am an admitted MSNBC news-aholic.

He was my 15 seconds of fame. We graduated together from John Carroll University.

Oh Tim, How we will miss ye!

There is a man named Bob Nook who watched Meet the Press as faithfully as any one I knew.

Stop by for a chat, have a cold one, and engage him in a discussion once again. Please.

Thanks for teaching us to love our fathers, past, present and future.

I can only hope we have learned the lessons or readiness, preparation and accountability you tried to teach us. You truly spoke the truth in love, kindness and humility.

May the Lord hasten to gather you to his boutiful table. My you have a comfortable room in the mansion. May eternal rest come upon your soul.

HOW TO LOWER YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE - Part 1

Today

Tomorrow

And right now the scent of petunias is the best in all the summer plants.

Always reminds me of being 5 and putting one to my face, inhaling so hard that the petals stuck to my face without holding the flower.

I thought it was a great sport.

The hummingbirds like them too!

Part Two - soon.

I am now off to make correct what I absent-mindedly did last week!

Gardens are me!

Spring

Finally

Here

Too much fun playing in the mud and planting seeds that will take their own sweet time to sprout and grow into a lovely garden.

No deer problems as you will see why. Seven feet of safety and a gate for easy access.

The garden looks different even a few days later. Green beans are about 2 inches high already.

I can almost taste the "Home Grown Green Bones" as we like to call them.

A few more plants and some flowers and we will be ready to watch and see. I am trying several new things this year. Ground Cherries, Krul Celery, Salisfy and Leeks.

Be patient - there is no microwave gardening here - just good old fashion patience...

Next we will be making some string Tee Pees for the vines. I will have a helper next week and we will make all kinds of fun supports for the cucumbers, melons and squash to hang from! Rube Goldberg watch out - here we come - string and sticks - it will be like knitting...

Here is the view from the deck!