My Lovely Garden … Mon Joli Jardin

No matter the language, my garden is my paradise. To watch the lovely birds that nest in the trees and bushes. The bees, butterflies are such a joy to see.

Category Archives: Gardening


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Spending time decluttering and taking time to watch the birds.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

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Such a beautiful time of the year .. sun is still shining, veggies are still growing.  Birds are flying and playing.  A perfect time to continue decluttering, with some time out to just stop and watch what is going on.

I’ve recently been busy sorting out, decluttering and organizing various areas in the yard and quite impressed with my results.

Start out dreading the task I’ve undertaken … then I get totally involved with the decision making and before the end of the day, I’ve succeeded in weeding out what I need to keep and what needs to be sent along to recycle, donation, etc.

And so a few days ago I began this decluttering activity in my little wee garden room in the basement.

This is the place where I’ve put things “just for now” and “until later” .. well, later has arrived.

And I’ve discovered that I have way too many gardening gloves .. if that is possible.  I gathered up all the gloves, tossed them in a container and brought them outside for sorting.  Only found a few unmatched sets and ended up with a lot .. I didn’t actually count how many .. but believe me when I say that I have more than 20.  Too embarrassing to actually take a count, so I won’t!  Threw them all in the wash and dried them in the sun. Now, they are all in one container and I have absolutely no excuse for going shopping for more.

This is one good reason why decluttering is good.  When you can’t find something and buy more just to save time searching for things (say, um, gardening gloves) .. then it is high time for decluttering.

I set up a large work table just outside the back door.  And began the million trips of emptying shelves and baskets,  taking one or two things outside.  Putting them on the table.  Decision making.   Keep, recycle, discard .. one after the other.

Slow going.  I searched for tips on decluttering, as I was finding it challenging to muster up the energy to just get rid of everything.

I found some good inspiration.   that clutter is blocked energy.  Life doesn’t stand still.  Life is a flowing river.  It’s okay to change the course, it’s good to have it flow and bubble around rocks in its path.

I found these gems here:  http://eliminatecancer.hubpages.com/hub/Declutter-Your-Home-and-Re-energize-Your-Life

There were other inspirational sites that I found, but this one resonated with me.

So downstairs I went.   Back to my little room.   And I was discovering that the room was feeling better, more spacious.  Less clutter.

Soon I had a stack of empty baskets.  A huge Rubbermaid container full of things to give away, things I no longer use .. time for someone else to play with them.

I’m halfway finished.  Spent a lot of time moving things around.  Making progress.  Feeling more energized.

Unearthed some crafty projects, purchased years ago from a sewing convention.  A little kit for  beading, weaving ribbon, embroidery .. to make a little sewing needle case.  Well, really, why did I ever buy this?  Never in a million years will I ever tackle this little delicacy.  What was I thinking of, anyway.  Plus, the two extra packages of eyelash embroidery!!!

Took an old shelving unit outside, slapped on some neutral paint to freshen it up.   Today I’ll splash on some leftover lavender paint to brighten it up and then will use this for storing empty baskets on.  Something to brighten up my little room.

And in between times, lots of breaks .. taken outside.   Watched one of the local eagles soaring overhead.   Flocks (gaggles ??) of Canada Geese, flying so low overhead, I could hear the strong silky swoosh of their  wings as they flew over .. the late afternoon sun cast a mellow golden glow over their feathers.  Beautiful nature, wild and free.

The local little band of Bushtits swirl in .. chasing away the sparrows.  They are so darling as they flit about the branches.  Taking turns nibbling at the suet cakes.  Busy chirps.  Then suddenly they depart.  Love these energized little visitors.

Chickadees visit the hanging water bath that I’ve placed in the cherry tree.

Lovely sights and sounds.

Then I walk around the garden patch.  Squash are still growing … I’m impatient to prepare this area for planting garlic, but there is still time.  My gardening neighbour tells me not to plant till October 20 .. so I’ll leave them to grow another month.

Sweet peas are still flowering, fruiting, growing.  Ok, I’ll leave them also.  Some zucchini plants are still growing.  As are some tomato plants.  Sigh.  I’ll let them flourish in the sun for a few more weeks.  I’ve been picking some tomatoes and freezing them for future stews and lasagna in the fall months.  Mmmmm.

And yesterday, I was preparing supper, brought out a bowl of peas from the fridge .. I’d only picked them a few days ago, it seems.  And .. a lot of them are sprouting.  So I quickly searched growing peas in this part of Canada and lo and behold, there are a fair number of people who have successfully planted fall peas .. so I decided to try that!

Lovely times.


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We said our final goodbyes to our special little cat a few days ago.

Saturday, September 15, 2011

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I’m finding this very hard to write and I’ve had a difficult time the past few days.  We were so proud of our little cat Youbou, who had been making marvellous progress in being able to move his lame leg, with the assistance of acupuncture.  He rarely needed to have Prednisone for the ailment since the treatments began.

Was it a year ago or so when dh noticed that Youbou was limping up the driveway?  And he wasn’t able to walk.

We took him for all kinds of tests and nothing was found that would have caused this.  He just wasn’t able to move his right leg and just dragged himself around.  When we started the acupuncture, we saw such an immediate improvement.  Suddenly he was racing around the house . . a very happy little cat.  And the day when he was able to push open the kitchen door was a proud moment indeed.

Our life was settled into a routine and once a month I would take him for his acupuncture treatment.  This would continue for a long time, I thought.  However, life had a way of changing that story and in the wee hours of Wednesday last, we were awakened by the sounds of howling from the kitchen and there we found Youbou in the throes of a major seizure.  I quickly bundled him up and we drove to the nearby veterinary hospital.

They immediately looked after him and once he was examined, we were able to visit with him.  We were advised of the state of his condition and learned that such seizures were not normal in cats.  Leaving him in their expert care, we returned home.  All this took place in about half an hour.

A few hours of sleep and a few calls to the veterinarian in charge and we went to the hospital to see if we could visit with him.  He was given the best care and the young assistants took such good care of him, monitoring his condition constantly.

By this point, he was not in good shape and we learned that he had been like this for hours and so we made the decision to end his pain.  It was not taken lightly, this decision.  But seeing how he was suffering so badly, it was inhumane to let him continue  in such a terrorized state, we were able to end that in a peaceful way.  He would not have recovered to his normal way of life.

We were taken to a little room where Youbou was brought in and we said our goodbyes as the good doctor gently administered the final medication.

Inconsolable am I.   I’ve spent hours going through my photos and am sharing some happy memories.

I’ve dealt with pet loss over the years, as has everyone else.  But the sudden unexpectedness of this has hit me pretty hard.

Youbou’s “older” brother, Duncan is lost and is continuously going to the places that they shared, looking and looking.  He’ll sit in his sofa and look over at Y’s .. but he’s not there.  JaneE looks lost.  Every morning and every suppertime, Y and J were like bookends .. each looking through their side of the kitchen french door.   His little noseprints are still there ..

I know this is part of life, but sometimes I think it might be better to not have the capacity for love … as the loss just rips away at my heart.

We are spending more comfort time with Duncan and JaneE .. they didn’t have a chance to say their goodbyes to Youbou, it just wasn’t possible.

And I know this will pass.  But for now .. I am just struggling through the pain.  We all miss him so very much .. he was only 8 years old … and I thought we had many more years together.  All of our pets live long and happy lives with us, they are treasured members of the family.

So goodbye little Youbou .. we loved you so very much and always will.


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Watching the birds figure out the upside down bird feeder. The Chickadee soon has it all figured out!

Thursday, September 6, 2012

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I wonder where the birds go during the daytime?  I think that they keep to some sort of schedule.   A pre-determined list as to which yard to visit at specific times.

Haven’t seen the Flicker or the Downy Woodpeckers, but that could be because they are out and about in the early hours of the day, before I go outside.

The sparrows seem to be here all day and they have a lookout for fresh birdseed .. whenever I top up the feeders, I hear a series of loud chirps and soon there are quite a number of them feeding away.

The demure little Fox sparrows visit .. but mainly the thistle seed feeders.  There are three, but they favour the two that are hidden away.  One of them is for birds who feed upside down … I’d purchased it on sale and hadn’t noticed this until I was assembling the feeder and thought, well, this is weird!

The Chickadee soon has it figured out.  And I reckon that the Nuthatch has also discovered the proper way to get at the seeds .. except that I haven’t seen them for a few days either.

Our home is on the flight path to the local Nature Sanctuary .. and so I am lucky enough to see a few Canada Geese flying overhead in the early evening, before the sun slips away.

Sometimes they catch me by surprise, flying low overhead .. so low that I can see the light of the sun reflecting off of their underbelly.  Flapping their wings in unison, resulting in that lovely swoosh swoosh sound .. and then their strong calls as they head to their nightly sleeping  place.

And sometimes there is a lone straggler, I don’t hear him till he swoops over, calling out a loud Honk!  ha ha . .you caught me there!

My camera isn’t quick enough to catch them flying so close .. so I content myself with blurry images as they fly over houses in the neighbourhood .. still hoping to snap a pic when they fly low over our yard.

Patience.

Taking time out to watch the antics of the birds is such a rich block of time .. to watch these tiny beings.  Taught how to survive by their parents.  They seem so defenseless .. how will they survive.  But their world is much tougher than ours and they are schooled well .. so they forge out their daily lives very well.

Loving the brilliant splash of colour that the surprise sunflowers bring to the yard.  Tiny or tall .. I love them all!

The mystery flowers that spring up .. they are welcome here anytime.  Perhaps the birds bring them in to decorate .. now that’s a lovely idea!

Yesterday I began the transformation of the veggie bed.  Dug up and potted some of the kale plants that are growing.   Several of the cabbage plants that are growing in the shade and should be in the sun, well, they are being added to the compost.   Yet, there is one little cabbage, it is forming a solid head, so I’m leaving that one to continue growing.

I dig away at this makeshift garden bed that I formed, simply to have a neater mulch pile.  There are bales of spoiled hay, alpaca manure, oak leaves, spent hops .. all combined to create a lovely garden soil.  So instead of leaving this in a mulch pile .. I’ve used it as a place to grow kale, squash and cucumber.

Moved most of this material into the middle of my veggie bed .. to prepare for my next garlic bed.  This year the cloves are larger .. and I’ll plant more, but will ensure that I space them with lots of room to grow.

I worked away for a few hours, then time for a break … feeling quite satisfied at the progress that I’ve made.   And more to be done.

So away .. the start of a new day …. out in the sun!


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Oh Kale plants, how I enjoy your presence in the garden, such an easy care plant! Along with my lovely garlic.

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

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So here we are in September .. and I have another birthday looming up .. not for weeks yet.  I love birthdays .. another opportunity to celebrate!

The heat of the summer has been slowly winding down and now the days are shorter, darkness falls around 8 pm.   Gearing down for the fall .. lovely lazy days.  No more rushing around to plant veggies & flowers.  Time to relax and enjoy the beauty.

Yesterday my lovely gardening neighbour came over for a visit and to pick some of the plum bounty.  She laughed as she saw, once again, that I’d planted some tomatoes in the shadier parts of the yard.  She is teaching me some good gardening techniques that she has brought with her from the Russian Ukraine, so I’m slowly learning by experience.

The Kale plants that she’d given me (Tuscany, Dragon and a ruffled type) were all doing well and they would last me through the winter, she assured me .. and I could collect the seeds in the spring.  I quite like growing kale.   All I have to do is plant it, some water, some EM ..wait for a bit and then just clip the outer leaves.  My kind of easy care plant.

The cabbage plants that she’d given to me .. well, they were sun lovers, and as they are planted in the shade .. I’ll not expect much more than a few leaves from them.

She quite liked the way that the pumpkins were growing over the little arbour!   And I have one large pumpkin and a few smaller ones.

Of all the squash plants that are growing, I might be able to pick a few small fruits for cooking.

Oh .. next year .. just wait .. I’ll start my veggie plants earlier and I will carefully tend them during the cool spring months.  I promise that I will!

My very best crop, my absolute favourite .. is my garlic!  And I will plant them in mid-October (this is the best time, she advised me).

And the strawberry plants, that I’d placed in those lovely long oval tin planters, well, the soil isn’t deep enough for them .. so when the weather turns a bit damp, then I’ll be planting them in the side garden border, where they can develop longer roots.

I like the idea of growing vegetables, fruit and flowers together.  Pretty and practical.

Last weekend we went up-island for more sail planing .. and there we met the most wonderful pilot-in-training!  He is 86 and learning to fly!  He travels over 3 hours to reach the flying destination.  Wonderful person.   And to top it all off, he brews tea .. makes up a lovely pot of tea and shares!  How very decadent is this!   So we all enjoyed a hot brew in the morning sun.

I love meeting such interesting people who just go out and live life.

Oh and I meant to talk about Coombs, the famous place with the goats on the roof!  This time I didn’t take any photos of the little animals on the roof, they must have been inside a pen.  But I did take some pictures of a few of them grazing in their meadow.

How many times, over the years, have I stopped by the Coombs general store, parked the car, gone inside and shopped, and then left.  Too many.

This visit, however, DH & I decided to wander around to see what other businesses there were.  Oh ..wow .. another world appeared.

There was a little wooden structure, very picturesque and I think this was a cheese shop.  Then there was this most elegant of buildings that housed a pizza restaurant.  High scale .. reminded me of the many similar buildings that I saw in Europe, too many years ago.  There were the black iron filigree designs around the windows, the large Boxwood plants in tall planters and inside, I could see the draperies tied back to show tables all set and waiting for customers to dine.

And then we met Thor from Whistler .. his doggy daddy was happily taking photos of Thor at various locations & I took some photos of both of them.  We learned that friends always looked forward to Thor’s travels and his pics!

We discovered many more little shops and large parking areas.   All of this was always there and we wouldn’t have known, if we hadn’t just taken the time to walk around.

Well . .I could go on, but the morning is flying and I must go outside.

A lovely gardener has given me some plants .. ferns and grasses and I look forward to planting them in various areas around the yard.

Enjoy the day …..


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Earth – worth dying for .. a youtube video ..worth watching

 

I was going to post some lovely sky photos an other lovely photos taken from the past week .. but a friend send me this video from YouTube, with the instructions to watch it to the end.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/nGeXdv-uPaw

So I did.

Breathtaking time-lapse photography of the most beautiful scenery from all around the world.

Then the greed kicks in.

Then we see the brave people who tried to stop the greed.

Destruction of habitat .. the devastation that many people choose to ignore.

We can each, in our own little way, step up to the bat and do our best to stop the greed.

Then, perhaps we can make a change.

Now I’m going outside to my little  garden to connect with the lovely nature that exists in my small part of the world.

While the scenes of the movie run through my mind and I’ll think of those brave people who tried to stop the cruelty.

And think of ways to create more little pockets of beauty.

 


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Despite the short summer, it’s been a delight in the garden, busy and happy times. Spending a lot of time looking at the skies!

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

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August will only be with us for a few more days and I will miss this end of the summer.  Our summer was only two months long and it really was wonderful.  Once the summer heat began and the race was on to grow things in the garden.

I must admit that I hadn’t prepared my veggies for growing, depending on purchased plants.  The proverbial “next year” sounds good to me right now!  Well, next year, I will start in the spring to prepare the seedlings for planting.   And … next year .. I will prepare little plastic houses for the tender plants.

This year, though, I am quite happy with the results of my garden.  I definitely have one pumpkin and see a few others growing .. I still  have another month for them.

And my cucumber plant has one cucumber, slowing maturing.  It might be the only one. The basil plants are limping along.  The lettuce is producing daily.  Sweetpeas, late, but strong.  Flowering and producing seeds for next year.  Lovely plants.

My friend D has given me the most lovely planters … quite ornate, open metalwork, with coir linings.  I dug through the soil and found some lovely sparklies and a little yellow lizard amongst the soil .. treasures!

I’m going to dig up some kale and put them in these containers … so they will continue to grow .. and I can start shape-shifting the mulch pile where they grew all summer.

Blueberries are still fruiting .. I have some late bearing bushes.

I’ve also started decluttering my garden supplies .. and today gave away hundreds of plant pots and over a dozen propagating trays.   I had way too many .. how many do I really need!   And so it’s fun to share with fellow gardeners.

Tomorrow I plan to finish clearing out my garden work area .. to sort out what I need and what I can give away.  Feels great to do this.

I walked around my garden .. looking at the changes I made this year.   Feel amazed that I actually planted all the plants that I purchased in the past few weeks. . that is a record for me and feels like I’ve accomplished quite a lot … and I have!

Spent hours today digging up dandelions in the back yard.  Noticed that there were hardly any in the areas of lawn that were well watered and that there were so many in the drier patches.  Interesting.  I’ve put them all on a tarp, to dry in the sun and then I will add them to the compost bins.

The Italian prune plums are just dripping from the branches.  I’ve been picking quite a few.  Dehydrated some in the oven and quite a few were put on a pot to stew and then I’ll freeze some containers to use later as sauce for chicken or for a jam.

I’m quite enjoying this time of the year .. clearing up my garden areas.  Watching the birds.  I see the little Fox sparrow .. like a little sprite way up in the tree.

Yesterday and today I was treated to an aerial show of the Canada Geese as they flew overhead, en route to Swan Lake Nature Sanctuary for the night.  I wonder if these are the spring-born goslings, all grown up …. preparing for their winter flight.   They sound so strong and fly so well … my heart goes out to them.  Theirs is a tough life of survival.    I know that a lot of people don’t like Geese .. but none have harmed me.    I’m smart enough to turn around and walk the other way when I’m confronted with them.  Their beaks are very strong!

I watch little Youbou out in the yard, vigorously scratching away with his strong right leg.  Hard to imagine that last spring he couldn’t walk on that leg .. for reasons unknown, despite the many veterinarian tests.  Luckily acupuncture was able to help him.  He’s no longer on Prednisone and has his acupuncture visits about once a month or so, just to keep him aligned.

The skies have been so beautiful to watch that it’s a wonder I get anything done in the yard when I’m out there!   In the spring I gazed upwards to watch the eagles and now I watch for the Geese and the ever-changing panorama of beautiful shades of blue and white.  sigh.

And finally, on Monday, I spent the day preparing my garlic for the winter.   Set up my outside working tables and began the task of untying the bunches of garlic from beneath the sundeck, where they have been drying and curing for a month.  Noticed that quite a number of scapes escaped me!  How did that happen, anyway!  I was so sure that I’d clipped every scape to make pesto!

Just like last year, I was sure that I didn’t have enough, but when all were cleaned up and put in baskets, I realized I have more than enough.  Enough to cull the largest for planting next month.  Enough to send some to my sister back east.  Enough for us.   Enough to share.   So I’m happy about that.
And the hardnecks have these little yellow cloves, they look like kernels of corn.  I’ve read that these can be planted for spring greens.  And I’ve read that they also can be grown for several years to reach the size of a garlic bulb.

Speaking about enough .. I started thinking about all the work I’ve done over the past few years.  Gathering oak leaves from properties.    Filling bags, stuffing them in my car.  Taking them home, starting the dance of moving them from the car to the back yard and then mulching them.  Ordering bales and bales of spoiled hay .. wonderful for mulching in the yard.

What if I don’t feel like doing that this year?

Well, I’m not worried.   Because I have 3 compost bins.  Lots of lovely soil already in the yard.  And I really and truly depend on my EM to save the day!    As long as I continue to prepare my batches of EM .. I will always have the most fertile, rich garden!

Well, I’ve been enjoying the days this week .. working had and accomplishing a lot.  Feeling quite pleased with the progress of my garden.  And looking forward to making more changes.  And taking time to watch the birds … listening to the cheerful little nasal chirps from the Bushtits, Nuthatches, Chickadees, Fox and other sparrows.  And the energetic antics of the Anna’s.  And hoping to get a closer glimpse of the Geese as they soar overhead.

Another lovely day!


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Oh my, not more perennial plants on sale???

Friday, August 24, 2012

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What a week this has been.   I’m almost embarrassed to recount that I found yet another perennial plant sale.  This one was at the local Sears mall, at Cannor Nursery.
I’d started my Thursday debating as to whether I should just go straight outside .. or dilly dally and go out into the world.  The local Toyota dealership had a special test drive day .. complete with sandwiches, deserts etc.

So I decided to go there first thing .. to enter my name in a draw for one of several prizes.  Walked around with a young sales guy and looked at a few trucks .. dreamed of how lovely it would be to have a nearly full sized truck, one I could use to load up on garden materials.

Years ago I did have a few trucks, they were quite handy .. and I seem to remember that I was quite often helping people out with moving, loading up on gardening materials etc.

After a nice chat I made my way to Sears .. for a little walk-around.  Big changes happening to that mall … and I looked at the huge buildings that were going to be installed there.   My main interest, though, was in the native plant garden plantings … too soon to see now …. later on I will take photos .. but not expecting it to be in place till next summer.   Lots of work to take place before that.

I just about made it to my car when I noticed the Sale sign at the garden center.  I’m weak, I know.  And soon my car was filled with even more lovely plants.  Included were some Rock Rose plants .. which grow to 3 – 4 ft in height and 6 to 8 ft in width!  And they don’t like to be transplanted, so I made sure that I placed them a decent space apart.  I plan to make cuttings for propagating in a week or so.

I love plant sales.

Then, back at home .. hard at work to mix soil & miracle mulch, plan where to install the plants and many happy hours situating my new perennials into just the right place.

And finally, this morning .. the moment I was waiting for .. the EM moment!  I mixed up over 5 litres of EM, into many large containers and then this mix into the watering cans.  Started at the front yard, then to the various front and side gardens.  This took hours, no kidding!

Then, on my energy roll, I finally tidied up the yard.  Sorted hundreds of plant pots into their various sizes.  Shovelled up the remaining Miracle Mulch into containers, this will go in the very back border next week.

Took down my work tables, neatly tucked away.  A final deep watering of all of the gardens.  A final watering of EM for the veggies & the basil.

And .. sigh of relief .. yard looks nice and tidy.  Room to breathe.   There are still veggies to gather.  Tomatoes to ripen.  Pumpkins to develop.

Special moment .. when a flock of Canada Geese flew overhead.  We are on the flight path to the local Nature Sanctuary .. so we see them quite often.  Lucky, I know.  I think that the Geese flying overhead are the very goslings that I saw in the spring.  Their Moms have taught them well, how to fare in the world.   Now .. is the time for them to fly.   They have earned my respect and I wish them well on their journey.

Well .. August is nearing the end.  And we are so lucky to have sunshine.  Even some cool weather would be welcome, for the sake of the plants and the grass.  And me!  🙂

Lovely days.

🙂


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Hopes and dreams abide in my garden ..

 

Thursday, August 23, 2012

 

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Sometimes it takes me awhile to get into that wonderful garden state .. the one where time stops, energy increases and I just keep moving things around .. but sometimes it’s just well worth the wait.

Yesterday was a day of going hither and thither and yon.  (are those really words?)

And finally, time to put on my garden costume and step forth into the yard.

With all my recent plant purchases, I’ve amassed quite a pile of plant pots.  These need to be completely sorted, put in bags and then I’ll list them in the local Free section of our Used Victoria and hopefully an ardent gardener will come by to claim them.

I used to save them all for future propagation, but realize that I was simply hoarding them.  My precious plant pots, ha ha ha.

So that’s on my to do list today.

I had moved about a yard of the Miracle Mulch (sometimes I just call this my Magic Mulch .. same thing!) onto a tarp in the back yard.  This was where I headed yesterday afternoon.  Soon I was mixing this with bagged manures and then shovelled this onto the other side yard.  And here I began placing the final lot of my recently purchased perennials.

Looks lovely, but no pictures yet.  I’d placed landscape ties against the edges of this area but finally decided that the neat and tidy edging didn’t fit with the natural flow of the plants, so moved them to the back yard.  Ah, yes, this was much better.  Now I feel the yard can breathe .. no structure here.

Noticed that the grass is now growing quite well around the paving stones that I carved into the yard .. soon it will be lovely and green in this area.

Visited my recently planted Tea Rose .. and see the leaves are burgeoning all over!  Hard to believe that when I’d seen this plant at the store last Thursday, it looked as if it was on the fast road to the compost heap.   The sales clerk had swiftly trimmed away the dead leaves and soon  I could see about 20 little areas of new growth.

Took it home  (after I paid for it, ha ha ha ), planted it and with a liberal dose of that magic elixir, EM .. it is now sporting a vast array of leaves and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it were to grow some lovely fragrant roses soon.

Itching to dig in the potato patch . .how many taters are left there for me to find?  Feels like a treasure hunt as I gently probe the garden fork around the base of the raspberry plants .. where the darned things have grown.

I stop for a while, looking at the rich, beautiful mulched soil that is now here ..  thankful that my hard work of gathering oak leaves, spoiled hay, compost, aged manure, spent hops .. all combined to create such a wonderful growing medium.

What a treat to finally see the red skin of the potatoes peeking out from the rich dark soil.  Sheer magic, I feel!  I gathered up the remaining  crop and put them in an old white enamel pot that had belong to my DH’s grandfather.  He used to garden a fair bit and I’ve been lucky enough to have some mementoes from his hobby.

I have two zucchini plants and a few are growing from these .. so I pluck one to take inside for cooking.

The pea plants are nearing the end of their cycle .. fun to see the peas growing in their pods, distorted and twisting with the energy of their growth.

Lots of tomatoes, but still in the green stage.  Strawberries are still flowering .. fingers crossed that these will grow into ripe red fruit.

Lots of dreams and hopes lie in my garden .. and time to go out there and play again for another day.

🙂

 

 


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Oh my .. the last day of the plant sale . .what’s a gal to do ???

 

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

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So yesterday … I am a little embarrassed to say .. I went back to the supermarket where I’d purchased a lot of plants on sale (two for one) lately.   It was the last day, so .. ahem .. I bought a few more plants.

Back home and I decided to tackle another neglected garden area.   This one is in the front side yard, behind our “first ever Christmas tree” that is now well over 100 feet tall.  I’m guessing, as I don’t have anything to compare it to, size wise.  But its gigantic.   And all the birds love this tree.

Anyway, I dug away at the hard packed soil, amended it with a very generous amount of magic mulch & soon I was settling in my new purchases.    You can’t see it in the photo, but there is a very healthy Jasmine plant, with two vines.  I’ll be training each one up against several fence panels and so soon they should be growing quite nicely.

I was soon in the Zen of digging the soil and deciding the best places for the plants so it was quite a shock when I was finally finished for the day.  Tired and happy at the work done.  Tidied up the area and then brought out the hose and watered everything quite thoroughly.   Followed by a liberal dose of liquid EM.

Have you ever noticed sometimes how quickly the day passes?  You sit and think, now what did I accomplish today?  Much or nothing?

Well, I’ve decided that I always do accomplish quite a lot .. even when I feel that I haven’t made any advancements in my many projects.

And I know this because I take quite a few pictures throughout the day.  At the end of the day, after I’ve uploaded them to my computer, as I look through them .. I think back to where I was and what I was doing as I’d taken them.

I remembered my little breaks from working, looking up at the magnificent skies overhead.  The opportunities to just rest awhile and look at the sweet little birds who visit our yard.  Admiring how the plants are growing.  The advancements made in their growth from one day to another.

Feeling such joy at the way the sunshine transforms the surface of a leaf, the texture of a stem, the decadent blossoms of the cheerful sunflowers that the birds have planted, as they’ve scattered the seeds while they munch away at the feeder.

Remembered how wonderful it felt to just wander around the yard, planning for changes.   Opportunities for me to utilize my creativity in plant placement.

Another wonderful day spent.  And there is still a fair chunk of summer left to enjoy.

Life is great in the garden!

🙂

 

 

 


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About the lovely joy of surprises and unexpected treasures from a friend! Oh, and the birds are now visiting the birdbath!

 

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

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It is true, time does fly when you are having fun!  Our summer started at the beginning of July, when the warm weather stayed to visit and here it is, past the middle of August.

Yesterday was a serious planting day .. one in which I devoted hours to installing some of the many perennials that I’ve been buying on sale!

First thing though, as I went outside, mug of Yorkshire Tea in hand, ready to take a little walk around the yard.  To check on the differences since the latest application of EM, last Friday.

Walking past the garlic drying area beneath the sundeck, I remembered that my friend D had mentioned that she was going to leave a surprise for me there.  So I looked in and there was a magnificent picnic basket!  I’d always wanted one of these, but it just never happened.   And here was one for me!

I quickly picked up the basket and took it over to one of my outside working tables and opened the top latch, to see how much space there was in the interior.

Wow .. imagine my surprise when I lifted back the folding lids and saw treasures inside!  It felt like opening a surprise Christmas present, only on a warm sunny morning!

Inside there were such beautiful things .. a magnificent book on Hummingbirds, with exquisite colour plates and information on their habitat, how they live their daily lives.  Included was an article on the loss of hummingbirds in Cuba, that is terrible and I plan to find out more information.

I’m also inspired to plant more Hummingbird plants after seeing some of the beautiful photos.

Oh, more and more treasures, a book on lavender & one on craft printing (I’ve always wanted to learn how to write those curly cue little sayings and this books shows exactly how to do it).

And more and more .. I put the basket on the grass and then just sat down, lifting each item out, admiring the beauty of the candle holders, the bright colours of the mugs (now these will be my gardening mugs, easy to spot and not lose in the grass!)

I had fun, lifting out each item!  And happy when I saw the note about the tomatoes.  The story behind this is that my friend & her son grew 5 tomato plants last year, they were small little plants and they had a few tomatoes from each plant.
This year, they grew the same type of tomatoes, but, this year, they added EM on a weekly basis.  The results?  Over 400 tomatoes on 5 plants.  And the plants were not small this year, they were like little trees!  Ah, the magic of EM (effective microorganisms).

After playing for a while, I tucked everything away in my new picnic basket … time to get serious now!

I wandered over to the hanging bird bath and saw some tiny little feathers in the water .. and shortly after, I saw a little Chickadee perch on the edge of the bath .. another special moment to enjoy in the garden!

Spent some time admiring the busy activity of the bees as they visited the prolific flowers of a plant that was given to me by my gardening neighbour.  It grew from seed (see how tall this plant is!!) and I think it is part of the daisy family.  This is the second year.

Late in the day, I was furiously planting lots of perennial grasses and a mixture of other hardy perennials in one part of the side yard.   Looking good.  I’ll take photos in a few days.

Thankfully the weather is a little milder and not so hot .. making it more pleasant to play outside.

And now I’m off to start my day.  Lots more plants for the other side of the yard.   Oh, plants are my life,  and I just can’t seem to have enough.

🙂