My Garden – Mon Jardin – Mi Jardin – Mein Garten – Daily Adventures & Thoughts

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.

Tag Archives: rubbermaid containers


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Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Next year, I vow (again) I will have an improved veggie garden.

I’m learning (quickly) my strengths and weaknesses in growing vegetables.

My pal D has a definite green thumb.  She can grow tomatoes like there is no tomorrow, harvesting hundreds of tomatoes from several plants.  She even gave me 2 healthy specimens for my garden.  Alas, I have not harvested as many as she has.  She nurtures the plants, carefully watering them, turning them daily to ensure they receive enough sunlight.  I, on the other hand, do water them but not as carefully.  And the squash tendrils (from the container squash plants) have quite grown through the tomatoes so that I cannot easily turn the pots.

Ah, next year!!

And my squash plants have gone crazy!  I’ve planted 3 types so won’t be able to save the seed from this years crops .. but, hey, that is what Seedy Saturdays are for!  These look like spaghetti squash, but  I don’t think they are … pretty though.   Labeling the plants would help! sigh.

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Nice hidden treasures …

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It feels like Christmas morning, going outside to check on the squash!  Little hidden treasures on the ground.

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Here is a reason why I have difficulty turning some tomato plants around … squash has taken over!

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Quite literally – taken over .. growing onto the grass ..

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I made a makeshift area for the squash to grow … they seem to like this!  (next year, ahem, I’ll plan accordingly, in advance of planting the squash seeds!)  The joys of gardening, the adventures!  The discoveries!  Plus  .. happy memories to remember in the winter!

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I had filled Rubbermaid containers with water, to make it easier to nourish some plants that weren’t directly in the easy reach of the hose.   One day I found a ladybug vainly trying to swim in the water .. oh, silly ladybug, you are meant to fly, not swim!  So I scooped her out .. see ..

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And then I gently placed her on the leaf of a nearby .. yes!  Squash leaf!  They do come in handy for these types of rescues!

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Hard to believe that this area was quite thickly planted with my lovely garlic … and now home to squash!  Happy memories of my garlic … time to plant again in a few months.  Yum!

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Kentucky Wonder Beans … although they grew rapidly up the lattice, I haven’t harvested many beans from these, planted in a container.

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Quite an abundant harvest from the same type of bean, growing in partial shade, twisting and turning .. as they grow just as rapidly

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Happy honeybees ….

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Any excuse to stop and marvel at the magic of nature ..

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I’ve lost the marker for this flower .. any idea of the name??? I bought it for the hummingbirds .

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I bought 2 of these little feeders at the SPCA thrift store in Port Alberni weeks ago .. the Nuthatch approves!

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And this dear little Chickadee is happy also!

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Well .. the day is starting .. time to grab a pail and check out the local blackberries .. for juicing later on today …


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Thankful for the help on the WordPress Forum! They are wonderful! And also, more about my gardening life

Thursday, August 9, 2012

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Thank goodness for the so very helpful contributors to WordPress.  I’d been plagued with rather distasteful ads on my working pages of my blog .. they had all of a sudden appeared and I had no idea how to get rid of them.

So I posted on the WordPress Forum: “ Offensive ads showing on my blog ..how to stop them from appearing?” and received the most amazing help – easy to follow steps to get rid of these types of ads, which are add-ons and they are disgusting and sneaky.

If you have experienced these, then by all means, please visit the forum and you’ll find these most helpful links to get rid of them.

Now I am much happier.

So, back to gardening!

Yesterday I toiled away at the front yard  ..  completing the removal of invasive perennials that I’d let grow just to keep the area green in an easy manner.  Time to make changes and remove them.  Make room for more natural and still drought resistant type plantings.

All pulled, dug, cleared & clipped and then  top dressed with tree chippings to keep down the weeds and keep moisture in.  I didn’t take a before picture, thought of it too late.  But I will take an after picture.  This area will look a little bare  ..  I intend to pick up some woodland type plants, ferns, etc. and plant them there.

Then I began the task of pruning one of the two lilac trees that are on either side of our driveway.  For hours I clipped away at dry branches and overgrown trunks.  Some branches had grown about 4 feet over the tops of nearby cedar & bamboo plants.

At the end, I was much happier.  Noticed the chickadees flying through … and thought, oh no, they’ve lost some perching branches.   But  ..  looking around, I see thousands more of branches in our yard for them to perch in.  You see, I love the wild and natural look and am happy that there are zillions of hiding places for my winged friends.

Now the light comes through for the plants and they will grow even more!

Spent a few hours clipping away at the branches,  so that they would fit in my Rubbermaid containers, nice and tidy, so I can take them to the local municipal yard for them to compost.

And so I arranged the 3 large yard bags and 5 Rubbermaid containers into my little Echo.  How did I do this, you may ask?  Well, I pushed, shoved, squeezed and forced them all to stay in the car.  Even had one of the yard bags on the front passenger seat.  Ha ha ha …. It did look a little funny, but I was able to load the car up.

And this morning, first thing, I drove to the yard and offloaded them.   Now they will be chipped and mulched and be part of the garden dressing in the municipality.  No waste.

So now .. for the rest of the day, I can play in the back yard and be creative.   I’ll share that tomorrow!

And also for now I can enjoy a lovely mug of Yorkshire tea .. made with the loose leaves … such a very delicious treat.

🙂


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Mother Nature has been taking care of watering the gardens .. thank you very much.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

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Saturday .. what a day .. windy, blustery … rainy  .. and then the sun did come out, later on in the day.  A sweet promise of what will  happen on Sunday.

So I really wanted to play outside, but decided to save that treat for another day.

Looked outside at the trees, branches waving away in the winds … glad that we planted so many  here .. years ago.  Knowing that the birds have many places to take cover in rough weather.   Places to nest … unseen by human eyes.  I respect their privacy.  Although I would love to see their little homes . .I leave them be.

Happy that Mother Nature is watering the gardens thoroughly . .no worries about dry soil for the plants.   Oh, this will be good for everything, the berries, the garlic .. the fruit trees.  And the grass .. another opportunity for me to use my newest garden tool .. the push mower.

And I must empty the Rubbermaid containers .. that are full of seaweed.    So they can begin to enrich the plants with their mineral laden goodness.

So I didn’t take any pics on Saturday and am posting some of sunnier days:   Including some pics when my pal D & I visited the beaches of Sooke.  Slowed down when we saw a young deer standing, transfixed, by the side of the road.

Then, later, we’d been busy gathering seaweed and were surprised to see deer prints, freshly made.   It had been around our area and hadn’t made a sound!

Visited the beautiful Point No Point for the most delicious chicken soup, homemade bread and tea.  Drank delicious water, untainted by chlorine ..  Looked out the windows at the magnificent ocean vista.  Priceless.  What a lovely place .. it’s been years since I’ve been here and I vow to return again.

Wandered the magnificent property.  Walked the lovely red bridge .. a truly beautiful place to be.

Glad I took pics .. lovely memories of nature.

Well . on with this new day.  Some gardening, you say?  Of course!  At Dakota Cafe!

Laters!

A.M.