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Plants: Due to the ongoing critter issue, I've added fresh soil and compost to all of the bigger pots as well as the deck planters. The potatoes needed fresh soil anyway since leaves had broken through the surface but I was also determined to fill in the holes left by the ravenous bastards.
The butterfly bushes are just about ready to bloom. One even has tiny purple flowers starting to appear. I expect they'll be open by next week. The catnip is growing beautifully outside, for which I and my kitties are grateful. We've reached the flowering stage too, so those plants look delicate and lovely. The daisies in the white urn are still on the cusp of greatness. One has nearly opened, two more have started and the rest are still preparing for their debut. I look forward to viewing their friendly yellow and white faces. I sowed some wildflower seeds in the outer rim of the urn and am looking forward to seeing how they turn out. The blues in the other white urn are building their strength. The middle plants, which I started in the basement, are getting bigger, and the fresh seeds I recently sowed are just beginning to germinate. Here's hoping succession planting works and they flower well. Weather: Currently 61F and sunny. Low 52, High 73F. A few clouds in the sky but nothing too bad. I'm dreading the rest of the week. Heat wave is coming.
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 Purchased: More soil and compost has arrived. Excellent timing, too. Although I've probably used a dozen bags of soil this year, I've told myself that it's an investment in the future. One truth I've learned from Monty Don: Good, nutritious dirt = happy plants. Still waiting for my replacement Moroccan urn to arrive. It was supposed to be here at the beginning of June but has apparently been delayed. When I ordered the replacement, the clerk on the phone said it was the last one in stock. I truly hope this one isn't cracked like the last one.  Plants: The white bleeding heart (Alba) that's supposed to find a home in the urn is still healthy and fine. It's been hanging out in a shady spot on the back deck, near the stairs, and the lack of constant light seems to suit her.
Should I prune back some of the leaves? I think I read somewhere that if you do so, you're more likely to get flowers. Reminder to self: Check that. I'll also need to pick up some more red geraniums when the urn finally does arrive. They're generally available from the local nurseries -- or they are during non-pandemic years -- but who knows what the situation is now. Once everything is planted up, the front door/garage area will be complete. Weather: Currently 69F and sunny. Low 48, High 85F. Bright and sunny. No chance of rain. Animals: The birds and their co-conspirators/frenemies the chipmunks and squirrels have been eating two entire feeders every 24 hours. These are the bigger feeders too, wide of circumference and proudly tall.
I fill them in the morning and by the next day, they're empty again. So I've put the neighborhood wildlife on notice: You will be fed, I promise, but once every other day. On feeding day, the buffet is open. The next day, you either fast or search for grubs. Until the greedy creatures start contributing to the bird seed fund, that's how it'll have to be for the near future. As I've previously mentioned, the munks have also been burrowing in my bigger pots. I don't know if they're storing food items for winter or what, but my tomatoes and potatoes and sunflowers will never grow if they're not given a chance to root. The Gardener's catalog arrived in the mail last week and on the cover was the perfect solution, an advertisement for chicken wire cloches. Each one is $35, less if you buy in bulk. Well, I have quite a few big pots so I definitely considered buying. Alas, before I could complete my purchase I spotted the expected delivery date: August 16. Yes, really. I searched for something similar at Lowe's, Home Depot and the local nurseries and even found a cheaper version, but that delivery date was listed as October. Bah! After complaining about my problem to Erin and Josh, they offered to bring over any chicken wire they had left from building their coop. If we double-roll the sheets, perhaps it could work. I'm willing to give it a try. Hooks: The hanging plants seem to have taken to the blooming fertilizer I used last week. They're full and round and beautiful. One huge success for me this year. Weather: Currently 62F and sunny. Low 52F, High 80F. Sweet breeze. Water: In the midst of covering the pandemic, the worldwide protests and the Hellscape that is 2020, I forgot about the plants in the basement -- the ones in the Aerogardens -- for several days. As you can imagine, the poor things suffered mightily from my negligence. When I went down to water and prune them, half of the herbs were drooping and brown, the mint was both parched and starved and the marigolds were dead as doornails.
I suck as a gardener. To atone for my sins, I removed the destruction and added both nutrients and fresh water to the machines. Also turned on the fan for a bit of air circulation. Here's hoping they bounce back from my carelessness. If not, I'll have to start over, damn it. Weather: Currently 61F and sunny. Low 52, High 73F. A few clouds in the sky but nothing too bad. I'm dreading the rest of the week. Heat wave is coming.  Plants: The rhododendron bush in the backyard has blossomed into large pink snowballs. The one on the side of the house now has white snowballs. I love them both. Over the weekend, I added fresh soil underneath the mystery tree at the base of the driveway and scattered a bunch of annual wildflower seeds into that rich dirt. M also grabbed a saw and dismantled parts of the "almost" dead tree in the front yard. In the two large blue planters, I sowed two types of red potatoes, San Marzano tomatoes and sunflowers. Erin and Josh were kind enough to give us some bamboo sticks for support, which I plan to use for the tomato plants, the sunflowers and the iris Susan gave us last year. I thought the iris was properly dead but I've managed to coax a few new leaves to appear. Small victory. In one of the medium white urns, I planted the daisies that are about to blossom and some fiery red perennial seeds. In the other, I planted the blue perennial seedlings as well as some fresh seeds.  The pot that used to hold the daisy plant has been cleaned and replanted with more moon flower seeds. The pot that previously held the blue perennial seedlings is now home to the succulent from Erin and Josh's brook house.
I dumped much of the far right deck planter and filled it with fresh soil, compost and milkweed buttons for the butterflies. Also added more compost and soil to the two other planters on the right. Hopefully that'll help keep the plants/herbs in them from dying. Water: Added the blooming flower fertilizer to the watering can and did my rounds, both front and back. Must make a point of doing this every Wednesday. Weather: Currently 71F with a decent breeze. Low 59, High 75F. Mostly sunny but thankfully, the wind is keeping me from wanting to die. Supposed to go back up to the 80s later this week. I dread it. |
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Photo used under Creative Commons from Magdalena Roeseler
