Notes for May 30, 2009

Here is one of the Iris from my yard. This Iris is an original from my yard, meaning it was here when we moved in.
Here is the veggie garden. Onions are in front of the fence on the left. In fron of the fence on the right are daffodils (when they start to wilt, i will mow them over). Just behind the fence are two rows of radishes and then a row of string beans. In between are black posts where I will tie twine in between for supporting sunflowers. Behind the string beans are peppers and tomatoes (too small to see in this picture) and along the back two fences are cukes.

Here are the onions planted in fron of the veggie garden. You can also see the leftover seeds started and starting some more annuals to the right.


Here is a patch of Bee Balm that I planted from one pot two years ago. I love to see this buzzing with hummingbirds.

Here is some Spiderwort. It is a common wildflower here in some areas of New Jersey. I had some at the last place I lived and I fell in love with it. I have some white but I think the red didn't live through the winter.

Last night a friend came over and we cut down some dead oak trees. This morning I cleaned up the debris from the tree felling.

I also started some more Cosmos seeds. I did not get the germination from what I started earlier. So I planted some more mixed and I also planted some of just orange and some of just red. I got a packet of red as a freebie from ordering seeds and I got the orange with an application to join some mail order gardening club. Thought I would give them a try.

I also mulched the first green beans and planted the second green beans.

Here is a perennial I started from seed last year and I have no clue what it is. I think I grew it because my daughter picked it out because of its pretty blue color. I like the color too. Note the red Rhododendron finishing blooming in the background.

Here is an Iris I bought last year from a retired woman who has a perennial business.


This Iris I got from my brothers house. He remarried and they bought a new house a couple of years ago that had this Iris.


Here is my Mountain Pink in bloom.


Here is one of my Rhododendrons.

I emptied 0.5" from the rain gauge this morning. I was awoken at 4:30 AM with a couple of rumbles of thunder and some heavy rain.

This morning I remembered something else I did yesterday but failed to blog. I tied twine to the posts I put up for the sunflowers. I put three levels of double twine and as the sunflowers grow, I just put the plants in between the double twine. Once the plants are about 4 ft tall, they really don't need any support but until they are that tall, they do need support.

Notes from May 28, 2009

This Hosta was saved from a friend's house where their Hostas were deer food. Of all the ones they gave me, this one is doing the best. To the right is Agastache.

I bought a white Rhododendron two years ago and this year it bloomed.

This is a painted Daisy (in the chrysanthemum family). It doesn't look impressive because its become rabbit food. Five other nearby have also been eaten. Not surpised because the leaves are similar to carrot leaves.

Can't remember the name of this perennial. I started it from seed a couple of years ago and its been steadily growing in size. I think it was called Centaurea?

Here is a painted Daisy that the rabbit didn't get to. And for a bonus there is some sort of bug on the flower.

Stayed home from work today but didn't get to work in the yard until the afternoon.

Today I planted the remaining cukes, replacing several cukes that had died and picked a handful of radishes.

I fertilized the cukes, tomatoes and peppers with a drink of fish emulsion.

I planted tithonia along the fence of the veggie garden along with 6 of the transplanted marigolds that I dug up last week.

I trimmed several trees of lower branches (two holly trees, a dogwood and several oak trees).

I watered what I didn't fertilize (radishes, beans, onions and two patches of young grass in the lawn).

Then I started mulching the paths of the veggie garden. I didn't mulch around the plants yet, I'd like them to get a little bigger.

Some of the sunflowers have started to sprout and all of the annuals I started two weeks ago appear to have sprouted.

I am planning on planting another row of green beans on Saturday. I hope to start a row every three weeks.

Notes for Monday May 25, 2009

Emptied 0.15" from the rain gauge this morning. We had a couple of rumbles of thunder and three 30 second downpours.

Everything in the veggie garden seems to have survived transplanting. I will feel more comfortable when I noticed growth, especially the cucumbers since I took them right from the windowsill inside and planted them outside. The tomatoes seem to be fine as well, even the one plant where the stem broke away from the roots and I just planted the stem. (I am sometimes grateful that tomato plants do that).

Next I plan on mulching and giving all a drink of fish emulsion fertilizer

PLANTING!

Well I got done what I hoped to get done and today I am paying for it as expected.

I started off by transplanting freelancing marigolds and tomatoes (growing on their own in the veggie garden) into six packs to be planted or given away later. I also dug up a couple of baby oak trees and potted them, someone at work wants one.

Next I put up the cucumber fence (5 ft high PVC coated fence).

The I planted tomatoes plants (30: celebrity, whopper and Juliet), pepper plants (14, Fat N Sassy and New Ace) and cucumber plants (24, Hybrid Sweet Success). I started all of these from seed indoors. I didn't have time this year to get manure from the horse farm and so this year I tried something different. All of the pepper plants and all but two of the rows of tomatoes I planted with a handful of finely ground up leaves. I did this to help my sandy soil retain moisture.

Then I planted a row of sunflower seeds.

I wish my marigold/zinnia/cosmos seedlings were about ready to plant, I would be planting them next week. Unfortunately they are just starting to sprout, so I guess next year I will be starting them earlier.

I am still not over my cold so I ended up taking frequent breaks and drinking a water bottle each time. During one of my breaks I did notice a chipmunk running through the backyard.

Friday Night Memorial Day weekend -5/22/2009

Lots on the list to do this weekend and I was able to get a start on it tonight. I even had help.

The first thing on the list was to cut the grass. I am feeling better and my college aged son even helped me cut the grass. I think he was feeling guilty since I asked him to cut the grass if he got a chance this week. We happen to have two mowers so it took half the time. When my mom downsized, she gave me her mower. I was even more surprised that it started since I used it a couple of times last year just to run it.

After cutting the grass I used my string trimmer that I got for Christmas and had better luck with it this time. I had to fix the string only once this time. I also missed fewer spots.

As I was taking my usual rest (sitting on my back patio and watching the wildlife come back into the yard) and downing a water bottle or one of my kids sports drinks, I noticed my daughter had got in the shower so it was no use going into the house to get mine, so I did some weeding. While weeding I noticed that my yellow Stella D'Oro daylilly is starting to bud as well as some of my common orange daylillies.

Tomorrow - PLANTING VEGGIES!!!

Notes for May 18, 2009

Watered the radishes, onions, green beans and the patches of grass I put down earlier this year (grass looks nice so far). While I was putting away the garden hose, I apparently disturbed Mr. chipmunk as he dashed past the back of the house.

The green beans have sprouted.

Notes for May 16, 2009

I've caught a summer cold. It started when I got a lung full of oak pollen last weekend and its developed into a head cold. Needless to say, I didn't work outside today and it only means that I am that much more behind. If I were feeling better I would have borrowed one of my brother's trucks and picked up some manure and then planted my tomatoes and peppers and cut the grass. Maybe I can convince my son in cutting the grass one day next week since he is finished college for the summer.

The dogwood has dropped about 95 percent of its flowers...time to plant tomatoes!

Notes for May 15, 2009

We had thunderstorms early this morning. There were only a few rumbles of thunder but it was enough to set off the thunderstorm proximity alarm (that's an 85 pound Golden Retriever that likes to curl up between the be pillows with no regard that someone might be using them. The wife usually gets the freindly end, I get the tail). Fortunately there was a fair amount of heavier than light rain to go with it and in the daylight before work, I emptied 0.9" from the rain gauge.

Notes for May 13, 2009

Started the following annuals in six packs: yellow marigolds, cosmos, mixed marigolds and two different color zinnias. The yellow marigolds are for the vegetable garden, the cosmos will go along the edge of the vegetable garden and in a flower bed, and the zinnias will go in one particular flower bed. The mixed marigolds will be planted throughout the flower beds where needed. The six packs I moved outside (don't have enough room under the lights).

Notes for May 12, 2009

Watered radishes, green beans, onions and the two patches of grass in the back yard.

I think I saw a orange rhododendron but upon a second look, is more like a Mountain Laurel with larger orange blooms. I wonder what that is?

Notes for May 10, 2009

Rhododendrons are starting to bloom. My red will be shortly.

Notes for May 9, 2009

Well I guess I should have known that whenever you have a rabbit in the yard, you will have rabbit damage. Something has eaten two of my pincushion flowers in the front yard garden under my daughter's window.

I planted my first green beans.

I moved the tomato plants outside.

While running errands, it always looked like someone was creating a dust storm in the distance while cutting their grass. However, later I realized it was probably oak pollen since the week was so wet and this was the first dry day.

Notes for May 8, 2009

Emptied 0.3" from the rain gauge.

The cucumber and Tithonia seeds I started have sprouted.

I have very poor spinach germination this year. I have about four plants out of four rows. Two of the rows were old seeds but I think it just wasn't the right weather for them this year. Every year the weather conditions are usually good for some, great for one and bad for another.

I cut the grass Friday evening and I changed the mower blade earlier this week and it made a big difference. The grass was thick from the rain and I didn't have too much trouble mowing.

I noticed a baby rabbit in the flower bed in the front yard under my daughter's bedroom window while I was cutting the grass.

Notes for May 7, 2009

Emptied 0.7" from the rain gauge.

The Azaleas and the Columbine are in bloom. The Columbine I started from seed last years seems to be fairing better than the ones I bought last year.

Notes for May 6, 2009

Emptied 0.75" from the rain gauge.

The Iris are starting to bud.

Notes for May 5, 2009

The Lillies of the Valley are in bloom and the Iris and pincushion are starting to bud.

Notes for May 4, 2009

Emptied 0.55" from the rain gauge (again).

Notes for May 3, 2009

The Azaleas are starting to bloom.

Emptied 0.55" from the rain gauge.

Next year I think I need to start my peppers two weeks earlier and my tomatoes two weeks later.

Started cukes and tihonia seeds indoors.