This is the area by the Pachyberm as of this morning---uh, I think it will be a LONG time before we can plant the lawn here
Anyone for canoeing on my lawn-to-be?
Just checked radar and it looks like we are in for another round of rain; we just received a half inch this morning in under an hour. But then we are expecting several nice days in a row where we could get something accomplished. I just got off the phone with Carl and asked him to check and see if he could take a few days of vacation, but its not looking good, as he has some rush projects coming up.
The quarry levels keep rising again, maybe the water will linger longer in the season.
Can you spot the painted turtle in the picture?*
The last few days we did manage to move the three big rocks around a bit. Here's a before picture of what they looked like right after we placed them:
It was getting dark again on Monday night, but it was also when I decided the placement wasn't quite right. We hemmed and hawed and drew some lines in the dirt, and finally Carl, Ann and Joel worked on moving the two 'smaller' rocks just a few inches.
We planted the ironwood on the left side of the picture, but I haven't decided whether or not to plant the 'Louisa' flowering crab here or not and I also have an Acer griseum which is barely visible in front of the upright rock to plant, too. I am really leaning toward planting 'Louisa' here all by herself, but we'll see. We really need something here to soften the big, white building.
The Hosta bed behind the shop is truly flourishing with all of the rain.
Picea pungens 'St. Mary's Broom' in the foreground with 'Tiger Eyes' sumac (yes, it runs, the parent plant is about 20' away, but it's still pretty) and some creeping thyme in the background.
Not sure which dianthus this is, but it smells heavenly
Carl came home from work with some good news, he is on vacation for the next three days (five, counting the weekend) and if the weatherman is right, we're supposed to have at least two days of clear weather. This is a good thing, too, because I haven't washed clothes yet this week!
When Carl got home from work, it was drizzling slightly, so he drained and cleaned the pan fountain and then we decided to take out the little pond by our bedroom window, too. Right about the time we got ready to move rocks, the rain became serious, so we went to town for groceries.
We ended up at the greenhouse in town and even though they were closing, we talked to the owner for over an hour about flowers. He was just driving his tractor in the greenhouse to get out of the rain and is as soggy and ready for sunlight as the rest of us. It is so much fun to talk 'shop' with greenhouse owners because they have their secrets and their pet peeves and their inside info on so many plants. We know several greenhouse owners, and all of them have their specialties. Some of them wouldn't grow a petunia if you paid them to, and others think perennials are weedy and overrated. I truly feel there is a place for annuals and perennials in every garden, for what extends a flowering season into fall better than a bed of annuals? Another plant I under appreciated for years were fibrous begonias. Once they get going, they are a powerhouse of color all season long with nice foliage.
The planter has yet to fill out, but I am enjoying aptly named 'Big' begonia already, along with various sun-tolerant coleus and homegrown 'Avalanche' petunias.
We had an early supper and spent the rest of the evening watching the next installments of our TV show. Seems like such a waste to sit in the house when it's still light out, but what else can we do when it's raining? Even Ann had the night off from working here, so I guess it's OK, we all could use a break.
Karen
*The 'painted turtle' really was painted by Mom--it's aluminum
2 comments:
The straw mulch looks good! Larry
Thank you Larry! We top-dressed it with white pine needles to even out the color...we'll see if it works.
Post a Comment