Monday, May 23, 2011

Spring Crazies Part 4

Here at Procrastinatoe Gardens, work is progressing ever so slowly and everything is topsy turvy.  We have the Formal Garden destroyed.  It looks awful.  I'm halfway done digging out the perennials and it's slow going.  Carl is putting a new wall in of flat limestone that we had ripped out two years ago when we put in the Pachyberm Bed.  (We're weird, we like to rotate our rocks.)

Since May 1, we've gone from this look below:
To this look:
New Wall in the Formal Garden, coming along---about 10' of wall done and 120' to go..............where the dirt in front of the wall is used to be the perennial bed.  It will be seeded down with grass as soon as we're done with the wall.

Just like every other Spring, My GADS tendencies are in high gear;  I'll be on my way to water the flowers in the greenhouse only to discover the watering can is missing.  Wracking my feeble memory for when I would have last used one of my four (yes, four) watering cans, I recall I had gone to transplant a few daylilies in the farthest reaches of the yard, so I set off on the quest to see if the can is there.

Halfway to the Back Forty, I see a patch of pretty daffodils and remember I was going to take some pictures of them as they won't last too long in the warmer weather we have been finally having.  Back in the house to get Joel's camera (which I will have to buy from him soon, since I use it more than he does, poor guy) and outside to see what's new in Daffodil Land. 

It's a good thing I took these pictures the other day,  because Sunday afternoon we had a tremendous thunderstorm complete with 1" hail.  Daffodils, tulips and other flowering things don't much like hail, so things aren't so pretty right about now.  My hostas weren't thrilled with the flying ice pellets either, but we were so lucky compared to other parts of the country which were devastated by tornadoes.  Such a Spring it has been!
King Alfred? King Kong? 
I was going to attempt to name these daffodils, but I have to admit to something else going wrong with me:

1. My memory just ain't what it used to be and
2. I could do an internet search for the names of all the daffodils but
3. I'm lazy.

Late last fall I bought a whole bunch of daffodil bulbs in bags from Big Box Stores around here when they were clearancing them out.  I had to chisel the frozen dirt to put them in but it was worth it.  They were heavily discounted at most places I looked in early December. There are exceptions to every rule though; one store only discounted their remaining stock 20% off which is too bad.  I happened upon heaping bags of bulbs in that store in  January, forlornly sitting with the last of the Christmas merchandise.  I was tempted to buy them then, but didn't know how I'd blast through snowbanks to get to frozen dirt.  I wonder what the shelf life is of a daffodil? (I know, the internet probably has the answer, it's lazy me again.)  I'll get back to you on that.
This is a tiny daffodil but is just packed with petals.  Luckily it doesn't droop from the weight.

I really like the tiny daffodils with the multi-branching habit.  They are so delicate-looking but tough as nails.

And hereafter are a bunch more:



Daffodils looming over some tiny species tulips. 

These big frilly double daffodils are very pretty too, but can't hold their heads up off the ground, especially when it rains.
These three were peeking out from under our fence last Thursday which made me smile.

We have one lone hyacinth bulb in the gardens and Carl stepped on it when we were placing some of the big rocks along the Lane Bed from the Formal Garden remodeling job.  I was so sad (and so was he) to see the poor thing flat on the ground, but the next morning, it popped right back up again.  I must remember to plant more hyacinths this fall, love their color and fragrance.

And they are apparently Carl-proof, too!
Since I am transplanting all the perennials in the Formal Garden to new homes around the yard I have come to appreciate the flowers that were in that overgrown mess much more.  These are some primulas which were buried in a bunch of quack grass this Spring.  They seem to like their new home in the Woodland Bed.
I almost chucked all the stuff that was in that bed earlier this year, now I'm glad I didn't.  Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the amount of work involved in downsizing. I still think closing up a bed is more work than creating a new one because it's hard to find places for everything once you dig them up and divide them.  Lucky for my plants and for me, there are some people interested in taking divisions off my hands.  Now if I only had the time to get them all dug and delivered.

I was walking by the Quarry Hill garden the other day and was amazed to see tulips growing out there.  I didn't plant them; they must have come in with the fill we used for building the hill which came from our compost piles from over the years.  Not bad placement for volunteer tulips, though.


Once again, I don't know the names, but these tulips have been with us since we started gardening.   They are amazingly hardy.
We had some much warmer weather this weekend and the tulips and daffodils are on their way out.  We have a few left to bloom yet, but I'm not sure how many are going to after the hailstorm.  But at least we were able to enjoy many of them for quite awhile.  This is the latest I can remember having spring bulbs blooming in quite some time, but it was less than a month ago that we had snow on the ground.
I have so much more to tell you about all the goofiness going on around here, but it's already 2AM and this ol' unit needs some sleep. 
 Never a good sign when the sky gets that dark in midafternoon.

Off to don the sleep apnea mask of Darth Karen and say a prayer of thanks that we still have a roof over our heads after the wild weather. 
See you next year, daffodils...maybe by then I'll know your names.  

Probably not.

19 comments:

Randy Emmitt said...

Karen,

I know way too well about loosing things like the watwring can, it gets worse everyday. The daffodils are beautiful. WE bought 50% ones this year and planted therm in January, the ground was not frozen.

Gatsbys Gardens said...

Karen,

It is amazing that your tulips come back each year. I get a few back but certainly not all that I have planted. I hope you get those rocks moved before we hit the 90's.

Eileen

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

What a delight this post was to read this morning. In visuals and story.

I love all of your daffs and wish I could grow them down here, but alas. How neat that you haave those lovely volunteer tulips too.

The new wall is looking great!

Have a wonderful week Karen.

FlowerLady

Darla said...

Such huge projects you and Carl take on...kudos to you! I can't find the lazy bone in either one of you. Your tulips are beautiful as are the rest of your bloomers. The crazy spring weather throughout the country and our drought as me a little concerned as to what our hurricane season will be like here.

Granny Lyn's Garden said...

I am so glad there are others like me. I find it so hard to keep on task. There is always another bed to weed or perennial to trans plant, so the original project I start , is the last to get finished.

I love the new flat rock wall!!

MorningGlory said...

Your spring blooms are amazing...just beautiful! As for the lone hyacinth, they are among my favorites in the springtime. I always save out a couple to force indoors ahead of time, just because they smell so lovely!

Lisa Sall - Sall's Country Life said...

Hi Karen,
Catching up on your blog this morning, and you've literally knocked my socks off!! That video was amazing! And I can't believe the undertaking you have in moving all those boulders before the next big tour!??? The daffodils and tulip photos are gorgeous, so glad we got to see them before the hail came. Now I must go back and watch the video again, hope you don't mind if I share it with my facebook friends. My pals at Shakespeare Garden will enjoy it thoroughly! I wish I lived closer to you, I'd be over all the time helping you and your mom weed all those beautiful beds. Take care, I know you'll be going strong all week getting ready for the tour. Sleep Well my friend!

Betsy said...

The photos of your flowers are so beautiful. The colors are so vivid and the three daffys peeking from the fence are perfect.
I like how you captured the grey sky also.
Thank you for your visit to my blog and nice comment. I am back to saving my posts so I can put them back if need be when blogger acts up.
Have a wonderful day,
Betsy

Alison said...

Such great photos of your tulips and daffs! They are all so wonderfully Spring-like and cheerful. Good to see the progress you're making cleaning out that formal bed. Those sweet little primroses will be much happier in a woodland bed.

Hope you get good weather all week, and no more hail.

Lona said...

Your tulips look so beautiful Karen. And how about those free ones planting themselves in such great positions. LOL! That is so funny. I am loving the rock slab wall so much better than the boulders. It is looking so beautiful already. And the boulders will be so much more at home in the woodland garden. You move rocks like I move perennials.LOL! Not as heavy by far though.

xoxoxo said...

I think those tulips really like you! They are stunning!
They are hiding as stowaways just to get in your yard! Maybe they want to be on tv?

Roslyn said...

I never knew there were so many types of daffodils. We can't grow any spring bulbs here and I just love seeng them, especially daffodils and tulips. Fancy getting some in a load of soil. We only get weeds.

El Gaucho said...

As always, the photos are wonderful. You are an excellent photographer, especially of the "up close flower" shots, very impressive.

Beth said...

Karen, I love your tulips and primula! You have the best-est gardens!!! You and Carl are such hard workers. I hope someday I can see your beautiful gardens in person; your blog is the next best thing. Karen, do you know of any listing of public gardens for someone wanting to plan a trip and catch some great gardens?
Hugs, Beth

Larry said...

Your blooms are lovely Karen... I'm really enjoying those primula you shared with me last season! Larry

Diana LaMarre said...

Hi Karen,
The rockwall is looking good. What a lot of work!

I love that purple round primula. I need to get some of those round-headed varities.

I am always finding tulips here and there that I didn't plant. Mine come from digging up other plants and not realizing I got a tulip in the rootball.

We have been having the same rainy weather, though we missed the hail.

KK said...

Hi Karen...I enjoyed the update today. LOVE all your beautiful daffodils and tulips. I want to try some bulbs this fall. Thanks to you...I got my "rock fix" today by looking at quarry hill. It is perfect. So nice of you to give your extra flowers to your friends.

Unknown said...

Tulips in your fill dirt? We are lucky if all we get is poison ivy. Must get your soil source.

All that work and a tub and wringer washer? I might need to have a moment with Carl...

Even in the middle of the project it all looks beautiful.

africanaussie said...

I just found your blog through Missy's blog, and so glad I did! I enjoyed your lovely photos of the daffodils and tulips since we cant grow them here.