Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Getting on with 2018




 No, that's not January.
Here we are, already past the first week in January.  Our weather had been bitterly cold for a few weeks, but as of now, we're enjoying temperatures in the upper 20's.  I went to fill the bird feeders without a coat on and it felt downright balmy outdoors.  Amazing what a body can adapt to.

Carl and I have been running around to all sorts of appointments for ourselves and for his parents; the days go by in a blur and at the end of the night, I look back and wonder just what it was we accomplished.  Eventually, we hope things will settle down a bit more. 

Now that the weather has warmed up a little, the snow is melting and things look dismal.  I went through some of my pictures from this past summer to cheer me up a little, so this post includes random summer photos.  

I'm also considering what I'm going to plant (or not plant) this spring.  We have no garden walks scheduled for 2018 so there's no particular reason to get everything all gussied up this year.  2019 is the big year, with our silly garden on the American Hosta Society tour.  We're going to take this summer and try our best to get good ol' Castle Aargh further along.

Summertime and the livin' is easy.

 I'm debating not putting up the greenhouse this year, but we'll see if I stick to my resolve.  It would make life easier as the process of getting it all hauled down from Mom's shed takes hours of work and then at the end of the season, we have to put it away again. 


 I will miss not having the greenhouse; there's something magical about the sight of growing things in early spring.  But it's only for one year.
 
I'll have to have flowers to put in the urns and the pots, though.  

The New Guinea impatiens were fabulous last summer.  Carl brought more pipe home from the scrap yard so we can add more upright accents in other places in the garden next year.
Will I or won't I plan my pink 'Bubblegum' supertunias this year?  I'm not sure, but I suspect I will have a few.
Rudbeckia 'Goldsturm' has been naturalizing in the hosta beds in front of the house, but I've been curbing its tendency so take over a little.  Still, it's a gorgeous plant in bloom.  
The 'Fireball' marigolds mixed in with the 'Profusion' zinnias were  great plants last year, and easy to grow.  I'll probably add some this year, too.
Two years running, I've had the Tidal Wave 'Red Velour' petunias in abundance, amazing that only twenty plants grown from seed could be so prolific.





What will I do with no color other than green this summer?  I'll have to think of something to brighten things up.  Maybe some more pots instead to lighten the work load.  But then, pots have to be watered.....hmmm....more to think about.

I did plant more lilies last year.  If the voles aren't a big problem and the frigid weather didn't damage them, we should have a good show in 2018.




Then there's the Batting Cage to consider.  Though after the relocating the gazebo, this area was off to a rather dubious start, the whole thing turned out fairly well.  I guess I'll give it one more year and see how it goes.

I've got a few other beds to renew this spring.  We found some of our granite boulders and polished pieces were buried under greenery, so they had to be brought out into the light of day early last summer.
 I've got lots to ponder on during the last remaining weeks of winter.  We'd really love to get some stained glass projects done, too, but time is always in short supply. 

 And, speaking of time, back on Halloween we had gone on a geocaching outing with Joel and Ann, and stopped at a restaurant for lunch.  For all of our years together, Carl loves to have me guess what order number we are assigned when we go out to eat.  Of course, I never know, and simply blurt out a random answer. I'm never right.

Well, apparently wonders never cease.....for the first time in 39 years of marriage, we had order #1 and #39.  

Spooky!

And we're both 59 here........but not for much longer.  The Big 60 looms!
Oh, dear.  We're quite the pair, aren't we?  

Stay warm, everyone!
 
 
 







 

10 comments:

Ellie's friend from canada said...

Hi Karen,

Your garden photos certainly lifted my spirits on a day that is growing colder and snowier by the minute. Sometimes my comments are not getting posted so dear Karen I will wish you a Happy New Year. I hope things settle down a bit ad that you are comforted by warm and loving and lovely memories. Ann

Karen said...

Hello Ann! Happy New Year to you, too! I'm glad the photos gave you a little lift today. Stay warm, dear friend!

Carol said...

Love seeing all of your summer photos . With such a brutal winter happening it was wonderful ♥ Our WARM UP is coming to an end today and the cold is coming back... we did manage to get an inch of rain in the past few days and since we ore in a "moderately severe drought" that was great. Wonder who decides how to rate the drought conditions ?
Love see the photo of you and Carl.

FlowerLady Lorraine said...

Loved seeing your summery photos. As always your garden spaces are wonderful.

Love that photo of you and Carl and have saved it. :-) You two are nine years younger than me. I will be 69 in March. Doesn't seem possible.

Happy 2018 ~ Love & hugs ~ FlowerLady

Beth @ PlantPostings said...

Woah! That IS spooky! You are such a cute couple! You have an amazing property, Karen. No matter what you decide to plant/arrange, I'm sure it will look fabulous!

Pamela Gordon said...

Oh how I enjoyed your garden tour this morning. We are waiting on some heavy rains here for today and tomorrow so it's cloudy and mild. Our snow melted down a lot overnight in the warm temps so I expect we'll have grass showing by Sunday unless it changes over to snow. The gorgeous flowers and colours in your gardens are stunning! Have a great weekend!

chavliness said...

What a lovely photo of the two of you! I enjoyed the trip down memory lane in the your summer garden. It is so colorful and bright, a sight to behold. Stunning photos of the domed gazebo. I think it's great you have 2018 to just relax and enjoy your garden before the pressure of tours is back in 2019.

Pam's English Garden said...

So lovely to stroll through your 2017 garden on this bitter cold day in PA. We are planning an 'easier' year, too, with less tours coming. Also, I think I'm taking a year off from entering stuff in the local fair as I will be away immediately before it starts. Love the picture of you and your husband! P. x

outlawgardener said...

What a sweet picture of you and Carl! You look very content and happy with each other. Must be because you guessed the right order numbers but more likely it's because the beauty you two have created in the world is reflected in your faces. Thanks for the breath of summer. Hope things slow down for you soon.

chavliness said...

I read the "People's Pharmacy" in the Sunday paper religiously. It contains Q & A regarding natural remedies and interesting holistic solutions to common ailments. A recent segment made me think of you, Karen, right away. It had to do with AMD.
I hope you find the information useful.
https://www.peoplespharmacy.com/2018/01/29/will-precious-saffron-save-your-eyesight/