April showers DO produce May flowers!

Happy spring!!

The last time I posted. .It was early in the spring. .but there was already a lot going on in the gardens!

There is still a lot going on there. I wanted to give a little tour!

I have some fun family pictures uploaded. .so hopefully it won't be much longer till I can post those too. .some exciting things have been happening around here!!

On Mother's Day. .later in the evening, after the whole crew left for a short excursion. .

I enjoyed sitting right here. .

listening to the pond and birds. .

I just can't believe how beautiful the flowers are. .

The honeysuckle's intoxicating scent filled the heavy air of evening. .

What a relaxing and perfect ending to the day!

I was amazed at God's detail in our world.

It is always good to be reminded of how amazing He is. .

And how much He has blessed us by giving us so much beauty to enjoy in the midst of the cares of this world!

And the chance to just BE STILL and allow myself to be impressed with my surroundings was JUST what this curly headed chica needed!

I was in the mood for sassy this year. .

So red and purples went into the self watering deck planters.

Cami made the stepping stone a few weeks ago. .It's a butterfly, if you were having trouble identifying that!

I don't typically do Gerbera daisies well. .

But they've been in the pots 3 weeks. .and they are still blooming and look happy!!

If I can remember to get some fertilizer to them, they may last for another few!!

For years I wondered if this pond would ever looked like it belonged in the yard. .And after much trial and error, it seems to be coming along. The yellow water irises were part of my aunt and uncles pond before they moved to Oregon. They were quite showy!! I also figured out that these salvia bushes can take the heat. .AND multiply!! They are already twice as big as they were last year! There is a little bit of gallardia hiding in the middle too, it has just started to bloom in the last day or two. The green clump in the middle will be Mexican hats it looks like. .they self seeded. .I haven't seen one bloom for a couple years now, so apparently the seeds are hardy!

Last week I saw a hummer on the penstemon. .I was pretty excited to see him there. .I haven't seen him for about 5 days now, so I figure he went on to town where there is more going on. He fed on a number of the plants around here. .but never the feeder that I witnessed. .Maybe one day, I will have a habitat that will keep them around for the whole summer!

A look up toward the deck where the planters are.

I have this pink peony and one that is more of a crimson. .This one doesn't smell much. .but the blooms are crazy amazing!! I have been looking for a white fragrant one with a pink center this year. .but no avail yet!

The orange honeysuckle that has never thrived seems to be coming out of it's 10 year shell!! It has climbed up onto the metal bedframe clear to the roof line. .

It doesn't smell, but it sure is pretty!!

The hummer sure did enjoy it too!

The other plants near it are ones that I got from high country garden last year, hoping to find something that will do the intense west afternoon sunshine!! So far, so good!

I discovered two of these little dudes growing. .Oriental poppies that I started from seed last summer. .I popped them in the ground right before the first frost last year. .and forgot about them. .Because seriously, they were about 3 inches tall with about 6 leaves on them! I was so excited to see them coming up. This one now has a big fat bud on it. .I can hardly wait to see what color it turns out to be!!

GonSS. .

These little puppies are from your garden!! I always forget the name. .

But I sure do like them. And last week, I even saw them for sale in a nursery in Topeka!! They get very little attention, and lots of the intense sun. .But they have survived and are doing well! THANKS for sharing them!!

Here is my answer to west afternoon sun, a deck that needs summer flowers, and an inability to water them enough to keep them alive!!

SUCCULENTS!!

I have kept these pots alive for a couple years now. .and move them into the greenhouse for the winter. Due to an oversight on our part, we let it get too cold in the greenhouse one night. .and several of them froze. .but, many of them were preserved, and I have just taken other cuttings to add into the pots!! I can now have some added interest. .and only  have to water them a few times per week! The potted purple fountain grass is a new experiment. .I will see if they can flourish in a pot with very little water too.

This little clematis has existed for years. .but never got more than 2 feet tall. Last spring I had to move it to another location, and it ended up on the north side of the house. .It is going to town. It is now as tall as the 6 foot trellis and has a number of blooms on it. YAY!

Here is the bed on the north side of the house. The hostas are getting big. .and I am hoping to get some blooms this summer as well-so far it has just really been foliage. Cami and I had the day at home by ourselves on Saturday, so I moved the pitcher pump water feature (you can see it way at the back in front of the post). .I just moved it about 3 feet over. .but it radically changed the view from the back. .and the appeal of the feature! I will have to get pictures and post them soon!

This is the memory garden. The Blue atlas cedar looks pathetic. .but it has new growth on nearly all of it. .so I want to give it some more time to see if it recovers from the winter burn or not. I hate to see it go! All the daylilies I planted in there are living. .so the colors should dramatically improve in a year or two. The tulips there looked great. .and really, there has been a little color ever since that. .so it is changing like it was designed to. Cami and I put some seeds in there. .and some of them are sprouting. .it's hard to see them, because the weeds sprout at the same rate!!

Big clump of iris from a friend. We enjoyed several bouquets of those!

The pampas grass is already taking off. I will be excited when they occlude the view of the dead car lot! And the asparagus patch is looking good for it's first year. I was sure that most of those roots in the big-box store package were dead. .but they just remained dormant from last June until now. .Looks like we will have about 12 plants as they continue to grow. Enough to eat AND share. And maybe pickle. .if you haven't purchased pickled asparagus to eat. .you are missing out!

Some blue flax that reseeds itself into the little corner garden!

And the Red Texas Yucca has four stems starting! The other three plants have some as well. .These blooms will last throughout much of the summer. .I found some miniature ones last week. .and planted them by the walkway up to the house near the pond where it is hot and dry! I think they will do well!

I was so enthralled with my aunt's Dutch iris last year, that I ordered some bulbs for my yard. .I don't know why I never knew about these before!! They were beautiful!! I'll be excited for them to multiply and treat us to many more blooms in the summers to come!

I'm so glad to live in a location with amazing blue skies. .

And changing seasons!

Be back soon with some pictures of my other passion. .

My family!!

Planting of the Veggies!

Hey, Hey!!

We have had one little frost since like the first of March. .

And I am having a hard time believing that it is still only April!!

So I have been chomping at the bit to get stuff planted!

We enjoyed 4.75 inches of rain last weekend. .Prom day, of course!

But everyone was so glad to see the rains after the week full of the worst fires in Kansas history right in our neighborhood here. .that NO. ONE. CARED!!

My tomatoes have been in the wall of waters for about 2 weeks now. .

And I decided I needed to get the rest of them planted.

The pictures aren't great at all. .

Boring, pretty much. .

But I needed to map the beds so I can remember which plants are what.

My biggest issue at the end of the summer. .is that I have no earthly idea what plants are where anymore. .Because I can't easily find my little tiny labels!! 

And I'm too hurried and lazy to look for them!

I hope this works much better for me!

3 raised beds on the east side of  the house.

In the front one. .Bed #1

on the north side starting front of picture to the back. .

Beefmaster tomato

Super Banana Supreme pepper

Celebrity tomato

Gypsy sweet pepper.

On the south side is, ,

Green bell pepper

Snow White cherry heirloom tomato

Valencia orange pepper

Jetsetter tomato 

Bed #3 which you can see directly behind bed #1 in the top picture. .

has 3 rows of clemson spineless okra.

Bed #2. .the northernmost raised bed.

Only 4 tomato plants at this point. .

north side is a big boy tomato

Big beef tomato

south side is a Lemon boy tomato

1 renegade potato plant from last year

and a Jubilee heirloom tomato.

Bed #4 in the front.

on the east side are two mucho nacho Jalapeno plants.

6 sweet banana pepper plants (with a garlic plant in there too)

On the south side of the bed are 5 short rows of beets, another garlic plant, and a tiny basil plant.

In between the raised beds are where I opted to plant a couple bulbs of garlic last winter. .like in January. .Oops!

Bed #5 has Straight Eight cucumbers on the north side and National pickling cucumbers on the south side. 

To the right of the photo (not very easy to see) is a huge tarragon plant that I never use because I don't know how. .some sage, chives, oregano, lemon balm, and a bronzeleaf fennel plant that I never got around to harvesting. It not only overwintered. .but I found 3 small plants coming up from seed in other areas! 

I guess I will try to figure out how to use it. .It is sure is pretty. .and gourmet-ish!!

I planted 4 tomatoes in the memory garden. .

I should repost some of the early pictures of this space. .

It has been the best changing garden in my career!!

It may be hard for you to determine that there are 4 tomato cages in this photo. .

I can tell that. .

In the cage closest to left front of the photo is a Parks Whopper tomato.

The one directly to the south is a Cherokee Purple tomato.

The farthest south near the Atlas Cedar is a Salsa Roma tomato. .

And there is one right near the pedestal birdhouse which is a Juliet grape tomato. 

Remember how I mentioned that Jeremy is becoming a gardener as well??
He had been so focused last summer on hooking his drip system up to water his tiny cedar trees. .

That my Valentine rhubarb plant got more water than it has seen in it's lifetime. .

We hooked the drippers to take care of the rhubarb and a couple blackberry bushes as well as the tiny trees. .

So the rhubarb is happy, happy, happy!! 

And so will be the gardener the day she gets a pie from this critter!! 

Again. .

being stewarded by a too-busy gardener. .

I thought all my asparagus plants died.

They have never taken off. .

probably because of neglect.

SOO. .

I bought 14 more roots and planted them a couple weeks ago. .

And Jeremy added a dripper hose to them. .

And today whilst rummaging around this back area. .

I found all of the 4 plants that I knew had survived of the first 10 I planted 4-5 years ago now.

Yay us!! 

We love them grilled. .or roasted. .or wrapped in prosciutto and goat cheese!! 

A tiny little columbine that survived it's first year in my garden!

The shady and moist narrow garden on the north side of the house may be a winner! 

Feeling cocky because ONE had survived. 

I bought a few more at Lowes a few weekends ago. .

When I caught them on a flash sale for $3.00 apiece!!

Behind it is a hosta that is supposed to be 5 feet tall. .

It's been pretty pathetic these first few years. .

But it may be settled in and ready to go now!! 

We have decided to add some privacy to our west deck. .

Something that we SHOULD have done about. .

Um. .

16 years ago!!

But I was afraid that we would tear up all the plants. .
So I dug up this clematis from his little spot there.

He won't die. .

But he didn't thrive there either. 

I am hoping that this area on the north side will be a little better. .

Not as intense sun. .but hopefully enough sun that he will perform. 

Here is the north side of that deck!

I am LOVING IT!!

We had some reclaimed church windows. .

In my head plans. .

I knew that I wanted slats to partially see through. .

And I also know that I don't do perfection. .

Instead, I prefer complete randomness. .

That way no one can judge my lack of measuring and precision!

I think this fits the bill!!

Jeremy, as usual, couldn't picture it in his head. .

But was pleased with it too!

The west side is almost done. .

Complete with change of slat direction and different heights on window placement too.

Hopefully by next weekend, it will be all finished up!!

In the rock planter we made several years back. .

There is a clump of maiden grass on the left and a Karl Forester grass on the right, closest to the deck. 

A darker colored sedum clump that you can see..

along with a hardy little dianthus plant loaded with cherry red buds. A few hen and chicks are loving their life there too--a swap from Gardener on Sherlock's house. 

This is the biggest pain in my butt site. .

The west side of the house. .

Hot. .windy. .nothing likes it here!

Climbing on the deck rail is an orange honeysuckle bush. .nearly ready to bloom.

I ordered some little starts from High Country Gardens. .and am hoping that they will be up for the challenge. Rock garden goes in after this if the plants are a no-go!! 

The green grassy clumps are actually old hyacinth foliage and some Magic Lily foliage.

I don't have a lot of curb appeal. .

But my little front flower bed is finally looking fuller.

The same day I got the columbines. .

They were also having a flash sale on these salvia plants!

SCORE! 

I added some along the pond. .

Where I have the same issue of too much heat. .and too much sun!

I put a couple little gallardia plants in there today. .and some more plants from HCG down to the driveway. .filling in among the existing--but sparse plantings!

The green hedge looking thing in the back. .are 3 spirea bushes I dug from my MIL's border years and years ago. .I noticed a smattering of blooms on the north side of them today. .Can't wait to see them in full bloom! 

Little water irises blooming.

My pump died this winter. .

And in delaying the purchase of a new one. .

Both of my big Koi died!! They grow super fast. .So I will have to get some more at Petsmart this summer! 

My friend Pat got a bunch of hybrid iris starts from a gardening buddy out west. .And several years ago, she shared some with me. .This is the first time it was big enough to bloom. .LOVE IT!! 

Well. . 

That's all for the garden diary today!

Thanks for tagging along during our very busy day!!

A Little August Color. .

It seems very difficult to believe that it is the middle of August. .

Not only because we have had over 7 inches of rain in the last month

(which to some of you sounds like no big deal. .

but to us in Western Kansas. .

In JULY/AUGUST. .

It is a HUGE deal!!)

But also because the temperatures for that same length of time have been in the 70-80’s and a few low to mid 90’s!!

This time of year is when we USUALLY have our multiple 100 degree days!!

Now don’t hear me complaining. .

I am NOT!! It just feels strange!!

The flowers are LOVING the weather. .

So I thought I would give you a quick tour!!

This is a little clump of purple salvia that I moved from my mom’s gardens after she moved. .

The bonus was. .

The pink sweet William in the front!

Across the sidewalk from that is my lil’ veggie garden.

The tomatoes have been a total bust!! Not sure why. .

According to all the messages in my In-box. .

Everyone else who bought these grow boxes have PHENOMENAL results!!

Grr!!

The basil and peppers have started to really look nice though. .

And the cucumber vines have grown well. .

The ones that survived the kittens did anyway!!

The three galvanized tubs that were salvaged for herbs are doing well. .

Dill compacto on the left is blooming!

I think I will let it make seed and hope that a few will come up in the straw area next spring! There is also some lemon thyme in with it. .

The chives are in the middle with a clump of regular thyme. .

And something LOVES oregano other than us. .

Cause it has nibbled the clump in the right pot down to the quick. .

It’s just now regenerating!

Grant and I are hoping to make some raised beds in the background to grow beets, garlic, and okra, and put the tomatoes back into the ground, using the grow tubs for peppers and smaller things. We also intend on moving the rhubarb and blackberry plant to the same area. .

Adding another blackberry bush and another raspberry bush as well as two grapevines.

The garden has sure been handier to monitor for this busy gardener when it is right under my nose as I leave every morning!

These little self watering tubs are working better on the flowers than they are on the veggies. .

They have just been slow to take off. .

Usually, we are eating watermelon by now. .

At least we have the promise of watermelon to come. .

Cantaloupe too!!

That will be wonderful!

The nice thing will be. .

That I will pick up the tomatoberry plants that are producing. .

As well as the established pepper and basil plants. .

And move them straight to the greenhouse in their grow boxes.

I am excited to see how that works out.

I also started some new tomatoes, some swiss chard, cilantro seeds, and Diva cucumbers. These will be my winter greenhouse crop.

The moonflowers have reseeded in several areas of the garden. .

They sure do shine in the moonlight and into early morning!
Tristan even picked one for me and brought it into the house the other morning. .
They don't last well in a vase. .
but he didn't know that!!

This was a volunteer Russian sage from my Russian garden. .

I transplanted it to the memory garden last spring. .

It is doing well here and the bees love it!

In contrast. .

Here is my Russian garden!!

Not only do the flowers love the rain. .

So do the weeds!!

This bed was cleaned out not long ago!! The Texas red yucca are just now big enough to have had one bloom on them. .

I think that in the next year or two, that color combo will be really stunning! This bed has had no additional water, even earlier in the summer when it was hotter and things seem to be holding their own.

Back to the memory garden. .

There is a HUGE patch of these cute little mini hollyhocks! Behind are all the dried blooms from the Monarda!

My favorite Grandpa Otts morning glory. .

They are rambling up the fences now!

Right down from those is this transplanted clump of Karley Rose grass. .

One of my very favorite grasses with purplish plumes and a medium height.

The patch of purple is a sedum from my mom. .

Possibly blackjack.

When we moved plants from her yard, she remembered how much I loved the black sedum and asked me to take that clump. It has established well. .

And I’m not sure that I had ever really been to her house this time of the year. .

Because the stem color has darkened dramatically. .
And I love it even more now!

Can’t wait to propagate that into some new clumps!

Last bloomer in the memory garden is this Guava ice coneflower that I got on clearance in mid June!! Loving that!

Grant’s zinnias are blooming. .

And look nice with Salvia shared by Gardener on Sherlock street. .

As well as near the goldenrod that has been blooming for about a month now!

One naked lady left. .

The clump was gorgeous. .

And there were several clumps that I found.

Those reestablish sooo slowly after moving them, that I still find new clumps each year!!

I tried to grow gladiolus this year. .

I’ve had mixed results. .

There were several that died. .

Though I’m not sure what made the difference.

I’ve had a handful that bloomed. .

Some that bloomed also had the bulb next to them die. .

Go figure!!

The pitcher pump has run water all summer!!

Seems the magical cure was to get it out of nearly all of the wind. .

I have absolutely loved it!!

My large galvanized tub. .

With purple fountain grass, lemongrass (which I STILL don’t know how to cook with) and sweet potato vine. .

There are still some purple petunias in there. .

But the other stuff is edging them out. I do like the contrasting colors and foliage!

The $2 clearance canna bulbs are starting to bloom in the pond. .
I'm hoping to salvage those in my garage this winter and use them again next year.

And this little blue pickerel water plant has also been throwing purple flowers out for about 2 months now!

The corkscrew rush has been naturalizing the pond since the pond’s inception. It looked really neat with the rain drops still on it’s stalks!

As did the backlit Mexican hats!

I love sooo much the colors of later summer and fall. .

Everything is fuller. .

The butterflies are visiting in full force. .

And the weather promises cooler temperatures (eventually)

I’m sure there will be a few more blooms to showcase before the end of the season!!