Ozma's Blog
Ozma's October 2008 Entries
Last Post 4 days, 7 hours Ago
Oct 24, 2008 | 10:03 PM PST
My last web programming job ended on Cinco de Mayo and I haven't found another one yet. I guess while there was so much to do in the garden, it didn't get me down. It's gotten cool and many of the trees are blazing, but there isn't as much fun stuff to do in the garden. So joblessness finally got to me.
I let my self wallow in self-pity for about a day, and then found my backbone. The best way for me to get my spirits up was to get a new attitude. I'm pretending I'm retired, and I'm only looking for work for the fun of it. You don't have to be crazy to enjoy life, but it helps.
I thought the sedum on my berm was "Autumn Joy", but pictures I've seen show green foliage and mine has bronze foliage. So, is it "Autumn Joy"?
Oct 17, 2008 | 5:07 PM PST
Tag: composting
I found a very interesting article in the Mother Earth News. Check it out.
THE UNDERGROUND COMPOSTER
Oct 14, 2008 | 11:13 AM PST
All the boxes of fall decorations are clogging up the living room. So today I'm going to put on my witch's hat and spookify my domicile. I love Halloween! Maybe it's because my mom was born on October 31; we called her "Halloween Mary." I've always loved making costumes. The first one I made when I was in 7th grade was Ozma, girl princess of Oz. (Naturally!)
I won't be gardening today, with the possible exception of gathering bouquets of mums and zinnias. So here's a little compost for thought:
"...We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon instead of enjoying the roses blooming outside our window today."
~ Dale Carnegie
Oct 12, 2008 | 7:51 PM PST
There is a certain place to sit in my living room that's mine. When I turn my head to the right, I can see out the sliding glass door into the backyard. If I turn my head to the left, I can look out the picture window, and down Jill St. to the evergreens in Awbrey Park.
I love this vantage point for watching the passing seasons, clouds, animals, and people. Boys on their bicycles, teenage girls on their cell phones, and senior citizens on walks with their dogs. Flocks of little birds and individual blue jays zig-zag across Jill St. trying out this tree and that. Neighborhood cats, old ones sunning themselves in the middle of the street, young ones streaking after bugs and leaves. Sometimes I see dark clouds, heavy with rain, and other times, brilliantly white clouds sailing across a bright blue sky. At times the wind makes the trees dance and quake, scattering autumn leaves or spring blossoms about. And the sunsets! Some take my breath away.
I often just sit there watching, mesmerized.
Oct 11, 2008 | 1:40 PM PST
Tags: Tulips , Asiatic lilies , Hollyhocks
All season long, I've been making mental notes on what plants to move in my garden. I especially want to gather up the tulips that were planted here and there in the oddest spots and plant them where they can have more impact. Now if I can only remember where they are.....
The Asiatic lilies also need to be planted in a better location. The pink ones should go in Grandma's garden, and the orange ones in flower bed along the north fence in the backyard.
I also have a couple of old hollyhocks that should be planted in a sunnier spot, but I'm wondering if they take to being transplanted. There are several young plants that have sprouted in their vicinity that might be hollyhocks but the leaves are not lobed.
It's a beautiful day and I gotta get diggin'. Cheers!
Oct 1, 2008 | 3:59 PM PST
Today was my first real day of work in the garden since we got back from Alaska. I weeded the berm first since it's the prettiest part of our yard. I also wanted to cut back the lamb's ear to prevent it from suffocating everything else planted there.
There is so much to do this autumn -- mostly transplanting. I let the agapanthus go to seed last year so that I would have seedlings to move to the entry garden and under the curly willow. I need to thin out the sedum "Autumn Joy" and red daylilies on the berm, and transplant some to the front edge of the SE rose garden.
Talking about roses, there are so many that need to be moved around. I'm hoping fall is a good time to do that. One of the roses I moved last year did very well this year, but now it's infested with aphids and the attendant ants. None of the other roses near it have this problem, so I'm a bit puzzled.
The sunflowers that I planted in the front yard now have flowers that bow down from the weight of their seeds. I think they will lend spooky aire to my Halloween decorations this year. I wish I could find my pictures of last year's decorations to help me remeber what to do. Their dissappearance is quite mysterious. oooo000OOO000ooooo
