soaphouse's Blog
soaphouse's May 2008 Entries
Last Post 8 days, 16 hours Ago
May 29, 2008 | 8:37 AM PST
Tags: radish , harvest , rose , miniature , perennial , day lily
We had more wonderful rain last night and it is really helping along the garden! Also helping cut down on my need to water which is wonderful!. A couple of nights ago, we enjoyed our first harvest from the veggie garden: RADISHES...I know, they are always the first things, but still exciting:
I cooked them up, greens and all with some salt, pepper and olive oil and they made a great side dish to go with our rotissiere chicken.
I also had a chance the other day to work on some weeding and capture some recent happenings in the garden:
The Clematis (that we planted when my oldest daughter was born 2 1/2 yrs ago) is looking great this year:
My miniature rose bushes are in full bloom right now and just such a sweet accent in the front yard:
The front perennial bed is just bursting and the daylilies have just begun:
The annual planter that my girl and I planted up together is filling in nicely and really looks good when she hasn't picked all the flowers off - HAH!
All the rain has certainly helped along the weeds too...so when I have a chance I will get to some of those in the front yard as well, to keep things tidy. I am still enjoying the results of working so hard over the winter and not having as much to do right now, except enjoying the garden and watching things mature and fill in :)
May 26, 2008 | 5:21 AM PST
Tags: beauty berry , sweet potato , datura , oak leaf , hydarngea , rainbow
Well, I have been adjusting to life with my 2 girls and trying to find time to do other things :) Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't...we went to the beach last week and had a wonderful time. We even saw a rainbow:
My neighbor told me that we had lots of rain while we were gone and you know what that means...EVERYTHING grows! And, lots of weeds too! So, we came home to a garden with a long to do list. Yesterday, while hubby was with the girls, I was able to do a good once over everything with the weedeater. I also got the lawn mowed and planted the purple beautyberry and the sweet potatoes that arrived while we were gone. Things are looking good too...Oakleaf is beautiful right now:
The veggie beds exploded while we were gone:
p>The fatsias that hubby put in for me for mothers day are looking good:
p>And, we came home to a pretty little bird's nest in the dogwood right by our front door:
p>All of this was so nice to come home to...the daturas are starting to bloom too and look great along side the driveway!
May 12, 2008 | 2:32 PM PST
Tags: rose , peony , veggies , blackberry , madame alfred
Its amazing how much happens in a garden in just 2 days, especially with a good rain! We were so glad to get home from the hospital with Etta Rose:
Of course, one of the first things I had to do upon my return, was to walk around the garden....so much happened! The peonies bloomed!
All the good rain we had while I was in the hospital really helped along all the veggies:
Everything practically doubled in size! And, look at all the blackberries we are going to have!
But, most noteable is the rose that bloomed! I planted this out in the fall: Mdme Alfred Cartiere. They are on either side of the arbor in the back and will look so pretty when they grow up big. So for now, on our first day home, a new rose for our new rose:
We enjoyed our little stroll in the garden and now I must figure out a time in the day to do my gardening...but, all in good time. For now I am enjoying my little Rose :)
May 8, 2008 | 5:54 PM PST
Tag: nursery
Well, I will be spending a lot of my time in a different kind of nursery! We finally got to meet our baby girl last night! She is beautiful! Etta Rose weighs 7lbs 8 oz. (the same I was and my other daughter was) and is 19 1/2 inches long. She is a quiet little thing with a very sweet personality and we are all doing great! I can't wait to get her home and walk her through the garden. Her big sister is very excited too! Thank you all for all your sweet messages and prayers!
May 4, 2008 | 6:53 PM PST
Tags: juncus , fatsia , clematis
To celebrate our wedding anniversary (and to keep our minds off of the fact that I am overdue to have our 2nd child), My wonderful hubby took me plant shopping and said that when we got home, he would plant what we bought :) So sweet!
The first thing we got was a Clematis "Liberation" Evifive. "A free- flowering variety with 9" deep - pink flowers, blooming in Spring and again in late summer." We planted a Clematis Jackmani when we had our first daughter...in her honor. So, we wanted to do the same for this daughter. It will grow up the new sculpture:
Ter
rible pict, I know...hard to get a good shot in all those shadows...but, you get the idea.
Then, we got a fatsia japonica. I just love these plants. I want to put them under the crepe myrtles to add more evergreen screen against the chain link fence. They tend to be a bit pricey for some reason, so we got one and hubby said "just get one each time you go to the nursery, that way it won't seem to cost so much" Ahhh...he is getting the idea now! :)
And, finally...we got a Juncus effusus Spiralis or "Corkscrew Rush". Fun, hardy water plant that we put in the creek. Said to take full sun and get to 2 feet tall. Plus, its very fun to say that for my wedding anniversary, my husband got me "Juncus" HAH!
May 1, 2008 | 6:17 PM PST
Tags: Allium , moss , siberian iris , crossvine , better boy , petunia , lantana , callbrachoa
I spent so much time over the fall and winter working on projects that I forgot that most of spring involves chores and maintenance, while taking time out to enjoy all the happenings in the garden. Over the last week or so I have picked up a few sweet potato vines to plop around areas of my garden that are sparse on plants. The vines grow like crazy and smother all the weeds...making my life a lot easier during the growing season. I put one variegated in the front bed by the street, one in the small berm with the elephant ears by the sidewalk to the front door, and 2 in the new berm with the coral bark maple. I also picked up 3 of the green to put in the area where we took out the tree this winter and I am working on adding plants to. The weeds are already getting feisty in there, so I am anxious for the vine to do its thing. I also got the yard mowed again and weedeated back by the creek. Doing this does seem to be helping the moss along. It is looking especially good on one portion of the bank:
Also, the ferns that I added a few weeks back are looking good and have some nice new growth. And, there are some wonderful little wild ferns popping up here and there.
I am pleased to report that the veggie beds are looking great. Seems like new seedlings pop up every day. The most action is happening in the corn bed and the tomato bed. We even have some baby better boys already growing!
p>
I am a bit concerned that not much seems to be happening in the flower bed that I put all the seeds out in by the back porch. I am hoping it is due to the fact that it is not raised like the veggie beds...so the soil may just need to heat up a bit more.
Also, the globe master allium bulbs are starting to bloom. They do look rather puny and are only about 2 inches across. They are said to get 2-3 feet tall and are supposed to be 5 inches or more in diameter. Maybe they will get there, or maybe I will have to wait until the next growing season:
But, other things are looking great!
The double knockouts are knockin me out:
The front porch bed is alive with new growth:
The siberian iris are blooming:
The mystery climbing rose and yellow irises are blooming:
The crossvine? is looking great! ( I can never seem to remember if thats what this is really called)
Finall
y, today...my girl and I went to pick out a few annuals to put in the pot by the front door. I have a little miscanthus division in there, but it won't look like much until next year, so I wanted something to fill in this planter for the summer. I got 1 orange lantana, 1 Pink Vein Shock Wave Petunia and 1 Callbrachoa Cabaret Purple. Hopefully they will fill in nicely :)
