soaphouse's Blog
soaphouse's posts about: datura
Jun 6, 2008 | 5:25 AM PST
Tags: abelia , datura , tomato , veggie , pepper , lavender , blueberry , lily , progress , before and after , gardenia
It is VERY hot here lately...feels more like july than early june. So, I have mainly doing light futzing in the garden and took some time yesterday and this morning to get some picture updates of recent garden happenings...
We haven't had rain in a while, so I am having to keep up on the watering. Mostly of the veggie beds...they are looking good:
Things are growing fast and everything has flowers so I am looking forward to big harvests soon! Yesterday, my 2 1/2 year old ate a sweet gypsy pepper right off the plant. She ate the whole thing! I bet if I had put that on a plate and served it to her she wouldn't have even touched it - HAH! We also enjoyed the first 3 cherry tomatoes...very tasty!
The Blueberry seems to be happy in its new home, so we may actually have a harvest this year!
I thought this lavender was big last year...but this year, WOW!:
The gardenia bush that I bought very small for $5 , 3 years ago is blooming this year for the first time...smells SO good!:
The Easter Lily that we dedicated 2 years ago at church for my daughter's first Easter is now happy in the garden and blooming away:
The datura bed looks amazing this year. Hear is a pict of what it looked like this time LAST YEAR:
And this year:
What a difference a year makes! The only bummer is that the purple datura that I added last year didn't seem to reseed this year, so I am hoping I can find another one at the nursery this year to try again...
Last year:
THIS YEAR:
Also, the new berm is filling in nicely. Last year pict:
THIS YEAR:
I love looking back at old picts and seeing progress!
And, last...but not least....the abelias that were planted 5 years ago (one of the first things we planted when we moved in) are looking great and blooming right now. We planted them to block out the view of the the neighbors yard (or lack their of) across the street. I would say they have done that job!
Have a great gardening weekend everyone!
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!
Apr 24, 2008 | 3:43 PM PST
Tags: astilbe , hardy begonia , veggie , datura , grass , black berry , peach
Mom and I took a little day trip today to a fabulous nursery that is a bit of a drive north of our town. We typically go there once every spring. On my list for sure was a hardy begonia. I used to have one of these, but I had planted it with the Vinca Major and the Vinca won the fight last year. I was planning on moving it this spring, but the poor little guy didn't make it, so I needed a new one. To my delight, they had one. SO, i got it and also picked up 3 Astilbe Color Flash Limes (Astilbe xarendsii hybrid). This same plant is usually priced $13.99 at our local nursery, but at the one today they were only $5.75 so I could afford to get 3 of them. Hooray! They are said to get 15-20 inches high with lime green foliage that changes color throughout the season and purplish/pinkish blooms. I planted all my new goodies in front of the azaleas to the right of all the new hosta starts. The shade bed is coming together!
I also picked up some little moon flower vine seedlings. I put some of these seeds in the ground, but they don't always germinate, so I picked up some to guarantee that I get some of this wonderful vine this year. They got planted by the arbor in the back. Once everything was in the ground...I got to watering.
The veggies are looking great! Most exciting is the tomato bed:
An
d, the corn has germinated VERY well:
p>Once the watering was done, I took some time to capture the happenings in the garden as of now...
The blackberries are blooming and we are looking forward to the berries to come:
The peach tree that bloomed in early spring now has little fruits on it! I am surprised b/c I just planted it last year:
The allium blubs are starting to do something:
In the front yard, where I spotted lots of little seedlings in the spring and wasn't sure what they were...well, they are thousands of datura babies!
The feather grass is just beautiful with all its new growth:
The double knockouts are just ready to burst:
And finally, the autumn ferns have some wonderful new fronds and look beautiful as I sit on the front porch:
Apr 10, 2008 | 9:56 AM PST
Tags: viburnum , iris , hellebore , miscanthus , tulip , hosta , ivy , fig , autumn fern , frond , birdhouse , solomons seal , bougainvilla , datura , trumpet tree , peonie , allium , oxalis , elaphant ear , coral bark
So much is happening in the garden, it is SO exciting! I took another trip to the nursery today. I was going to pick up my veggie plants to have ready to put in the ground next week, but i forgot my list...so I just picked up a purple bougainvilla. I have always wanted to try one of these up the front porch railing...but have never been willing to spend the money on something that won't come back, but I decided to go for it this year. It will go in next week. We are forecasted for another freeze on monday, so I still have to be patient! When I got home, I took a nice stroll around the garden to admire all the spring happenings and take some picks. Here is a sampling:
The Viburnum is blooming and looking so pretty:
Those Iris in front of it are starting to bud out, the mystery oxalis bulbs that came free with my order from direct gardening are coming up, the peonies are up and have buds on them, the small allium bulbs have formed their buds, the hellebores look amazing, the pineapple lily is coming up. And, the miscanthus that I have been experimenting with lately is looking good. I have some that I always wish didn't grow so tall, so I decided to keep cutting them back in spring to stunt their growth. So far, so good.
The coral bark maple is all leafed out:
The hostas are coming up very nicely. There are some that didn't seem to survive the drought though. I spent some time last night cutting back the ivy so that the hostas can breathe.
The Solomon's Seal clump that I dug up from mom's is looking great and I know I will just love having this in the garden. The cannas are also coming up, the crepe myrtles are leafing out, the euphorbia that i got for $1 b/c it was half dead looks great:
Also, the fig tree is leafing out and so is the wisteria (although I have yet to get blooms off this vine).
I think one of my favorite parts of the garden right now is all the autumn fern fronds that are emerging:
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The 60 tulips that I planted are up and the purple are blooming. Its funny how short they are, but the other ones aren't...
The honeysuckle on the side of the house that is supposed to like sun, but is in shade...looks good:
Another exciting thing is that the birdhouse we put in last year now has a nest in it. We weren't sure b/c we did not design it with housing birds in mind...it was more of an art piece. so, its cool that the birdies are liking it!
The trumpet trees are coming up and the Daturas as well. The daturas made TONS of babies:
I am wondering if some of those seedlings are poppies. I did scatter some seeds out there in the winter. Will have to wait and see, I guess.
Another exciting thing is the deciduous honey suckle start that mom gave me is coming back. I thought for sure it was dead! And last but not least, the Elephant ears are all coming up.
SUCH EXCITEMENT!
Her
e are some broad shots of the garden as of today:
Front:
Side yard:
Back yard:
Aug 7, 2007 | 11:27 AM PST
Tags: elephant ear , datura , creek , bird , yellow finch , hot , strawberry
The last few days it has gotten SO HOT here! I thought it was warm before, but we have had heat indexes at over 105 degrees. So, I haven't been doing too much in the garden. The afternoon showers have stopped, so the weeds have slowed down which is nice, but I am having to water some things. While watering the veggies, I spotted this yellow finch (i think its a finch, i don't know much about birds)
Its not the best picture but it was all i had the chance to get before he flew off:
Its so cool to see creatures enjoying the garden!
I also managed to get a shot of this guy:
Happily, the garden is doing a lot of taking care of itself. We are still working on the creek project...we got some done on sunday:
My plan was to drag all the brush to the curb this afternoon for pick up tomorrow...but its just too hot! Plus, leaving it there to dry out will make it less heavy next week :)
I am also excited because my strawberry plants are finally starting to look like something! So, I might get some berries next year....
I also got some great shots of Daturas untwirling:
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And, very cool shot of opening elephant ear leaf
I guess about all I can stand to do in this heat is have fun with the camera :)
Jul 8, 2007 | 5:51 PM PST
Tags: weeken , lily , hibiscus , clean , creek , datura
This weekend in the garden was mostly about routine maintenance. Today was my birthday, so most of the weekend was filled with social festivites. However, I did work a bit on the creek clean out project. I am making good progress on that and Have only fallen in once so far. LOL. Other than that, I mostly just did some maintenance weeding and visited a few nurseries looking for good deals. I also woke up early this morning to get some watering done. Things are looking good...The hardy hibiscus is about to bloom and the stargazer lily is blooming. The purple datura is forming its first seed pod and I can't wait to get a good picture of that one! I hope to finish the creek clean out by the end of the week. Then, all of the major projects will be finished until Fall....I can't imagine....what will I do with myself??? Oh, I know I'll think up something :)
Jun 30, 2007 | 6:18 PM PST
Tags: mulch , double knockout , red maple , fall , okra , weekend , datura
-I got all the mulch moved!!! It looks FABULOUS. I still need another load for the right side of the house and crepe myrtle alley.
-Laid out a new bed for the back yard, I will berm it up with the free city compost and plant a red maple as the center. (All in effort of operation lawn minimization.
-Okra is growing :)
-Broccoli is appearing :)
-Squash coming along :)
-Turks cap Lily Blooming :)
-Purple Datura Bloomed!
-T
he inlaws are in town and for my upcoming birthday they gave me a gift certficate to one of my favorite garden centers in Atlanta! Can't wait to spend it in the fall!
-Went to the nursery yesterday and when the sales guy asked me if I needed help, I told him I was looking for half dead plants for cheap....he hooked me up! 3 gallon double knock out rose for $10, 1 gallon Pink Dianthus for $2 and a guaera (spelling?) for $2. Woo HOOOO. I want 7 double knockouts for the front, so I am going to attempt to propogate from the one I got.
-Tomorrow morning is my watering time, so I will give everything a much needed good drink.
-This week my big plan in the garden is to clear out behind my back fence where there is a creek...it is SO overgrown with privet, wild grapes, and god only knows what else. I think I may try to make a wreath or something out of the grape vines that i pull. I'm going to post before and after picts of this one....
-All in all a great gardening weekend
Happy Gardening to all and to all a good night :)
