witt's Blog

April 29
Apr 29, 2008 | 11:06 AM PST

I got the golden creeping Jenny from my friend, but I haven't done a thing with it. My porch was a yellow mess since it rained and splashed up a misty mess. I haven't done a thing with it, either. The sun is shining beautifully today, but the wind is brisk, and it's a mite chilly. Not much yard work has been done lately by me.

Since this is supposed to be a log that I can use for a reference, I might as well log in my seed planting.

Planted April 24

parsley- 21-28 days till germination

cosmos

sage- 7-21 days till germination

thyme- 8-20 days till germination

Pink splash plant is labeled hypoestes, the red splash is hypoestes phyllostachya.

Maybe I'll have something to say gardenwise tomorrow.

April 28
Apr 28, 2008 | 8:13 AM PST

We got an inch and 7/10ths! I'm so pleased. The ground was so dry that I couldn't dig where I wanted to work. Maybe today. A friend wants some St. John's wort, and I really need to work on that corner of The Poison Garden. He's coming today supposedly to bring me some gold creeping jenny.

I forgot to get some of Mom's red hot poker that she wanted to get rid of. She wanted to thin it out. I was so excited seeing everyone that I totally forgot about it. We'll be going back for Mother's Day, so I guess I'd better be prepared to wield a shovel.

I haven't even gotten the pictures out of the camera because I have been swamped today. I shouldn't have spent so much time this morning playing on GG. Nothing ever gets done when I start reading it.

April 27
Apr 27, 2008 | 5:34 AM PST
Of course, I didn't play in the yard yesterday because I went to celebrate my mom's ninetieth birthday. Was her yard glorious! The first thing you saw as you drove up was a scarlet array of red. Her amaryllis were in full bloom and stretched all the way from one end of the house to the other in great profusion. The backyard was an explosion of color with iris, azaleas, petunias and a display of spring flowers. No one could fail to notice in the middle of a circular garden room on the bright green grass were temporary lawn ornaments--two shiny red cruising Harley-Davidsons, ridden up from Florida by two nephews to honor their aunt's birthday.

On our way home we drove through three or four thunder showers, but we didn't have any rain here at all when we returned. I took a walkabout and was amazed at what had exploded in my own yard. More iris, even yellow ones, clemetis, roses, azalea, and a few other flowers. We are experiencing a small shower right now. I do hope that it will last.

April 26
Apr 26, 2008 | 2:38 AM PST

I thought that I would never get out of the kitchen. All I did was make a pasta salad and a pineapple upside-down cake, but it took forever. I called it my "Something for Everybody" salad. It had a million things in it. Finally I got through with it and went outside to play. I planted some more seeds only after I had to plow through all the toady-froggy holes. If I could just plant seeds, that would be easy. Instead I had to dig and dig and dig, get compost, and dig and dig, trying to get rid of the tunnels. Next it was water them in. I had to fill my little watering can a bazillion times and tote it a half a mile to water. Oh, please rain! At least I had the scarlet tanager to serenade me again. Of course, taking breaks on the porch was wonderful, getting to enjoy watching the birds. I don't think that I saw one hummingbird, though. I checked the feeders and they had nectar. I guess I shouldn't have said anything about the cool weather running them off. Oh, and Son didn't like that we put the fig tree in the Garden Garden. Hmmm. I guess he wanted to use our plot for his veggies. I supposed we messed up his ideas.

We're off today in a little while to go to Mom's for her ninetieth birthday. I will be digging a red hot poker from her yard for a friend and who knows what else if I can get that done before all the cousins arrive.

April 25 Birds Arrived
Apr 25, 2008 | 3:53 AM PST

I did the things that I HAD to do while Hubby and Son did their manly man stuff, and then I started in the kitchen, but I just wasn't in the mood to do any cooking. I went outside and planted my flowers. Hubby and Son went out for Chinese. Toady frog holes all in my Herb Garden! Little babies were jumping out as I plowed through them, trying not to injure my hostas, bee balms and other things that are already growing in there. I planted the impatiens and splash plants. Funny. I didn't plant the basil in the Herb Garden. Not enough sunlight there anymore. I put that in the Front Flower Bed. Then I took a break on the porch. Hubby was back by then and joined me. Lo and behold, I heard it! The scarlet tanager. He was talking to a partner off in the tree tops. We couldn't see him, though. Suddenly, off he swooped from one tree to another--a brilliant red flash. There was just enough leaf cover that I couldn't zero in on him very well with my binocs, but I know them by their song. They serenaded me for the rest of the day. Oh, how I loved that. Now we are hoping that our indigo bunting will reappear this year also. I planted most of my seed--parsley, sage, thyme, and cosmos, which I got free in the mail. My, they were generous in the packs this year. Usually there are only a few seeds in them, but these were loaded. I thought that I never would finish. Finding an empty spot isn't easy. I never did get them all out, and I didn't plant any basil seed at all. Later. Maybe I can finish with my cooking today and get out there to plant the rest of them.

Would you believe that I had to refill the two thistle socks in the front again? They were totally empty. I just did that day before yesterday. I've never seen anything like this. You'd think that it was raining yellow leaves when a group of the goldfinches come swooping out of the trees at the same time. They shower down onto the two socks, three sunflower feeders, in the trees or underneath, wherever they can find a spot. Their whistling is getting to where it's almost deafening.

I noticed that I have my first rose blooming. Of all places it's on the one by the potting shed, which never gets any attention. It is a zephirine drouhin. The one at the porch, of course, isn't blooming yet. Also I spotted my clemetis blooming, too. I never did get a picture. I'll have to do that today.

At least it was a gorgeous day and we enjoyed some porch-sitting, which we haven't done in days and days.

 

April 24
Apr 24, 2008 | 2:25 AM PST

Gloomy Gus was here again yesterday. I did manage to purchase a few flowers. I got a basil, impatiens, and splash plants. I haven't had a splash plant in years, so I thought that I'd try them again, just to have something different. I would have gotten more if I had had time to look, but the wretched wind wouldn't quit, and hubby couldn't take any more of it. I can't believe that I was bundled in sweats and a jacket. I'm getting really tired of wearing heavy clothes. The dang sun finally came out when I was in the middle of frying chicken, and I couldn't stop in the middle of that process. We did have a treat with the chicken. Turnips. Someone had been tilling up their garden and came across the turnips. They were so sweet it was unbelievable. Best I've ever had. Perhaps they are better when they have wintered over in the ground. I wouldn't know because we never had any luck growing them.

I learned something this morning. I was awake at 3:45 a.m. Why? Because the whippoorwill was singing his song. I thought that they only sang at dusk and dawn. It was pitch black dark at that time. I guess they get a kick out of singing the "Wake up Witt" song.

I fully intend on getting in the yard today, no matter what. It's supposed to be nice at first, and then cloud up later. Perhaps I can get some things done that I have been putting off due to the gray weather. 

April 23
Apr 23, 2008 | 2:54 AM PST
It was another Gloomy-Gus day. Again I was stuck with inside computer work and not finding myself the least bit happy about things. I went outside and thankfully there was just enough of the blue sky between threatening clouds to lift my spirits. There are about six more iris that have opened. I wish that they could have danced in the sun, but, alas, that was not to be. I talked with my mom yesterday, and she set me straight about iris reverting to purple. Nope, they don't. I don't know where I got that idea. I was wrong. I would have sworn that she had told me that. I'll keep my eye out for the salmon-colored one that popped out last year that I had never seen before. I do hope that she blooms again.

Right before supper I went out to refill the thistle socks. Slap empty, dangling in the breeze. Yes, again. The goldfinches are unbelievable this year. I have noticed that they, too, have begun eating off the ground like the cardinal and others. I have never seen them do that. What a sight to see. Yellow and red dots bobbing along in the green grass. I love it!

See, it doesn't take much to make me happy just a little swatch of blue sky and my troubles disappear.

As I was returning to the house, time to start supper, I noticed a toady frog hole at the base of a society garlic in the Outhouse Bed. NO! Not there. Not my beloved society garlic. I grabbed my trusty trowel and began jooging the ground. (Yes, that's my word--jooging.) There were tunnels that ran all around under there. Around my columbines (no wonder they aren't blooming yet), carnations, under the serissa, and agapanthus. I jooged all I could without actually lifting the plants and re-seating them. I had to stop, but I'll get back out there again today to see how much more damage I can find.

I still haven't planted my herb seeds. Oh, the good intentions that I have.

After all these days of gloom, we haven't gotten any rain. Probably everyone else in creation is getting showers, but none on the Bucolic Bungalow.

April 22
Apr 22, 2008 | 2:34 AM PST
It was a Gloomy Gus kind of day. Cloudy, chilly, and breezy. Not my kind of day. Evidently, not my irises kind of day either. They were all ready to burst into bloom, and now they are just sitting there. I don't think they are too happy now.  I didn't go out and do a thing. I was going to plant my seeds, but I never got up enough energy to bother. I think that today is going to be the same. I'll just read what everyone else has to say and enjoy their photos. How blah is this?

April 21
Apr 21, 2008 | 5:08 AM PST
There's an iris finally blooming in the Butterfly Garden. A few more are almost ready to open. On the Patio Garden there are more perennial petunias popping out along with the cilantro. I hadn't intended to work any yesterday. I just wanted to sit back and enjoy. We strolled around and looked at what is ready to bloom. Duckman had asked me two weeks ago if I had any figs. He did. Figs? It is just now beginning to get leaves. Well, sure enough, the big bush had three teeny-tiny figs on it. I'll be danged. He was right. We've only had one fig on it each year, and it never ripened before the first frost. Wouldn't it be grand to actually get some edible figs from it after all these years? We plan to give it more attention this year since we have this little bit of encouragement. We checked the other fig bush that is by the Poison Garden. It too was beginning to leaf out. We thought that it was a gonner. We sat on the back patio and discussed some things that we wanted to do. We decided to move the fig tree that's in front of the outhouse to the Garden Garden. I don't think we will be using the whole thing as in the past. Too much for him and tired of fighting the drought. He dug it up and moved it. I hope that it will bear there. At least it will have room to grow and get more sun. Then we noticed a pack of forest ants building their fortress right in the middle of the Elephant Ears again. Poor things. They don't have a chance. Organic or not, the ants got a blast of spray. Go back to the forest where you belong! A lot of the serissas here and there are putting on their leaves. I noticed that the old girls aren't as green as the young uns. I'm going to do some cuttings. As I sat there late in the afternoon relishing the hummers, I decided that if I could dig a hole on the edge of the woods near that fig bush, I could get the forsythia that had layered herself in the Old Gourd Garden. Well, glory be, I actually got a good-sized hole dug. I went to the compost heap and got a bucket of black gold. As I was returning to the hole, I waylaid myself. I started digging in the compost where the ice plant had died. I know that the soil needed to be amended. By the time I got around all that, I was out of compost. I had to go back and get more. I wrestled with that forsythia, but I finally got it dug up. She was well-rooted. I planted her and watered her in. I was weary, but it was a good weary. I slept like a log, but I'm all stove-up this morning.

April 20
Apr 20, 2008 | 5:13 AM PST
The Old Gourd Garden has been de-leafed all the way to the end even if I had to fight the prickles of the Mahonia holly, sticking me in the arms, face, and butt. I had planned on trimming the forsythia there, but a shower stopped me. By the time I got my stuff put up and got myself settled on the porch to enjoy the rain, it quit. We did get 1/10th of an inch. That's better than nothing.

I went back out and started another project. I trimmed the yaupon holly and put some sprigs in the rooting pot. I got a few from the althea as well. I went from one little project to another, being interrupted by small showers that didn't spell beans. My POH was out front taking down two ugly scrub trees on the edge of the woods when I came upon the first snake of the season. It was between the Back Flower Bed and the back steps. I went to get my POH, but the snake was gone by then. It was black with yellow rings. I think it was a King snake, but even if it is harmless, it's not harmless to the chickens. Besides, with John, it's not its first name that gets him killed. At least this one got away. I became very wary of where I was walking and where I was putting my hands.

I worked on Aunt Winnie's Garden (AGAIN!) I started digging around, and it is totally undermined by dang toady frog tunnels. My elephant ears have two little sprouts on it, but the bulbs are like paper. There was a big blank space underneath them. I top-dressed the whole area around them with compost and dug it in. I did it over and over all around. I don't know if that will do any good, but I sure tried to give my poor plants a chance. All but one tiny oxalis is left. Last year it was a profusion of pink. This year, nothing.

I passed through the Patio Garden, pulling up things that I missed the other day. I don't mind pulling weeds when I can brush up against the Sweet Annie. She's so soothing, but my blood pressure did rise when I saw a few things looking like they were ready to give up the ghost. Oh, I know why. My darling husband was spraying his favorite weedkiller in the turnaround, and I guess he wasn't very careful about the Patio Garden (When is he ever?). A few cilantro, perennial petunias, and Sweet Annie are about to bite the dust. Oh, well. What can I do? (I know. Hide the Round-Up!)

My one and only azalea is about ready to burst into bloom all over. Right now only a few flowers are open, and they are the brightest shade of pink. So pretty. I guess I've never seen it go into full bloom because every year it gets hit by a frost and I get nothing.

So far my iris are all in the bud stage. I can't wait to go out and see if any of them have opened. I believe that I accomplished a little something yesterday, but it is a long way from being finished. Oh, what am I saying? It'll never be finished. There's always something more to do.

April 19
Apr 19, 2008 | 4:58 AM PST
A friend came over yesterday and got a slew of baby nandinas that I had pulled out of the Back Bed. She was a witness to the woodpecker eating off the ground. She was amazed a the bird chatter going on the woods. It sounds like a million goldfinches out there. Amazing. After she left, I decided to work on the ivy in the Old Gourd Garden. Of course, it was filled up with leaves again. What do you expect when it's on the edge of the woods? After I got out a bucket load of leaves, I got the ivy clipped back. A lot of it was dying due to old fire ant beds in the middle of it. I need to give it some fresh soil where it was excavated. I didn't like the way the bed looked, so I continued to de-leaf. There are still lots of leaves on the far end. I thought that I'd work on that some today, but now they are calling for rain. I was enjoying porch-sitting and birdwatching after I was too pooped to pick up another leaf when I noticed a patch of weeds in the Patio Garden. I went to investigate and there wasn't just one patch of weeds, but a gazillion. You'd think that I hadn't weeded it at all this spring. Au contraire. I've done it at least five times. I got a bucket load out of there. The chickens loved it, so that made it worthwhile. I gave all my new plants a drink of rainwater. They are looking good and so far no squirrels have decided to investigate their roots...yet.

April 18
Apr 18, 2008 | 2:07 AM PST
What a day! Son came to help plant the tomatoes and put in the stakes. He decided to mow the grass as well. I discovered that HE was the one who had thrown the water hose all over my flowers. He didn't do it this time because I caught him getting ready to do it again. He put the hose on the patio instead. Later I heard some pounding that didn't sound like tomato stakes. They had taken up the horseshoe pits! We had discussed doing this because no one plays anymore, so they went at it. Son said that it's easier to tear things down than it is to build things up. Where they took up one stake, there was a 2 foot square of zoysia. I took that and planted it where the rosemary was by the Back Forty. Wouldn't that be great to get the zoysia going back there? I cleaned out the Potting Shed bed, and discovered that I had an iris bloom there, too. They have never bloomed. I pruned the forsythia there because it was in the way of the potting shed door. So what if it will be a little lopsided? Then the middle of the Back Forty looked like it hadn't been done (I would have sworn that I had already de-leafed that!), so I cleaned that up, too. Son and POH went to eat Chinese. I stayed home to work on the Back Flower Bed. I forgot to mention that when we were taking out the huge rosemary that I pointed out that there was a lemon verbena right beside it. It hadn't started leafing out yet. When we finished our battle, we couldn't find the verbena. I guess we stomped her flat. I found what looked like a dried up stem, so I'm hoping that's her and she'll leaf out later. I cut out some nandina and pulled up a gazillion babies along with miles of Creeping Jenny, ivy, and St. John's wort. I transplanted a hunk of forest ivy where there was no stake for it to climb over to where one had died beside its stake. I hope that it will grow there. I emptied out the soil from pots that were hidden in the undergrowth and dug it in. Then I put in fresh straw. It looks pretty decent, but kind of bare right now. I'm sure I'll find something to plant there. I'd love to put a whole wad of vincas there because that corner where the rosemary was gets loads of afternoon sun and could take the heat. All the birds were active, and I had a great time digging and sweating. My kind of day.

April 17
Apr 17, 2008 | 4:23 AM PST

When I finally got a chance to write my blog yesterday, I couldn't get into this site. Then this morning I still had trouble. Is it me or the site?

My tall iris were bent over from the cold yesterday, but they eventually stood back up. They're still not blooming yet.  I got my flowers planted. What a chore. Even after all these years of planting and replanting, mulching, lime, and compost, the Hibiscus Garden is still clay and rock riddled. POH (That's "poor old husband") was cutting debris in the woods with the chain saw. While we were taking a break, I kept eyeing that rosemary on the corner of the back flower bed. I figured since he was using the chain saw, why not go ahead and cut it down. Wouldn't you know it, the chain saw refused to crank up again. He decided that he could saw it down with his pruning saw. That took awhile because the trunk was huge, but he was determined to do it. It took forever to get that sucker up. She was well-rooted. I took my clippers and kept clipping back the smaller roots while he dug away with the shovel. Between the two of us, we finally got it out of the ground. It looks so much better. Underneath where the rosemary had grown over, there was the concrete pad that we had there for the hose cart with two bricks cemented in. Uh, oh, I think. No worry. POH got the slegehammer and busted that away. I got the area half cleaned up. I'll work on that today.

I cut back some of the nandinas in the Butterfly Garden to give one of my lantanas more light. I dug up some baby nandinas as well and got them out of there. I hilled them in in the New Daffodil Bed for keeping them. Next I decided to dig up the amaryllis that have never bloomed and move them to a better spot. I prepared a nice soft spot for them (more rocks and clay). What a chore that turned out to be, but I finally got it done. I watered everything in with my captured rainwater, and I was done for the day. I was pooped. I did have to refill the thistle socks again. Voracious creatures, those goldfinches! I enjoyed watching the birdies till it was time to come in.

April 15
Apr 15, 2008 | 8:33 AM PST

I didn't do anything earth-shattering in the yard yesterday except clean the hummingbird feeders again and put in fresh nectar. I did eye that rosemary on the corner. I gave her a trim, but the stem of that old thing is about three inches thick. I can't decide what I want to do with her.

The zoysia is greening up nicely and the frost missed us this morning. The big fear is tomorrow morning. I must fill my two thistle socks in the front today, and while I'm out there, I may dig the holes for my new additions to the garden--the million bells and lantana. I have two mums that don't seem like they will be returning. A third has produced new leaves quite nicely. I may use their spot.

We had to go into town early this morning, and we saw a wild turkey with his feathers glistening in the sun. It was so beautiful. If he doesn't get off the side of the road and get back into the woods, someone is going to have Thanksgiving dinner early this year.

Pray for no frost tomorrow.

April 14
Apr 14, 2008 | 3:12 AM PST
I didn't intend to do any work yesterday, but I started pulling weeds in the natural area of the lorapetalum that looked so pitiful. The next thing I know, I've cleaned them both and got them re-strawed. I had to wear my ear muffins, but other than that the weather was ok. I took a few whacks at the rosemary on the corner of the back flower bed. It certainly is an overgrown monstrosity. The one that I had been working on by the Back Forty is gone. I had mentioned to my hubby that I might just do away with it and without my knowledge he did away with it. It is gone. I guess he really was tired of mowing around it. Oh, well. I now have a clear view of the Back Forty. My zoysia is greening up nicely. I think that I'll grab some sprigs and plant them where the rosemary used to be and see if I can get a patch started back there. That would be lover-ly. I have loads of iris almost ready to bloom, buds all over the place. I can't believe that the de-leafing of the beds had that much influence on them. I guess a little sunshine, rain, and bulb booster did the trick, but wouldn't you know it, we're going to get a frost. I hope that either they bloom now or the frost won't be heavy enough to hurt them. I sure hate to lose the flowers after all that work. I mentioned that I had gotten three lantanas call "Radiation." I just happened to notice one of the tags and one of them was the variety "Pink Caprice." I think they'll all blend together well, though. No sign of life from my old one in the ground yet. I'll do my planting after this cold weather passes. The weather today doesn't sound like it will be calling me outdoors. I must be solar-powered because I don't have the energy to work when it's cool and cloudy.

April 13
Apr 13, 2008 | 5:51 AM PST
I didn't get to work in the yard yesterday due to the rain. It wasn't much, but it was another 3/10ths. What does a gardener do when it rains? They hit the nurseries! They didn't have much where I went (the local feed and seed), but I did get three lantana plants--"Radiation." I also got this plant that looks like a very small petunia. I was labeled "Superbells Cherry Red" Calibrachoa hybrid. Is that a petunia or something else? I don't know. That's about all they had there that I wanted. There were no caladiums like I got there last year. If it would just warm up some, maybe mine would finally come back. I may be wishing into the wind on that one.

April 12
Apr 12, 2008 | 4:25 AM PST

It was back to cleaning out the beds. I was putting on my gloves when I looked down and there was a salamander on my shirt. I did a little dance accompanied by a few expletives. Yikes. It must have been on my gloves and jumped onto me! I finished with the Rock Garden, and then I started on the Cement Garden. I had to do some repair work where the rain gauge is. The toady frogs had a million tunnels in there. I dug all that up and moved the gauge to the Rock Garden. There are toady frog holes in there too. I was having to put myself in all kinds of contortions to get out the mess without trampling the plants. The spirea was sticking me in the butt and face every whichway I turned. I had to stop and clip off the dead branches before I worked around it anymore. I accidentally cut some green, but no worry, I just poked them into a pot to see if I could root them. I was from one different thing to another all day long. I had to take a lot of breaks because my bender-overer is about shot. It's looking halfway decent out there now.

I put out the rest of the Holland Bulb Booster so that I could take advantage of the rain. We got 3/10ths.

I was blessed with birds. What a colorful sight. There were all the goldfinches, cardinals, the green hummers, and even Mr. Bluebird put on a show. It made all the others look bland, but I enjoyed their antics, too.

I ended the day on the back patio in hopes of bird watching, but there was no activity back there at all. I wonder why. As I sat there, I kept looking at that old rosemary by the Back Forty. One half of it is completely dead from all Mr. Mole's messings. I went out there and tore into it. When I finished getting all the deadwood out, it looked really pitiful. I think that we'll just do away with it altogether. It's not like I don't have any other ones. What is it? Seven more?

As you can expect, I was really pooped at day's end. I was told that I snored all night long. I must have been really tired because it didn't bother me a bit.

April 11
Apr 11, 2008 | 3:09 AM PST
I was going to call this "Whoohoo We've Got Two," but I think that now I'll call it "Love in the Afternoon." I was taking a break while I was back at the de-leafing project when I realized that we have two hummers. They aren't quiet anymore. They were just chittering away, chasing one another from one feeder to the other. This went on all day long. At the end of the day, I again was porch-sitting when I watched them do their courtship dance in the sky. What a sight to see. Then they brought it down a notch and "danced" on the ground. How long does it take to have babies? I can't wait.

Back to my project. I got the Poison Garden cleaned up and went to the Hibiscus Garden. There I ran into swarming ants. They turned out not to be fire ants, so I just worked around them. I was pretty much pooped after this, but I did make an attempt at the Rock Garden. I'll have to work on that one today. When does the fun part start?

April 10
Apr 10, 2008 | 4:36 AM PST
We hit the ground running yesterday. It was run-around-town day, and we did just that. Lots of stops. We were looking for the right fertilizer for the peach trees. Duckman told us to get Super 10-10-10. We couldn't find anything except 10-10-10. I sure didn't want to buy that. That's my least favorite formulation.I figured that we had some anyway somewhere. I did find some something-52-something to make my blue water! That I like. When we got home, I checked the outhouse, and we had a whole bag full of 10-10-10. I got the peach trees done. I also bought another thistle sock for the backyard. It didn't take the goldfinches 5 minutes to see it. There were at least 10 on it. I did make a big boo-boo. When I opened up the bag, I had it upside-down, and the seed started pouring out. I dropped the bag to stop it. I scooped up as much as I could and put it back. I guess I did lose some, but oh, well. I'll check today to see if something got the pleasure of eating it off the ground. I started putting out the Holland Bulb Booster, but the leaves were so thick I quit with that other than the new Daffodil Bed. Mr. Hummer returned. He was in the front yard as well as the backyard. I de-leafed the Back Forty, the Old Gourd Garden, The Outhouse Bed, finished the Herb Garden, and started on the Poison Garden. They aren't completely done, but I wanted to get the leaves off the iris so that they could get some booster, too. I may never be able to bend over again. I lost count of the number of buckets of leaves that I carried to the chicken pens. I did NOT want to come in. I didn't quit till 7 o'clock. Today will be pretty again, so I'll be back at it.

 Help stamp out mole hills.
I'm a leaf on the wind.
A living legend needs eggs.
Chickens are people, too.
It takes time to tat.

April 9
Apr 9, 2008 | 2:43 AM PST

Whoopeee! I saw my first hummingbird yesterday at 6 p.m. I had washed and refilled all the feeders for the third time this season at 3 p.m. I had just sat down at my Thinking Bench to take a little break and there he was. He took eight sips and flew off in front of me over to a tree on the far side of the house. I ran into the house to tell my husband. Then I continued to sit there. He came back, took four sips, and flew off behind me. Aha, I think. He's hooked. I kept watching the feeder, which was only about eight feet away from my head. I caught a flash out of the corner of my right eye. He had come from behind me and flew up into the tree about ten feet to my right. He sat there preening for a few minutes and off he flew to the front of the house. I didn't have the energy to run after him to see if he were sipping from the feeder in the front. Lo and behold, here he came again. This time he only drank four sips. Yep. I was counting. By this time, it was time for me to come in. I hope that this one was a returning visitor and brings his friends with him today. I can't wait to get outside again today to see.

I got the Quarter Round in the front  freshly strawed. I pulled up the Heavenly Bamboo that was continually falling over. I dug up the soil again, clipped off one of the limbs that I thought was making it unbalanced and replanted it. Now, if Mr. Mole and Ms. Froggie would just stay out of there, this bed is finished until I put in some summer annuals.

I started de-leafing the Herb Garden. I only got about half of it done, but that was two packed bucketloads. La Poulaille got one and the Biddy Barn got the other. I told the girls in the Double X Duplex that they would just have to wait till tomorrow. My benderoverer had had it for the day. There was no sign of the caladiums under all those leaves, but maybe with the weather being warmer for the next few days, ithey may pop out if there is any life in them.

April 8
Apr 8, 2008 | 4:58 AM PST

I did get my boots on, and I did go outside, but I sure didn't accomplish much. I turned my compost pile because it was growing weeds. My son and husband mowed the lawn, not that it needed it much except in a few places. That did get up some of the leaves, though. I had told them to catch the leaves and start a new compost heap, but instead they put it all in the burn pile. The reason being weed seeds. Hrrumph! Then I spotted the garden hose coiled up in my back flower bed. I wouldn't mind that so much if it hadn't been atop a lily and a mystery plant that was coming back that had thrilled me so. That was sort of the last straw. I was cold and already irked, so I bit my tongue and went inside to tat. It was just too uncomfortable to try to work outside especially when my son started weedeating. Well, there goes my plants around the borders of the beds, I think. When I finished the "Spring Peony" that I had already started, (That's the second picture in my photos.) I discovered that it was too small. I had not done all the rows. I was working from memory. That was foolish. What memory? (I wrote it down last night so that I could remember the pattern and do the next one correctly.) I was disgusted with myself so I decided to make my husband some cookies. At least someone would be happy around here.

Back to that mystery plant: I checked on it after the garden hose was removed. It wasn't broken; however, the lily had lost a few leaves, but it was still ok. I don't know what this little plant is, but someone gave it to me last year. I had kept it in a pot throughout the summer. It has either purple or bluish tiny flowers and the gray leaves are hairy. I'm sure that it's some kind of old-timey plant because she got it from her mother who had had it forever. This piece had broken off and taken root in the back bed. The big one in the pot was transplanted in one of the beds in the front at the end of the summer, and I haven't seen hide nor hair of it yet. I suspect that it didn't make it. If this little one will bloom, I'll have to get someone to identify it for me. I like collecting the old-fahsioned flowers especially if it comes from a friend or family. 

I hope to get outside today and accomplish something.

April 7, 2008
Apr 7, 2008 | 6:43 AM PST

I told myself when I first found this site that I was going to start a log here on April 1. As you can see, it is already April 7. You know the old saying about good intentions...

It's dreary here again today. No rain, but cool and hazy. Yesterday there wasn't enough sun to cast a shadow. I have some seeds that I want to plant, but it isn't warm enough for that yet. Since the big Easter freeze of last year was around April 8, I'm assuming that we aren't going to have another frost this year, but I'll hold off on my seed planting till a bit later. I know that the ground can't be very warm yet. My husband is anxious to get started with tomatoes. I feel that it's too cool for that too. They'll just sit there until it becomes warmer.

It's only 50 degrees here yet this morning, but I think that I'll put on my boots, go out and de-leaf the Herb Garden, which actually  no longer has any herbs right now except some bee balm. That area became too shady due to the growth of the mimosa tree. The bee balm has sprouted there and a few hostas are coming up. If I don't get those winter leaves and mimosa pods out of there, nothing will have a chance to come up when it does warm up. I had the most beautiful caladiums in there last year. I was going to winter them over out of the ground, but I never got them dug up. Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope that there is life down under the debris. I want to plant some parsley in this bed. I've had it there in the past and it looked great. Maybe I shall be lucky enough to get the parsley to sprout. You know that parsley has to go to the devil 7 times before it does well, the old-timers say. I have seeds for a curly leaf this time. I don't know what happened to my flat-leaf parsley patch that I have had for years in the back bed. I just let them reseed there, but this year, I haven't seen a thing coming up.

My husband if off now to get some pine straw. Yeah, I know it's pine needles, but that's what we say in the South.