yardgranny6's Blog

Sharing our gifts
Aug 21, 2007 | 8:02 AM PST
Tags: escape artists , debt , choices , sharing

Just getting me down not being able to get out into the yard and work hard.

There are no cats in the butterfly cage now, but lots of instars and eggs. So in a couple of weeks the tale will be finished. Either I have succeeded in keeping the caterpillers in or they are just great escape artists. I do know when they go on the move, they are really active. Giving they can crawl many feet before they begin to pupate they are also very motivated and strong to boot.

I put enough water on the main flower bed to put me in debt last night.  And this morning I am running a soaker hose in a shady area. My front yard is shady in the mornings so I took a few minutes to pull some grass in a corner near the driveway. That is the only place that had been showing any sign growth in the last couple of weeks. Of course it is in a spot where you don't want anything to flourish but choice plants.

The grandchildren started school yesterday. Brian will be 10 in October and is starting a new school. They moved last year and it put him in a different district, which is a good thing. Kelly is 13 and back to junior high. She says things are a bit different this year, more rules, which is also a good thing. Going to school is, in my book, one of the hardest jobs to have. At least when you get out of school and into a work situation, you do have the ability to choose whether you stay or leave for some other occupation. Having the ability to make decisions is also a good thing.

Our county extension service Master Gardener Association met at a friends home for a tour and education on their method of gardening. They not only  have fantastic flowering gardens, they also make a whale of a good vegetable garden. In order to support their hobby, they sell some of the veggies during the season and use their greenhouse to grow plants to sell in the spring. Since the greenhouse is not fitted for air conditioning they do not use it during the summer. They do have an outdoor shade shelter where they keep plants rooting. This past year the big love is starting all kinds of succulents.  And they have become experts. There are succulents blooming that I have never seen in bloom. All succulents bloom at some time in their livespans but not on any certain time table it seems. The right growing conditions are key and  they have come upon that perfect combination of soil, light and water. They started serious gardening in 1993. All the plants now in their gardens were started either from seed or cuttings. That includes not only perennials but shrubs and trees. Our city is fortunate to have a couple so willing to share their techniques. See pictures of their property. The buildings in the background on the veggie photo are not theirs.

Visiting other peoples gardens is one of the best ways to see new plants, find plants that would be good in your own gardens and learn other ways of mulching, feeding, weeding, watering and of course, taking advantage of the sharing all gardeners seem to enjoy. You come away happy, with a new plant or two and a sense of  renewed energy to get back out there on your own property and tame the soil and it's horticultural occupants.

More to Come Later