Everything is coming up irises!

Last year our irises were busy establishing themselves so only a couple of the plants actually produced a flower or two.  The plants weren't very big or strong but this year is a different story.  The plants are large and producing several flowers per stalk. We're pretty pleased with how our flower beds are transforming and how lush everything is looking.

This is our Root Beer Iris.  It smells like root beer!  No joke.

The garden is under going an upgrade this year.   8 yards of soil was delivered Friday afternoon and a frame for a raised bed was built today (Memorial Day).  I wish that more could have been accomplished but Mother Nature put the kibosh on using power tools Saturday and Sunday.  Saturday was spent shopping for the lumber to build the raised bed frame as well as to purchase a new circular saw.  Yes!  The saw is my first power tool purchase.  It's completely geeky but I was giddy driving home in Hank (my F150 pick-up truck) with the bed full of lumber, a new wheelbarrow and a circular saw.

Originally, the plan was to rent a mini bobcat to move the mound of soil from the driveway to the garden bed, but with the rainy weather it was uncertain whether the soil was going to be delivered on Friday.  With the materials being wet, less than 8 yards would have been delivered.  We'd have been paying for water weight.  In any event, with the soil delivery up in the air I didn't want to rent the mini bobcat, and once I knew the delivery was a go, I learned that the rental store didn't have a mini-cat to rent.  It was being used by some other lucky person.  I've been moving soil with the wheelbarrow and have scarcely made a dent in the pile.  Depending on the price, this weekend there may be a mini bobcat helping me to move the soil to the garden.  The soil can be moved in a fraction of the time and save my lower back from strain.  Plus, the mini-cat would be so cool to operate!

Here's the progress thus far...



Chet really wants to join me outside.
Both cats peek out the back door regularly when I'm outside.

Mama Robin.
She was very patient with all of the noise and activity today.

Mr. Spencer.  He enjoys supervised time outside in his collar and leash.

It was a beautiful day today and as much as I worked my butt off, I enjoyed the day and the work that got done.  Hopefully your weekend was relaxing and a safe one.

L&J

Curb Appeal!

Spring seems to be officially here.  Our lawn was cut for the first time this season on Saturday, we spotted our first super-plump bumblebee that day too, and flowers are blooming all over the place.  Plus, there is evidence of leaves on trees all over the place.  This is such an exciting time of year!

The front yard is looking very cheery with all of the new blooms.  We can't stop taking pictures as there seems to be something new blooming each day.

We plan to concentrate effort on the backyard this year and softening it's edges with lush floral and edible landscape.  I'm looking forward to getting dirty and sweaty and transforming our backyard into one that is beautiful and relaxing.

Spring 2011

Spring blooms!

Spring is near

The first day of spring is one month away!  Surely helebores and crocus are beginning to awake in their earthen bed and will possibly be blooming by this time next month.  John and I are especially excited about the arrival of spring since we planted one hundred or so various flower bulbs and tubers in the fall.  The bulbs were added to existing flower beds as well as a newly established flower bed on the north side of our front porch.  The new flower bed wraps around to the front of the porch and connects to another flower bed there.  The bed in front of the porch doubled in size and is filled with all sorts of bulbs and tubers.  If the squirrels don't disrupt the bulbs while digging to bury their own treasures, the three flower beds that flank the front porch will be ever-blooming spring through fall.  We're so excited to see the display!

It is nearly time to begin planting seeds in flats for all of the vegetables that will be transplanted in the garden.  John and I have big plans for the backyard and hope to establish several new flowerbeds back there this year.    Until we have photos to share with you of this year's blooms, keep warm and be safe.

Hum

We grew Cardinal Climber flower (Ipomoea multifida) specifically to attract hummingbirds and it worked like a charm!

The overall harvest from the garden was plentiful.  This past weekend I picked any remaining vegetables and pulled many spent plants from the ground.  Winterizing the garden, if you will.  A few Brussels sprouts remain as they're still yielding tasty sprouts.  As for the plants I hacked down, I decided to cook the greens from the plants.  It seemed like such a waste to ignore so much of the plant.  I'd not ever eaten Brussels sprouts greens but figured that like collards, kale, chard, etcetera, they'd be super yummy.  Guess what?  They are!  A 1:1 ratio of water and chicken stock, olive oil, two strips of chopped bacon and Penzy's Shallot-Pepper Seasoning (coarse salt, Tellicherry black pepper, shallots, tarragon and bay leaves).  The greens smelled heavenly while they simmered away and they didn't have to cook for nearly as long as I thought they might need to.  After an hour and a half at a rolling simmer they were tender and delicious.

Garlic cloves will be planted this coming weekend for next July's harvest.

I've already begun making plans for next year's garden design and what will be grown.  Without question, less tomatoes and more of an overall variety of vegetables and flowers.  Since the garden plot is established I can focus more intently on what to plant and where.  Compost will be ready, too.  Glorious.

Tomato Jungle

Lesson for next year's garden?  Plant fewer tomato plants.  A personal garden doesn't need 15-16 tomato plants.  The plants are so large and heavy with fruit that one row of tomatoes is literally laying on top of the next row of tomato plants!  Any minute we're going to be knee deep in tomatoes.  S'okay.  We're not opposed to canning homemade marinara sauce.

Speaking of tomatoes, we harvested our first today.  A few of the Beam's Yellow pear and five Black from Tula!  So.  Darn.  Tasty.  The cucumbers keep coming and they're beauties.  Pickling several jars is on tomorrow's agenda.  The Georgia Flame and Poblano peppers look great and seem to grow at least an inch per day.  The celery, leeks, beets and romaine lettuce are all doing well, too.  Overall, we're pretty pleased with our first official vegetable garden.  A number of tweaks will be made next year but mainly to the soil and incorporating individual raised beds within the garden plot.

Enjoy the latest series of photos.

Butternut squash

We're loving all the dragonflies that visit our yard.

Naked Lady lilies

Poblano peppers

Sunny sunflower with not one, but two bees!

Chewer!

See the little nubs near the stem and on top of each leaf arm?  Those are very wee Brussels Sprouts!

Leeks

Sunflower Row.  It's hard to capture the size of the sunflower that's closest to the fence.  It's at least 10 feet tall!

Hot July

Everything seems to be growing several inches per day this month!  The cucumbers are harvesting like crazy.  What are supposed to be pickling cucumbers have been growing rapidly and being picked and eaten like standard cukes.  The skin is a tad bit tougher than a standard cucumber but that's not a bad thing.  Crunchy and delicious!

Hundreds of tomatoes hang from the limbs of the plants and at any moment we will be knee deep in Ponderosa, Black from Tula and Beam's Yellow pear tomatoes.  Homemade salsa isn't far behind either.

The backyard is blooming everywhere and looking lovely.  The pictures speak for themselves.

Baby ants?

Blowing out a rainbow.