She's about to...51

Fruity did you remember to give your mums a trim at the beginning of May and June?? That could be why they are blooming already. :0)

My Frosti Pink brug bloomed a little bit but not at all like last year. Strawberries and Cream which I've had for a couple of years is getting ready now. I've never seen that one bloom yet here. Had to cut my Xena back to stumps. I think it had a viral problem, maybe mosaic virus and I can't risk that getting loose. I don't think it is going to come back and that makes me really sad since it was the first brug anyone ever sent me.

Debra I know what you mean about bringing all that stuff in every year. It is hard on my back and I don't have your problems at all. That's why I planted all the brugs in the ground this year. I will take cuttings in the fall and try a bubbler system this year to keep them going. Will mulch the rest under a ton of leaves and other stuff and hope they come back. But if they didn't for Faye it isn't likely they will for me.

Oh well, DH took me to one of the nursery places here that specializes in annuals. They had 4 inch pots of wave petunias and callies for .99 each. Needless to say I overachieved. Since we aren't planning any other trips this summer I figured I'll be around to water. I still don;'t have a quarter of the plants I've had in years past.

Gotta get going. Miles to go and all that.

How are you doing with your coleus this year? I know you lost a bunch of them.

I found some white yukky webby stuff with some kind of green things in the middle on one of my lady n red salvias I overwintered, so I sprayed it all over.. I hope My squishing them also got them gone, it is right in the middle of thebrugs/ what are they called? yukky!

remember the little tip I took off the side of chrissy? this one is rooted.

Well LK the ones that remain are finally looking better. I still can't get rid of all the D--N mealy bugs. These are some of them. Unfortunately I was so ticked off when I planted them that I ditched the tags, so I can't remember the names of all of them.

Picked these tonight. They grow along the edge of the woods here. This is most we've had in many years.

How could I remember to cut Mums back, Neener, when I never knew I ought to? LOL...See, that's what you're all here for, to give me lessons. I did take a few cuttings in June and potted them up to share with neighbors this Fall but didn't give the mother plants a severe haircut. They were 3 for $10 last Fall and I bought 6, kept them displayed in big pots together a couple of weeks and finally planted them on DH's insistance. Mums and carnations are my least favorite flowers, their scents remind me too much of death, and I would have been happy to have chunked the mums on the compost pile. DH just loves them, I have no idea why. But lately he's really getting into the Oriental and Asiatic Lilies.

This one's Oriental Trumpet Lily "Dutch Red".

Beautiful Lily Susan. Some of my mums are blooming pretty now and will bloom again in the fall. I never cut them back until after the first bloom, then cut dead heads off and they are pretty again later.

yumy berries... I used to pick dew berries, currants and wild black berries with my granma..
beautiful lilly, Susan. My asiatics are about all I have gotten into. What does a mealey bug look like?

Yeah Fruity I was taught if you want your mums to bloom in the Fall you trim them beginning of June and then again beginning of July. This makes them bushy and gets them blooming at the right time. If you identify some asiatic lilies that actually smell let me know. I bought some that are supposed to, but they don't. I don't enough room to keep planting them. They are pretty, but I want smelly! :0)

Debra mealy bugs are those nasty white fuzzy scale critters. Once again, if you haven't encountered them consider yourself blessed.

Every year here in this wonderful climate, I would lose my mums. One year not having time I did not cut them back and since I have left them alone and let nature take it's course I have not lost any. I guessed that cutting them caused spurts of growth late in the season, then we would turn cold and that would be all folks...LOL Amazing what my imagination can come up with, but I haven't lost any sense I started doing that and we had a horrible winter last year. Mums and death, I never put those two together, now I did do that with glads altho I am trying to overcome that and planted some this year. One thing I always thought was wierd was to take the flowers from a funeral to a nursing home.....now if I was in a nursing home and elderly do I really want flowers from a funeral? LOL I understand the gesture but....LOL

Love the lily. Right now my garden really smells sweet from the lilies, and they are so darn easy and multiply. Love them.

I have one coleus topiary that I am fighting the mealy bugs on, what a pain!

Well Isabella and Kaitlyn are in full flush. Finally.
I went over to Paulas and sat in their grass and pulled out all the weeds from their flower bed while they are up in KC for the 4th, ( I put it in right before I hurt my back) and my son was there doing his laundry, and Paula called hysterical, and her hubby, Mike who just went back to work after 8 weeks from recovering from a quaduple bypass, had another heart attack in Kansas City. They have their giant Lab dog Angel there with them. They are staying at his sisters house who has pancreatic cancer. Well, anyway, My son and I will prolly go up and drive them back, me in their buick suv, my son in his car, since Paula at age 59 still does not drive. Please say a prayer he survives this night. I am almost hysterical, but realize they are in the Hands Of The Lord.

I'm there with you in spirit, Debra, pulling hard for Mike, and also his sister. It's times like these I wish I lived closer and could give you {{hugs}} in person.

Good news is , my back yard smells like a perfume bottle tonight and is very calming..
Thank you Susan.

So sad to hear such bad news. You be careful driving Debra, because that can be very hard on your back and that is a long trip back and forth. Thank goodness your son is going to help.

The pics are beautiful and I am very sure that is quite calming. I have two buds waiting to open, but so far they are just waiting. Getting up early tomorrow and go with a friend to the farmers market downtown. We usually go in the spring so we are running a little late this year.... We usually buy flowers and food from the Amish, this late in the year, I don't know what we will find. Hopefully homegrown tomato.

Well I am not going until she calls me that it is time to go.. he is in intensive care right now, and I can't sleep for worry about them. I know that is not trusting God, but it would be better if I could just hop on a plane and be with them. He is only 51 for crying out loud.

Guess I will take a pain pill and try to get some rest, my back is a bit sore from the weeding i did. durn it anyway!

Debra, so sorry to hear that sad news! Any updates this morning?
Beautiful blooms.

Can any of you tell me about t his plant. I got it yesterday at wal mart, as it was coming off the delivery truck! it is called a Peter Pan Lily of the Nile. Agapanthus africanus peter pan. I picked up the one and only white one they had, and two of the blue/lavendar colored ones. Can I plant them in with my brugs? Or do they need to stay in pots? It says they are supposed to bloom from mid summer to early fall. Do they spread from the roots, or do they produce seeds?

Ditta, any news Debra?

Those are what we called African Lilies. When I lived in Northern Carlifornia 20 years ago, I remember them growing on the sides of the roads, in fine landscaping, at the beach, you name it. Not sure about seeds but they spread from underground rhizomes. They're not hardy here but they are for you, LK. Lovely buy!

Morning LindaKay and brug sisters, I wish I knew about that plant. It is beautiful and have tried growing them from seeds but never successful. I havn't been to walmart or lowes in ages, and wish they would carry those.
No News from Kansas City and I hope that means it is good.

Let us know if you hear anything Debra. We are all praying with you.

Thank you and Praise God he is okay. They have found out it isn't his heart but an infection of his blood ( they are checking to see if from his recent surgery) Paula said she will call me later to give me more information. He will stay in the hospital and be in care until all tests are ran.

Glad to hear it is not his heart, but that blood infection can be dangerous also! Still continuing prayers!
((((((((((((HUGS))))))))))))) for you Debra!

OK, I would only tell this to my closest compadraies and the 300 viewers on this thread...rofl

Well a year ago I bought a bbq offset smoker, so I decided today to try it. So after searching high and low on how to smoke chicken. I search for a rub to put on the chicken, then get the chicken ready and in the fridge. Then decide to read the manual........slight miss calulation, dinner will be served, lets see about 7....rofl. Maybe. Seems you have to oil the cooker down, then build a fire to a certain temp for 2 hours, then up the temp for another hour, before you start using it. It says you are curing it, but you are probably burning off the lead based paint from China if I was guesing. So now at 4pm I finally got the the chicken on....one good thing is I have been learning how to control the temp...the bad thing dinner will be really late....rofl.

Thank goodness for junk food..... ;D

LOL!!!!! That is exactly what I would have done. Never read the instructions until you are past the point of no return. It's no fun otherwise.

Problem is we don't live anywhere you can run out and buy something to eat easily, we are talking a 30 min trip. one way.
Maybe PB&J cause now it is raining which will lower my temps.....do I know when to start something new or what....rofl. Last day off, late in the day, in the middle of a rain shower.....hummm good planning on my part.

On a better note I have two blooms getting ready to pop on a brug.....can't wait, cause it isn't marked so I am not sure which one it is.

Hope everyone had a great forth!

awww Joyce LOL I bet it was good anyways..

Just finished eating and it was good. Now hopefully I got it done enough...LOL I used a meat temp. so hopefully. The meat does look different when you smoke it. It wasn't dried out at all, which was strange. One chicken I just put salt and pepper on it and then poured apple juice into the skin so it has pockets of juice while cooking.... The other used a rub, but on the net I read rub is wasted on chicken cause everyone removes the skin....so true. So if I remember right this guy took the skin off put rub on it, cooked an hour with bbq sauce, then put it in alumn. foil and cooked the rest of the time, kind of makes since.

Anyone got any tips? I bought the smoker because I missed the bbq when I lived in Texas. Calling all Texans I need help.
Thanks..LOL

Heh, don't look at me, I am just joeswife, and Joe does the BBQing.. LOL


Just saw on Diners, drivins and dives, where you inject the juice of stuff into the meat of the chicken and not poking thru to the outside, then a rub under the skin, and then smoked. it looked good.

We turned off satellite but when we had it I really liked that show. He is pretty fun to watch. Love the places he goes.
My DH does lots of things but bbq is not one of them. When he makes hamburgers they look alot like hocky pucks! Actually hockey pucks are probably softer. Dogs aren't even too excited about them! LOL

Hope you got rested this weekend.

OMG, that's hilarious, happ! We live 16 miles from town and don't have anywhere close either to run out for food, we just have two local Mom & Pop stores and a Dairy Queen two miles away, one has a restaurant where you can order home-cooked food from 7 AM to 9 PM in the Summer. We live in po-dunk but their breakfast served all day is a killer.

Edited to say I'm wiped out from spending yesterday helping clear the perimeter of my MIL's property by picking up fallen limbs --some tree size -- , raking 15 years' worth of leaves, chopping down overgrown boxwoods, rose bushes -- getting stabbed by their thorns, and hauling all that away. She has at least another 4 days' worth of work to go before that area's clean, then I can start in her front yard. I don't mind the work at all, and it would really be pleasurable if it wasn't so dang hot and humid. About 4 hours at the time is all i can stand.

Hope you're feeling better, Debra, and you all had a great 4th!



This message was edited Jul 6, 2010 11:26 PM

Goodness, that is a lot of work, please be careful in this heat!
Well, I think I am finally going to see some blooms this year. This is my Monster white on the end, and she has little buds about an inch or so long!

My Strawberries and Cream bloomed last night, but it is so hot here that the bloom has already shriveled up before I could get a picture. Been waiting for that one to bloom for 3 years now. Got lots of foliage right now and lots of itty bitty buds. Could be good in a month or so. We'll see if the beetles and other critters can leave them alone long enough to bloom.

Fruit of the Loom you take your time out there. I know what kind of mess you are trying to clear out and it is hard, heavy work. Wish I could be there to help. DH has been watching a great place in that same area you sent me the other day. Too bad it won't be there when we are ready to move because it is pretty close to perfect.

Gotta run. Have a 2 hour drive ahead of me this afternoon and I can't put off getting ready any longer.


Hugs to all,
Neener

fotv, sounds like you are working hard in her yard and considering the heat you all have had, that work is multiplied by at least 3! Is she moving or are you being a sweetie as usual?

Hey does anyone have Jewel Weed I could swap you for something else. A very good friend has heard JW will save her when she gets posion ivy which she does every year several times. We went on the watergarden tour Saturday (saw about 20 houses) then when I went back to her suburn yard I started the hunt for posion ivy which she has alot in one flower bed! I showed her what it looked like and sprayed it.

Pic of my caladiums in the 3 tier pot my Mom gave me several years ago. It cost a fortune to plant but I think it turned out really pretty.

Sorry, no jewel weed here.
Those caladiums are very nice!

I lucked out and found those a Costco for a good price, a whole bag of them. They really pop in a shaded area. I have several different ones, I need to post pics, fotv sent me some and they are doing great also. At the end of the year I just let them dry out in the pot they are in, then in spring start watering them again and they come back. So hopefully all those whites will do the same thing. Only difference those are in plastic pots and I usually have them in those moss hanging baskets.

Debra, look what bloomed! Please tell me what this is again?

Monarda.. can't tell if it is raspberry wine or gardenview scarlet or marshalls delight .. is it more red or more fuschia?
congrats! if you let it go to seed, bag the bloom, and then refridgerate it thru winter so it will germinate for you. You might even get a piece of the root runner this fall, wrap it up in paper towels lightly damp, keep in fridge thru winter then put it back out again. they multiply fast, but need some stratification.


Did someone say they wanted a ditch lilly?

I sent these out also, double decker cone flowers in the seed mix I sent out.

She's not moving, happ. The problem is her overgrown backyard that has at least 12 years of brush and small trees that need to go. Running Ivy is growing everywhere, and those scruffy Rose bushes & boxwoods planted years ago don't stand a chance living under a canopy of mature trees. I don't blame her for thinking her back yard will eventually close in if it's not cleaned up. She pays the guy who mows really well, but he's too lazy to do anything but mow in the middle of her yard and weed-eat a little bit. God forbid he has to pick up twigs and haul them off. Meanwhile her yard is literally getting smaller by the month. We had planned to go back today but it started raining early this morning and decided to postpone our trip. By we, I mean me and my 18 year-old neighbor who's all muscle and just graduated from high school where he excelled in both his studies and baseball. I'm telling ya, this guy's too good looking for his own good. I've known him since he was a snotty nose kid in diapers, I often changed, and am so proud of him! Ya know how a lot of 18 year-old's talk back and are know-it all's....he's nothing like that.

Our slow steady rain all day was so refreshing, and was really needed since we're at a 3-4" deficit. If it weren't still a bit humid, I'd love to turn off the A/C and fling open the windows.

This isn't a very good shot since it was so bright but these are several pots of my Caldiums last week with a sprinkling of Cannas near the middle.

Wow fruity, that is a spectacular picture!

Gorgeous caladiums!!