She's about to... 66... Spring is here!!!

New room everyone!

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1257034/

Coma and check out the raise my baby swap. It is always lots of fun!

Thanks LK. :)

Thanks for the new room LK.
Suzzzy, ^_^ would like seeds please

This message was edited May 17, 2012 10:00 PM

Saving Columbine seeds for:

LK
Tammie
Susie
Joyce
Faye

Got to shut this thing down as it's past my 11 o'clock curfew. Will see ya'll virtually tomorrow and some of you in person on Saturday!

Here!

sorry I posted the 1-2-3 cake information on the old thread.. I thought I was posting it on this one.. my mistake!

Tammie, I just tried that cake, and it turned out horrible! It was like a hard sponge. What did I do wrong?

Oh, I am sorry to hear that.. maybe a little experimenting with the water amount.... Mine have been soft and fluffy... maybe you needed a little more water... or it overcooked... is your microwave possibly very powerful? It is hard to get a level tablespoonful of the powder.. it tries to mound on the spoon so I do add a dash more water which will make it more moist.

angel food cake mix and regular cake mix of any flavor... mix well together... you have to use angel food cake mix as one of the mixes .. it uses only water when making the cake because it has powderd egg whites in it already.

3 level tablespoons full
2 tablespoons of water mix well... I notice that it sort of foams a little while mixing in about an 8 ounce microwave safe container
1 minute in microwave... any more will overcook, you can smell it cooking at about 20 seconds and I start getting nervous that it is overcooking at about 40 seconds

My moms microwave is over 30 years old so we actually cook 1 minute and 10 seconds in hers. I have now made about 9 little cakes and have figured the little extra dash of water is really necessary unless you can really do a level tablespoon.

It is amazing here how all the yards have turned green after last weeks rain... they were all brown and dead looking. I sure hope we get some more rain to keep them alive.

Ah, that is what I did wrong, I heaped the spoons full of cake mix. I will try again later today.

What a nice surprise to come home to after Manda's Round-Up today. Hubby was able to finish the prep work for my new L-shaped garden that runs the length of our front porch, then turns next to our driveway and goes out to the road. I'm awful with measurements and don't know how long the whole thing is, but it's about 4' wide. It's been too wet lately to even walk there without packing the soil down. The few remaining clumps of grass are gone, as are the larger rocks, and he even raked the surface smooth so it's ready to plant! I should go away more often...LOL That area is mostly going to be dedicated to Annuals for a cut garden.

happ, how was your sale today? Anxious to hear how the hard work paid off.

And where are the pictures? You know we want to see a mans work! ^_^

My lavender is blooming and I was finally able to cut enough to put 10 stems each into little 4 x 6 organza bags. They dry very quickly and the buds will fall off with the slightest touch so the bags are a must if you are going to handle them at all. This way they can be handled and crushed to enjoy the aroma all I want. I will take one to mom tonight. The other is going to my friend across the street. Debbie and I take turns watching each others pets when we are out of town. I LOVE lavender. The buds keep their scent for many months... all you have to do is crush them a little for a fresh wave of scent.

My plants are Grosso Lavender. I have three of them but only one is blooming enough to get any buds.. it will be another week at least before the other two are ready.

I have NO idea why the photo is upside down!!! it is correct on my computer.. any suggestions? LOL

This message was edited May 19, 2012 7:27 PM

Oh my gosh, nothing compares to the fresh scent of lavender. So clean and fresh! A lot of vendors at local Farmer's Markets here sell small starts and always think I should try it. Good growing, Tammie!

I'll take photos of my new garden as soon as I can, and progress pics as it grows. I'm so excited to have a little more gardening space since Hubby is rarely willing to give up the least little bit of turf.

Sooze - that's so great that he did that for you. I'll give him a couple of brownie points for that. ;)

xox
A.

Just nosing around here and saw the morning glory photo from Linda. I have that exact MG blooming in my yard from sone seeds Crit sent me in the valentines day swap. How cool. I guess if we hang around here long enough well all have the same plants. It's a beautiful morning glory.

Hey Judy, glad you stopped by! Thanks for the comment, I love the Japanese morning glories!
hang around a bit, and the other girls will post their flowers too! Please feel to post what you have growing, tell us a bit about yourself? Were nosy, but in a good way! ^_^

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1261043/

New swap just opened, come and check it out! Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue!

I lost you all.....I knew something wasn't right!

Tammie I had lavendar for years and it came back and back and then all of a sudden it was just gone. Is that normal? I never dried it but everytime I got in the car I would pull off a bloom and tuck it in the air conditioning vent of the car.....

Fruity, we need pics of the new bed...it sounds wonderful. I would love to have a garden for cutting, here on DG there was a forum people would pic out of their gardens and then arrange them I loved looking at the great creations they did and the beautiful blooms. I don't have enough blooms to pic except daylilies and that won't work too well....rofl.

The plant sale was the 19th that is how far behind I am....and it went great, we sold over 800.00 worth of plants and that is with just the highest price plant being (except for one) 6.00. We did have one guy donate his fig tree and we sold it for 40.00. We had alot of repeat customers and 3 people interested in joining our mg group. That is the most exciting I think. This is from plants out of our gardens which amazes me.

Glad you found us again. I have lost a lot of my lavender plants. The winters get them if it is too wet. They like to be dry. Wet feet will kill a lavender plant very quickly. I think I started with about 24 plants and am down to 4. I wish I could figure out how to start one from a cutting. Three of mine are very large and need to be cut back. They are supposed to be cut back by 1/3 each year and I have only done that once. I just let them grow wild except the side of one which has to be cut to keep it from overtaking the walkway in the yard. One has overtaken the side of my patio by about 3 feet! I need to cut all of that back.... LOTS of cuttings to play with if I do that. I just hate to lose any part of my plants that produce lavender buds each year. LOL

Congratulations on your plant sale.... the only thing growing here is my lavender... well, it seems my cannas are doing better this year than they have in several years. I am surprised about how well they look.

Working my mind to try and remember if that is the winter we had so much snow that I lost the lavendar.....hummm? The area they were planted dries out quickly and they did work very well there...for awhile....maybe it was the year of all the snow which would of kept them buried, melting and freezing back, they may have gotten wet feet that year....thank you for the info. I might try them again if I find some in the nursery for my zone again.

Are you getting rain this year? Oklahoma City got pettled with hail and bad weather last night and today. I am really dry at my house, south of us in the city has had a lot more rain, I called DH last friday cause it was pouring here in the city and he was out mowing weeds at our house....;(

We had our first real rain in over a year 20 days ago... 3 inches.... nothing since. It was wonderful and everything greened up for a while but the green is now fading to a sickly greenish yellow, soon to be brown again if we don't get rain again. Temp forcast for today is 103.... hastening the browning process. LOL No rain in the forcast. Water use restrictions are brutal. They keep cutting the water allowance to the city and building apartments and hotels as fast as they can increasing the demand. Not good. Our allowance last year was 24 milliion gallons per day now cut to 16 million.. that is quite a decrease in water for the entire city.

Morning everyone!

Wow, that is a great plant sale for you guys!

No rain here for a few weeks, the clouds come really close, but go under us or over us! It has been very humid and hot, Just at 100 all week! So I water late at night, and try to rush, so the darn skeeters don't carry me off, they are so bad this year!

No rain and skeeters, now that is a bummer!
All night they kept telling us we were going to get rain....didn't happen, then this morning it got pitch black but like Linda Kay, it just went right on by. I heard Wichita got pelted....hey were is Debra? Anyone heard from her? humm....

Gonna go buy more soaker hoses tonight, we are on a well, a really big well, thank goodness, but I am guessing if we had conditions like you all have had it would be dry also. Can't imagine water restrictions like that, it would be scary. We went to an island a million years ago...LOL, called Bonair, they say the average rain fall is 21 inches a year, but when we were there it hadn't rained in 3 years...! The catcus were even looking like they were dieing. They had beautiful coral reefs because of the lack of rain, no dirt, pesticides, or fertilizer, runs off onto the coral destroying it like in Florida and places.

Went to home depot last night and mulch was on sale so I bought some more. We have been so busy building I haven't done anything in the gardens at all....looks like a giant weed pit, well doesn't look like it, it is a giant weed pit!

Anyone ever see a morning glory like this one? it is so pretty, but don't know if it is supposed to be like this or just a morphed one? It has not opened all the way. Don't know if it will?

That is a beauty, sadly I know nothing about morning glories. Do the blooms last more than one day? where is our morning glory queen? hummmm?

I wish they lasted more than one day. They bloom early morning, and by early afternoon they are gone.

Warning: If time is short, don't start reading this. It's long but oh so good.
What a glorious, fun, relaxing, surprising and exciting day this has been. I just love gift cards, yes I do. Anyway on with my day.
This morning I met with my DIL to go Chris's Green House that is close to her. We were to spend gift cards that she & DS had given me for my Birthday and another for Mother's Day. Almost as soon as we got there I spotted a Pottery Strawberry Bowl. Told Kim that I really liked that for Hen & Chicks. Well while looking at many plants, another Strawberry Bowl exactly like the one I wanted just jumped out out me and the best part, it was already planted..Yippee, have enough cards to pay for it. Gosh it's a beauty.
Also had Cash from DD for Mother's Day that was burning me bad as I looked at all the pretties inside the store part. Found a thingy to put on the front of the house...way up high over front door.
Now lunch was also included in the Mother's Day gift from DS & my DDIL. I really wasn't as hungry as much as I was so pleased with my new goodies and told Kim (DIL) that I would be happy at her house with a sandwich and we could have more time together. Roast Beef sandwiches with chips , pickle & iced tea hit the spot. I have 45 min. drive back home and Kim has to go to work.
Believe it or not, it gets even better.
At home
I start unloading the car and Ray comes to the door with a big grin on his face and tells me that I have 2 large flat rate boxes that the Mail Lady had just put on the step. Gosh I'm excited, left my new goodies in the car and went to those 2 large boxes. Once I put the boxes down, just had to see where they came from and who sent them....WOW Super surprise...no, I'm not telling yet. Keep reading, it get's better.
I put the top box on the counter and look at the second box...It's not for me, It's for Ray! I wish I had a picture of his face as he entered the kitchen to open the box. Then after he opened it, he just stood there with disbelief on his face and lips. He could not believe someone he had never met would even think of him let alone send him a box of goodies. Yes, a box of goodies. As you continue reading this drama, keep in mind that I haven't opened the box addressed to me and have no idea why it was sent to me. Ray's goodie box included: Hosta (oh boy I'm thinking, I know where that will go.) Now Ray pulls out a zip lock bag with a Caladium ( oh boy again, love those) Then Ray started pulling out the sweet stuff:
Dove Toasted Almonds (lg. bag) , Hershey's Special Dark Miniatures (lg. bag)
Risen Chewy Chocolate Caramel covered in Rich European Chocolate (lg. bag), Life-Savers Hard Candy Variety Pack (lg bag) and Flag Buttermint Creams.
The FLAG Buttermint Creams got my attention but not as much as the last item that was in the bottom corner of the box...An Eagle Holding the Flag Windchime. OK, I'm guessing out loud as I cut into the tape to open my box...Box open and WOW I guessed right...Red,White & Blue was everywhere and I mean that box was packed to the max. LOL now you should see my face, felt like a Christmas tree lit up. My RWB Swap Partner must have been planning, collecting and packing for quite a while. This box is loaded and with everything needed to have guest over to celebrate with us. Here goes, contents of this large box: LOL, hope you're enjoying this as much as I am. If I could spell and type it wouldn't take forever!
My Box contained: (Drama continues on the
§ 2012 RED, WHITE & BLUE§ Patriotic Showcase 1
See you there for page 2.
I'm loving it!!!

How sweet for Ray to get a package. He IS an honorary member... :)

xox
A.

Debra, where are you! Do we need to send out the hounds to find you? Hope you are doing well, and not working too hard!

I haven't seen her on any post, for a while that I can think of....hummmmm.....where are you....? LOL I have a basset hound and will send him out to find you, he is a little slow but his nose will stay on the ground looking for you...rofl.

whoo hoo I finally got the internet up!! I am back online,, it is slooooooooow but at least I can chat here at Daves.

Been a very long day so will sign off for now,, night all

Welcome back Elfie. :)

Short and sweet but I'm glad you're back online, Elfie.

LK, remember the three dwarf border Dahlia tubers you sent me last year in one of the swaps? Two came back, a yellow one that has hardly any blooms so far, and this red one thriving with a vengeance. So pretty and sweet!

Those are so pretty! Love that color.

dahtzu it sounds as if you had the most marvelous day, what fun and then the packages...how great is that.

Good to hear from you Elfie.....slow is better than nothing. So glad you are back.

Dahlias came back? Oh I wish, I would have them everywhere. That is a beauty Fruity....rofl.

I am starving, stomach growling, nothing to eat and a long time to lunch. I got up and spent to much time walking thru the garden this morning, but even tho I am really hungry it was worth it, course by lunch time I may have changed my mind...rofl.

Ralph came home with a huge box of Deliha tubers for me last night. I will have a stunning Deliha garden next year!! So exciting. Thanks so much to my wonderful friend Linda!!

I am glad to be back too! I have missed everyone and also missed all the friendly chatter.

I didn't even know what a dahlia was! They are beautiful.. I had heard of them but never seen one. They obviously DON'T grow here.

I can't grow them here either, but they sure are pretty!

Debra, check in an say hello please?

Hi all. short stop but will be back later today. Lot's going on. Now I'm going to the Hospital for a brain scan because of headaches and memory glitches...lol my Brother would say, "nothing to worry about..what brain?"
Have been doing lot's of outside cleaning, Pergola over patio and storage building. Washed them down with commercial strength Clorox and now they look like new again.
Have my garage back, most of the Angel Trumpets have been sold. Daylilys are blooming and every time I go outside I see some Lily that makes me say "thank you Susan" so many and so pretty.
Love & hugs to you all.