Help with hardpan dirt

Excellent idea Victor - uh, Victor is there any risk that the coffee grounds will attract vermin? It is a public garden, so I have to be a little careful.

Oh . . . so early this morning, looking like a total bag lady, I am sizing up the gardens, staring at the plants, thinking about how to organize my day, when a cop car drives by very, very, slowly. I am sure the officer assumed I was spaced out on drugs!

Anyway, about half an hour later, he sees me leaving my driveway, tools in hand, then still later, he sees me madly tearing up one end of the terrace. Well, that was too much. He had to stop and talk to me then. When he realized I was totally nonplussed, and that I was actually creating (not destroying) a garden, he seemed a lot happier. :-)

Then, when I am finally finished for the day, (and you know the look - dirt on the brow, sweat-soaked clothes, grime everywhere), a neighbour who is relocating for a job in Boston, brings this HUGE houseplant (very exotic looking, don't know the name). Anyway, they had bought this plant for "staging" the house - but the house sold in 2 weeks, so mayble the plant was an unnecessary exense. And then she gives me two of the most perfect, HUGE Boston ferns I have ever seen! They are MAGNIFICENT! And sitting on the front staircase. Eventually, we will move these inside.

I am one lucky girl!

Ohhhhhh
Boston Ferns!! You lucky, lucky gal!

Did you still want Anna and I to grow those snapdragons for you and then bring you the plants when you are ready?

Absolutely!!!!! I am soooo pumped about the terrace! The first year we will have to rely on annuals to fill in until perennials can take off.

I am going to try to grow some oriental poppies - I don't expect they will bloom the first year - but I have this idea of oriental poppies blooming in late spring - early summer, then filling in with annuals as they go dormant :-)

Snapdragons are soo special 'cause they bloom for such a long time - I have some pink ones that were completely overwhelmed by the datura I planted (I had no idea the datura would be soooo huge!), Anyway, the datura have been ripped out, and the snappers are growing like fiends - and starting to bloom again.

You gotta love that!

Maybe the usual vermin that hang out in Starbucks. But you have a cop friend now.

Our snapdragons are still blooming so they'll give some nice late color for you.

Seandor - I am glad things went well for you today and that you got the bulbs planted. Keep us posted on the progress!! Oak trees are nice in someone else's yard. My neighbor and I went halves on having an oak tree in her yard that hung over mine cut down. Acorns, leaves that hang on until the middle of December, and leaves that don't break down very quickly!! As I said, they look nice in someone else's yard. Oh, forgot to mention the smell - two houses down lost an oak tree in a storm. The top half of the tree broke and the smell from it was awful!! We didn't know what it was at first - thought something had died - but later found out it was the tree. Sorry for rambling!! Good luck seandor. Eleanor

Wow - didn't know about the smell. Another Oak gripe - some hold onto their brown leaves until Spring. My neighbor's one drops its brown leaves just after I have spruced my garden up for Spring! What a pain.

Well, it doesn't look like much now - I have FABULOUS daffodil bulbs from John Schreepers (sp???) in Conneticut. So I am hopeful for a lovely display next spring, when I will snap lots of pictures.

You can have the oriental poppies from my flower bed. I planted 6 and maybe a couple more salvaged from a constructions site and now they have completely taken over! I hope the daffodils can poke up in the spring through them.

Well, I don't think the oriental poppies will grow in the same area as the daffodils. The dafs are planted under deciduous trees - by the time the dafs are finished the trees will be in full leaf and there won't be enough sun for the oriental poppies. I bought some "fruit punch" oriental poppy seeds from T & M, and I have some mixed poppy seeds that came all the way from Ireland for me - so I will try those this winter and see how many plants I have to put into the gardens. :-) If they don't work, I might coming begging in the spring for any spares you have :-)