What did everyone do on this first day of Spring!

I worked inside in the morning and then went over to my neighbor's to dig up her spare plants for my plant sale. Will go into the fairgrounds and pot them up tomorrow. I also played outside a lot with the new pups. Looked around my own yard to see what I can dig up for the sale and to see what is growing. It was so warm and lovely. Talked over the fence with some neighbors. My favorite kind of day.

I didn't do much, but enjoyed the sunshine immensely! Drove to the store, the pharmacy, and the jeweler while my brother was here to be with Steve. Later I spent about 45 minutes outside filling bird feeders and organizing my potted up plants (well, sort of!). The sun felt sooooooooooooo good.

First day of really warm sun and I spent only about 2 hours of evening time in the garden. But I was out all day. We're selling our sailboat :( and the buyer wanted to haul it out and paint the bottom, so we did that today. DH and I hung out and watched so we could learn the rope of boat painting. Fortuanately, I really like the woman who is buying the Saucy Sue. I'm going to miss that boat.

Ahem-You're selling the WHAT???

I caught a frog on my driveway today. Cute little fellow. Saw a frog this evening as well, but I'm not sure if it's the same one or a different one. I've never seen frogs in my yard before, and I"m thrilled that they're here. Need to work on a water feature, I guess.

Pixy, you want a slightly used Bayliner Capri? Tow rope and tube included. Free. If someone would just get this out of our garage I could be potting up plants like crazy!

Here's what I'm doing and don't all drool with excess jealousy at once: sifting rocks and clay out of a new bed 14-18 inches deep. I will change my name to BuffGirl by the time I get done pickaxing and shoveling, lifting tons of buckets o' rocks. Have about a third to go, then mix in new soil and compost. Yippee to be out there in a Tshirt today~

Groan! Oh, that's tough work! Pooch, after all that work, you'll be able to drag the boat out of the garage yourself!

I had to work, and got home in the dark. Now are we talking the real day of spring or the one that felt like it?

I worked at workwork, then I came home & worked some more.
Just like every M-F, but no jacket today!

today was awesome!!! had to work, but i work for a whole sale nursery, so i drove around and did deliveries and a few odds and ends sales. so i got to enjoy the day. planted a cool dahlia bulb (black fading to a dark mahogany red) i picked up at one of the nurseries along with a cute sedum called tricolor (see pic) and a heather i saw somewhere on one of these forums called firefly i really liked the intense colors and found one today and got it!! woo hoo :) fun to be in the biz.......... find all kinds of treasures here and there at times.

Humm free Bayliner Capri, too sporty a boat for this guy. Looks like something for the water ski crowd. I would have been up for it, if I saw 2 down riggers and a depth finder mounted to it....

But aside from that, I spent the day recovering from a real evil cold/flu whatever that the whole family got this week. Truly evil, the only thing that allowed me to sleep was codeine based cough syrup, which whacked the cough, and the aches and pains.

I was pretty good in the late afternoon, so I sowed a few succulent seeds which were like dust. We shall see how they go, soon enough.

I really would have liked to have more gusto today, as I would have liked to finish my work on the vege garden. I built another concrete wall, 16 feet long, about 3 feet high along a part of the ditch that gets full sun. That will give us something like 80 square feet of garden space for the veges. Right now however it is just a bunch of broken concrete stacked in a 16 foot line. Sigh.

I need to clear out some sod, lay newspapers on the rest, and lay some leaf mold, then some nicely finished compost for the garden itself. Then I have to plant all my lovely Lavender seedlings along the wall, so they can grow up nice and strong and sweet smelling.

I planted more lilies in the bulb bed (yeah...it needs more because if some is good, more is better, right?) Then we went and picked up our Cornus kousa "Wolf Eyes" that we bought last week. While there were there DH had a "moment" with an Eleanor McCown camellia who stole his heart (the hussy!) and she came home with us. Not to be outdone, I fell for a Kaleidescope abelia which also moved into the ghetto. Then I weeded for a bit then looked at the potager and debated whether or not to sow seeds and plant seedlings and decided against it then weeded some more, then dug up some native Tolmiea Menziesii (maybe? see attached and feel free to offer suggestions) and potted some and moved some, then weeded some more and dug up some Nootka rose and snowberry, then dug in the pots that are holding some more lilies and gloriosa and habeneria and dichelostemma and crocosmia to see if they are doing anything and they are (except the crocosmia) so that is good because someday there will be flowers, lots of flowers on them. Then my mom wanted us to go play bingo with her tonight so we did that, and just got home. We arrived to a chorus of frog song ~ glorious and loud ~ if it were summer we'd have to close the windows to sleep because they are such a raucous bunch! Anyway...now I'm tired and going to bed. Tomorrow I plant the potager and I triple dog dare the weather gods to harm my little green children! I left calendula seedlings out for the past two weeks and they are strong and doing well, as are a few lavender seedlings I started, so they will be fine. *phew* long and glorious day!

Rob, would you like some cardboard, works better the the news.?

Ah.... no thanks, Poochella. Maybe you could use the boat as garden art? Saucy Sue is a Catalina 27' sailboat. We're going to get a slightly larger and more comfortable one... someday! Hopefully sooner rather than later. Boating season is upon us!

LOL!! Sorry, Susybell, the boat isn't named for you! It's from a Black Adder episode. British comedy all the way.

Say, Kayte, I'm trying to remember if you are the one I gave the 'climbing milkweed' that now looks like a mimulus. That was you, correct? If so, that mimulus is either M. tigrinus or M. pictus. The 'climbing Milkweed' should have been Wattakaka sinensis (say it three times fast) and somehow I don't have any. Not even for me! Who knew that I either killed them all or gave them all away?? so I am germinating some more.. If they do better this time, which they should do since it's warmer, I'll let you know. Meanwhile, enjoy the mimulus.


Frogs. I have tried to introduce frogs for the past three years. Sometime during the winter I actually found a little toad on my front door and I was thrilled. Must be one of the tadpoles I put in last year. But no frogs have ever made it that I know of. I listen for their song to no avail. Saw a really tiny green one at my sister's house yesterday. Sigh. I'll try again this year.

Hey Pix to let you know, someday just never happens. My DH had a Gold wing (motorcycle) We both love bikes. He sold it, and said I'm going to get a Harley, well that was 15 years ago and he still dosent have one. Life in the fast lane LOL

Pixy, lol, You just caught me by surprise, is all.....If I'd been wanting to buy a sailboat, that might have helped the sale along, though, lol!....

Pix - if i find any froggies sleeping in the flowers (sleep number beds?) I will try to persuade them to go on an extended visit to your place, via nice box with hidy holes.
I have many frogs - enough to share with everyone. And they don't just hang out in the obvious places - I find them all over my property. Little adventurous guys, they are!
I'll see how I can help out - there will be more appearances as it warms up & froggies go a courtin'...

Mim is blooming & i think she'll be happy with the yellow/red lovelies. Cheeky little flowers - wish there was a variety with fist-sized blooms.

Off to Fred Meyer for some fine bark & plant viewing: they have lots of things out, and all delivered yesterday.
Cheers!

Ahhhh, a good couple of days - wheeelbarrowing, don't ya' just love it!! More cardboard down in the wild area to try and stomp out some dockweed - persistent little b+gg#ers! And then mucked over it, sliding on my bottom only twice - that is an improvement. Tried to weed out the lower area of that bed, but it is just too wet and claggy - on my list to dig in yet more stuff this summer - sheesh. Then went and finished the day potting on plants to the next stage pots - it is really a balancing act in that greenhouse right now - definately could do with some warming trends to get somethings out. Then yesterday we managed to get 2 1/2 of the veg beds topdressed and ready for sowing, and then back to the greenhouse again. And this morning I was down in the woods cutting more hazel to make the pea and bean supports over the paths between the veg beds. Oh, I do like that moment when the bean structures go up - really does mean summer (well, calendar summer) is one its way! (Hmmm, reminds me I still need to get some sweetcorn seeds). Trying some melons this year (hope must always be eternal!) - found a couple that swear by all the garden faeries that they are good in cool weather - I am sure they are dreaming or talk about cool weather with a polytunnel over the ground - but, I do dream of someday harvesting at least 1 melon from our garden.

And that is it - it is 12 past 8, and still discernibly light out there - but I am to pooped to pot any more.

Kayte, i'll keep you up to date on the other. sorry about that, can't imagine confusing those two plants.
tills, you are so right and both I and my dh have commented that we don't want to wait until 'someday' to get another boat. we are already looking.

Laurie, you and I will both experiment this year with melons. Kayte gave me some seeds for a little cantelope and also a small watermelon. We shall see.

BTW, Kayte, do you have any more of the watermelon pollinator seeds? Mine did not germinate. Now that I think of it, I'm not sure the other did either, but the cantelope did. I'll have to have a look. I only have about thousands of seelings.

No more pollinator seeds, but wait a sec - I will check what germinated...BRB!


yup - I have a pollinator plant for you. i can bring to the swap next saturday if you like.

This message was edited Apr 12, 2008 4:45 PM

I like that expression "to pooped to pot". tptp

I like that expression too Laurie1 and after working 9 hours at work work, then coming home to pick, shovel, sift and haul more rocks and clay on the most gorgeous day of 2008 I find myself tptp! Could not believe my eyes when the thermometer read 80 on my way home, 78 at my house, still 66 at 6 pm and now cooling nicely. Unbelievable! Gotta love the NW April teaser days. We know that rain and cool days are lie in wait for May.

Shokami2 that dahlia sounds very delightful and I'm envious that you can plant already! Show us a photo if you can when it blooms please. Dahlias are right up my alley! Love the tricolor sedum too.

Sounds like everyone is making use of their free time on these wonderful, busy days of Spring. Glorious spring! I heard the peepers in the woods last night too, but haven't seen any frogs. Below is a little tree frog that fell in love with one dahlia a couple years ago. I'd find him in a bloom, on the post, on the label feeling right at home and doing his bug-eating thing.

Kayte, that would be great! Give it to Rachel for me. I won't be at the swap, but I'm sending seedlings. Hopefully well marked!! LOL! Not looking for trades at all. Just to find gardens for them to grow in.

TPTP - our new DG term!! Love it! And gotta love frogs who love dahlias and pose for photos!

I spend most of the day redesigning the front edge of the pond so that the water level could be raised. It's looking good. Tomorrow will try to get it completed. Completed. Now there's a word I rarely use.

Oh, glorious glorious morning!!!! And I am going to have a quick warm up bath to loosen a couple of muscles (which I think are still tptp! so glad to have contributed in a meaningful way!) and then out to barrow some more!

Poochella - I have to say my hat is off to you and your sieving - I am absolutely lost for words of admiration - this is gardening taken to its absolute soil prep-edge!!!!!!!!! You, my dear, are definately doing bed preparation on a heroic level.

Now if we could just have a couple more therms up the celsius scale, I would join you in stripping off - we are not quite that lucky yet - but working on it.

Pix, I thought melons needed extra heat to germinate - try turning the temps up a bit on your pollinator seeds (melons need pollinator plants? I thought a bee or paint brush would do it) Which are you trying - we could start a reference thread on which do okay/well/not worth the effort. And then we could lose that by naming it something obscure, and it wouldn't be our fault but DG's. Excellent idea. Maybe we could get Rach to do a spread sheet like the one she did for the events calendar.

Yes, they do need heat, Laurie. They are in the greenhouse on heat mats, though, so that shouldn't be a problem. I can't remember the variety, Kayte will know. It's a miniature watermelon and for some reason, needs a pollinator. It's unusual, that. I believe she got a melon off of it, though. It's a short season melon, which, of course, is the only kind to reasonably try. I did see some melon seeds of many kinds that were brought over from eastern europe and russia where they have a short growing season. Seems like those would work here. But, again, many people have better sun even during the winter than I have in my yard. Tooo many tall doug firs.

It all depends on the heat of summer. Melons, even short-season, are a gamble here. At least out my way - just too cool. Really need a GH for this to capture every bit of precious heat.
This is a watermelon 'Petite Treat' from Territorial Seed Co. I have grown others (Galia - excellent!!!) with varied results. But this is the first one that needed a pollinator. I wondered what the description meant when it stated that the seed came with complete instructions. It gave an explantation of why; I'll post that info later.

Pix - the cantaloupe is "Lil' Loupe". Mine germinated in less than a week under grow lights & on a heat mat.

Great minds think alike, Laurie: Last evening, I was considering a spreadsheet of what grows well & all pertinent info. It could get pretty lengthy, though. I'll noodle it a bit more.

The lil' loupe is doing fine. All vegetables are up and growing. I found seeds for a climbing spinach this year. It's ornamental as well as tasty! I'm growing it on a madrona branch 'trellis' I salvaged from a neighbor's tree which was being removed.

Saw that photo - verrry nice!
I used an old large maple branch attached to the fence post, but the bark is not as good looking as the madona. works well, though.

My Katyeloupe and Katyecukes and Katyepeppers are all up and doing well, too! :)

I was thinking of using branches from either my Coral Bark, Dogwood, or Ash...funny....

Pixy, so you're growing Basella Rubra, too? How has your germination been? So far, only two of my seeds have germinated (I'm probably a bit late starting them, though)

Noodle away katye - I'm more than happy to add info, but hopeless on setting up. In the meantime, here is one I made earlier - this is my latest hazel structure - one side is going to be early peas, the other borlotti beans. All made without a single piece of string - (although I'll have to make some string nets for climbing - pretty da@#ed chuffed I am.

And chuffed you should be, Laurie. That's fantastic! Can't wait to see it covered in life!

Oh, wonderful!...Did I miss how you made the peony cages?

No, Susy, I kept trying to photograph it in progress and kept getting rained off (I'd start to make a bit, then had to grab the camera and run - squally rains!) - I've just cut some new beech, will try this weekend, but forecast is not good.

Back to work - yikes.

I thought this was rather cute. Sorta like Stamped and approved, LOL
Got it out of my new issue of Organic Gardening.

That is very cute! I love it!

They had some really good articles in it. one was really neat, The Spanish tomato trellis system. I will try to scan it. Dont know if you will be able to read it, but I can try.

Laurie, what marvelous trellises. I love the 'no string' technique, and also using the materials that you have on hand from your woodland.

All you melon growers are very brave, and I wish you good luck in your attempt. Every summer, I am regaled with my DH's watermelon stories from his childhood, so I am afraid I could not compete with such perfect melons from the watermelon capital of the world, Forestburg, SD. His grandfather would go there to get a pick up load of watermelons to sell off the tailgate. Of course all the grandkids would have their fill of juicy, sweet melons as well.

I too, have fond memories of watermelon off the tailgate. Though an army brat, my father grew up in East Texas, which I thought was the watermelon capital of the world until I read your post. LOL! I remember even as a young adult paying 25 cents for a watermelon off a pick up truck. Makes me feel very old to even post that. Couldn't have been that long ago. My uncle had a big watermelon patch behind his house in Texas and I fondly remember chasing horned lizards all along the patch and catching them. Back then they were common. Now they are rare. Very sad.
Last summer I bought a great striped melon, dad called them 'stipeys', off a truck in Tennessee. Heaven on earth!

Sceeeh Pix I must be older or in a different State, I used to to pick them, that was in Calif. and help but them on the trucks, I think I was 8 then, my folks did a lot of harvesting back them for extra money. let see, In the onion fields (hated onions for a long time) Potatoes ( Hate the smell of burlap) I stack the bags at the railway station, so gross.
Strawberry fields (back breaking) and many others.
^_^
Tils

Tils!! Child labour laws!! Ohhhh, they wouldn't get away with it now! And look how you turned out, healthy!

S.D. - south dakota, yes? snow on ground until spring? yes? so why can they do melons when we struggle? Answers, please.

Yes and still love to garden, and play in the dirt. LOL
^_^