Scattelogical ramblings and desultory humor - Almost May

Coming from:

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/833194/#top

Hi Victor!

Spring is almost gone in Alabama.

Pear blossoms have given way to little pears.

Philadelphus petals in the dog's water dish.

This message was edited Apr 26, 2008 9:16 AM

Good morning Gloria! How is all with you?

Trying to catch up! So much to do. It feels like a tread mill.

Family weddings. Getting the new flower beds ready to make it through the summer.

This message was edited Apr 26, 2008 9:44 AM

Yes I know. I always feel like I miss out a bit on this great time of year because I'm always so busy.

Are you doing anything different this year?

Not really - more of the same. Planting, weeding, etc.

Being busy in the gardens is the best kind of busy there is to be!

I showed Anna, (My DD for those of you who are new - and she's the one who owns the gardens in which I play), a photo comparison of last year's tulip garden and this year's tulip garden.

It's amazing what a year's worth of tilling and improving the soil will do - both for the garden and for the soul.

Wow! What a beautiful change, Candyce.

Thank you, but most of the credit goes to Anna. She did so much digging and improving the soil last year. I just keep her company and take the photos. Sometimes I weed. Well, all the time I weed, as she hasn't quite got a handle on what's a weed and what isn't a weed this early in the season.

But, the credit goes to Anna.

Tell Anna I think she's doing a grand job, please.

I certainly will do that, as soon as she comes inside from cutting down the brambles on the back hill! She loves to garden, that one! I love it that she's very patient. She knows the value of working the garden over a long period of time to be able to see results. She's so different from most of the rest of her generation in that respect. My hat is off to all gardeners, though, no matter what their age, who realize the value of time and hard work.

Work yes it is work. Canterbury Bells are the smallest things from seeds!! arghhh Planted 96 of the little suckers! How in the heck does somthing that small get that big as a plant? A tomatoe seedling is a giant compared!!! arghhhhhh

Looks great Candyce (and Anna)!

Yeah, must be nice to see the transformation!

I got this in an email. I want one of these!

THE RARE PARROT FLOWER


This flower is from Thailand. It is a protected species and is not allowed to be exported.

beautiful!

From what I can gather the plant itself looks like a 6' tall weed. Native to Thailand, India, Vietnam, Burma and various other countries in SE Asia.
It flowers in October and November (south of the equator which would be their spring). ☺

Wow.

Candyce - Wow.....that's quite a satisfying comparison, isn't it?!! Please commend Anna for me. Imagine how that will look when the tulips are in bloom!! I can't seem to keep any tulips going at the farm. I think it's the underground critters that go after the bulbs. The daffies do great, but no tulips year after year. Sniff!

Sherrie - that is quite an unusual flower!

Almost 8:00 and still some lingering light!

I ate asparagas from my garden! I should have fiddleheads later in the week. I think (fingers crossed) that some saturn peaches and asian pears have set! The asian persimmon has not bloomed -yet anyway and the bush cherries haven't bloomed either. :( The medlar will leaf out and then bloom. It wanted to set last year - so I will let it set this year. Both of the paw-paws are leafing out - but they are only a foot high - so no paw-paws either. Guess I can't have everything!

Cool!

Yankee Cat: That sounds like just about everything to me.
Great selection. I love those saturn peaches, but have seen a tree to buy. They are only available in the store for a few weeks. And who knows what poisons were used on them.

We've been enjoying our own asparagus for quite awhile now. Today was the first asparagus free day, by choice. There must be 60 out there to harvest tomorrow. The lettuce isn't doing much but gardeners learn to be patient - we have no choice at times!

Home grown broccoli is so entirely different than store bought that we seldom buy it throughout the year.

It's been another long day and I did get the daylilies replanted that were all removed and split up yesterday...all but five. They'll get their new homes tomorrow.

Never grew broccoli or asparagus.

Asparagus takes years to establish but you could try a four pack of broccoli and then just rip it out when it's harvested. It all depends on how many in the family would enjoy it.

Pirl - I totally agree with you about the fresh broccoli. I think we may arrive too late to get broccoli in this year. It was pretty borderline last year. I love growing it.......I think it is about the easiest thing you can grow and it is so much better fresh from the garden. My asparagus bed is a big patch of weeds that we never got around to clearing out last year. Choke, choke!! But amazingly we still get some each spring. Yum. I'm getting veggie hungry!

Hmmm in my next house (which will be my dream house) I will have plenty of room for a veggie garden! Now that would be heavenly!

Well Victor - I dug out that dogwood (sorry bud) and I did buy a wrough iron trellis and I bought another clematis to grow up the trellis.....I think I will look fine.....I just had to get rid of the dogwood - I had to do it...

Everything was springing up beautifully around here but now they are calling for snow tomorrow ugh!!! Eeeeks!!! Ouch!!! I hope everything will be okay....my bulbs have popped up, my daylilies are growing and I even have new growth on my clematis plants.....

Dogwood's revenge...

hard to imagine a bad dogwood. i guess anything in the wrong place is bad.

That is very funny, Victor!

The rhubarb is in bllom. I should take a picture.

Yankee Cat: I would like to know more about your orchard. Are the trees spaced as in a regular orchard or have you used some innovative design?

The tulips are almost blooming. I can see that one will be yellow. I'd take photos, but it's pouring out there!

I'm a bit concerned, as the low temps Tuesday night into Wednesday is supposed to be in the mid 20s!!

Oh come on don't say that !

yes weather.com says wed nite 28 degrees- but wait and see, it probably won't be too damaging..

Channel 9 is saying at night in the low to high 30's all week. Still too Cold !!!!

Candyce - you might want to run out before it gets dark and cover the tulip with a large box and a brick for the top along with a plastic bag over the box. I realize it's a lot of work but it's either that or cut the tulip for the house. Just don't put it in a vase with daffodils!!!

Good luck with all the spring blooms in the cold temps, everyone!! I hope everything makes it ok!

Louise