What is happening in your early summer garden?

dp - your photos are great, nice job on the hydrangea!

ima, your garden is just beautiful, I could look at that all the live long day !

Really great photos DP. I can tell you are having fun. ^_^
My agga's at least the minis are putting on buds. I'll have to go take some photos myself. Just wanted to say, that you are doing a great job with the photos, and to keep it up!
WIB,
SW

DP your pictures are really great. What brand of camera did you buy? Pictures are so sharp, or is it the photographer.............

thanks, toots! I'm really enjoying not looking around and seeing all the MAJOR projects that need to be done---and enjoying my plants and birds instead! It's only been 20 years.....LOL!

That birdbath just doesn't look centered. The raised planter is working out well. Just need to remember next time to make sure the tar ain't on top. LOL. Good hot days melt the tar and it sticks to whatever it touches.
Still trying to get that mulch spread, and the space between the trees cleared of the wild grass. One day at a time.
WIB,
SW

This is what I got done over the weekend. I am not showing the before photo. Just think, impassable jungle strewn with empty pots, and other miscellaneous junk. Sure cleaned up pretty. Here is where my potted plants go that don't like to be watered much.
Someday, I'll get my little courtyard finished. I'm just happy I can see the bricks. LOL!
WIB!
SW

SW, I've had really good luck with using cardboard mulch in areas where "bad things" have come up. It has saved me a TON of work. Your raised beds look great!

We cross-posted----courtyards are the BEST! Yours is coming along very nicely!

This message was edited May 26, 2009 8:27 PM

That's looking great! I love courtyards too--that's the one thing I really miss about my old house in Martinez, it had a cut shady little courtyard in the front of the house, used to love to sit out there in the summer and enjoy a good book. Overall I like my current house better, but I do miss that courtyard! I've tried to recreate the feeling with some seating areas in my front yard and on my deck, but it's not the same.

Underneath that mulch in the first photo I posted tonight is everything from newspapers to cardboard to carpet, to actual landscapers cloth, to the mulch which needs a new layer added on top. Some areas which were disturbed when they laid down the new leach line have all of the above, layered one on top of the other, some places just have some newspaper and landscapers cloth. Once I get another layer of mulch down it will be much easier. I won't have to work so hard on the flower gardening/weeding. It's getting harder to get back up when I bend down, and the Dr. doesn't want me falling again. At least it's relatively soft, and I'm not allergic to it, like I am with the grass. Someday, it will be easy for me to take care of. It's just not there yet. ^_^
Courtyards are places to retreat from the everyday cares of the household. In my case it also hides the ugly view of the bee barn and part of the chicken pen. I'll keep ya posted. We're going to give the old wrought iron patio furniture a face lift, and then I'll have seating there.
WIB!
SW

Nice pictures all. Love seeing all the different combos.
imapigeon--lovely courtyard----may have to put one in someday, somewhere in my jungle
singingwolf--know what you mean about that coneflower (Mexican Hat), it is a perennial here and reseeds. I just finished tearing out lots of it, was taking over a whole section.

doss--love the clematis and rose combo
ecrane-that Osteosperum is stunning

My gardens, which are display gardens for our business, starting really blooming about two months ago. First it was mostly bulbs, and then the wildflowers, and now all the perennials are coming to bloom.

Here is an over all shot

A closer picture

another

The Spiritual Garden I am starting

and my favorite picture with Larkspur, Lilies blooming and Mountain Garland in the background

A gardener's dream! Everything is so beautiful. Very interested in your spiritual garden. I would love something like that. Spiritual and memory garden together. I don't have that much room, but one small area would be so nice.

Wow---has the look of a traditional English landscape---just beautiful, Bareroots!

Gorgeous Bareroots, I'm impressed.

Samigal: it's a Nikon D-40 digital. And it's ALL the camera. I'm still carrying the book around in my cargo pocket, learning how to use it. The only thing I've learned is to turn the knob to the little picture of a flower and zoom in on a blossom. Any camera that makes me look like I know what I'm doing must be a good one.

This is a Ruellia I rescued from a Home Depot throw away bin. (they still charged me a dollar for it)

Used to be you could go in the trash and get flowers stores threw away. I used to go shopping at Fed-Mart (that was at least 30 years ago) and my oldest son would go diving for the throw away plants. So many of them were "brought back to life" and so pretty. We had a camper then and DH would stay with the kids while I shopped. Now no one will let you get anything out of the trash, that is if they are looking. LOL Even some of the marked down plants at Lowe's look pretty bad.

Bareroots, Lovely photos!
DP, people give me their sick flowers or I find them in the discount section. Know what ya mean about dumpster diving. LOL!
WIB,
SW

My sister gets orchids that way - she's the orchid doc.

Bareroots - just beautiful. You said it was a display garden for your business? I'll hire you! But, then you would want to be paid, LOL, but I love your work.

Ima- I love your meadow too. Do your succulents do okay in the winter with the cold? We get the occasional mid 20's at night and this year it liquified some succulents. They are all in pots, so moved them to the shelter of the front porch where DD's rabbit cage had plastic on 2 sides to keep him dry.

Everyone's photos look great. Went out to use my camera and no workee. It is gathering dust waiting for me to read the manual! The ruffled purple and white trimmed geranium I was going to take a photo of has had the roots eaten by my #()&(& gopher. I was able to cut branches off before it was totally dried up that I hope will root. Ditto with dusty miller that is a known favorite to my gophers. Oddly 2 have survived for 2 years!

Sorry to hear about your gopher problem. Hope it gets resolved soon. Still having incursions into the gh. Wish DH would go get that attachment thing DP was talking about.
Read the manual. You may need to charge the battery before using too.
Hang in there kiddo!
By the way if you ever want some society garlic, let me know. Nothing goes through that stuff. LOL!
Good to hear from you qg.
WIB,
SW

thanks, quilty---I am really, REALLY careful about the succulents I get. My dear friend either moves all of hers, or covers them with (you guessed it) a quilt for the winter. I can't handle that. If they make it, they're in my garden. If they don't, I replace 'em with something else. That's true of all my plants. I can't handle many divas, and that goes for humans as well as plants...LOL!

I got glads!

I'm so GLAD for you!

I'm going to go out and see if they've opened any more. Then it's back to cleaning up what I've neglected for so long. If you remember I planted these glads in like January or February. First time growing them for me. MIL used to have some at her old house but I can't visit them anymore.
Off on a safari with my camera. It's perfect, a gray, warm morning.
WIB,
SW

I'm still painting lumber, my hand hurts from using it so much. At least I can see where DH has decided to put the posts. I always have to wait until it starts cooling down here before he gets out there to do some work. I'm looking at everyone's lovely plants and mine have been suffering from some neglect. Neglect the weeds and they flourish.

Well, i'm starting another thread. So far so good you guys. It's still early in the summer so post more!

Here's our new thread. Bring the glads right along!

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/994967/


This message was edited May 28, 2009 6:34 PM