What have you done today in the Garden?

Weeded one of the borders and cut the grass in the front garden. Watered the plants around the path.

 

Just some watering.

Took car to dealership (that was expensive. The thingamagingies and whatchamacallet doodlebobs needed to have their high tech gizmological adjustments. That doesn't come cheaply) .

One of the pullets was converted to a few loose feathers and nothing else remaining. Weasel? I thought the pullet house was secure. I bought two rat stations (in case it was a rat) and moved the other pullets to the main chicken house. There was drama! But I think they are adjusting.

I wanted to do a couple more garden chores, but I needed a break.

 

Melody that’s a really big job… there’s gotta be some handy experienced lumberjacks to hire…they will have it done leave you fire. Wood for winter and leave the area as clean as a whistle. The stump going yo be removed or left…

 

Early morning watered the potted blueberries, tomatoes and rhubarb in the back garden. Just finished planting 3x3 pots of oriental lillies in the front border along the driveway, it took a lot of doing trying to dig holes to put them in, the ground was dry as a bone, it got too hot for me to plant the cosmos and snapdragons.

 

A wise decision.


It was shopping this morning, so I'm not going to do much until late this afternoon.

My doctor once told me that I should keep myself well hydrated, when playing golf in the summer, or indulging in any form of outdoor physical activity, so this would include gardening, wouldn't it?

So I've stocked up on, "essential gardening supplies."

This is the little Budweiser fridge I bought quite cheaply second-hand on eBay ten years ago. It was meant for Budweiser cans, but with a bit of fettling, (a glass shelf on the bottom), it can hold both bottles and cans.
There's been additions to the contents, as well as Budweiser bottles, a "rustic element" has been introduced with some cider and some "gentrification," with some Peroni.
The fridge is sitting on a recycled TV stand, which in turn sits on a base with four big castors, so I can move it out to clean behind it.




As well as taking some refreshment during a well-earned gardening break, I'll include watching sport on the TV in the tea-house. I'm well prepared, for the tennis at Wimbledon. The BBC are currently showing the tournament at Nottingham, on the red button.

 

Part of our property has a willow hedge that started as pussy willow sticks. They were just pushed into the ground, not even rooted in water. That was during wet Spring season. I've also used willow as garden markers, and it rooted. If done during wet season, willow, rose, fig, sometimes plum, apple, forsythia will do that. I've never been able to root lilac or peaches however. Buddleia is easy but I won't grow standard varieties because they are so invasive.

That was a lovely willow. When I was younger, having all of that would have inspired me to make willow baskets.

 

What have I done today in the garden? I had FUN! I watered the tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers, and tied up more of the Roma tomatoes. Those vines are loaded! I picked some cherry tomatoes that were ripe. I can hardly wait for the Romas to ripen. Marinara sauce in our future!

 

I got into this wisteria late this afternoon.
I pruned off a few hundred blossom spines some unwanted top growth and any foliage below the pergola. This is to give the several clematis, on the garage wall a better chance. I edged the ground cover in the narrow bed next to the garage with my strimmer. I also tied down a few new wisteria branches which will cascade next year.

It only took an hour so I restricted my "rehydration," to one can of Magners.
I'm now watching the golf on TV.

(I did put away the broom).


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Thanks for the suggestion Pac. Eventhough Hubby can't run a saw until next year, he would internally combustion if I ever tried to hire another faller hahahaha I'll be able to clean up everthing that came down, and remove most of the broken trunk on my own. Two of my kids are coming to visit in August as long as the fires allow it. If not a neighbour has offered to help me take down the remaining tops at the end of summer. I've decided to use scaffolding instead of a ladder to secure rope attached to the big tractor, and cut it down with direction. I'm only going to cut it as low as I have to, with the hope that it will set out new branches over the next few years. As long as the main trunk looks sound anyhow.

Those little darn branches are the biggest work. I really dislike picking all of them up. I'd rather stick a fork in my eye.

Willow does burn, but with a LOT of ash. And it will take almost three years to cure enough. I'll probably stack it under another tree for a few years and then split it. Crazy that it still sends out shoots a year later after being bucked up. Resiliant tree.

 

Planted annuals in deck planter mowed the lawn

 

Another cold windy day. Not exactly the weather to trim and hedge. I trimmed a lot and placed tarps under to catch the trimming then wrap them up for another day.

 

Potted on 75 polyanthus

 

Please be careful

I have decided to have my woodstove removed and install an electric heater insert in the fireplace instead. Washington state has some rebates for removing old woodstoves. I don't know if they apply here. I want to put a sign out front, "Free Firewood" and give away what I've cut and stacked, or even not cut yet. I think it will be better health-wise, and a way to cut back my work-load a bit .

There's the issue of, what if the power is out a winter storm. But this woodstove has a (loud) fan that distributes heat, and that requires power. I do think about buying a generator but that installation is complicated.

But please be careful Melody with all that scaffolding and tree parts and saws and tractor and everything!

 

Thank you for the kind words Daniel. I promise to be careful, and will be sure to have others present to triple check everything. With any luck they will be 26 years younger than I and fearlessly agile. I hope to leave the rest of the tree up for shade for the summer ( an eye sore but that's okay) and take it down late summer/early fall.

That insert sounds like a good plan. I day dream of turning two of our woodstoves into pellet stoves one day - just so that it is less work. We burn about 15 cords a year lately.

Maybe I should do a roady and take you up on the free firewood hahahaha. I had friends come camping from Washington and they brought their own wood. They weren't allowed to bring it across the border, but they border gaurds let them stack it and pick it up on their way home. I'd have to smuggle it.

 

Today is a high of 11 C and raining. It is nice to see the field's slowly greening up.

The pasture was mowed and collected yesterday afternoon. The clippings are all tucked into the pathways of the lower garden. They will stop weeds and break down over the course of the summer, then be tilled in before winter. This process has served me well for the last 10 years. The only weeding left down there is the broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage.

I think I have an issue with the upper garden and too much wood ash. My helper thought they were helping and spread a few pails over winter. I had already carefully spread my yearly amount to help the snow melt...then it snowed. I knew it was there but he did not. What I thought was the ash I had already spread showing, was new ash. ( oops). I have a section where the beans are stunted and yellowing - they had an intial push of growth but now have stopped. After some reading, I'm going to try some nitrogen ( side dressing of blood meal) and a foliar spray of fertilizer once the rain stops hope that helps them push through. I will do some soil testing and amending this fall.

Today will also be a tidy up of the greenhouse, pinching suckers off of the tomatoes, tying up some fruit clusters and supporting the red robins who are fruit heavy now.