cgps

the perennials in this container have been in there for about 3 years now. the container goes in the garage in nov until late april early may. last year the japanese painted fern was huge! this year the golden bleeding heart is, the roma masterwort well, has a lot to compete with and you can just see the flowers if you look hard enough, best to click on the image to enlarge it, but the dark green leaves i think look great too.

a container renovation may be in order at the end of the summer season, which... comes with some decisions. do i put new plants in the container? only leave the painted fern in there for next year, put the others in the garden? new beds would have to be dug other plants to be moved....which made me remember a post on garden rant that i read a little while ago...'Put down the god-damned shovel and stop moving the perennials around on every whim!'...hmm. maybe i should just leave it for one more year the reason, they are doing so well is, i haven't touched them for 3 whole years.....unusual for me, not much is left alone in my garden for long. why you ask? i have cgps, chronic gardening puttering syndrome. it goes like this... 'this would look better here, against that, with that, more sun, less sun' the big one 'i just want to go look'....a garden nursery visit sets my shovel on fire with excitement, it knows, she's weak she'll buy something and have to move 3 other plants along the way.
gosh, i love that feeling of shovel in hand, thrusting it into the dirt, then inspecting that dirt which in many places now is lovely, lovely soil if i do say so myself. before the abscence of worms now the proliferation, and some good big ones too boot! see how i instantly succumb? i just went into a complete state thinking and writing about it...

yes i have cgps, i am a chronic garden putterer.

mustard greens anyone?

yep we've been eating A LOT of mustard greens lately. i planted them in 2 containers and i swear its like a Mary Poppins bag, never ending. i have never eaten them before, they are a very refreshing change from the tiring mesclun mix available in groceries stores. But alas, i think they have to come out by their roots soon, one last feast (need to look up few recipes, i think you can saute it) and on to the next, a seeding of green lights swiss chard, a mini variety.

ah french breakfast radish, they look ready, its been a long while since i've grown radishes, let alone eat them. think i will wait til the weekend and pick a few choice looking ones, with a bit of salt or dip, yum. funny, i look at bunches of radishes in the grocer or at the market but never think of buying them, and i can't say that i've seen other people reach for them either, i do like to look at what people buy...bit of grocery cart snoop i guess.
there's something about growing your own food, it just seems to taste better.

delecatable elixir

a week's vacation, back to work, travel for work and boom its the weekend again.

i had a STELLAR vacation. all i did was garden. garden at our place, then my Mom's and back to our place.

may 15th was a year ago that my Dad died, i was a little stressed about it. a year is an arbitrary date that seems to be set after a tragic even in which, apparently, most people have told me 'you will start to feel better'. i am not sure about that but ...i celebrated by doing what my Father loved to do, which was garden. part of that was planting a vegetable garden, his real passion was being a farmer on that family farm he grew up on. i loved it when he talked about 'the farm'.

in the mini raised bed is corn, sweet of course, valencia orange tomatoes, basil, french breakfast radish, mini carrots and a few giant vanilla marigolds started from seed, for pest control. although the sugar maple towering above was trimmed last year, i'm still not sure we'll get enough sun for the veggies especially for the corn but we'll see and it sure is fun to try!

ah now the pots (these are only a few, i might have mentioned before i have a bit of a pot obsession) there are mustard greens, tender swiss chard, rosemary, oregano, lime mint, peppery cress and edible flowers like nasturtium, YUM!

gardening is for me a delecatable elixir, physically, emotionally, it excites ALL my senses, makes me feel completely a part of the natural world, but most of all it connects me firmly with my Dad and with that softens the deep deep sorrow of missing him.

a nowhere garden post

i love that this johnny jump up has found a spot in our lawn to call home.

the Rainbow Leucothoe doesn't seem to be too happy, too much sun and heat for spring? does it need a better spot?

the Gold Bleeding Heart, Dicentra spectabilis 'Gold Heart' is thriving in its planter, just planted last year and has doubled in size! the Japanese Painted Fern, Athyrium goeringianum 'Pictum' just to left under the Bleeding Heart (hard to see but if you click on the image it will open and enlarge) isn't as robust as last year, i think i put the planter out too early and it took a bit of a hit from the cold, i am sure it will recover. the green leaves of the Astrance rouge, Roma Masterwort are just starting will give some nice texture and contrast and teh blooms will add some late summer colour.

the last of lawn bulbs, Muscari and short species tulips...the cable running across the tree root isn't that appealing is it? i keep meaning to rip that out ... it goes absolutely nowhere....

Autumn Magic in Spring?

'Black Chokeberry, Aronia melanocarpa - Highly adaptable to a variety of soil conditions, the black chokeberry will complement any landscape. Attractive small white flowers in spring and glossy, deep green foliage in summer. Particularly effective in the fall with clusters of blackish-purple fruit and wine red to purple leaf color, this 5' h 3' w shrub is hardy to zone 3. 'Viking,' 'Elata' and 'Autumn Magic' are excellent selections.'

we picked 'Autumn Magic' i wanted a shrub that has great fall colour and berries that just love to hang on into early winter, originally when i researched shrubs most said that the berries on this one attract birds, but as i dug deeper i also found notes that said they only eat them as a last resort, so we shall see. i think it's a beauty and can't wait to see it flourish. we planted it in the back corner of the larger raised bed. that's one down. it looks a little lonely right now, what else what else, i think it needs some low growing evergreen surrounding it and on the outer edge, then perennials intermixed.

did i mentioned probably 50 bags of dirt are loaded in that planter, along with a fair amount of leaves...everytime we went out various kinds of manure and mix was on the shopping list! i love dirt.

the glorious raised bed

'we're not just going to grow vegetables are we, i don't want to be a farmer you know' said the husband. 'well i already planted a row of corn' said the wife. 'oh well i like corn, it looks cool' the husband said and so he became an urban farmer. big outdoor project number 1 completed, he's a really good husband.

the backyard; when we moved in 5 years ago was already completely devoid of life and has no grass. shadowed by a large sugar maple (Acer saccharum) on the left and a crimson king maple (Acer platanoides 'Crimson King') in the yard backing onto us the previous owners had laid patio stones throughout the whole backyard along with the deck, only a vinca vine grew quietly in the back corner, the dog quickly took care of that though. happily i was able to salvage some struggling plants and relocate along the front of the beds to soften the look.
we're not yet sure what plant life will go in these lovely cedar raised beds, we still have to lug copious amounts of dirt to fill the larger one. but we're thinking small shrub(s), perennials, some herbs, plant life that attracts birds, bees, butterflies and hummingbirds, if there is any in our area oh and some veggies to be sure.

anti lawn evolution

yep, that's right i don't care about our grass, there i said it.

last year we spread some eco lawn seed to help rejuvinate our little space, roughly 6 feet wide and 15-20 feet long, shared with our neighbour straddled by a big ol'tree. it helped and is lovely, but i needed more, no mono lawn for us so...in went the crocus which have come and gone, but their grassy striped leaves look amazing especially with a breeze blowing. the snowdrops & grape hyacinths are just popping up and the short blooming tulips with the sharp curly leaves are on the brink. last year a johnny jump up decided to make its home here somehow knowing its an anti lawn and decided to thankfully reseed itself, i can only hope for more. yesterday the white dutch clover seeds were scattered just before the rain and last weekend cash was thrown down for woolly and minus thyme after attending a ground cover lawn seminar at richters herb farm. lucky things are hardening off waiting to be planted.

its going to be busting at the seams and i hope looking like a magic woven carpet full of texture, colour and smell this year. though i LOVE using our push mower it may have less and less to do. i would love to say i have a plan particularily since taking the landscape design courses, adding more structure to the little space would help, the random flower bed in front doesn't quite do it for me but for now its all about the plant life, simple as that.

anyway my main contactor (the husband) will be busy with the backyard redesign projects :)

91 sleeps!

What is it about getting something in the mail that is not a bill or worse junk mail that delights me so much! This little delight almost surpasses the excitement I felt when I was just a kid and finally got my Tony the Tiger grow chart in the mail from all the Frosted Flakes box tops I saved!

I participated in a Garden Girl give a away and these little gems are what I received. Cymbopogon Citratus, Lemongrass, open-pollinated, heirloom seeds! Although my garden needs a complete overhaul, I had planned to add more edibles and herbs to my little urban plot this year including in the many, many containers that fill my garden every year. These seeds fit the bill perfectly, I love lemon, its a plant that I likely wouldn't have thought to grow on my own and the green grass will look spectacular swaying in the new chocolate glazed pot that was so thoughtfully given to me for Christmas! The planets clearly aligned.

Last year Scarlett Runner beans graced bamboo poles (and our plates) in the front and backyard, the bees buzzing with joy, chives were scattered through the annuals and perennials for quick snipping and mint flourished on that ant hill where nothing else would grow and tasted oh so delish in every beverage I could stuff those leaves in. The 3 pumpkin vines that were randomly planted along the back fence just grew and grew and grew weaving their way all around the backyard creating the most amazing jungle. The vines had so many big cheeky orange flowers I thought my porch would be filled with jack-o'-lanterns at Halloween, but it was all for show we ended up with not one pumpkin from that patch! A small beginning but a beginning none the less, and boy oh boy this little seed packet has sure gotten me excited in anticipation of the garden adventure this year! How many sleeps til the last frost date...only about 91!