Daffodils and muscari

I spent most of the day planting bulbs. It's currently 69 degrees and, um...breezy. It feels like spring. I had 400 daffodils to plant and 150 muscari, or so I thought. Here's the final tally, so I can be disappointed in the spring when nothing comes up.

Daffodils:

* 200 on the front slope
* 100 scattered in the shrub island, rose garden, and around the lilac.
* 35 in the shady corner where a frost killed brugmansia still stands.
* 33 around the legs of the swing.
* 35 behind the upper potager/hoophouse.
* 6 in the neighbor's corner.

That's more than 400, right?

Muscari:

* 90 on the front slope.
* 10 along the backyard fence
* 60 in the crape myrtle bed.

Yes, I can add. Along with the bulbs I planted last year in the perennial bed, the bulbs that pop up here and there, planted by someone else years ago, and whatever spring flower plants I may or may not have, it should be a colorful time in the yard in just a few months. Christmas is just around the corner. Then there's New Years Day. I'll be busy all through January sowing and planting out early sprouts from my wintersowing. In February, it'll be really cold for a couple of weeks. Then there's my birthday. Peas will be planted in the lower potager about that time. Next thing you know, it'll be spring. It's like 2 weeks, tops.

I also spent an hour moving pavers from the driveway to the hoophouse. I laid down cardboard then three 16' long rows of pavers. These will heat up a little during the day and radiate heat back at night. At least that's the plan. They might not be thick enough to really warm up. Still, the roots of tender perennials not yet sown should be okay once it's closed up.



I've got a few left. The ones in the hoophouse will be stacked to create a couple of resting spots in the backyard when the hoophouse comes down. I'll reuse them again later. The patio idea is on hold indefinitely for now.



The front slope area where periwinkle was killed. Here's where I planted the majority of the bulbs.



I found a few sprouting daffs in a spot I thought would be perfect for some spring flowers. Guess I was right.



I collected moonvine seeds from the back of the house. I was surprised to find 8 seed pods. I don't recall seeing but a couple blooms all summer. Must have been while I was laid up with my leg.



Mr. Lincoln.



The "orange" rose.



Sunny Knockout.



After all this, it was time to have a sit...



and watch the clouds race by.



It's still 69 degrees. A gorgeous day.

I guess someone will be expecting me in Atlanta soon, and a bit further Southwest after that. I'm not sure my back can handle another 200+ bulbs.

A Good Morning.

It's been raining now for more than 36 hours. It's just a light drizzle mostly so there hasn't been much in the way of accumulation. It's in the low 70s and cloudy, of course. Tomorrow, we should see some sun.

In the "meadow", I tossed out lots of chaff from various collected seeds. The red clover I scattered a couple days ago is starting to germinate.



I started the morning by having a cup of coffee. Then I headed to the north side of the house. I dug out three of the Leyland Cypress trees I had planted last year. They'll get way too large for this area. I moved them to behind the future patio space. I want to block a few yard lights that shine into my bedroom windows.



When I move established plants, I use my Dad's method. He taught me how to plant tomatoes this way. Dig a hole. Fill it with water. Dig another hole. Fill it with water, repeat and refill all the holes with water at least twice. Even though we've had two days of rain, the soil is dry a couple inches down. I did the same thing when I planted the 16 Carolina cherry laurels along the wall. I staggered them a bit and didn't get a straight line. They'll need a good bit of pruning in a couple years to keep them in check, but they bloom in spring and provide food for birds. Plus, they're evergreen. Hopefully they'll block the nosy bitty and the duplex next door.



You can barely see them. I wintersowed the seeds last October.



Next, I worked on some of the things at the end of the driveway, including more $1 clearance plants. Most of this was planted in the perennial bed. I'm more interested in collecting seeds than what they look like this year.



I dug up three knockout roses from the shrub island. I planted them on the slope behind the tomato patch, just in front of my new blueberry bushes. I cut them back hard and will not be disappointed if they don't make it. Consider this my ode to freeway on-ramps.



I gathered 3 butterfly bushes from the edges of the woods, mainly those that had blooms I really liked, and put them where I had the roses. They got cut back hard too. Next spring, I'll cut them all back to the ground to regrow at the same rate.



Around the other side of the fig, I planted several Turn of the Century hibiscus cuttings that were rooted several months ago. A couple of white ones were tossed into the mix as well. I can't wait for next spring.



I planted out three rooted vitex cuttings too. A couple went into the crape myrtle bed where lots of tiny echinacea seedlings have popped up. Another went on the slope just down from the blueberries.



Yesterday, I cleaned the cloning machine and refilled it. It was back up to the right temperature this morning, so I made 7 cuttings of pineapple salvia. Over the winter, I'll turn those 7 cuttings into about 35 more. I have a plan.



I dumped the soil from the sweet potato vine planter by the basement door. Not a bad harvest. I'll dry and store these tubers to create new plants next year. The white ones are from the black plants. The red ones are from the green plants. It's the opposite of what I would expect.



Yesterday on my way back from the library, I collected a few seed pods from the datura I got my original seeds from. They're drying in the basement too.



And finally. Yes, finally...the laminate for the kitchen counters arrived. Kim called me yesterday to let me know I could pick it up as soon as they checked it in. I brought it home at lunch and laid it face down on the dining room floor. I know my cat, but more importantly, I don't want to ruin the surprise.



Wednesday and Thursday are my days off this week. I'm planning to work in the kitchen, mostly. The plan is to finish the beadboard and as much of the molding as possible. I'd like to be ready to install the laminate by the weekend. If the rain continues overnight, I'll probably plant a few more things from the end of the driveway. I really need to get the snowball viburnums in the ground this week if I expect them to survive the winter.

I almost forgot the white crape myrtle I planted too. It's very close to the fig, but I have an idea to move the fig in the spring. I think it would do better with more sun.

In case you haven't figured it out, the leg is doing fine these days. It's a little stiff in the mornings, and late at night if I've been on it for a while. I'd say it's at least 97%.

I'm beat.

I don't say it often, but this leg thing has me whipped. This morning, I went outside to attempt some watering. After wrestling with the hoses and crutches for 10 minutes, I gave up. Let it die. I did manage to collect a few seeds yesterday evening. There's a ton of castor beans out there. The salvia subrotunda is covered with seed pods. There are babies already this year under the current plant.

So instead of watering, I focused on things that I like. Here's the shrub island. The pineapple sage in the foreground was blooming in May. It should bloom again real soon.



My new Rose of Sharon. There's no tag, but it's a double pink. I think it will look good with the crape myrtles in the back yard next year. Maybe underplanted with some echinacea.



Finally, the mind has decided to shut down....Perilla. I love this plant.



Went back to the doctor. Infection. More antibiotics, something to relieve the swelling, more antibiotics, and some cultures to test for additional infection. They also took x-rays since no one at the emergency room did. It's bad, but should be much better by Monday. I could even be up and moving if the soreness in the bone isn't an issue.

Another change in plans

This time, it wasn't my fault. The sign on the window of the scale building at the landfill said "No more leaf/wood mulch effective May 11, 2009." The lady stuck her head out the window to let me know that they had it. They just couldn't give it away until the state regulators give them the okay. She knows me from all my previous trips. She usually just waves me on through.

*sigh* So, plan B. Across the street, I asked Jean if I could have some of the leaves piled up in the back corner of the lot. She told me to take all I wanted. Had I known about the leaf mulch being unavailable, I wouldn't have sprayed the grass yesterday. I would have waited til fall. But I went on with what I had on hand.

Went to the store and got lots of boxes, some big, some small. I laid them out over the area I had sprayed for the shrub border.





I collected leaves in a tarp and threw them on the back of the truck. Four tarps made a load. Four loads was all I needed, for now. I spread the leaves over the cardboard to a depth of over 12" tapering them down around the tiny plants I set out yesterday.



When I was finished, I spread 34-0-0 fertilizer over the whole area. The nitrogen should help break the leaves down quicker. I should have chopped them with the lawnmower, but it's hot out there. 89 degrees and sunny. When I finished, I went to have lunch with Larry and let the sprinkler do my watering.



When I set the posts for the arbor, I wanted the opening wide enough to back the truck through. Not sure why that mattered since I've just built a bed right in the middle of the path. It's a tight fit.



No more planting in this bed until fall. I'll feed and water the transplants all summer. Another Loropetalum will be moved this winter. The color almost matches the shutters and doors.

7:51pm - 82 degrees and still clear. More daturas will bloom this evening. It's no longer a rare occurrence and I've lost the ability to be excited. Quick, huh? And that last sentence from earlier about no more planting? Yeah. Right.

I moved the Colorado Blue Spruce I bought a while ago into this bed.



I also moved the Miscanthus Cosmopolitan.



I planted three buddleia seedlings, each about 6" strong.



The rooted fig also got set out.



And I moved a rose that I rooted from cuttings last year. It's tiny, but it's ugly too. It needs some attention is all. No picture because it's camera shy. I fertilized with 6-6-18 for strong root growth into the rocky soil.

Don't you just love Echinacea?



And Leucanthemum?

Things Change

First off, let me thank FlowerLady for the new quote that I am using in my profile. It struck a nerve when I read it over at her blog a few days ago. I really thought it was quite poignant.

Originally I had planned a trip to Virgina today to help a friend with some work. Those plans changed early this morning so I was left wandering around the yard looking for something to do. I had asked advice on GardenWeb earlier in the week about my backyard. With the new arbor being constructed, I found that I had inadvertently created an axis from the street terminating at the Belle of Georgia peach tree I planted this spring. I wasn't too happy with the look.



I got lots of feedback and some great ideas. People love to give you suggestions when they don't have to lift a finger to dig a hole. Speaking of holes, I began transplanting some shrubs from various parts of the yard. They're all small, but they grow fast, especially given more sun than they were getting in their previous locations.

When I dig here, I hit stone a few inches down. I use all this stone to create my borders around the beds. This one will be no different.



Even a small hole 12" deep and 24" wide will turn up a lot of rock.



I've already started laying these stones along the back side of the driveway bed I built in March.



With a can of orange paint from my model making days, I laid out what I thought to be a nice shape. I'll be filling it with shrubs to provide some privacy through the arbor into the backyard. Today, I transplanted a white spirea, two loropetalum shrubs that were in poor sun exposure spots, two cherry laurels I started from seed this winter, and 5 rooted rose cuttings. These cuttings were broken from various roses when we received our first shipment in March. I brought them home instead of throwing them away. Almost a dozen cuttings were stuck. These 5 survived and rooted easily. They weren't planted when I took this photo, but I've since sprayed the grass with RoundUp and dug up several more rocks for the edge. I'm only using chemicals here because of the centipede and bermuda grass in the lawn. It's nearly impossible to kill using my normal half-baked lasagna method.



I'll get some cardboard from the store on Wednesday, pick up some leaf mulch from the landfill, and finalize the shape. Overnight, I should see some results from the spray.

While walking around this morning, there were several things I noticed.

I have a foxglove that's sending up a stalk.


Coreopsis Full Moon is about to bloom.


Lemon Mint Bee Balm is coming back nicely from the hack job I did on it a few weeks ago.


Four O'Clocks and KnockOut roses are the same color.


A brugmansia has several flower buds.


The Green Zebra tomato was picked and eaten with cucumbers my parents brought.


Butternut squash gets big.


Yellow squash gets even bigger.


Cucumbers in my own garden are coming on nicely.


The first mammoth sunflower has bloomed. Castor beans and cherry tomatoes in front.


The morning glory at the chimney is starting to climb the new trellis.


The lavender crape myrtle is happy again.


Wintersown Sea Holly is blooming, a year ahead of schedule.


So is the Queen Anne's lace.


I spent some time early this morning pulling weeds in the perennial bed. In the bare spots, I planted more squash with nasturtiums. I sowed some beans and cucumbers in various areas, too. I'd like to get two harvests this year. If we don't get some rain soon, I'll have to water the potager. Right now, only the perennial bed has needed water. I gave it an hour with the sprinkler on Saturday, and another hour today. It's 84 and sunny with no rain in the forecast until Friday evening.

It's been a long day. I'm about ready to call it quits and cook some squash and corn for dinner. Silver Queen from my parents' garden is in the crisper drawer. It's gonna be delicious.