What is happening in your Garden Today?

Lastly--this is the biggest, dug up root of all--the one my BIG 4's plant grew from last Summer--which was easily3'x4' overall. This has put out only one, massive shoot-to-be! I just know it will produce a huge plant !!!!

I hope this gives you all some options with this plant. mMany of you have gotten seeds of this 4 O'clock from me.
Of course--many of the 100's of seeds that a 'bush" of this plant can produce, have, probably fallen to the ground and will come up as volunteers. Look for them--they can be moved easily.....or potted up and shared.
Their "cotyledons" look just like MG's. But when the true leaves emerge, they are pointed.

Just wanted to note also, that when you dig them up and have left a section of the old stem on them--do not worry!
The old stem will fall away in time--just like an umbilical cord, and leave just the scabbed over "scar" of where it was attached. THAT is from where the new shoots will come from!!!!

Any more questions? You know where to find me!!!! Gita

This is ONE plant--YES! From 2009.
This is the one the biggest, dug up root came from--which already grew from a root I dug up in 2008.

Seems they cam "expand" expotentionally.....:o)

Here are the dug-up tubers of my 4's in Oct. of 2008.
What all this started from.............................:o)

Gita

edited to say--see the stems attached? Those will all sluff off at some point during their dormancy. Then--the new shoots will grow from below the scabbed over remnants....

This message was edited Apr 8, 2010 3:00 PM

WOW!!! I had no idea. They are pretty.

Thanks for all the cheese, friends. I knew I could count on you. No whining here now.

I dug up some bleeding hearts from a fiend's yard. Hey, she offered and I jumped. I also dug up some 'turk's cap' lilies.

Redbud 'Covey' is blooming now. I moved it to a better location for viewing. Am thinking I'll put some of the bleeding hearts near it.

Could use some rain.

Gita I had no idea 4:00's had roots like that. WOW When we put in the GH I will be digging up the bed that I have been growing them in for a couple of years. Wonder what I will find when we dig it up. LOL
Well I finished the weeding in the back corner. I have to dig up some of the variegated ornamental grass that was wandering farther than I want it. Then it is just plant, mulch and weed as needed.

My wife has been doing lawn and garden chores about two hours a day. I get to ride the tractor and pull the pick-up trailer. Together we have our reduced gardening in reasonably good shape. I had to mow first grass set at four inches. The projected rain arrived. Thanks we needed that.

Our first groundhog has appeared and was taken care of. We had four or five last year. They are starting early this year. This one was a puppy. Do not know if it was a loaner or with family. Time will tell. This one went straight to our flower beds and then to the asparagus where it sat up and met some incoming pig lead.

My second case of pneumonia seems to be cleaned up. I get another cat scan in about three week. My fingers are crossed. I got to see two ball games this week but missed most of the March ball games.

Greetings all! Compliments of strong winds I'm house bound today and not a bit happy about it. I've spent the week starting the massive mulching process. We had 16 yards delivered on Monday and the plants have been coming up faster than I can spread. I told dh that next year I'm ordering it in the winter when everything is dormant. I lost a lot of labels compliments of the snow, some were bent into oblivion, while others that had the weather proof printed labels on them just plain vanished (the paper part). I'll just be using those nursery markers from now on as guessing where stuff is and what it is, isn't much fun anymore lol. Today I'm wading through magazines and trying to figure out what plants I want to add. I'm thinking it's time for a few dogwoods in the front of the property, maybe some dwarf maples or evergreens that the deer won't eat. I also need a new bench or two for various spots. I can hardly wait to get back out there tomorrow, poor dh is going to be so tired when I'm done lol!

I have a therapeutic sod/weed removal session. My 8 yo with Asperger's (a perfect target!) was bullied (physically assaulted) by a group of boys on the playground. I imagined each pitch fork full of sod/weeds as a bully being thrown into the compost pile to be transformed into something great for the garden.

How sad, please give your child a hug for me. Kids can be so cruel. I'd think I'd do more then just pitch fork my garden. I'd be reporting to the police.

pgt, Gardening can be so therapeutic. I can just see those little bullies flying in the air and piling up in the compost pile. Working in the garden is a great way to blow off steam or just take your mind to a different place. Hope your school is sportive. Some of them have good programs for dealing with bullies and others just don't seem to get it.
We are heading out to pick up another load of used bricks.

May I join this discussion?

I spent a couple of hours clearing brush around the self-seeded redbuds that are about to come into bloom. Some of the larger ones had a lot of dead wood to remove. An important daily task is trying to get the garlic mustard under control before it blooms and re-seeds.

I dug a few plants for trades today.

I remember those days of one of my kids being bullied. The authorities said there was not much they could do about it. I worked with her diligently until she took care of it herself. Come to our plant swap on June 5th in Mount Bethel, PA, PGT and I'll tell the rest of the story privately.

Garyon, don't you just love when your favorite plants reseed themselves. I have russian sage and caryopteris that make new pups every year and get adopted by some happy gardener.. This year my daughter is waiting for some.

Welcome to the discussion Garyon, I love Red Buds. They grow in the woods and along the road sides. I have a couple small ones that I have transplanted to my yard and one of them is flowering now. A couple of years ago I started collecting the seeds and spreading them around the woods and hedgerow that boarders my property but I haven't had luck with them seeding.

Hi, Grayon. Nice to have someone closer to my neck of the woods.
I don't have any redbuds but I do admire them when I see them.
i have 2 Flowering Almonds that look like they are ready to put on a show.

geryon, jump right in!
I have two redbuds, children from my mom's that we planted thrity years ago ro so. They are prone tot a canker that makes weird bark formations and then kills branches. I have a really nice big branch with a really big canker on it, waitin for it to die but still bloomed this year. I have great luck finding self sown redbuds here. anybody need? up to about a foot I can keep them in a pot then its getting dicey keeping the root together. I have had good luck transplanting them bigger than that but some swear that you cannot cut or break the taproot when moving redbuds.

ladyg flowering almonds are so pretty! Never had one but noticed them in the past and had to look them up.

About to see my first ever bloom on a dwarf iris I got several yrs ago from jody. Also thinking I better go mark a few clumps of daffodils if I hope to offer any bulbs this year, before I forget which they are,I have so many clumps of daffs. Wasn't it soooooo beautiful out today?!: hope it was where ever you are too.

Redbuds two years ago

Grayson

That is a beautiful pic garyon.
Ladyg, I don't think I've seen a flowering Almond or if I have I didn't know what it was.
You are so right Sally it was just beautiful out there today. More mulching, weeding and planting for me. I wanted to extend the mulched area around the big Norway Spruce. Ric was ducking branches last summer. So I lasagnaed the area with Ric's old Playboy magazines. LOL He had a box of them in the garage to be thrown out. So I used those instead of newspaper and cardboard. I think it will work great. Those glossy pages should keep the grass from growing up though them. Here is a pic you would never know what is under that mulch. snicker
When I look at what I have done it looks nice but it doesn't look like a lot for a days work. We did have some company for lunch and then Jamie & family showed up for an hour or so later. I did some weeding around the evergreens and planted the cannas behind the tub. Tomorrow I'm hoping to work on the walkway bed and around the fence posts were the roses are planted.

Holly, Here this a pic from 08 for the Flowering Almond it is a shrub. I have this one planted at the corner of the garage to soften the corner.
There is no fragrance, and they do no produce Almonds must be the blossom resembles an almond blossom, not sure on that one. But they are pretty when in full bloom.

Just grogeous, ladyg.
Gee Holly, what an inglorious end for those hot babes. Funny how long it took for those old magazines to get thrown out. >snicker< I think if we see Ric out there "digging for earthworms for fishing" we will be onto his little scheme >snicker<
Looks like another lovely day, good for plant moving as tomorrow is expected cloudy with a few showers (here) Everything is coming up great. This is the stage where everything fits together perfectly and is fresh and healthy. Columbines have buds --but something is eating some leaves too!

I keep thinking of all that needs to be done in the middle of the night.
For sure---Must spray my Roses...
Put down the Systemic Rose care as this month's fertilizer....Last month was Espoma Rose Tone and Epsom Salts..

Yesterday--I worked my first Sunday--ALL 8 hours--in Outside Garden at HD yesterday. Had my table all set up and talked to a zillion people. It was insane! BUT!!! I was on such a "high"---- it was glorious! I was tired--but a "good" tired.... Tomorrow back to my "cage" answering the phones...

Today--I will go back and start playing Volleyball again. It has been 2 months....my surgery and all that 6 weeks of restrictions.....Bah--Humbug!
I really need to stay and do some gardening--but I want to go play too.

Gita

LOL Sally, Magazines of all kinds are a big issue here. I have stacks of Birds & Blooms, National Geographic, Garden Gate, Prevention, National Parks and an assortment of Hunting mags. Most of them eventually end up at the VA Hospital when Ric goes down there for an appt. Sometimes I take them to the senior center or just leave a stack at the Dr's office. Ric use to take the Playboys into work for a couple of the guys but since he retired they have been stacking up.
Gita, Glad you are healing well. I remember how frustrating it was after my shoulder surgery and I wanted to get out in the gardens and couldn't. Have a good time playing Vball tonight. I'll be doing my Roses today sometime and I have a few new Clems to plant on the fence with them today. I think I lost one of the White Dawns, last one in the line. It wasn't growing as well as the others but it is shadier there. I certainly didn't expect it to die something may have gotten to the roots I'll be giving it a good look today.
I have decided that this head cold has turned into a sinus infection and isn't going away without antibiotics so I called this morning for an appt tomorrow. I'm just about ready to start back outside soon. The neighbors are getting an inground pool. They are the ones that we got all the big rocks from, well we are getting more big rocks. LOL RIc is out there making a spot for them to be dumped. Well time for me to head out been sitting here long enough.

You are so lucky! More big rocks, I know there are plenty of folks here who wish they could have them.
Get that sinus infection cleared up, they suck.

Found the little green worms on the columbines. My roses foliage looks great - so far; last year the little green worms decimated the roses.
Tree pollen is saidto be extreme this spring- having noticed it here too and have not had that much problem in past years.
I went to the Southern St store (Glen Burnie) and they had the Tristar everbearing (or day neutral, I am not sure) strawberri plants I hoped for !! Yippee! Had to get them. And had asparagus seed I hoped for Yippee!!! It was really rockin and rollin in there with customers. I am glad, its a 'local ' businessman and would hate to see the big stores kill it.

I decided yesterday to put my 3 little 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil' frogs out in the bed I've been working on. House dog Maggie seems to think they are toys to be picked up and moved, or maybe she thinks they look better on the other side of the yard. They are now sitting on my patio table. Do you think if I sprinkled them with hot sauce Maggie would leave them alone? I wouldn't mind her moving them if she would put them back!

Yippee Sally you are rockin, too. LOL Sounds like you had a great day. I love those type of stores, we have Tractor Supply and Ace Hardware. They are so much fun to poke around in. We are getting an "Evil" Wal-Mart sometime in the next 2 years. It will be over by I83 just about 4 miles away. I wonder how our little Ace Hardware will compete it is a really busy and booming business with really nice people. It's raining here and I have a Dr. Appt soon so I don't expect to be out in the garden today. I didn't get any of the things done yesterday that I had planned. I got side tracked into helping RIc get the area for the rocks ready. Cut the end of the Juniper hedge back a good 4 ft. It really needed doing anyway. I took 3 carts of branches back to the burn pile.

What gorgeous hunks of stuff in that picture!!

Our grandson got the Black Belt at age eleven and has become one of the best 103lb. freshman wrestlers in Pennsylvania. He had one case of bully attempt. I say attempt because the guy took a foot to the face. He was a dumb one. The second foot to the face took him out and ended any bully actions to the best of our knowledge. The guys two buddies more or less drug the agressor out of the area. We reported the action to the school in case the same individual might try his tactics on other students. He was trying to take lunch money from the smaller kids.

LOL Doc, I remember that Josh was always getting in trouble in school. He wasn't the aggressor or the victim but he just couldn't stand by and watch something going down. He was always the kid that stepped in and stopped the fight or stood up for the little guy. Of course there were those other things he did that got him in trouble.... like the "Mooning" incident in the school halls. But we won't talk about that. LOL
R_R_R LOL Yep Hunky stuff here. LOL

docgipe, I LOVE your story! I like that he was sticking up for other kids - sooooo sweet. The foot in the face is a great image. You should be one proud grandparent! Holly, I also love that your Josh always stepped in. I've been doing a lot of research about bullying, and the only thing that seems to help is when bystanders are empowered to stop being bystanders and start standing up to the bullies. Sound like you both have great kids/grandkids.

I am dealing with deer and woodchuck damage, garlic mustard eradication. Not a fun gardening day.

We knew by third grade this grandson was something special. During that year we got the excited call from the school principal. He thought we should come and take the lad to a doctor. My opinion of that educator was that he was a mamby pamby anyway. What the grandson had done was picked up and ate an earthworm on the playground.

When I was in college my frat gave me a choice of a small live gold fish or an earthworm as part of the initiation at the dinner where we were accepted as members in good standing. I chose the small goldfish because I had never swallowed a live goldfish before. The good 'ole stuff is now blocked by most universities. I do not view this as positive progress.

Doc, you chose the goldfish as you hadn't swallowed a live goldfish before--does that mean you had already dined on earthworms?

LOL that's exactly what I thought, too.

You thought correctly. Back in the early 1960's one of the major flour companies had a contest which I entered. The real winner was a carrot raisin cake where sauteed earthworm pieces added significant protein to the cake. I baked that one too. They paid no attention to my worms in sausage or used directly in several pot pie dishes. Wanna play? Buy a half pound of sausage and mix in a quarter cup of cut earthworm pieces. You will never know they are in your pancake sausage patties. That is like free protein.

Today I believe that would go well in something created along the lines of a Nature's Valley health or high energy bar. Most likely would work in brownies.

Doing this makes the earthworm a little bit like pasta. It takes on the flavor of it's surroundings and becomes complimentary but offers a texture change and food value increase.

Was that olive oil cracking or an earthworm I just head screaming ?

[quote="docgipe"] They paid no attention to my worms in sausage or used directly in several pot pie dishes.
quote]
Oh, I bet the evaluators paid a whole lot of attention to them, behind closed doors!. But to publicize enttries like those ? I don't think they wanted to...you know...
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open that can of worms.

It was their world wide contest to find ways to boost protein in foods using natural food elements to create the judged entry. I think the carrot cake won because it sounds horrible...sweet and sour....good looking and yuckey...got more media and so on. I forget exactly but the 1960's prize was like ten gran maybe more. That would have paid for two years of my college (undergraduate).

It was a good day outside. I raked up the leaves that collect under the wisteria and cleaned up the driveway/potting shed area. Looks a lot better than it did. I was mulching the leaves and taking them down to mulch the Asparagus bed but something got stuck in the blower/vac and Ric will have to look at it. I did a little potting up, took a few cuttings. Weeded the Sunshine Bed (new bed down by the Veggie Garden). Dug a hole for the Mahonia but didn't get it planted.

Doc, I've been hungary for Carrot Cake but mine has pineapple in it, I think I'll leave out the added protein. LOL

Ric be careful unclogging the blower/ vac, Holly has more on your todo list.
Keep going Holly, you'll have it all done in no time.

spreading 20 cu yards of compost all weekend. my back already hurts!

Phew thats a job!
I don't think I'll be very active in the garden today but my voles will be. I just read somebody swear by Milorganite to repel them--cheap enough and fertile enough to be worth a try.
I planted Amaryllis Zombie (Little Bit's) yesterday, kept in the plastic pot but made a nice hole with compost and some cut up comfrey leaves for it to root into. Morning and PM sun but not hot afternoon sun. I have other very small amaryllis that I left out in the garden all winter planted and inch or two down and they lived!.
Ripped up some lemon balm yesterday to make room for a nicely growing patch of sweet woodruff--Thanks to the swapper who gave it to me last spring and apologies that I forgot who!