What is happening in your Garden Today II

Here the Lovers" are headed under my front steps.....
Geeez!!!

I was sitting in the living room one day and saw a big one slither across the kitchen floor. I never did find that thing so I was real (she said sarcastically) comfortable working in the kitchen the next few weeks. I can only hope he slithered out the way he came in.

One day I went down into my creepy crawly cellar. When I started back up the stairs there was a small black snake on the steps. Thank goodness Marshall was home to get him or I'd still be down there.

Just a common black snake, albeit a small one. He slithered up the telephone pole and right in, he actually had a bird trapped inside with him occupying most of the hole. When Holly disturbed it, it pulled into the box and a sparrow came shooting out. I have at least one in the barn that has to be 6', and almost as thick as my wrist. Our encounters are brief and we go our separate ways. LOL He's in charge of pest management and we have very few vermin in the barn. Black snakes usually avoid contact but may be nasty when they shed, when laying eggs (in old compost), and after a big dinner. I have never seen a poisonous snake in a black snakes territory, and they are territorial.

Thanks for the comments on the Gazebo. Holly told me we have to go plant shopping to fill these new beds, talk about a pain in the wallet? LOL Ric

Great job, Ric. Have fun shopping for plants, Holly.

My boys had a black snake in an aquarium in their room. One day the screen on top was askew and no more black snake. HMMM.... where did it go we wondered? No idea, but months later I found a shed skin down in the basement.

Black snakes keep the venomous snakes away, Ric, according to resident snake expert Marshall. Don't know if you have those, we have timber rattlers around here and one other kind, I forget which. Copperheads? I didn't ask him for details about how they keep them away. Eat them? Chase them off? Insult them about their looks? I'll leave the details to the snakes. LOL

The solution to the wallet issue is bringing Holly down here to the swap at Bec's so she can load up on free plants. :>)

Seriously--I cannot justify spending any money on plants when I am overflowing with swap possibilties but then I am cheap and hoping to send 3 kids to college. Ouch. But you can't beat annuals for lots of summer color can you?
Thankfully (to family) it is raining so I am cleaning and cooking. betwen 'hits' of DG

gazebo looks great, ric. take sally's advice and wait til after the swaps to make purchases.

LOL Don't worry I'm not buying anymore plants this summer. Maybe a few trees and bushes. Maybe just a few plants for the Secret Garden. Oh and there will need to be fall bulbs and the plants that Critter is getting for me. You never know what else I might really need. LOL
The yard is taking shape still weeding and planting and mulching. Today I am working inside. OMG I can't beleive how much stuff has collected everywhere.

Holly, you sound like me. No more plants. Um, except I need this and a little of that and, oh, something to go there. LOL

Diane, I think I've only ever killed 1 black snake on purpose. It developed a taste for young chickens. We were losing one about every week, other wise I help them along and relocate them when needed. Ric

Hey I killed one on purpose, too. It was in my laundry room and I wasn't taking any chances it would get away. Ric wasn't home and Jamie really wanted to catch it and set it free. "Mom you don;t kill Black Snakes" you do when they are inside your house and you just about picked it up by accident. Holly
Took all the house plants outside and cleaned and sprayed them some went out to the Gazebo for the summer and some came back inside after I scrubbed & waxed the floor and cleaned all that glass.
We are working like crazy to get the yard all pretty, Weeded the area around the big rocks and the birdbath pond yesterday. Then moved over to the brick patio. Ric picked up a nice load of composted soil and filled in the beds on the corner of the Gazebo. Ric's picking up another load of mulch this morning and I am heading out to finish the weeding out front. Josh is giving us another day of labor. Not sure what all he is doing. Setting up the Volleyball net and hitting all the edges with the weed whacker plus whatever else needs done.

I take the inside outside view with spiders. I am trying to use survival of the outsidest to refine my population.
What beautiful weather yesterday and today!!

Marshall always gets after me for killing spiders. I take the same inside/outside view as you, Sally. If they want to survive, they'd better stay outside. LOL Especially the humongous brown ones that he says are harmless and are not the poisonous ones that look similar. If they're not dangerous, why do they seem to be staring at me, considering whether I'm edible or not?

Anyway, I don't have bug phobia like some people but I don't like spiders.

Same for black snakes slithering around the house. They can stay in the woods where snakes belong.

I am more or less done planting by now-----that is, until all the bulb foliage dies off--then i will have bare spots all over.....Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.....
Now to start cleaning up all the work-related stuff on my patio.....I want it clean and clutter free--so if someone wants to sit out there--all he/sh can look at are the birds taking baths and the chipmunks scurrying around!

This year I have not put up those green rabbit-fences. Almost....so far so good......I see a couple youn'uns scurrying around and all my just-planted marigolnd are chewed down......:o(
I even sprinkled Milorganite around everything---I guess it does not repel rabbits as some people have suggested....
MAN! Has this gone up in price!!!! Last time I bought it, it was $7. Now it is $12.97.

I also started isolating all the plants tagged for certain people for the Swap. Putting them in a separate box..

Now to brag a bit!!!!! I did it!--I did it!!!!! YEAH!!!!!!

Yesterday--I emptied my S.E.M (aka Composter)......Three years is enough! It was always full....Couldn't add any more! Been taking all my veggie scraps to "Pet Smart" right next to my HD. They loved it!
I cannot believe how much that thing can hold!

Shoveled off about the top 1/3 (not composted yet), took the thing apart in the middle and then dug out all the good stuff. It filled 2 lg. containers----One of the big tubs with the rope handles and a large tote. They are now sitting, covered, until need arises......probably next Spring. SO glad this is done!!!!!

Doing a happy dance!!! Gita

Someone gave me this Geranium last Summer.....fess up! It is growing HUGE! Behind it is a Knock-Out Rose-----you can hardly see it! And this is ONLY one year from a start!

Can it be cut back?
Can the cuttings be rooted? Soil or water?
If not--i am digging it up next Spring and giving it to Donn....

The foxgloves I planted last year bloomed this week :)
Ah the patience of a gardener.

Gita, How much I love my Spring Bulb display and hate the dying foliage. It isn't bad in areas where I have a few bulbs here and there but the mass planting around the lamppost is a real mess.
Rileyobo, I just love waiting and watching for the perennials and bulbs to pop up just looking for what will return for me each year. It is like looking for a long time friend to return from a long trip.
pics from last week,

rileyobo- that'll be gorgeous! Do you put foxgloves in full sun? Mine (only one or two) have struggled in part shade. I thought I read they'd like it.

Holly, very pretty. I'm tired of daff leaves now too But I am mostly into perennials so where I've planned better they are being swallowed up. Where I've planned worse of course they are all over. Mostly I have too much other stuff to distract me till they are ready to pull off.

Sally, I lost a large tree two years ago. It was gorgeous and cast lots of shade.
After it was removed, the silver lining was a morning sun and an afternoon
shady spot right in the middle of my woods. As I have lots of deer visit my
garden, it seemed to me the perfect spot for foxglove. Last year I planted
some, lost some, but this year those that remained doubled in size and bloomed.

HollyAnn, I couldn't agree more. I have been waiting for my foxgloves friends for too long.
I put in 12 more plugs this year, as I am afraid those that bloomed this year may not come back.
I think I will let half go to seed, maybe I can get some volunteers next year.

pretty blooms in that bed, holly. LOVE those foxgloves riley.



these bloom surrounded by tall perennials, which will hide most of the leaves.

OOOOHHHHAAAAHHHH, Love those purple Alliums and the peach Iris. I like this little guy for some reason I thought it was going to be tall when I ordered it. But it is cute.

i have one of those petite alliums also and it is cute.

my dianthus did not show up at all in last summer's extremely wet weather but it's back this year.

Dianthus is one of my favorite flowers.
I find it very reliable, when the flowers finish,
I just cut straight across with scissors and in a month or so,
I get a second set of blooms.

I don't know what is happening in My Garden today but Ric and I took a few minutes to stop and smell the roses. Well we took a minute to stop and watch the sunset.

gee having to rush off to FL is not all that bad eh?

Tropical Nurseries are interesting, too. Picked up a couple of plants at the HD when Ric picked up a few things to do some repairs. I can get plants on the cheap at the HD and Walmart that I would pay premium prices for in the Nurseries at home.
Kalanchoe luciae

Yeah, Holly---

I guess, we here, have to pay for having all those wonderful, cheap plants plants trucked from Florida to here....

Tell us what else have you seen there of great interest?

Will miss you two at the Swap...I always look forward to seeing old friends....

Gita

We brought Poppy home from the Hosp last evening. Not sure when but I will get out in his yard and do some gardening soon. I brought a few small hand tools along to bad I didn't think to bring my Rose gloves. He has some sharp plants in his yard. LOL

Our garden looks a little different this week. We are in Fl. and this is Ric's Dad's yard. Ric spent some time pushing back the edges of the back yard yesterday there are piles of debris on the ground. This morning we went out with the loppers and cut it into shorter pieces that can be tied in bundles or put in trash cans. You can't burn anything here and your choice is to put it out for the trash or to haul it to the county dump where you pay them by the load to take it.

Ric still had a little light pruning to do this morning but I think everything big is down now.

My sister gardens in the Panhandle, and with the longer growing season and rain, its really much harder to keep up with growth!

in My garden--finding just the right spot for the, um, two dozen brand new items I brought home from Bec and Greg's. Here's a start- I found out John(rubyw's) will take bearded iris. I've got some I can move and swap them later. and anpther iris that just does NOT stand up unless staked, well, some of that's gotta go.I have a nice beginnings of a woodland bed ready for wild american ginger and spotted wintergreen from ecnalg and greenthumb. How sad I have all this gardening to do and not scheduled for work till Wed PM.