July 2012-Plants shriveling up already

Here is my newest little succulent planter, it is small! I need to come up with something else to add to it. And, I see now that I forgot to sprinkle some sand around the top of it. - And here it is up close. -

That Blackberry start is plugging away at remaining green. -

I made this rabbit fence cover for my trailer yesterday. Does anyone know if a squirrel can get thru that or would have any interest in still going for bulbs that have a fence like that cut to go over them for that kind of protection? I have more where that came from. -

I wanted to throw in this photo of my two cactuses (Prickly-Pear and Chainlink Cholla) next to each other. That is making the best of containers for plants!
Will

Dogwoods are a pretty tree. I have this list of propagation by cutting plants if anybody would like to look it over for stuff they can do out of their yard. - http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/hil-8702.html

This Bumblebee is liking this Hyssop that I haven't planted yet, but I hope to get it planted within the next couple of months. That's my white rainbarrel, it's nearly empty, but before the little rain yesterday, it was even with the faucet down there. -

I did 8 pots of my Coneflower seed-heads. I hope this was close to the right time to get them and do this. I think it might have been too early but I also wanted to get to them before the birds had a chance to get many seeds, they were done blooming. -

I went ahead and put the 3 tiered birdbath back together. I wanted to re-locate it to a more viewable place about 20 feet away but I don't think that was ever going to happen. I need help moving that largest bowl part and I don't foresee getting help anytime soon. It don't look too bad where it's at, it just can't be easily seen by cars when they drive by.

Here is some pots of stuff I am starting, like the 3 Rose-Of-Sharons on the left, then 8 pots of Purple Coneflowers that I just did today.

Here's my Chainlink Cholla that I potted yesterday into that Christmas popcorn can! I'm not crazy about that can as Cholla isn't really a Christmasy plant but the can is colorful and even festive! I want to trim that Cholla down and insert some cuttings around more in that can, so it gets more of a bushy look instead of a single stemmed leggy look. -

This message was edited Jul 14, 2012 11:16 PM

Well, ya know what they say, (I hope)! "When it don't rain, it becomes a tapwater barrel!"! Man, isn't that pathetic?! That was also before I painted the trim back there.
I'm glad to see the Black-Eyed Susans from a seed packet get past that half inch stage where they always seemed to die on me. That's them in the orangish red pot.

I started painting the trim on this old beatup shed, I guess it isn't going to paint itself, dangit! I had to take a photo of the side of the shed where half of the side didn't get painted, yet.

Well, I'll try to start the deadness back up since nobody else will! Now I know can't everybody win the lottery and be on the beach with an umbrella drink!
I am a man of my word tho see!? - http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/fp.php?pid=8863976 I painted the living room window frame AND I've painted the shed in the last week or so!
I've enrolled in a college course that starts in less than 3 weeks, it doesn't last very long, I aim to land a decent job hopefully after that sometime.

Anyway, here is that window after I painted the frame today. I intend to paint the eaves too at some point. I kinda jumped around from painting the trim on the shed to painting the window frame before I was done painting the trim on the shed, now I need to get back on the shed. When I was painting the shed trim and ran out of paint it hit me, I thought, "I got my priorities wrong here, I need to paint that living room window frame", so paint it I did!

Here is a latest addition, an Aloe called 'Blue Elf' for my succulent planter, (it's to the left of that cactus). I relocated the Carpet Sedum to the big planter with the Liatris, it kinda crowded the concrete succulent planter right now, here it is. - That is my other succulent on the left in the red clay planter with the Hens And Chicks to the right of it, it's an Echeveria something or other (on the left), the Aloe and the Echeveria were each under $3. The Sedum is hardy though, I wanted to get it in a place where it can stay for the Winter.

Okay billyp, pepper, happ, juju, Crit, juhur, mclowdis, Cyb, anybody, you can all come back out, it's safe! It's too hot for the monsters under your beds, you can outrun them!

Hey, I made a how-to of my very own on cutting off and potting up a SpiderPlant baby! - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZN3prSy7frU&list=UUncIC3pLv0W-KhBjmMVkG6Q&index=2&feature=plcp
Oh and that "oh" is from unintentionally cutting off 2 babies, not from back pain or anything, altho, I guess I don't bend over and pick things up as easy as I used to! Sorry about the sounding like Woody Harrelson part in advance! Oh, and if your Harrelson's lawyers and want to sue, I'll tell you now that I'm unemployed and I have no money! And I've cut my fingernails since then! lol

Here we go again! It is warming back up! This is nuts, I'll be lucky to have a plant left after next week! I hope the predictions from weather liars change as they usually do, surely they jest about 108° next Thursday! - http://www.kshb.com/subindex/weather/forecast/7_day_forecast Well, at least I'll have the cactus left!

This message was edited Jul 21, 2012 12:10 AM

I don't think they are jesting about the weather. It's still 92 degrees out now. Ugh. I'm hoping that front comes thru so that the weekend is halfway decent. I'm hoping to go check out a few places with friends on Saturday.

Will, did you buy any roses yet from Heirloom Roses?

Man, that weather forecast has already changed ALOT. It has came down next Thursday from a high of 110° about 24 hours ago to right now it is 100°.

I haven't placed an order at Heirloom yet, but there is really some tempting deals there.

I almost hit a panhandler in a wheelchair today, on the way over to visit my Mom! He wheeled right out in front of my car at an intersection. I had a solid green light, it wouldn't have been my fault if I'd hit him, there was about 30 cars there that saw it. I stood on the brake pedal and the tires squealed and I stopped about 10 feet from him, I was going about 40 mph. I know my car has real good brakes now, the smell of my new tires was strong after I burnt the rubber off!

shortleaf ; excitement ain't what it is about being all that fun is it? I for one never will get use to wheels screeching to a stop or the sound of metal crunching on metal.

Good luck with the roses!!


90's today '102 forecast for Monday, I'm hoping the 10 year forecast is wrong about this continuing .I will get use to it,but I wont like it.

Yeah, that was a bit too much excitement I'm afraid juhur, I still think about it. I don't know if the guy wanted to die or what, but it was a very close call with his life. Some people commit suicide like that, they jump out in front of cars like that, I'll probably have nightmares now! It wasn't one of those motorized jobs with a flag, he was hand wheeling for all he was worth. He looked like Sergeant Dan on Forrest Gump, only without the bandanna and this guy had white hair and a white beard, I think he might have soiled himself in his wheelchair!

I've been lucky, I've never had to experience crunching metal in a car wreck, thank God

Thanks for the good luck wishes on Roses, juhur. Roses haven't been my strong suit this year, wait I don't have a strong suit! Well, maybe weeds is my strong suit! There really are some fantastic deals on them there though.

Boy, they weren't wrong about this was probably going to be a hot Summer because the Winter was so mild, it is indeed hot and dry! I learned there is a big difference between 97° and 105°.
At 97 it's still very hot, but when you get going with your car windows down, you think, "well, this isn't too bad". But, at 105 and the windows down it doesn't work and your like, "okay, I need to get in air conditioning, I can go to the store some other time!".
Will

Boy ain't that the truth Will!!! Below 100, windows down. Above 100, air conditioning on!! I managed to drive with windows down today and it wasn't too bad. I got lucky. lol

Will, those roses you can get and put in a bigger pot. They aren't bare root so borers shouldn't be a problem. When fall gets here they will be bigger with more roots and you can put them in the ground. That's what I might end up doing. That way transplant shock isn't so bad and I can baby them better.

Hehe.. yeah, that's about the way it is, below 100 windows down, above 100 sitting in the ac! I'll see what Heirloom has left in a day or two, I sure would like to get 1 or 2 New Dawns or 1 or 2 Westerlands and I might try Penny Lane again, I waited too long for Kiss Of Desire, it is out of stock now I see. The thing is I don't yet have the structures for them made. I might do that, go ahead and get them and pot them up.

I wanted to get a better pot for the water-lilies, so I got this big brown one today at Lowes, it was on a nice clearance sale price, otherwise I wouldn't have got it for the original $40. I made this rabbit fence cover for it, something has been getting in it and messing the water-lilies up, a raccoon or opossum or something, I don't know what, but it, or they, are gonna be stymied now! I've been lucky so far, the water-lilies keep coming back, now they can grow uninterrupted I hope, I also added more water to it, it evaporates fast. That's the old light brown pot next to it and see my Elephant Ears, they don't feel too well in the heat. It has a white inside, that brown pot, it didn't look good with the water-lilies and the green water. It needs to have a plant of some kind in it, I aim to fix it right up with that pretty soon.

Here is my big SpiderPlant and that's a baby from it that I cut off and potted up right behind it. That big SpiderPlant still has 7 or 8 babies on it, anybody want one?

I was on the deck earlier watering some houseplants and I thought this would make a good pic of the thermometer and a cool plaque right above it! I found the plaque so I thought I'd put it somewhere.
See the Mimosas in the background with yellow leaves from being so hot and dry?
Will

82°/97°/73°
A mix of clouds and sun. A stray afternoon thunderstorm is possible. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.

Will,
LOL! My neighbor has had cactus for years and I passed on it years ago when she offered me some.
Boy, I don't know about the drill bit.
I love driftwood!
That sure is a pretty bowl!
It does sound like the RU is the place to take potted plants. They should be in good shape by then. You can keep them watered and dead leaves plucked off.

Pepper,
We've been watering so much it's a wonder we haven't sucked the water table dry. We're hand pumping all of it too.

Ju,
We.ve been eating some exellent watermelons and muskmelons from Missouri and Indianna. Sadly we don't hav many growers around anymore. Fruitland used to have the best melons, and there were stands all over the county. Not so now :o(

Will,
That was a close call with the wheelchair!

I'm cutting and pasting, so some of you have already read this.

Just like in the movies, we went to the town hall last night to listen to CCI. (Citizens for Community Improvement.)

We are to have an 1800 hog confinement built a mile and a half to the northwest of us, up on the bluffs. One farmer from the next town owns many acres up there. He sold it to another person who owns the post office and hair salon. He will manage the operation after it's built, for Tri Oaks Pork.

CCI tries to stop them. There are 17 within Muscatine county.

After the meeting, I talked to the farmer who sold the land. (2 and 1/2 acres. His sister built a house on my Grandpa's farm just outside of town.) Many wanted to know why he didn't build on his property. He does have one by his folks and he will get the manure for free to spread on the neighboring acres of the confinement.

He assures us it won't be too smelly, but.... there is also the flies and any pit problems. I did tell him I appreciate the fact that he let us know instead of sneaking one in already. One big problem is that the people who live around it will have it out their back door. There are 5 close to it. I feel more for them. Truck traffic, etc.

Eeek.. 1800 hogs! Somebody will have a nice smell! About 25 years ago my friend got surprised at a temp job when he was told he'd be shoveling up hog innards that day. I was his ride home and I went somewhere else to do temp work but he never went back!

I did some painting on the old red shed again today. I was painting up some white trim, trying to make it a little presentable. It still needs to be taped and painted some more on some edges.

shortleaf; Looks like your making progress! Looking good from the pic!! Looks like the garden barn my parents once had.
billyporter; Fortunately we have lots of market gardeners around the town,not as many as once was your right,only nobodies given up eating melons just because there aren't as many homegrown melons either. Evidently the markets stands do a pretty good business around here for a small town.Was at one the other day myself,those Cantelopes are mmmm, goooood!!!!

Thanks juhur. I just love that shape of a garden shed too! It's too bad the cheap materials it was constructed of, like wafer board for example the big cheapie. And it's too bad it was neglected all these years. I don't really blame my friend, the current homeowner, it was here when she moved here. You can tell nothing was ever done to it, it's a good shed though, as far as I can tell, it doesn't leak.

Today, I've been doing some considerable power washing with our new $86 (after tax) 1500 psi electric power washer from..... Harbor Freight! It's cheap, but it really does the job. I encountered paper wasps about 5 times today. One was sitting on my hand as if to say, "alright, that thing makes too much water and noise, and your tearing up my stuff!" Anyway, I got real lucky that I didn't get stung, especially that time, I tried blowing it off my hand and that didn't work, so I waved my arm real fast and it flew off. I musta looked comical if anyone was watching, which I doubt, it really startled me when I saw it on my hand!

I've been thinking about doing some landscaping on that side, maybe some mulch and Hostas, something that doesn't need sun..lol There is still a Peony over there that has never flowered and I'm pretty sure because there isn't any sun, that's it in the photo. I want to dig that up sometime and get it planted in the sun somewhere.

Here is the thermometer on the deck, it is HOT! I try not to be outside too long, it gets kinda hard to breathe comfortably. Actually, the deck gets a little hotter than actual because the heat builds up a little or stays on the deck but it's only 107°! It may still rise a degree, I think about an hour from now is the hottest part of the day.

I don't want to paint that side of the house in this heat. Even tho paint adheres good in the heat, I think the mid 90's should still be plenty hot enuff for the paint. Tomorrow it is going down to that I think.

2 days ago I painted a garage door that needed it bad. I didn't realize the power washer was gouging into it so much until I painted it. But, the garage doors need to be replaced anyway, but in the meantime it can look better than it did.
Will
Here is a before and after of it. -

We have a three and a half horsepower compressor that was purchased about a decade ago .It hasn't been used for a while and it was 126 dollars from harbor freight back then.I know they can sure tear things up these days,but they are good for weeding and cleaning concrete walks and drives and the like.
I'm still hoping for a tool &garden shed if anything would ever go right around here.Not as bad as that sounds only things could always be looked forward to being better.
My peach -leaved bell flowers didn't make it through the heat ,just didn't have it in them yet,I guess .My Hibiscus newly planted are looking good 'Fireball' the var.I have a echie that has a near 6inch bloom,that is the largest I've ever seen them bloom.
I have a couple melons going in the garden,that and two tomato plants are about the only thing producing,too much heat and drought.
103 DEGREES outside as I type this,with all that sun today it feels hot enough to burn your skin right through your your clothes.Kinda like the vehicles you all were discussing a day ago ,man that is H>O>T>!!! Your 107 or so also too, too, extreme!!!

Will, you could do hostas, varigated Solomon's Seal and ferns in there. It would look good. Easy maintence too. Or if you want to go big get an Empress Wu hosta. That sucker gets biiiiiiig. It's on my wishlist. Since my shade garden is pretty much dead I think, I just might be able to get one next year. Will have to wait and see how the bed looks.

Thanks for those suggestions, pepper. I'd like to add some other stuff besides just Hostas. I'll look up that variegated Solomon's Seal. Empress Wu eh? I like a big Hosta! Some Hostas I've seen don't seem to do very well in the heat here it seems.

Yeah, a decent tool and garden shed would be priceless, juhur. Harbor Freight has some really good deals, though some stuff is better than others, in price AND in quality. I rarely buy stuff there NOT on sale.
I used a 20% off coupon and the power-washer was already on sale, so I did good on the power-washer, the receipt says, "you saved $50". It is a big relief that it works good, I had the receipt at the ready! I'm not above using something, finding out it stinks and returning it for a refund. An Aunt one time bought a dress for a wedding or something, wore it then took it back for a refund...lol A friend bought their 10 x 12 foot greenhouse, it is real nice. I'm gonna have that someday, mark my words! http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result?q=greenhouse It's regularly $699, it goes on sale for $599 then you use a 20% off coupon on top of that and that's all she wrote right there! Just kidding, I still would need a place to put it! Those 20% coupons are easy to get, they're all over the place. I once dropped mine on the floor of the store and after I walked around the store looking for it, it was still on the floor, everybody has one or two.

Wow juhur, that is one large Coneflower flower! Also, that's neat how that English Ivy is going up the bricks. I have some here, but it will only go along the ground.

Here is one of those 2 little Veronica Speedwells that I got from Pepper, it has really spread out, here it is draped over some strategically placed rocks. -

My water-lilies are thriving in the new brown barrel! -

Man, I hope my Elephant Ears can hold on just a while longer, they aren't liking this heat. -

Here is the back of the newly painted red shed back there. -

Here is TropiCanna going for the top of the swingset. It WAS at the top and above it but that leaf broke off in some wind or something. See those leaves about halfway up? There is 2 leaves that fit perfectly inside each other for some reason. -

The forecast has already changed for tomorrow. It said 95° but it is now 99 with an 80% of rain. So, it sounds like it's still gonna be pretty warm but that rain would be REAL nice, if there really is any!
http://www.kshb.com/subindex/weather/forecast/7_day_forecast
Will




This message was edited Jul 25, 2012 11:38 PM

WOW, don't know how I lost you all for so long. July 9th! ugh I guess because the DGD's were here from the 4th to the 15th and I have been sick since they went home! Finally went to the dr. Sinus infection, which I knew, and bronchitis, which I suspected. After 10 days of trying to get over it myself I go to the Dr. Now I'm taking a handful of pills twice a day and still not feeling well or quit coughing. Hopefully by the time I finish my pills, I'll feel better!

Boy, we are in for a scorcher again this week!!!! They have dropped several of the days from 111* to 110*. LOL Big whoop. Now if they could just get RID of that 112*! I was trying to find my picture of the day it was 114* to see what day it was, but can't find it right off. We are sooooooo dry, in the severe range. The next one up, and the top, is extreme. People all around us got scattered showers the other day, but they didn't amount to much. .2, .3, etc.

Off to finish up supper

Hiya Crit, welcome back, it has been awhile! Hope you get to feeling better. Yeah, it has been real hot and dry here too, man 110, that would be very uncomfortable. That's definitely not a very encouraging weather forecast there!

I drove to small-town Kansas today to get yet another big load of rocks and I took a short video clip of a brief rainstorm on I-35 coming back to Sugar Creek (Kansas City). I took a photo of where the precious rocks come from! Of course, I got back here and it hadn't rained a drop! We put out our soaker hoses today. Here's that video clip I made, it's only 20 seconds long. - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1JGBerobVs&feature=youtu.be It looks like I'm just racing down the highway, actually, I had the cruise control set on about 59 mph! Hehe.. I drive slower than everybody! How about the blue sky and raining like the dickens?! That was about 50 miles Southwest of Kansas City.

Here is something that gave me an idea of what to put around the ac unit here, it's at McDonalds in Kansas City North. - They are Arborvitae Thuja Occidentalis 'Emerald', they are just so snow and ice damage prone! But, I would take good care of them in the Winter, I'd cover them up or something. I'd for sure prune them into a cool shape though, kinda like triangles with about the top fourth cut straight across.
They don't grow like exact triangles, more like missiles but a little fatter at the bottom. Here they are at Arborday - http://www.arborday.org/treeguide/treeDetail.cfm?id=216 I'd probably just get the little ones from HomeDepot or Lowes for about $6 apiece I think.

This message was edited Jul 29, 2012 9:34 PM

Been awhile since I posted here too. lol. Been busy running around and getting stuff done. The only thing I'm doing outside is handwatering certain plants.

A big welcome to you too pepper! It was overcast most of the day but it never rained much! Today was such a tease, maybe it'll rain tonite.

I did some planting and mulching today. I couldn't resist any longer, I bought 2 Arborvitae Emeralds to go by the air conditioner unit. Here they are all planted up after I put down the rest of my trailer of cedar mulch, (3 wheelbarrows full) -

We found a pretty dish here to find a use for so I made it a succulent planter today, there is a Carpet Sedum and an IcePlant in it along with some rocks on the bottom, dirt in the middle and sand on the top and a couple rocks on top for good measure. -

Here they are when I first got them home. I actually planted something on the same day as I bought it! -

Has anybody seen the English Rose from DG's weekly newsletter, it is a beauty, the English Rose 'William Shakespeare 2000' ?
Will

This message was edited Jul 30, 2012 9:31 PM

If I plant anything right now it goes into pots til Fall. I have a rose that needs to be planted but it will be Sept or October when that happens.

74°/92°/63°
Partly cloudy. Hot. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph

Will,
The shed is really looking good! Amazing what a little paint will do.
Those power washers really do the job! Smiling over the wasp. We work side by side with hornets gathering mud. They never bother and fly out from under foot. It still amazes me.
The garage door looks great too!

Ju,
We have melon everyday. It's finally locally available, but the first came from Missouri and Indianna.
I have four or five muskmelon trying to make it in the heat.

Pepper,
I bought three varigated Soloman's Seal years ago and they all died. Yet a couple of years ago, one grew! I need to dig it up and move it because it's in the bed where they cut the trees down. I love it tho! It's a good suggestion!

Crit,
Wow, you've had a lot on your plate. No one used to get sick in the summer, but that all seems to be changing and I wonder why? Thankfully the meds still seem to work. Keep on getting bettter!
Oh man! That is way hotter than we have been!
Awesome! I have the Emerald arborvitaes and I LOVE them! We just tied them together in the middle with twine or jute as they grew, because they do sway out a little. I started with 3' - 4' plants and the are full size now. I wish I had room for more.

Pepper,
I'm potting up special plants just to keep them watered.

Last week I started buying canned goods for the winter. I know food prices are going to go way up! My peppers fall off before I can get any. The tomatoes are doing good. I have about 15 on the counter that need skinned, stewed and frozen. I ate two in the garden last night and the cherry tomatoes look like fireworks, LOL! I ate as many dark red ones as I could :o)

No rain in sight and nothing but a wetting of the rain guage when rain did pass over us. It's another hot dry week. At least I have all the beds weeded now so they can't soak up any water.

So, it's another hot dry week with no rain in sight. We will be watering all week.

They were planted in 2007 and here's the 2012 picture.

billyporter; My cantelopes won't seem to set, all I seem to have is a couple of small watermelons. I had two tomato plants that went over in the hot sun.(watered or not although mostly not) I don't like to water plants all the time.

Here's a few pic's from around the green space,These were taken yesterday;

Well, we are 111* today. At least my back yard is green. I cringe to imagine what my water bill is going to be. UGH. I am starting to loose plants, even though I water. I don't like to do everyday, so I do the front beds one day, then the back yard and potted things around the pool the next. I'm still watering everyday, but am using sprinklers or soaker hoses on everything but the potted plants. They still take me an hour to get them all done. DH said we were going to have a green yard this year no matter what. It is nice to see green.

Will, looks like those trees will do the trick in hiding the ac unit. Nice choice. DH doesn't like evergreens, so we don't have any here. Actually took out two huge ones when we moved in. They weren't anything special, just plain evergreens. Really like that dish Will. Very cute.

My pepper plant gave me one pepper, then decided to wilt. I let it dry out .... I watered it more .... and it still is all wilted albeit alive. the heat has about taken 3 of my tomatoe plants. I noticed a new one on the one in the planter. It is confined in a cage and very tall. I noticed some bud bunches around the top, but don't know if they will make it.

I too had thought about stocking up on food because we know the prices are going to go up, just haven't done it yet!

Well, you all stay cool. It sure is nice to have the pool to jump into when I'm out working on plants and flowers to cool off.

Thanks billyp, that shed isn't so bad now. In some cases power washing is a must for a good long-lived paint job. Paper wasps have probably stung me more than anything, (well, anything except the 2 legged family member variety..lol) Oh, mud daubers generally won't sting, but I learned the hard way that Paper Wasps and Yellow Jackets will sting you good! July is like get stung month, they are collecting mud and building nests somewhere this Summer. Those 4 Arbs are nice billyp, you musta raised them good and in good soil and stuff, you rarely see big ones that are green and not brown with several leaders, (green or brown). If mine get multiple leaders I will cut them right off, mine will only have 1 leader apiece! It looks like you bought them a little bigger to start than I did, I'll probably have a big old wait on me now. Thanks, I swear that garage door is heavier from the paint now!

I transformed my terrarium from having a Pilea and a Fern in it to having a Carpet Sedum, 2 rocks, soil, marbles at the bottom and sand, can't forget the sand!
The Pilea 'Aluminum' and the Fern weren't looking right, so it was the Sedum's turn. Here it is in a photo, it's a very big antique milk bottle.

Nice flowers, juhur.

Thanks Crit, I hope they hide the ac unit eventually. In that pic up there that one looks pretty close to the wall but actually it's 19" from it. They are 34" apart from trunk to trunk, they are themselves only 24" tall. I nearly always get the smallest and cheapest plants available, I think I'm a, "wait for it to grow" type..lol It'll probably be 2020 before they hide anything! Man Crit, that's about as discouraging of a forecast as I've ever seen. I mean, I know it gets hot in some places, like Death Valley and Arizona. But people pay extra to live in AZ. and nobody lives in Death Valley!
Thanks, hope the dish stays cute! A squirrel will probably dig it all up looking for an acorn or something! Speaking of which, a squirrel dropped an apple from way up in a tree and almost hit me with it today! I was bent over looking at something and BAM, I looked up and there was a squirrel running all around about 50 feet up!
The squirrels are pretty funny here, yesterday a friend said she saw a squirrel go up a tree with a whole corncob, (still with the leaves on it), I guess it was going to shuck it up in the tree and eat it!
Will

This message was edited Jul 31, 2012 10:01 PM

I never knew soaker hoses watered so good, but they soak the heck out of stuff! I never used one before and I was thinking they just soaked around the hose maybe just by the hose (an inch or two), but they randomly spray and drip up to 4 or 5 feet on each side of the hose, just a tremendous amount of water comes out over a few hours. I took a photo, it's just incredible. - One soaker hose has watered like half the front yard!
I wouldn't do it if there was a water shortage here. But, letting the plants die isn't really an option I guess. They said on tv today that this is day 64 of drought here. They say the Missouri River is 20 feet lower than this time last year. It is average 7 something feet deep now, you could almost walk across it.

Here is a squirrel working on a corncob, see the empty cob to it's left, that one has been cleaned out. -

I power washed the big fountain today, in preparation to do some needed spray painting on it, I'd like to avoid the new paint from flaking off if I can. But, some of those concrete pieces just don't look right, they're all different colors. Here it is before the paint. - Hopefully tomorrow I'll get it painted if it's dry.

Here is my new Arborvitae Emeralds from the other side. Aren't they just awesome?! -

Wow didn't realize I had been missing for so long. Typical reasons work too long but good thing I actually went on 5 days of vacation. I haven't done that in years. So 2 weeks before spent trying to get the taj macoop ready for the chickens and ducks, buying kid pools to put the potted plants in so no one has to water, and just the normal stuff. Then back to work with a ton of stuff to get done.

I tried to catch up and looked at all the pictures, and even with this heat you all got beautiful stuff going on. I know today you all are getting rain. I just hope I am getting some at home.....we are desperate and have missed all the rains you all have gotten.

I will post a few pics of stuff going on at my house. Since we can't water and nothing is growing we have spent alot of time building which I guess is good as long as I don't lose anything from the drought.

first pic is on the east side of taj macoop, I know it looks like a fortress but when you see the south and north side you will see they have alot of ventilation. Before winter we will have drop down sides to cover the ventiation system for the winter. If it gets warm we can raise it and if it is cold we can lower it. The fence will go all around so the few times they are stuck in there they will have plenty of room. Usually they are out running around catching bugs. The last pic is of my solar chandelier..rofl, it is so much fun. I cut off solar light and stuck them in the sockets where the lights use to go.

Welcome back, happ! You were starting to worry us you were gone so long! Everybody needs a break. I remember how it is to have a full-time job, one really relishes their spare time, and vacations from work, they were the best! I hope to join the workforce again after this training starting Monday is over. Your DH and you have been busy I see! Boy, it would be nice to be a chicken at your house! Hehe! Solar lights in the pergola in an old chandelier! That's a good idea. Now, I want to do it when I find an old chandelier! Taj MaCoop! That's funny! I always get challenged in Scrabble when I use the word taj! I think you live in an area near St. Joseph, happ, Platte City they said is bumming pretty good with drought conditions, I bet you know. That root-sprout start of a Blackberry Bush is still green. Maybe it's generating roots and such but it's hanging in there for you. Here is a photo of it tonite. It's the fourth and fifth photos in the lineup. - At any rate, it is still green after 5 weeks, I think that is a good sign! Here it is on June 25th - http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/fp.php?pid=9180938&extraimg=1 If it were going to die, I'd think it woulda turned brown by now.

I painted the foundation on the East side of the house today, it needed it bad and I put it off long enuff. I have a few photos of the job if anyone wants to have a look. - It was a gallon of Drylok paint that I used. It worked out just right down to the last drop in the can, it was just enuff to paint it on liberally. Man, that stuff goes on good! It doesn't smell very good, but that don't last long, it dries fast! I figure any paint that smells like urine has to be good! I encountered wasps again a few times but never got stung. They came at me hard, but I was fast! I saw this one coming so I went into this violent shaking for a second or two and I think that threw it off! It flew around me for a minute then went back to it's nest to do whatever they do. That one actually tried to sting me, it ran into the hand that was up there but it didn't hit me good enuff. I was trying to knock down this spiderweb right by their nest, that's when I found out where it was. I think, "how did I not get stung?". You know, I think maybe it's because I am a fairly hairy sort. I think they might've been unable to reach my skin because the hair on my hands and arms maybe kept them from stinging my skin! I don't know, but I've been lucky, maybe it's just being grown up now. Maybe I anticipate them now and I try harder to avoid them. I remember when I was a kid I got stung regularly, knocking down their nests probably didn't help any! Anyway, I'm done now with that side, in the photos I wasn't done all the way. That photo closeup I was just trying to show you the wasp's nest, but the pic here might not be big enuff, it's pretty hard to see even full-size offline.

It musta rained a little early this morning. When I got up, the pavement and street had that rained on look, but I kinda doubt that it was enuff to really help.
Will

This message was edited Aug 2, 2012 7:30 PM

This message was edited Aug 3, 2012 11:18 AM

Got some rain this morning. Not enough of course but every bit helps.

New thread, go here - http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1273751/

72°/92°/61°
Partly cloudy with scattered strong storms developing during the afternoon. Storms may produce large hail and strong winds. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.

Marking my spot. Hopefully I'll get back here today or tomorrow :o)

LOVE the taj macoop happ. lol I am now in the chicken business. I have 3 pullets that should start laying eggs this month. I eventually want to get up to 12. I have a Cinnamon Queen and 2 Rhode Island Red crosses. The one with the silvery feathers on her back is Purdy, cause she is so pretty. The solid red one is Sweetie because that is what she is and the lighter colored one is Queenie, the Cinnamon Queen. DH is in town at this very minute buying the supplies to make our Hotel Chick Chick. What is that you are using on the outside? I had suggested buying a used dog run then covering with the chicken wire (I know how anal DH is when he is making something, and I didn't want this to take a month to build.lol) But no, he wanted to build it. ^_^ I had 4 chickens that a guy had given me and was getting eggs from 3 of them. I let them free range because I wasn't prepared with a coop of anything. (The ones I have now are in the back yard and I have a cage for them at night!) After about a week, the big RIR that laid such large pretty brown eggs "dissappeared". Then I heard a commotion of barking that sounded like my dogs down at my neighbors house. I went down there and my smallest Rat Terrier had one of them and the other dog was barking at her like crazy. The chicken was dead so I beat her with it to within an inch of her life. She gives the ones I have now a WIDE BERTH! Now I'm down to 1 layer and 1 non layer. UGH! My layer disappeard. I had really gotten attached to her! A few days later the neighbor told DH he heard a commotion then say a big black dog running down the road with her in his mouth. Still don't know whose dog it was. Thus leaves the worthless one running around the place. I bring home the 3 new ones and keep them in the cage from Tuesday till Saturday to be sure they stay when I let them out. Sometime during that time, worthless disappeared! Told DH I HAVE to have a coop NOW! lol

happ, are you the one I got the 'walking iris', I believe it was called, from? I have them all potted up and they are green and healthy, but not doing anything. What are they suppose to do? I've forgetten.

My passion vine has fruity all over it. I'm anxious to try it out. It is still green so have to wait until it turns purplish. What I read is it takes 70-80 days. May just get some before we have a frost.

Please pray for the people of Northeast Oklahoma. We have wildfires burning that has consumed approx. 50,000 acres and several homes. I'm across the lake/river from where they are, but they have evacuated the west side of a town about 12 miles southwest of me. I have ash falling. We could smell the smoke and see a haze in the air this morning. I was cleaning my pool and couldn't figure out what all this stuff floating in my pool was. Went out about an hour ago and my car had all this ash all over it. Went and looked at my pool again and it is covered. Smoke is obliviating the sun on the south side. Not good.....we are sooooooooooooooo dry. At least the temperatures are going to give us a small break this week.

NEW THREAD FOR AUGUST!!! THIS THREAD CLOSED!!!

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1273751/