Beautiful Monday

Today was a perfect spring day; in the 70's , sunny, and crisp. After work, I picked up some slug repellant, a few annuals for my last clay pot, and a new basil plant. Once I changed into my gardening gear, I spent a while planting, watering, and repelling slugs. Bill and I fertilized the garden, pulled some weeds, and then put up almost (!) the rest of the pickets. We ate a big bunch of sauteed spinach for dinner; we have to cook it since it's been munched on by slugs, as you can see here:
We planted bulbs, annuals, and some dahlias along the garden fence:
The lawn is looking green and lush, and Bill is excited to walk on it:
Beginning of June:
I've never grown potatoes before, but ours sure do look like they know what they are doing (see them on the right?)!
jem

Talking about water

Today is Thursday, the first day with no rain since last Sunday. I have harvested spinach and herbs twice in the last week, and everything is growing and filling in so nicely with all the rain. The potatoes look like something out of a catalogue, which is a nice change from the spinach and lettuce leaves that are being ravaged by slugs. Bill has mentioned getting some pesticide for the slugs, and I am almost willing to do it, just so we will have leafy veggies to eat for the next few weeks.
The beans, peas, and tomatoes are looking super, while the marigolds, peppers, and carrots appear pretty weak.
I really want to take some photos, but we are at a time of camera transition, so I keep forgetting. Bill got a beautiful new camera set up, so in the future, our garden photos may very well look like something you'd see in a magazine. I suppose I should whip up some Martha outdoor seat cushions and matching placemats......just in case Home and Garden sees this blog.
:)
jem

After a seemingly long hiatus....

Ahhh.....internet......how I have missed you in these last few weeks.
While traveling and busy with work, the garden has exploded with sprouts and flowers. The squash plants are pushing out their papery yellow flowers and the beans are sporting little white and purple ones. The lettuce and spinch have made a few meals already, for us as well as for some slugs, I think. The corn and potatoes have popped up and most of the tomato plants look strong and motivated.

The flat-fenced garden behind the garden-proper appears to be surviving thus far. The herbs and squash/watermelon/pumpkin plants next to the house look pretty good as well, perhaps a little sun-deficient.

Today, I am going to buy a wheelbarrow! I am very excited. Tomorrow, I will work on mulching the big beds, planting some donated bulbs and iris, and pulling weeds. I'll try to take some photos later so that you can check out the splendid progress!

Happy Memorial Day/ Weekend!! jem

Soggy

Today is Thursday and it has been raining since last Saturday evening. I am glad everything is getting plenty of rain, especially since we planted so many things last Saturday, but I sure do miss the spring-time sunshine. I think that it will make an appearance this weekend.
Garden tasks that need to be done in the next 2 weeks:

• Finish garden fence and pickets
• Stake the tomatoes
• Plant annual flower seeds around garden perimeter
• Pick/thin baby spinach, lettuce, and beets
• Plant more lettuce (?)
• Move transplanted liriope
• Mulch around trees and in beds
• Kill poison ivy in old iris bed
• Pull weeds in garden

That looks like a good list for now :) I'm just hoping that the grass will dry out enough for me to mow it tomorrow.

Back in the gardening saddle

We had a fantastic trip to San Francisco and Yosemite. I think that Bill would have stayed in Yosemite Valley for the remainder of Spring if he could have. He took some amazing photos!

But now we are back, and we arrived home to a very overgrown lawn and a garden in need of some attention. After a full Saturday of planting, weeding, watering, and mulching, I think we have done a great job.

The peas are coming along very well. The two pepper plants that Mom gave us made it through the 90-degree weather last week and are looking strong:

We got everything planted in the garden today! Our starts of squash, melon, and tomatoes went in, and Chris even made a little garden plot for himself. This year, he will be growing carrots, potatoes, and cucumbers (all 3 of which we are having for dinner tonight!):

I got some herbs and marigolds for our small container garden on the deck. I also put squash and herbs mixed in with the iris. We'll see if they get enough sun:

Because we have such a plethorea of squash, pumpkin, and cucumber seedlings, we decided to put some behind the garden as well. We have heard that deer do not like to walk on wire mesh when it is flat on the ground, so we are giving that a shot:

Despite the unseasonably hot weather while we were gone, our shady stream area has really perked up, and our transplanted Hostas look great:

Tomorrow may be rainy, and I will gladly accept the break. But if it is a nice day, I have a pile of mulch calling my name....jem

Soggy with inspiration

It's another rainy Monday, but the weekend was clear and dry and toasty. We spent Saturday afternoon working in the yard; speading mulch, painting and installing fence pickets, transplaning iris, planting a small redbud tree, and planting some hostas that came from the neighbor (seen above in the "before-n-after" photo). I am anxious to mow the lawn, but I am holding off until it grows a few more inches. Our lawn is no work of art; it's a mix of grass and weeds and small spring flowers. I don't mind, as long it keeps the mud off my feet and gives Chris a place to play. On Sunday, we visited five gardens as part of the Historic Garden Tour. In short, I would have to say that it was a moderately inspirational adventure; but not as remarkable as the bulb tour last weekend.

In 3 days, we head to California. I am certain we will visit a garden or two on our trip. :) jem

If it's not the rain, it's something else..

The bulb tour was super! The beautiful flowers and the captivating presentation made up for the cold drizzle. I came home with 2 Dahlia plants that I am anxious to find a spot for. We have discussed putting annuals and other flowers around the perimeter of the garden fence, but I am not sure how soon we will get to that, or if we will wait until we can put in something more permanant.

It rained for the first 3 days this week, and we are anxious to get back into the garden. Last weekend, we dug up the monsterous forsythia colony in the front yard and replaced it with 2 abelias (photos coming soon). It looks 100% better, AND we were able to give a few of the forsythia plants to our friendly neighbor. She is an avid gardener as well and has already offered us a redbud and as many doffodil bulbs as we care to divide. Sweet lady, she is!

{Digging up the forsythia}

{Letting our sprouts have some outdoor time.}

This evening, Bill is bringing home a load of mulch, which will end up in our many beds around the yard. I am still in the process of deciding which beds will serve which purpose. I would like to have herbs near the back door, even though in our master plan we located an herb garden in the front yard. So some things warrant rethinking.

This weekend is supposed to be lovely, with temps in the 70s. We will garden and play sports on Saturday. On Sunday, we will join the horticulture-loving masses and participate in Garden Week Virginia 2009, visiting at least 3 of the featured local gardens. Ahhhh, sweet inspiration!

Bulbs for breakfast

Today is Friday and it has been a full and busy week. We will be anxious to have a little R&R this weekend. Mingled in with the R&R, we are planning to visit Brent and Beckys Bulbs, just east of Richmond. For some time, I have been wanting to learn more about planting bulbs, and timing your bulb beds to produce year-round color.
Also, we want to shuffle around some shrubs-- swap a forsythia for some abelias, and maybe dig up some more irises.
It is just beginning to rain, which likely means I will not get a chance to plant more carrots this evening. Perhaps we will rent a British movie and dream of English gardens and grassy hillsides with sheep and rock walls..... jem.

Promise

We are starting some seedlings in doors-- Tomatoes, Peppers, Squash, Cucmbers, Watermelon, Pumpkin. The seedlings show an amazing level of vigor as they germinate and begin growing, easily doubling in size each day.

Chris puts the finishing touches on the 2x4 nailers prior to helping put up the pickets. He's anxious to get started again today-- he's never been so excited about working. We won't question this turn of events. bm

Eggs Of Many Colors- Sure Sign Of Spring

One of the surest signs that Spring is here?...colorful eggs begin to appear. We will hide some in the garden/yard later today. Folks coming over for a cookout. Beautiful weather...highs in low 70's. bm

One word- Rain

It's been raining for two days. And I believe it will rain tomorrow. While I know that the rain is good for our garden and the regional water supply, I am longing for some of that cheerful spring sunshine!

Bill planted beets and more lettuce a few nights ago, in much more reasonable quantities than I did last week. I haven't seen any of the out side plants sprouting yet (not enough sun?) but some of our indoor seed starts have sprouted! It's so wonderful to see the small green shoots curling up out of the soil. Even though it will be months before we will get any produce off those plants, I already feel as though we have been successful in our venture.

The weather forecast for the weekend looks promising. In between baseball, house cleaning, and a festive cookout, I hope we can get some quality gardening in. Until then, We'll stay dry inside and think of all the ways to eat spinach! :)
jem

A request for our dear readers

We are really excited about our up-and-coming garden and we think that keeping this blog will be helpful and fun for us and for you too! We'd really love to know who reads our blog, even just occasionally. It would be much appreciated if you could leave a comment once in a while so we know you're out there.
Thanks!!
J & B

A small grove of young beech trees (Fagus grandiflora) grows at the scraggly wooded western boundary of our lot. The white/grey elephant leg trunks highlight a mostly morose forested winter backdrop. Though they are most definitely the nobility of our humble slice of the forest, I hadn't paid much attention to the beeches, beyond acknowledging their presence, until just the other day. Days of rain recently have left our yard a spongy mess. My feet were muddy when I could no longer hold the 3 cups of coffee I had after breakfast so, not wanting to take my shoes off to go inside, I walked down to the wood's edge to a certain strategically screened spot next to the big tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera) to release some pressure. As I turned to walk back up to the vegetable garden I noticed how a few of last season's leaves still clung to the branches of the beech tree next to me. Thin clouds overhead cast a soft, full light on the leaves and buds. I quickly returned with my camera and made this image before the light was gone-- the remnants of seasons past and the promise of seasons to come.

Planted 3 Styrax japonica seedlings today. Bought some more pickets-- I love their fresh pine smell. bm

March Showers Bring May Flowers

It hasn't been a particularly pretty Saturday; overcast and slightly chilly, but it was great weather for working outside. We got all the chicken wire up and Bill made a wonderful gate for the garden fence. We also spent some time constructing a small retaining wall in a corner of the garden that is lower than the rest of the garden. We have 1 lateral support left to put up and then all that is left are the pickets. We'll likely knock out a good number of those tomorrow.
I also began transplanting some of the iris's that are in my soon-to-be flower/ herb bed. I hope we will have numerous clusters of iris flowers scattered around the perimeter of the yard in a few months.

When the rain came around 5pm, we called it quits for outside work and decided to plant our starter tray with tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, peppers, watermelon, cantloupe, zucchini, and pumpkin. Those seeds should sprout in the next week or so, and then be ready to go in the garden in about a month.

We are rather worn out now, so I think it's going to be an evening at home with a rented movie and leftover pizza. Perfect!

First plantings!

I know we haven't written since last week, but that's because we went to WVa for the weekend. It was beautiful weather and I think both of us felt a little guilty for not working in the garden. We did, however, collect 3 buckets of cow manure to fertilize our happy veggies.

Some photos of our work last week:
Painting the pickets-
Screwing the pickets to the lateral support 2x4s-


Taking the painting job very seriously-

Our compost pile, which we started last spring-

I also took some "before" photos and will post them when we have an "after" to go with them, hopefully in the fall.

This evening, I planted carrots, spinach, and lettuce. The germination time is 7-12 days, so in the next few weeks, we may have the beginnings of some succulent munchies!

This coming weekend, weather permitting, we will finish the fence and continue planting our early-spring crops.

Mid-week make-up

We got rained out last weekend and so we kept inside. However, today was beautiful and warm, and although it is Wednesday, Bill was able to take the day off and work on our garden. And what a difference it made!

Winter Wonderland

Yesterday evening, we installed another section of chicken wire fencing to our garden posts. It is hard to get that stuff to lay flat, but we managed to get it nailed on to the backside of our garden fence, between 4 posts. I'd like to say that we'll finish the wire fence this weekend and begin putting up lateral supports, but I'm not so sure the weather will go along with that plan.
We woke up this morning to almost an inch of snow on the back porch. Rain in the forecast for the next 2 days.
Maybe I can paint pickets under the front-door overhang.
Besides our vegetable garden, which is tops on our priority list right now, we also have several smaller areas for perennials, shrubs, and other gardens. I am hoping to get working on an herb-perennial garden under our Crape Myrtle. Maybe after we get our veggie seeds in the ground.

73 yesterday and snow tomorrow.....March!

Yesterday, we went to Lowes and bought about half our needed pickets. They are 6' tall. so we'll have to cut a foot off the bottem of each one. They are untreated pine, so we can easily use or burn the off-cuts.
We also bought a splendid green/grey paint for the fence. If we don't have snow or rain on Sunday, I'll be painting pickets!

After our Lowes adventure, we had dinner with the folks and brother, sister-in-law-and new baby. It's nice to have family around.

Saturday, my Achitectrual History class is going on a tour of Staunton. Yes, we are going to check out buildings with columns so we can talk about what "style" they are.

10...is the magic number.....

Our lovely Lenten Roses:

We did it! We now have all 10 of our beautiful posts in the ground. As a bonus, Bill has already begun digging the trench (6-8")around the perimeter to hold the chicken wire fencing, which is sunk into the ground to (hopefully) prevent the intrusion of tunnelers. The wire fencing is 4' tall, so it be about 18" shorter than our wooden pickets when we are done. I don't think this will be a problem, but we'll keep you posted. post..ed. Ha.

Ahhhh, at last, photographs

Alrighty gang, here are some "mainly-before-but-also-kind-of-in-progress" garden photos.
Our compost area and the BRUSH pile:Our garden area:After a long day of building fence:

Purty weather peeking in

This weekend should be lovely. Perhaps even in the 70's. So while I am spending the beautiful weekend studying for a professional exan, Bill and Chris will be working on the garden fence. It will be a lot of digging with shovels, clam diggers, and a digging bar (to chip out the rock). We will have to use concrete for at least the gate posts and maybe for a regular post or two. I am hopeful that we can get all thew posts in this weekend (and I will tear myself away from the books at least for a few hours on sunday to help).
Photos soon, I promise. Until then, just picture a 20x20 area of dirt with 4 wooden posts around it. Impressed?
By the way, I added a few photos of our Gingerbread Chapel to the pre-Thanksgiving post. Check them out, and let us know if you'd like a custom Gingerbread model of your house. :)

disclaimer

This blog can be moody at times

In like a lion

It snowed on March 1st. The most snow we've had all year-- that's right, a whopping 4inches.
Before that bit of weather, we managed to get 4 of our 10 fence posts in the ground. We are having to cement-in several because we hit rock at about 18inches. We have some photos and will try to post them soon.
We are hoping that the next 2 weekends will be good ones for working on the fence. We have gotten almost all the seeds that we ordered and will list them all as we begin planting.
It's becoming Spring, and that means the gardening is ON!

Back in the saddle

Why?