Mid May Approaches

It seems April is finally here even though it is in fact mid May. Lots of rain in the last few days and more to come. Good for the plants of course, not so good for my mood or outside chores. We did however have a nice day on Saturday and I spent most of it outside with the neighbor pulling out weeds, transplanting my hostas to his bare spots and tidying up the yard. Unfortunately any work I do outside in my yard is fairly pointless as we are leaving it in 2 weeks where I will have to start all over tidying up a brand new yard. I just can't help it, it's like a sickness.
I step outside to take out the garbage and spot a weed in a place where it shouldn't be so I pull it. Then on the way inside I see another and another and before you know it, I've walked around the entire yard and now have a giant pile of weeds for the compost. Then I start moving plants around, gifting things to the neighbor and potting up some more valuable plants. At least I got some things accomplished.

I did get some productive things done inside as well. I did some packing for the big move and finally transplanted my peppers and some hollyhocks that were overtaking their space.

I apologize for not posting pictures, I was convinced I would do that this weekend but boy was I busy!

It's Taking So Long

So the situation I am in is keeping me from doing what I love most- playing in the dirt of course. We aren't moving until May 21st/Memorial day weekend(depending). Which means I have lots of plants that could go outside by now but can't do a thing about it. The only thing I could do is start pulling those perennials that I planted the last 2 years and then wait. The only issue with that is when it comes to labeling, finding enough containers and caring for them after they're out of the ground, it ends up being a daunting task. If I wasn't in school right now, I'd have all the time in the world aside from packing but that isn't the case.

I have peppers out of my ears, mini roses, hydraengas, poppies of all sorts and you name it, just sitting in my "green room" waiting to go outside. The fact is, I need to transplant them into larger containers. It simply needs to be done. I just need to find the drive and time to do it.

Soon I will post some pictures of my last season at this house. Then shortly after will follow some of the new place.

We have a great plan to put in some raised garden beds over an ugly asphault driveway but the topic has become somewhat contravertial. Derek thinks we should dig out the asphault which is a huge job but possibly. I originally thought we should leave it and simply make the garden beds super tall. Now though, I have found a cheap easy-build garden bed at Home Depot but it is only 7 in deep. I just don't know what to do. It might be worth the extra work to pull that crap out of there rather than try to jerry-rig a bottom out of different wood or bricks or something. Seems like a bigger job.
Happy spring, it's finally starting to feel like it.

April Snow Showers

I cannot believe it is snowing on April 20th. Why on earth do I live in Minnesota? After the longest winter that I can recall, we get a break, some weather in the 70's, 60's 50's...now mid/end April rolls around and dumps 2 or 3 inches on us. You've got to be kidding me. Go away old man winter, we don't like you anymore, you've overstayed your welcome.

Hope my plants all make it through, it's not even freezing here, it's around 36 but the snow keeps on coming. Oh well.

Think I got a little too excited

Well I already threw my gladiolus in the ground. I'm sure it will freeze again a few times at least but I'm not going to worry about it. We are officially moving this summer to our new house so I have a strange transition time. I can start planting at my new house May 20th. According to my blog from last year, that's about when I started to put stuff outside so I guess it will be kind of perfect. I'm not going to be too attached to those glads since they're last year's bulbs and I hear it's tough to get a good, big second year bloom out of them. I'll probably end up at menards or online buying a bag of 200 or something ridiculous like that.

I got my lettuce, peas and brocoli that I will plant at my house now since we'll still be there for the cold season. I'll do that this weekend.

First blooms of my SUPER-MINI flowers that I planted last fall. Cut little buggers too, they only open once the sun touches them. They are yellow, purple blue and white and I'm serious they so itty-bitty! The tulips, daylilies and irises are growing fast and the violas bloomed a few weeks ago too but they can withstand anything, who knows it looks like they were bloomed underneath the snow. Crazy lil' flowers.

I have rented the garden plot like I said I would so this year I hope to succesfully plant and harvest Zuccini, watermelon, peppers, cucumbers(maybe), corn and who knows what else.

Last little comment for the day, I'm getting married and picked out a bunch of flowers that will bloom my wedding colors. I have lots of peony poppies and things of the like started inside right now along with green and mixed peppers. Can't wait for those to go in the ground... I found black poppy, black hollyhock, red carnations, red peony poppy. Stuff like that. OH and snap dragons! Yay!

Moving

I have a problem because I might be moving during the winter. What the heck do I do with all my lovely perrenials that I've planted :( There's no way I can just leave them behind. I won't do it.

Bummer Summer

I really should have waited to start school until after the summer. My plants have been neglected because I'm so darn busy. I did however get the chance to make some fantastic pizza sauce with tomatoe, onion and basil from the garden, that's pretty cool and exciting. In all reality I have a very small crop for what I was expecting. No zuchinni, no squash, corn, watermelon, muskmelon, no melons at all. The onions stopped growing while they were still small little things...the garlic too... Broccoli hasn't done a thing but I'm thinking when it cools off, I might actually get a crop. Things I DO have, about 100 jalapenos and some other hot peppers, pumpkins...one two, maybe even three, lots of beans and tomatoes. That's it. Of everything I planted, that's all I got. I don't understand why the bell peppers didn't produce yet the jalapenos flourished. They were started at the same time under the same conditions. Weird

On a happy note. My flowers look great and turned out to be very rewarding. At least that worked out for me.

Note for next year, rent a property that gets full sun...my mistake thinking I could grow things without enough sun. Well, it worked last year...boo.

Sad Day

My gladiolus started to bloom. Unfortunately, my zucchini stopped blooming completely and has made no fruit at all...my pumpkins however did. Not sure how that happened.

Happy July

Things are coming along well! A lot of flowers are about to bloom in the next week or so while others are coming along slowly but surely. I'm so impatient, I just want some instant beauty. One of my rose bushes bloomed with two beautiful but small roses. I am not complaining though, I'm impressed they come up at all. The other bush however seems to have given up on life. I will replace it next year. The bean vines I planted are almost reaching the gutter along the roof. I'm so excited, it looks great. Also the cathedral bells I planted there are doing splendidly. Everything else will come in time. I hope to have more time next year. My busy schedule keeps me out of my garden way too much. I miss it. I have a day or two coming up though that I will make sure to spend in the garden. There is so much to do but with the rain, I have been lucky enough to not have to water often and spend my time out there doing more important things than watering.
The peppers are getting big, and still blooming away. The tomatoes are getting bigger and I swear everyday there is another one growing on those plants. The zucchini started blooming as well as the beans. I have my first white raspberry growing, just waiting for it to gain color. The onion foliage all fell to the ground with the extreme weather we had but they are still growing. I am starting to see the size of the bulbs and I am so excited. That is my most exciting crop (other than the peppers of course). I noticed that my garlic leaves have lost their...life or luster at least. They all seem wilted but possibly it is out of season for them and now they just need to cure. I will pull them and use what I have. Having small garlic cloves is better than having nothing. Harvest season is fast approaching. Excitement in my own backyard!

Pictures from the garden

First forming tomato of the season

One of many many peppers

I have two rosebuds on my tiny rose bush that I didn't think would do anything yet this year!

Wildflower, not sure what it is.



Don't know what this guy is either, grows on a 2-3 foot plant with this tiny little bloom.

Hosta



Can't think of the name of this either, got it last year when it was tiny, then it grew 3/4 it's size and bloomed this year. So cute

Cathedral bells

Cana Lily, only one came up

Calla lily

Beans, Cathedral Bells, Convulvous and Nasturtium

Slacking...

It's been awhile since I've posted anything. I just started school so my garden time is limited to the weekend now. But since the last post, I have eaten strawberries, peas and found out which plant I had from February were pansies! The peppers have buds on them, the squash and pumpkin plants are getting huge, corn is coming up, onions started budding(pinched them off as soon as I could). It's no wonder everyone blogs so often about gardening, there is always something going on!

I had mild problems with bunnies or something, maybe squirrels. Also there is a stray cat running around that my boyfriend informed me was using my garden as a play place. I used some chili powder on and around the plants and that seemed to keep them away. I however made the mistake of getting way too much on my muskmelon plant, I went out the next day and it was all droopy. Thinking about it, I definitely could have burned the delicate leaves. Duh Tina... Luckily that plant I bought to replace the gnawed on watermelon had 2 plants in it so the other is doing fine.

Another problem over the last week or so, while one rose bush is starting to take off, producing new shoots, the other has withered leaves and seems to have simple given up. I'm not too heart broken over this, they cost me 4 dollars, I could only expect the worst but I thought I'd try my hand at rose bushes.

Disappointment number 5 (or 6): I planted 3 packets of different sunflowers in my front planting spot where all of my flowers are. Only 7 came up...that is a hugely disappointing number when each packet has about 25 seeds. That's about 9% that germinated. Pathetic if you ask me. This spot is somewhat sandy now that I look at it and also does not have the luxury of getting natural water. It is only about 2 feet wide all the way down the front of the house but in order for it to get water, I'd need to water it myself. The overhang keeps it dry. On another note, I planted 10 or so Dahlia bulbs from Home Depot of which 2 came up. The rest are sitting uselessly in the ground doing nothing. Maybe it's just because they are from Home depot but this back part seems to be cursed. I can't do a whole lot about this now, maybe throw some good soil back there and replant SOMETHING just so it isn't so bare...That's my best option at this point but this late in the season, I wonder if I can still fix my problem.

On a pleasant note (finally), I received my 8 Trillium -white and purple- in the mail yesterday. Originally sold at 5 bucks a pop, I purchased these for 1.50 each. I'm excited to put them in, my shaded area could use some more interesting plants. These will do the trick for sure. Also a good thing, as I was digging and pulling thing out of the garden in early spring, I found an interesting shaped plant that I was unsure about so I left it. Sure enough it turns out to be a lily, the leaves aren't as thick as any that I've seen so I had doubted my decision originally. Good thing I left it though. Unfortunately, I remember pulling one out and thinking maybe that was going to be something. Oh well, I needed to be productive early in the season, at least I got (almost) everything done that I wanted in time even if it means not discovering all of the beauties someone left behind.

I will snap some more pictures soon. Things are coming along nicely. There is only one spot I did not get around to, it was just such a daunting task, especially without a wheelbarrow. Maybe we will still get it to somewhat working condition for next year. Wishful thinking I'm sure, it's pretty late now.