Sunday, October 25, 2015

weekend update

Backyard: Cleaned up the raised bed. Pulled all the tomatoes, except one Sungold for now. Also left the yard volunteer arugula — they're still (!!!!) full of bees, and I hate to cut them back while it's still warm enough for the bees to be stocking up for winter.

(UPDATE: The bees were probably our backyard neighbor's — didn't know they'd gotten a hive!)

Before-and-afters:











Late Sungolds:



Arugula and bees!







Fennel seeds:



Front yard: Front door pot:



Blackbird euphorbia and hens-and-chicks out by the mailbox:





Final diagram for the front door bed. Names in white are new plants, names in yellow are survivors from last year! [click for larger]

Sunday, October 18, 2015

weekend update

I ordered 2 leadwort plants and 3 blackbird euphorbia from Bluestone Perennials, and planted them on Saturday. Leadwort in the front door bed, euphorbia out by the mailbox/sidewalk.



Thursday, October 15, 2015

what’s blooming

October 2105 Bloom Day
Still bees in the arugula:



Arugula has taken over the yard. Note the primrose desperately trying to escape across the rock wall:

Sunday, October 4, 2015

weekend update

“The late, great horticulturist, J.C. Raulston once said, ‘You’re not stretching yourself as a gardener if you’re not killing plants.’ See what good gardeners we are?”
Ketzel Levine, Plant Talk, NPR, 2003
Saturday I put new geraniums and columbines in the front bed, to replace the ones that croaked this year. Ripped out the gray sagewort to make room.

From Geraniaceae Nursery:
- 2 @ Geranium procurrens × Geranium psilostemon ‘Ann Folkard’
- 2 @ Geranium richardsonii

From Digging Dog Nursery:
- 1 @ Geranium ‘Dilys’
- 2 @ Aquilegia vulgaris ‘Leprechaun Gold’
- 2 @ Aquilegia vulgaris ‘Ruby Port’

After ripping out the sage:



After amending the soil with mushroom compost and YumYum Mix and planting:



After re-mulching with leaf litter:

Sunday, September 20, 2015

roasted tomatoes

Picked enough tomatoes to fill a half-sheet pan for roasting. Here they are before going into the oven. Yum!



Wednesday, July 15, 2015

what’s blooming

July 2015 Bloom Day
Sunflower:



Hollyhocks, hollyhocks, hollyhocks:







Fennel:



Mojave sage (Salvia pachyphylla):



Penstemon:



Cholla:



Monday, May 25, 2015

weekend update

Planted the tomatoes today (Memorial Day). Put one of the Sungolds in the raised bed, the other in the side bed with the Robesons and the basil.






[click for larger]

Lots of bees in the arugula volunteers:

Monday, May 18, 2015

weekend update

Saturday: Snoes!



Sunday: Planted the front door pot. Still too cold for tomatoes, hopefully the long Memorial Day weekend next week will be better.







I swapped out the leaky raised bed rain barrel for this one that was in the south side yard. It has all sorts of Greek writing on it — I think they used to be olive/olive oil barrels? I've decided his name is Stelio Kontos.



Went ahead and prepped spots for the tomatoes though. Pulled/harvested the kale in the raised bed. Dug in mushroom compost, set up and tested the drip hoses, put out the cages.




[click for larger]

Friday, May 15, 2015

what’s blooming

May 2015 Bloom Day
Catmint:



Claret cup hedgehog cactus:



Columbine:



Arugula:



Chives:

Thursday, May 14, 2015

arugula volunteers

... in the yard! I dug up a few to give away last fall, but we've been eating them since early April. Thanks again to the ever-fabulous Bev for hooking me up with a lifetime supply of perennial arugula!