Garden Happenings - Fertilizer Friday

Just a quick post to see what’s happening in my little slice of heaven.

The last of the Azaleas.  This one is a little wayward – much later than the others.

 

I have my doubts about this.  Waaaay behind.

Chives – well what can I say.  These have been in a pot for years.  No fuss – no muss.  They always come back.

First of the Clematis blooms.  Nelly Moser I think.

This one is in it’s second summer.   I bought it at a farm with no tags for $5.  I love the color but I was kind of disappointed to see that it was more of a field peony.  More tulip like than nice and frilly.

The color of the mystery Iris has been revealed….

Lamium running rampant!

Popping!

Sprouted!

Yawwwwn!  The Rhododendron is slowing waking up.

Now…for anyone who read my blog a couple of weeks ago….this is what catnip does….

Silly Smudgie!

Have a wonderful weekend!  And don't forget to visit Tootsie & friends for Fertilizer Friday.

Out & About – Week 6 – Fertilizer Friday

Here in Zone 6, things are definitely growing but there is a lull in the color.  Spring blooms are all done and not quite time for annuals yet.   But there’s plenty of green.  A world better than the browns and grays of a short time ago.

It looks like the Rhododendron will supply the next pop of color.  I only have the one but it is huge – about 15 feet tall.

They’re baaaaack!  This was my first sighting two days ago.

You need to be careful with this one.   It is prolific!  The seeds blow everywhere!   Even over the roof.  The original planting in the front yard no longer exists but you can find this growing randomly all over the yard.  It’s not a spectacular flower but the slightly fuzzy leaves emit a licorice smell when you rub them.

Coming along!  Even without flowers, Foxglove is beautiful. 

I love this foliage.  It makes for nice contrast amongst the greens.

The poppies are coming, the poppies are coming!  These have huge red blooms with black centers.

Now this little guy is a saucy one!  I watched his antics for a few minutes and I’m pretty sure he was checking out how to get in a window that was cracked open a few inches.   Which I promptly closed!

So that’s my weekly post for Fertilizer Friday.  Head over to Tootsie’s blog to see what’s going on in everyone’s garden.

Raking in 90 Degree Weather? Is That Necessary? - Fertilizer Friday

Holy cow!  It was a hot, humid, sticky, yucky weekend last week!  And what did I choose to do?   Work in the yard.  In the beating sun.    The plan was laid out earlier in the week as part of the grander plan to get ready for the annual Memorial Day garden kick off!  I was so not ready for this!  90 degrees and humid!  In May?  Really?

The raking part would have been OK if it didn’t entail picking up tons of acorns.  They are heavy!    The squirrels haven’t even considered digging up any of my flower bulbs.   Why should they?  They have a veritable buffet of about 20,000 sq.ft.  Right there, sitting on the ground, no digging.   The digging was left to me.  The hundreds of acorns that had planted themselves and taken root everywhere.   And let me tell you, they don’t give up easy.

So after a few of hours of that nonsense, I decided to hide from the sun on my deck and get some seeds going.   A little late but it kept me in garden mode.  Boy do I have a lot of seeds!  Some of which were getting old.    Time to experiment.  Throw caution to the wind and let nature take it’s course.  Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

The seeds that were started a mere 4 days ago, looked like this today!

Are you laughing yet Tootsie?

Updates:

The grapevine is coming along.

The hydrangea is growing vigorously.

A large part of my yard is woodland.    I haven't gotten to clearing this area yet but here are a few things that are going on.

The hosta is looking good growing in front of the tin man in a rotted out old tree.

(Obviously, I haven't gotten around to cleaning this area.)

Forget-Me-Nots

Lily of the Valley.  Love the smell!

Volunteer potatoes in the raised bed.  Must be some that I missed last fall.

 

This is leftover brussel sprouts.  It seems to have bolted so I'll let it occupy space until I have something else to put in.

All things considered, it was a productive weekend.   It helped that I had some pleasant company.

Oh, and I hear the hummingbirds are here.  Time to make some sugar water.  You can find the migration map here.

Have a wonderful week and don't forget to visit Tootsie's  Fertilizer Friday for more garden views.

Oh Babies!

I was out doing errands one rainy day last week with my trusty camera in tow.   As I was driving, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted this…

Three little glowing balls.

 

A whole family of Canada Geese!

How cute are they!

“Reproduction

Courting
During the second year of their lives, Canada Geese find a mate. They are monogamous, and most couples stay together all of their lives.^[5] If one is killed, the other may find a new mate. The female lays 3–8 eggs and both parents protect the nest while the eggs incubate, but the female spends more time at the nest than the male. Known egg predators include Arctic Foxes, Northern Raccoons, Red Foxes, large gulls, Common Raven, American Crows and bears. During this incubation period, the adults lose their flight feathers, so they cannot fly until their eggs hatch after 25–28 days.

Adult geese are often seen leading their goslings in a line, usually with one parent at the front, and the other at the back. While protecting their goslings, parents often violently chase away nearby creatures, from small blackbirds to humans that approach, after warning them by giving off a hissing sound. Most of the species that prey on eggs will also take a gosling. Although parents are hostile to unfamiliar geese, they may form groups of a number of goslings and a few adults, called crèches. The offspring enter the fledging stage any time from 6 to 9 weeks of age. They do not leave their parents until after the spring migration, when they return to their birthplace. Once they reach adulthood, Canada Geese are rarely preyed on, but (beyond humans) can be taken by Coyotes, Red Foxes, Gray Wolves, Snowy Owls, Great Horned Owls, Golden Eagles and, most often, Bald Eagles.”

Excerpted from Wikipedia

I found it interesting that the adults lose their flight feathers during the incubation period. 

If you are interested, you can read more here.

Then it was time to go!

What a privilege to spend a few minutes with this little family.

I had seen a few families before but never with my camera so when I spotted them, I had to “pull a U-ee”.  Safely, of course!