The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

The Good

The "good" requires few words. A pretty Hydrangea bouquet with.......guess what? Leek scapes! Who knew they would add such great contrast!

The scapes are so cool! These are the same scapes that were cut a couple of weeks ago and are not showing any signs of dying off anytime soon. Awesome!

The Bad & The Ugly

In this case they are one and the same and I have no clue what it is.

I discovered this creature on my deck today. From a distance, I thought it was a turd! It was fat and fuzzy'ish and very very dead. It looks like it's part fish, part bird, part I dunno????

Then along came Mr. Ant hoping to bring home dinner for what surely would provide meals for the "next month of Sundays". He moved left, right and over but alas this monster was just too much for one little ant. But you must give him A+ for effort.

Damn Marigolds

There are not too many flowers that I don't like although I do tend to prefer those that stand tall and strong. Some I like for their foliage, some for their flowers and others for their uniqueness.

Then there are Marigolds. Yuck! They have no redeeming qualities. They smell gross. Even bugs hate them apparently. That's why I have them in my veggie bed. Rumor has it that they are supposed to keep the bugs at bay but someone forgot to tell the bugs in my neck of the woods because they have been decimated. Just straggly little skeletons at the feet of the tomatoes, etc. Not a success in my experiments.

More Grossies in the Garden!

It is abundantly clear that I hate creepy crawlies. I wish I were not such a woos. But I am.

Through the wonder of the web, you "meet" all kinds of people. One such person is EG. He has no issues whatsoever with bugs. He keeps a running total of squished squash bugs (whew that's a mouthful - say that fast 3 times!). He also likes to include videos in his blog which is kind of cool because you get to see what's going on in other parts of the country. And mostly feel twangs of envy 'cuz his garden is miles ahead of mine. Come to think of it, he hasn't posted in over two weeks and that's not like him. I hope he's on vacation. Check it out at Engineered Garden.

Back to my creepy crawlies. I'm not quite sure why I am including this picture. Perhaps to face my fear. Cue music - theme from "Jaws" please.

Ewwwwwwwwwwww. Can't wait until this post is archived.

Ugg...Bugs...

I HATE BUGS! I really go all psycho-girly when it comes to creepy crawlies in the garden. You would think that after 20+ years of gardening I would get over it - nope. I am not a girly girl in any other way - except when it comes to bugs. I wish I would get over it but I don't think it's even a remote possibility.

Today was a particularly "buggy" day. Squash bugs, cucumber beetles, worms galore and this big bugger who has pinchers. Ewwwwwww. I was kind of getting into pyscho mode - a tomato branch brushed me and I almost jumped out of my skin. This is not right. Get a grip girlfriend - get a grip.



To date I have never come across a snake - thank you God - cuz that might just be the end of my gardening days. In all likelihood Iwould become the girl in the bubble.

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Garden Creatures - Good & Bad

THE HUMMERS ARE HERE
In my absence, some backyard favorites have returned - hummingbirds!

GARDEN PESTS
The much dreaded Japanese beetles made their first appearance before I left town but with only one spray of Bayer Rose & Flower, the problem seem to have been nipped in the bud. No evidence of munching whatsoever. They can be nasty little buggers in this area. They can decimate lilies in one fell swoop. I've had to spray, spray, spray and sometimes that doesn't even do the trick. Perhaps catching them early is the trick. Perfect timing?

Tree Debris