Sneaky Snake

 I wanted to share one of my garden friends with you.  This is Sneaky Snake.  He lives in a hole in the railroad tie right next to the horseradish.  Unless it is very hot out, I see him each day in the mid to late morning when he is sunning himself. I am not much of a snake person.  I won't handle them unless absolutely necessary, but I don't mind having them around a long as they don't surprise me.  Sneaky and I are used to each other and no one gets jumpy or nervous or moves quickly.  I am sure I could pick him up easily if I wanted to.  But I don't want to. I just get a kick out of his routine, and enjoy talking to him.  Today as I was walking back and forth and around the garden shed doing my chores, he assumed this position with his chin on the edge and just watched my comings and goings for almost an hour.

Wild Areas

Our manicured landscape area is surrounded on three sides by wild areas.  This strip of weeds between the Viburnum Thicket and the west driveway is a good example.  It used to be the very edge of the mowed lawn.  After the driveway was put in we used to still take a pass down it a few times a year with the lawnmower.  

Once we actually tried landscaping it.  We planted some daylilies and iris and mulched it heavily.  For a few years I kept the blackberries, wild strawberries, ferns, goldenrod and aster beat back a good three feet.  Then I gave up.  I still whack it down in the fall, otherwise the goldenrod leans over into the driveway.  But areas like this are impossible to landscape.  Its a losing battle.  All woody thicket area need to be bordered by lawn or gravel.  And the gravel may still be a battle.  All natural vegetative species believe in Expansionism and Manifest Destiny.

Before I gave up on it completely I buried some Milkweed roots in there.  I had allowed a volunteer Common Milkweed to grow in the landscape bed along the house.  That's something you don't want to do either.  Common Milkweed spreads by roots and it is difficult impossible to get rid of.  Especially when it finds itself in loose, rich, fertile soil like a garden.  I dug roots for three years before I got it out of there.  But I always buried the roots in an area where I would actually like Milkweed to grow.

The first year three stalks came up and this year I have 20.  

There is a lot of insect activity in there in the morning.  And fresh, young Milkweed is actually pretty attractive.  Later on it will get ugly and I will harvest the pods, throw those somewhere I wouldn't mind Milkweed to grow and whack it down.

There were a lot of tiny snails this morning, and several lady beetles.  I have seen a Monarch Butterfly visit this thicket several times this year already.  Monarchs are very spare with their eggs.  They know that if one hatches, the caterpillar will need plenty of room to munch.  They can't be crowded by many competitive siblings.  There is a little egg there by the lady beetle.  None have hatched yet.  

On my morning walk I thought of a "faith in planting" example to show you.  Three weeks ago when my last perennial plant order arrived, the two Amsonia plants had absolutely fried in shipping.  They were about 8 inches tall and every leaf was brown and crispy.  But the stems were still green so I potted them up and stuck them in the cold frame.  After about a week they began to show growth at the base so I snipped them down and planted them out.   They are doing just fine.

Next year they will look like the one pictured below.  Amsonia is one of the first perennials in my garden to bloom in May.  The flowers are subtle and short lived but afterwards you get a nice shrubby looking plant that is very tough and will add nice texture to any garden.  I started with one plant and now I have six of three different varieties.

Another example of a quick growing, mail order perennial is this Cimicifuga (Bugbane).  This has been in the ground 10 days and look at how quickly it is putting on growth.  I killed my last Cimicifuga because I planted it in an area where it did not get enough sun.

I am looking forward to seeing how this one does.

Bees and Annuals

 My little Leaf Cutter Bees are working on their second generation.  They filled all of the bamboo tubes and I had to add new ones.  The second generation is just beginning to emerge as the last of the first generation fill the newer tubes.

Once they have laid their eggs, they cap the end of the tube with pieces of leaves that they have cut.  I am seeing little holes here and there around the garden.  They like the pole beans and other soft leaves.  I would love to catch one flying with one of these chunks.

I am enjoying some of the annuals I started from seed just to have something different from the usual offerings at the local greenhouses.

Tangerine Vinca

Kosmo Celosia

The reblooming Daylily varieties that I cut back first are blooming a little.  This is about all a reblooming variety will muster.  But it looks much fresher that a tired, yellowing plant.

Self seeded Celosia

The large, Creamy White Marigolds that I cut back hard to size control are beginning to bloom.  Some of them are quite nice, but they are very inconsistent in both color and bloom form from plant to plant.  Not a stable hybrid.

The Foxtrot Pennisetum that I divided back in March has gotten quite large and is starting to put out seed heads.  All of the divided grasses in this area are thriving.

Foxtrot

Pollination!

Last evening I went out for a final check of the garden and found that the honey bees had discovered the Sweet Corn.  I have never seen so many frantic Honey Bees in one spot.  They have been around this week.  On the white clover in the lawn.  On the Thyme under the Apple Tree.  Visiting the Cucumbers.  But apparently, the Sweet Corn pollen was at its prime!  I checked back this morning to get video in better light.  Talk about busy bees.

The pollen was scattered everywhere.

I am optimistic that this variety will be well pollinated.  At least half of the stalks were showing silks.  This morning the air was so heavy and humid.  We came back soaked from our morning walks.  I went out to lunch not wanting to work outside.  This afternoon we ended up on the deck in the shade of the house with an old box fan aimed straight at us.  We were praying that the storm clouds would burst and we would get a good clearing rain.  For hours it split around us.

About an hour ago it finally found us and now we are in the middle of a wide spread thunderstorm.  Not really windy.  Not too much lightening.  Just a steady downpour.  This will soak everything very well, fill my water tank again and wash away the corn pollen.  But we got many hours of perfect pollination before that.  I just checked my rain gauge through the widow with binoculars and we already have half an inch.

Hooray!  The next few days are supposed to be cooler and we will sure enjoy it.

Busy Bees and Baby Veggies

 The little eggplants are starting to look promising.

The first ripe tomato was a Micro Tina.  It tasted just as good but was only the size of a gumdrop

The slicing tomatoes are starting to size up.  It will still be weeks before they begin to ripen.

The Queen Anne's Lace and the Dill are extraordinarily popular with all of the pollinators.  I would guess there are hundreds in there from Wasps to Sweat Bees.  The Honey Bees are on the white clover in the lawn and the Thyme under the Apple tree.  But they are also stopping by the Cucumber flowers.  And I found a Bumble Bee pollinating the Zucchini this morning.  Everyone has a job to do.

I almost forgot

Daylily of the Day:  Stella Supreme

Turkey Trot

 The past two evenings, these Turkeys have paraded through the back yard.  We always enjoy watching these characters.  The best part is that they do no damage.

This one was lagging behind.  Stripping seeds off of the tall grass.

The Bumble Bees always sleep on the Marigolds. 
This form of Marigold has safety sides.

Daylily of the Day:   Ruby Spider

All The Buzz

Last year I purchased both Mason Bees and Leaf Cutter Bees from Crown Bees.  The Mason Bees didn't stick around long although I still have a few.  The Leaf Cutter Bees were a good success.  You have to remove the nesting material and store it over winter in a constant, cool temperature.  Mine stayed with my Dahlia tubers.  When the temperatures reach a consistent 70F the new bees should emerge.  I began to see some activity last week.  Today it looks like everyone is out and beginning to nest and lay eggs.  My little bee chalet is a hive of activity.

Their favorite hang out right now is the Queen Anne's Lace (below)

Tomatoes are self pollinators so we don't need the bees for that.  The Carbon plant is beginning to set fruit.  It is surprising each year to see which plant produces first.  It seems to be different every year.

We will need the bees for the Cucumbers.  They will be flowering soon.

The Honey Bees are Swarming

 Today, while I was sitting in the shade under the apple tree, I heard that vague, but primordial sound that still sort of raises the hairs on the back of my neck... the sound of bees swarming.  I was taking a break in the shade of the apple tree when I heard the unmistakable sound of a honey bee swarm.  I think this is the fourth time I have encountered a bee swarm.  Not something everyone gets to experience.

This was not as organized as some swarms I have seen, and we no longer have a bee tree to host them.  They came up the side of the garden, over the horseshoe pit, and I retreated to the side of the garden shed to have a better look.  As all swarms, they had their minds on something else, so without knowing how well it would translate on camera, I took a little video,

Past blog entries about bee swarms:

We have bees!

Migrant Workers

Hurry Scurry

 The weather seems a couple of weeks ahead of itself this year and there are moderate temperatures in the forecast so I am trying to get all of my raised beds prepped for planting and annuals either planted up or moved out of their nursery cells into larger pots so they are not as difficult to keep alive.  The raised bed prep involves aerating the soil with a broad fork and raking any new weeds out.  I should be planting both my sweet corn and in ground tomatoes this weekend.  There is always a lot of set up with bringing plant supports and T-posts etc out of storage and distributing them where needed.

Storm Cloud Amsonia

I have been juggling grow thru grids around.  In some cases, as above, they are needed for stem support on tall plants.  In other places then are useful for blocking snoopy deer noses.  Sometimes just putting them over a low growing plant is enough to deter a taste test.  Other times they are needed in addition to repellent spray.  Besides all of the spring set up and planting, there are the usual chores: water, weed, fertilize, protect.  It is a busy time of year.  The busiest.

This morning when I was making my rounds I came across this Giant Silk Moth.  I've never seen one before.  It was even larger (wider) than a Luna Moth.  It was probably dying, as the adults do not eat, they just mate and die within a week.  I moved it from the driveway to the edge of the lawn.  If I collected things like this it would have been a perfect specimen.  It was beautiful.

Winter Weeding

Every winter we get a few breaks when you can go out and spend some time in the garden.  Yesterday was absolutely perfect for picking up sticks and leaves.

It got up to 49F.

There are a few spots where the weeds were flourishing.  Even flowering.

There are few weeds in the raised beds but the ones that are there were getting pretty big.  I pulled them all.

The last of the lettuce was down for the count.

The tulips are eager to get going.

This morning was very cold and clear with freezing fog and hoar frost.

The silly blue birds were in the middle of their mating ritual and checking out the bird house.  I've even seen a few robins.  They'll have to face reality though.  The ground hogs are predicting an early spring but I think we have at least a month to go.  

Rainy Weather

 52F and drizz today.  In the past two days we have had more rain than we have in the last month.  Not quite .75"  The many male bumble bees are clinging to the dahlias.  You need to choose your bedroom wisely.

Good Choice

Poor Choice

When the rain let up and the sun came out I went back out to see how everyone was faring and they were all drying out.

Going Slow

 I spent yesterday dumping tomato containers to reclaim the soil, washing containers, pulling hose guides, pulling rerod, cleaning supports, storing everything away.  I always clean and store every little thing so it isn't out in the winter weather,  It makes for a long process.  I used to do everything all at once, and now I take my time.  For one thing, I've got so much more now that doing it all in one day would be a huge undertaking.  And secondly, I have to give fair warning to all of the critters so they can relocate into our natural edges.

This little guy lives under the Parsley

There are always all sorts of critters around the garden.  Toads, frogs, spiders, beetles.  If I pull out one bed they move to another.  Eventually they all hunker down and hibernate in the areas with shrubs and evergreen perennials or nearby naturalized areas and they are all back in droves in the spring.  That is the one thing I like best about the two strips of untouched jumble that flank the garden space.  It provides a winter haven for all of my garden helpers.

 There is another frog living in the Strawberry bed, which has foliage all year.  This little guy will be safe and undisturbed in the Parsley, which winters over.  We have noticed the past two years how many more frogs we have.  We've always had toads and garter snakes, but something about us turning all that lawn into dry creek bed apparently made things more appealing for frogs.

One of those days

Very rarely I draw a complete blank on what to title a blog post.

This is one of those days.

The lettuce has done really well and last week I began using leaves for sandwiches. While lettuce needs consistent water I found earlier this year that the butterheads did not do well with a lot of direct water down in the leaves (rot), so each day when I water I take the shade cloth off and water between the plants with my water wand.  There is a volunteer cucumber in there.  I hate to pull it.

 

I am still covering the cantaloupes each night to keep them from cooling too much.  This has been a mild summer and we have already had night time temps in the low 50s,

I finally stripped all of the available beans off and have been freezing them.  I keep watering the plants because there are still some new beans developing at the top and I want to encourage the vines to keep trying.

The green beans are not easy to photograph on the vine.  But they're in there!

I usually pick them slimmer than this but wow, they look awesome.  And they are not tough or stringy.

Another thing that is difficult to photograph is a territorial bird.  The hummingbirds have been very active this week, and now we have finches.

I'm a pepper, he's a pepper...wouldn't you like to be a pepper too?

The gold finches have been working on the sunflowers.  There are sometimes as many as three brightly colored males maneuvering around trying to claim the food source for themselves.  In the mean time the females eat in peace.

Always on the wing

The finches are quite shy and I have to sit quietly about thirty feet away, which does not make for dramatic photos.

The female is sitting on a flower on the right side of the picture.

Today I found a little powdery mildew on my zucchini plant.  I removed the affected leaves.  It will be a long time before it damages the overall health of the plant.

The vegetable garden is looking a little dry and weary, but there is still plenty of food in there.

I picked a few small cantaloupes yesterday.  They had slipped on their own but were small and ordinary.

The best is yet to come out of the melon patch.

Still tidy.