Mid-Season Landscape Maintenance - additional work done today

 Today is our second day in a row of cooler and drizzy weather.  We got a little rain which revived some of the tired out perennials but did nothing for the rainwater tank.  It was a good day to catch up on weeding because the rain had softened the ground, and it wasn't radiating heat back up at me.

I pulled about ten pounds of weeds (seriously) from two of the landscape beds then decided to refresh the edging while I was at it.

I used a transplant spade to cut the grass at the edge then pulled it up and swished the mulch around.

This bed I call the "Spring Garden" because it is full of Daffodils and Primrose.  When we mulch in the spring it is difficult to mulch closely around the Daffodil foliage.  When I cut the foliage back the weeds start in the thin mulch around the bulbs so after I pulled all of them I went ahead and dumped some mulch on those thin spots.  That way the weeds won't come back this season.

I walk along this bed every day and it is easily visible from the house windows so having a fresh edge and nice mulch makes a big impact.

Here are some more pictures of bright spots in the garden.

Echinacea Cantaloupe 

Hosta

Cardinal Flower

Profusion Apricot Zinnia

Licorice Plant, Sweetunia Black Satin and Rediculous Coleus

Some of my tall, decorative Dahlias are ready to bloom which is about two weeks earlier than usual.

Bloomquist Gordon Dahlia

**FOOTNOTE:  Today I tackled edging the area I call "The Warf".  We have a few edges in our landscape that are two inch washed stone against grass.  These require edging every three to five years which is a lot better than shredded bark mulch which must be edged at least every year and some, twice a year. For the first couple of years you can neaten it up with a string trimmer, or just pull the quack grass and white clover away, but every once in awhile it needs a reset.  This was on my agenda but my husband pitched in because cutting edges along stone can be a beast.  It looks nice when you are done though.  The sod pulled up enough stone that we had to refresh that a bit.

And then since everything was done on either side, I cut the edge along the flagstone.

You can see the mud line along the stones where the grass had encroached.

Whew!

Beans, Peas, Tomatoes

 Today I uncovered the second planting of pole beans and installed the trellis that they climb.  This stackable, expandable "pea fence" from Gardeners is a pain in the neck to set up but it works great.

I used to grow Wando peas on it because those crazy peas would just keep on growing until they outgrew the five foot fence and I was using a step ladder to harvest them.  I used to make bean teepees out of bamboo or conduit until I found that the bean plants would much rather climb this pea trellis

I am pretty sure I have confirmed that the culprit that was eating the bean leaves just as soon as they developed was the little brown locusts.  They are shy and elusive, but some of them were sitting on top of the row cover wishing they were inside destroying my crop before it grew.  They will be happy to eat the leaves now that they are uncovered, but the plants will outgrow the damage.  It is the beginning stage when all that is available to eat is the little growth tip that the bean plants are most vulnerable. I tried to get a good photo but they are classic "no-see-ums"

Anyway, the bean plants are doing well now and they will soon begin to climb up the wire fence.

I am pretty happy with my Durango Marigolds that I seeded indoors the first of May.  I have been growing this mix for years to fill in spots around the garden.  I dislike the Tangerine color of all  Marigolds so much (and they seem to be most prolific) that I buy the color sorted seed so that I only get the Yellow, Red and Bolero  colors.

Durango Bolero

I am counting the days until my Penelope Peas are ready to start harvesting.  I have sampled a few but they are not quite big enough to make a good harvest yet.  I planted four thick rows because I need to restock my seed inventory.  I have been saving my own pea seeds for five seasons now.

They are heavily loaded with pods.

The Tomatoes are also setting fruit.

My Orange Hat Micro Tomatoes are just turning,

I replated the Sweet Potatoes after the Racoon destroyed them.  One of the missing plants has reappeared.  See that little guy?  It really wants to live,

My Strawberries are still producing.  I have enough batches of freezer jam put away to last the year, and a few berries just in the freezer for miscellaneous uses.  These are for snacking.  They are so sweet!

It seems that I spend as much time and money (and brain power) in defeating the deer as any other thing in the garden.  The deer have been coming through, trimming the lower leaves off of the apple tree and then cutting through the Dahlia bed.  Hey! You don't need to be in there!

I drove some conduit in the corners and clipped some bird netting in a band around the Dahlia bed.  I didn't unroll it completely because all I need is a barrier to divert them around the bed and I am tired of trying to fold that stuff up after I use it.

While I was at it I expanded and re-netted the net room around the pear tree which has to stay on all year around until the pear tree improves in shape.  It is already filling out on the lower branches, but some of the branches were trying to push through the net and the deer nipped those off.  The shape is already beginning to improve.

And lastly the Triple Crown Blackberries that I planted last fall are blooming.  These only bloom on old wood, so only the two stems that each plant had on them last year when they arrived could produce berries this year.  I'll take it!

A Plan Comes Together

Here is my successful planting plan along the brick walk between the two Dahlia beds.  Last year I tried to do this and it didn't turn out the way I had hoped.  To the left are all of the Dahlias that are in the copper, bronze, peach color family and I seeded and grew out the white Marigolds and Apricot Profusion Zinnias to border them.  On the right is the Dahlia bed with the pink, burgundy, purple color scheme.  I chose the Double Hot Cherry Profusion Zinnias to alternate with the white Marigolds.  Today is the first day when enough color is showing on both sides for me to see my vision.

It will still be another five or six weeks before the Dahlias begin to show their color.  I can't wait!

Cool Weather

 This growing season has been a challenge because of cool weather, especially at night.  Today's forecast high is 59F (15C) and that will be brief.  Tonight's low will be 48F (9C) and there are several things in the garden now that do NOT like to be velow 55F.   It is very overcast.  We got a wonderful drenching rain yesterday evening which was much appreciated, and now the rest of the week will be cool but mostly sunny.  

I still have my sweet potato vines covered because of the night time temperatures.  The first batch planted in May, gave it up pretty quickly.  I didn't cover those because I was being stubborn.  Their leaves dropped off pretty quick, despite being hardened to the sun, but the stems remained green and I thought maybe they were rooting in under the soil.  But then one night a racoon climbed the fence and rummaged through the entire grow bag.  I only found two of the five stems and they were not so good looking.  After that the electric fence went on.  I replanted (always save backups!) and covered them and they are doing well.

Looking a little pale and shivery this morning, but putting out new leaves.

Another do over was the sweet corn.  I had great germination from the replant so I must have gotten the seeds too deep the first time.  I planted the second batch with a marked dibber so I got them exactly 1.5" deep.

Third replant of the day:  the grape vine.  My Dad told me that he tried growing grapes and they "died back then came back up and the grapes were awful".  Yup, his must have come up from root stock also.  This one is safely growing above the graft.

My first Dahlia bloom of the season.  This is a border height (2 foot) Dahlia which reach mature height and bloom much earlier.  I need more of these for annuals.  A few years ago I planted Pablo in front of the house but all of the tubers had leafy gall so I tossed them.  I had planted Geraniums in that area several years in a row so the leafy gall was probably in that soil.  Next year I'll try Pablo again in a different area.  Border Dahlias are a pretty efficient way of getting annual color and not spending a fortune year after year.

Border Dahlia Art Deco

Marigold Cuttings

 Late last summer when I took the Coleus Cuttings, I tried a few Marigold cuttings as an experiment.  I didn't grow them on, I just learned how to get them rooted and stored the info away.  This year, I took cuttings from the Marigolds I was not planting front and center.  It benefitted the plants, causing them to branch out more, and it gave me some extra plants.  I took a dozen, and treated them pretty harshly. Had I brought them indoors under grow lights, they would probably have all done well, but I just put them under a dome and stuck them in the cold frame.  

Out of the twelve, I got five good plants all from the Star Spangled variety, and none from the Vanilla Cream.  

When they began to show roots at the drain holes of the cells, about two weeks, I potted them up into 3.5" pots and gave them another week to get settled.

They were quite happy, even beginning to bloom.

That's a nice, compact, free plant and it didn't take up any space under the grow lights.

Now that I've begun cutting back the foliage from the Daffodils, there are a lot of areas that could use a little color.  This edge beside the apple tree is one where I have often thought I could use some annuals.

Besides the Marigold cuttings, I alternated some extra Binky Dahlias that I also had going in pots.  The Dahlia plants will be about the same size as the Marigolds.  I'll let you know how they turn out.... if the deer don't eat them.  That is a path the deer use several times a week.

Binky

Early June Update

Just some snapshots to record progress this year.  The peas look lush and full and the leaf lettuce at their feet has filled in well.

Pea Plantings 1 and 2

Pea Plantings 3 and 4 as well as lettuce

The first planting from April 1st is finally blooming.

The cole crops look good.

A couple of the broccolis and cabbages are forming heads.

Tomatoes, Onions, Basil

Pole Beans

I have a tray of Durango Marigolds ready to plant beside the pole beans now that I am done covering them.  They are hardened off and are going to have to deal with hot weather this week as a transition.

Durango Marigolds

I planted out the cucumbers that were ready.  Two picklers and two slicers.  The later sown plants will be ready on a few days.

It is amazing how fast things pick up when given room to grow.  The zucchini plants have tripled in size in three days.

The direct sown cantaloupes are sluggish, but now they have a row on sunflowers down the middle to set a good example.  Because the sunflowers were a little leggy I gave them some wind deflection.

The Vanilla Cream Marigolds and Apricot Profusion Zinnias are beginning to show some nice color along the Dahlia bed.  All of the Dahlias are up although I did have to take one out and put it in a pot in the cold frame to get it going.  It was a Bloomquist Jean which did awesome the first year but lagged way behind and never flowered last year.  I will have to remember to give it a head start next year.

After I get the rest of the Cucumbers and the Durango Marigolds transplanted, everything will be in the ground and I will be in the Weed Water and Wait stage.