 |
| The white and the Sweetheart Caladiums were a bit grassy, so I trimmed them all today with scissors. More photos soon. |
I have been gradually cutting the grassy wisps from the new flowers at the foot of our front porch. Sassy often sits just below us as we talk, drink coffee, and toss her treats. She has dug up a bulb or two, probably by sniffing, and found some Milkbones she neglected. Rain has not been an issue.
One day a memorial was created for Christina. Ranger Bob came by and made an area at the entrance of the porch for her photo from the cemetery, plus some unicorns, and Caladiums.
Christina loved Caladiums and had me buy the little nuggets every year.
I was waiting for a delivery and Sassy wanted to enjoy the cooler evening air, so we went out together. When she was warm, she bulled her way back into the house.
I sat on the concrete driveway and snipped away with ordinary scissors. Electric clippers cut too much too fast. I felt like a barber cleaning up the garden, a few strands at a time.
Weeds do not like to be trimmed. Their advantage is elbowing (or grassing) aside the big plants. When I snip them low, their dried up remains help fertilize and deny regrowth to some extent. Many of my plants have rapid growth, Joe Pye most of all. I had to cut enough Joe Pye to let one rose get some sun and bloom even more. Bee Balm also tried to make another rose disappear underneath its aggressive growth.
Christina found my first eight roses on QVC ($8 each, freight included). She wanted rose fragrance at the door. Later she decreed that the front yard be all roses. Everyone loves Hummingbirds, so they were featured in many plantings - Hostas, Joe Pye, Clethra, and the feeders. Butterfly plants are usually good for Hummingbirds too, and bees love any plant they can mine for food.
I should have Monarch butterflies this year, since some new plants are for breeding Monarchs-alone. The Butterfly Garden (the sunniest part of the property) has two Joe Pye Weeds, at least one Butterfly Weed, Bee Balm, Violets, and I hope a few other plants.
The backyard gardens are multiplying, as long as they are relatively care-free. Team Hagar moved Hostas from the Rose Garden, where they were roasting in the sun, to shady areas. Hostas have four or five areas for growing now. The new Joe Pye Weeds look too tiny, but they will be aggressive and shooting up next year.
My biggest advance this year will be Scarlet Bee Balms, popular for attracting Hummingbirds. I have several places for them to thrive, including next to the porch.
This is all accumulated labor, and well worth it. God's creation is visible everywhere and makes a little work so much worthwhile. I enjoy hearing people ask, "What's that?" and "What is the name of that rose?"
So far, no real damage has appeared from Japanese beetles.
