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| Nothing sets up fall ordering like the fading of the spring, hardy bulbs. |
The rain began dripping down yesterday as I went out to empty some rainwater storage. Do not laugh (followed by even more laughter). I put rainwater on the new Joe Pyes because so little rain was coming down. I also did an audit. One was missing entirely - not crushed, not chewed, just gone. Rabbits? Birds? Sassy? The garden police are divided, which means, I do not know. That is a price we pay when planting.
Norma Boeckler said the deer got her Little Joe Pye plants, and Alicia said the deer eat everything outside, especially the deer-proof ones.
The gardening crew told me the flowers and bulbs I shared were growing. They looked for some of the oriental lilies they planted in our yard, and were pleased to see the stalks up and leafed out. We compare notes on roses, lilies, whatever is shared.
I told them, "This year - estate planting!" I figure daffodils are the best candidates for a large bag of them planted all over the front yard. For those with front yards in grass, daffodils can be planted in the lawn, bloom and fade before the first lawn-mowing.
Daffodils do not taste good to critters but they are great in the yard and in the vases.
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| Grape Hyacinths come in varieties of blue, white, and mixed colors. |
Tiny bulbs like grape hyacinths (neither grapey nor hyacinthy) are very inexpensive in small or estate orders. They can be placed in groups or planted near the daffodils as markers. They seem to last for many years, unlike some other tulips.
Roses and Roots
Easy Does It bloomed before the wild roses, and now the wild roses are competing with dark red and bright red blooms. I was eager to dig up all the wild roses, but they have blended into a wall of Mountain Mint and Spirea bushes, both having grown beyond belief or foresight.Crepe Myrtles grow rather slowly.
So much has happened quickly that I have to catch up with pruning the non-glamorous plants. Myrtles still have seed pods on them. Removing the pods will help the plants bloom this year. I counted one row of them dead, but they began to grow from the ground up again. Another row, along the Gardener fence, has three colors of inter-twined Crepes planted together, so I should get some interesting displays in time.
One farmer group convinced me that deep roots really matter, even when the original plants are removed later. The roots account for 75% of the nutrition added to the soil, so deep roots break up the clay soil and add organic matter without kudos or expense. One way to use - and not be bullied - by a deep rooting plant/weed is to cut it at the base to end its meddling or at least to slow down its above ground growth.
