In My Garden

In My Garden – March 2024
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In My Garden – March 2024

Until the last week or so there hasn’t been much going on in the garden. A few sunny days have changed all that. Although spring and our last estimated frost free date (April 16) are still some time away, I see signs of spring. The tree swallows are back, I saw them this morning zipping in and out of their favored bird house. And the hummingbirds are voracious at the feeders. I have seen three types…Anna’s (here year round), Allens, and Rufus. The Rufus birds are particularly aggressive in their attempts to drive the other birds away and defend the feeders.

Although I have a flowers they favor in the garden, most of them have yet to come into bloom. An exception are the wild huckleberries and Manzanita on the property. I did see one flowering salvia, this one is Mole Poblano. It’s a variety which seems to do well here, unless it is cut back it can reach over 6 feet.

Salvia

Salvia

Also in flower this month are Cuphea and the Hellebores.

There is a brownish-purple Flax in the back which had completely overgrown its designated spot and shaded neighboring plants. After watching a video on Youtube we cut (or rather hacked) it back.  Fingers crossed it survives.

The flowering sweet peas have been planted in a half wine barrel. They are one of my favorite flowers, grown every year in memory of my English grandmother.

flowering sweet peas

flowering sweet peas

The edible peas are in the vegetable garden. These are snow peas planted last fall. The snap peas haven’t emerged yet.

Snow peas

Snow peas

The mint is taking off. It’s planted in a container so it doesn’t take over. There will be mint to serve with lamb for Easter.

Mint

Mint

I’ve already been able to cut chives for use in the kitchen.

Chives

Chives

I direct sowed salad greens, (arugula, cress and various mixed varieties) about 10 days ago when we had a break in the rain.

Salad greens, direct sowed

Salad greens, direct sowed

The first starts from a local organic grower have shown up at the market, I couldn’t resist buying several 6 packs. Grocery store greens are no match for those picked fresh from the garden.

Salad greens, spinach and chard

Salad greens, spinach and chard

I had to dig out the roses from the half barrels, remove redwood roots and replant them. This is a yearly chore, otherwise the redwood roots would choke the rose bushes. This one is a new one, Julia Child in honor or my mother who had a cooking school and studied with her.

New Rosebush - Julia Child

New Rosebush – Julia Child

We have a few days of a break in the rain, 47 inches so far this season. More is predicted next weekend. So, I am going to take advantage of the sun and get out there.

What’s happening in your own garden?

 

In My Garden – January 2024
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In My Garden – January 2024

I am still getting used to writing 2024, it doesn’t seem real that another year has passed. Looking at our current political scene, this one fills me with potential dread. My garden is my sanctuary.

Unfortunately, January is not particularly cheerful in the garden. There are, though, some blooms to share with you.

First Azalea to Bloom

First Azalea to Bloom

This one looks like a little rose. When we built the addition to the house it was moved and it is thriving.

Heath

Heath

Another pink bloom, a heath. Both heaths and heathers do very well in our climate.

The Hellebores are starting to bloom, they are one of my favorite flowers. These days there are so many different varieties and colors.

The Cupeas bloom almost 12 months of the year. They are a big favorite of the hummingbirds.

The flowering current next to the garage is full of buds. Signs of spring.

Flowering Current

Flowering Currant

In the vegetable garden, the fava beans are quite tall. This afternoon I cut them down and dug them into the soil. It’s the same bed where I will plant zucchini this summer.

Fava Beans

Fava Beans

Parsley

Parsley

The parsley plant has enjoyed the proximity to the favas.

Chives

Chives

The chives are starting to burst. They were transplanted from another site last summer and seem to have survived.

On a clear but cloudy day this past weekend, I was able to plant sweet pea flowers in a half wine barrel.

Sweet Pea Flowers

Sweet Pea Flowers

Most of the garden looks a bid sad and sodden from the rain though.

We haven’t experienced the same extent of winter storm damage as many parts of the U.S. At least not yet. But the rains have washed out the road to Laguna Point in MacKerricher State Park which is just down the road from us.

Lake Cleone is to the left of the road, there is (or rather was) a culvert from the lake out to the beach. You can see some of the pipe under the remainder of the road.

I think the rest of the road will go when this next storms hit tomorrow and Friday. It’s already dangerously undercut.

Quinn and I took a walk to check out the damage.

In My Garden – April 2023
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In My Garden – April 2023

I am not sure where to start…there is so much going on in the garden. While we were away for almost four weeks, spring sprung.

The tulips are up with their cheerful blossoms.

 

There are wildflowers as well, some volunteers and some planted.

Forget-me-nots
Trillium
Trillium
Baby Blue Eyes

The sweet peas in a half wine barrel are starting to twine up their supports. I plant them each year in memory of my English grandmother. She had a long row of them along a trellis in her garden in Teddington. She put a sweet-smelling vase full of them next to my bed whenever I visited. It’s one of my favorite memories of her.

Sweet peas

Sweet peas

I don’t expect blooms until late May or June.

This is Silene,  I planted them last year after seeing them at the Botanical Gardens. I love their pink flowers and they bloom continuously for several months.

Silene dioica

Silene dioica

Much to the pleasure of the hummingbirds, the salvia is finally blooming.

But the rhododendrons are not blooming. It’s been an unusually cold winter, but in the past, at least one has been blooming by now. I hope to have some pictures to share next month.

One of my favorite flowers is the hellebores. They don’t seem to be bothered by redwood roots, bugs, or drought. The clumps get bigger and more glorious every year. Even better, they bloom in partial shade in winter and early spring, a time when their blooms are especially appreciated. I only regret that their flowers are downward facing.

 

The kale and arugula in the vegetable garden went to seed during our long absence. The good news is that the native bumble bees love the flowers.

Gone to seed

Gone to seed

I did plant a few lettuce starts this past weekend in one bed. I am delaying planting more until we have completed a total revamp of the raised beds.

I am tired of digging the redwood roots out of the raised beds. Additionally, any remaining rootlets make the soil acidic, not good for vegetables. We intend to raise the beds at least a foot off the ground and replace the soil. It’s a job that will have to wait until we have the time, or rather my husband has the time as he takes care of any hardscaping. We have a bunch of cinder blocks that were under the old hot tub, and we will also have a lot of lumber left over from the replacement of the deck.

This brings me to the big news from the garden. We finally started the project of replacing our old fifty-year-old deck. We spent Easter weekend clearing it off and removing plants from around the perimeter. Here are some ‘before’ pictures. Since Covid we have spent a lot more time entertaining outside, making that space very valuable. As it goes almost three-quarters of the way around the house, it dramatically expands our living space.

Front door deck, side.
Front deck
Deck off the kitchen

The back patio is piled with deck furniture.

The old hot tub was at the end of the deck off the kitchen. Eventually, we will purchase a new one that will go on top of the deck at the end.

You can see the circle on the left of the deck picture below where the lemon tree was located in a half barrel. It hasn’t been doing very well and I intend to plant it into the ground once I know where the final location of the deck. Hopefully it will do better there. The front and back decks will be connected with a new walkway.

lemon tree in its temporary location

lemon tree in its temporary location

When we moved it we discovered that the barrel containing the lemon tree was rotting. It was time to do something.

Workers removing the dock, Shanna enjoys the company

Workers removing the dock, Shanna enjoys the company

Since the workers bring their dog with them, ours have a new playmate.

Quinn, Shanna and friend

That’s all for now. Stay tuned for updates from the garden and deck. And I love comments of all sorts and will reply,  I love reading them.

I hope you are all well and enjoying your spring or fall weather. The shoulder seasons are my very favorite times of year.

 

In My Garden – March 2023
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In My Garden – March 2023

I have to admit that I haven’t been in my garden much this past month. It’s been too cold and wet. I did get around to fertilizing the rhododendrons on Valentine’s Day, just before the rain started again. The ideal days for fertilizing them are easy to remember, Valentine’s Day and Father’s Day. That’s before they bloom and afterward.

It’s been an unusually cold winter with a lot of rain, hail, frost, and snow (the last time it snowed was in 1989). We can’t complain too much about the rain as we certainly need it…the cold I will complain about.

Frost

Frost

The dogs slip and slide on the deck on their way to do their morning potty.

As I go out between storms to check the garden, I see a lot of sad (read dead?) looking plants. We are zoned 9B and snow is not a happy place for many of them. April 15th is our last frost-free (fingers crossed) day. I will wait to cut anything back until then.

And then there was snow…

Shanna is fascinated by all the strange weather outside, just as long as she is snug and warm inside. She’s allowed on the bed during the day but sleeps in her crate at night.

Shanna

Shanna

We are having problems with our well, it seems to be contaminated with the salt that was used to clean the filter. So we are drinking bottled water at the moment. We’ve had to purge it several times, which breaks my heart as water is precious. We will meet with the well and pump folks in a few weeks to seek a solution but may need a home desalination system in addition to the filter. It’s been depressing and a worry.

The bulbs are my happy place.

We leave for a three-week trip to New Zealand in a week. This trip was supposed to happen in March of 2020 and is long delayed. Three year’s ago the Prime Minister of New Zealand close their borders 3 days before our flight to New Zealand.

The trip includes a two-week hiking tour of the south island organized by New Zealand Trails. I promise to take pictures and give you all an account of the trip when we return.

Meanwhile, thank you for visiting, and I love your comments.

 

In My Garden – April 2022
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In My Garden – April 2022

Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds at the feeder

In my garden I have birds, lots of birds including hummingbirds which are my favorites. I’ve seen (and heard) Rufous, Annas, and Allens. Earlier in the season they fought each other at the feeder, now they seem more generous and ready to share. These could be the young ones who are not breeding yet. Sometimes there are a cloud of them chirping around the two feeders outside our dining area windows. I am filling them almost every day. The Annas are here all year, the others disappear in early winter. There is a big bottlebrush nearby and they love the red flowers when it is in bloom. I think many of the nests are in that huge shrub although I haven’t been able to find any.

Bottlebrush

Bottlebrush

One of the birdhouses we erected at the end of last month has been rented, at least I have seen sparrows darting in and out. Fingers crossed they will raise a family there.

We have had some much needed rain, 4 inches so far this month with another 4 anticipated in the next few days. It’s been a strange season with almost all of our rain happening at the beginning and the end of our usual rainy season. It’s still not enough to end the drought of the past few years.

The lettuce in the first bed I planted is ready for harvest. We have company coming for the weekend so a salad fresh from the garden will be a treat.

There is a patch of arugula at the end of this bed and radishes planted between the rows. The second raised bed has just been planted, the arugula is just starting to pop up in that one.

You may wonder, why the mesh over the lettuce? Well, remember pig pen Shanna the puppy? She loves to dig (as do the chipmunks) and freshly dug soil is the best ever. My inattention has resulted in several disasters over the past few weeks. Now I plan for the onslaught.

I’ve let the mustard and parsley go to seed in another bed to attract pollinators.

Nasturtiums are a wonderful addition to a salad and they are blooming with the spring rain.

Nasturtiums

Nasturtiums

These have come up in one of my half barrels of dwarf Meyer lemon trees. The nasturtiums, in truth, are looking healthier than the tree. It’s only borderline weather for lemon trees but I love having the lemons available when I want a tablespoon of juice to add to a dish.

Ditto the fresh chives.

Chives

Chives

The roses are showing some buds and I have noticed the appearance of aphids. Where are the lady bugs? I don’t use any pesticides with the exception of Sluggo (you would too if you saw the size of our slugs and the damage they can do in a single night). So I washed them off with a strong spray from the hose.

Aphids!

Aphids!

It appears that the Just Joey rose is going to be the first to bloom. It’s one of my favorites.

Just Joey

Just Joey

A friend on the board at the Mendocino County Botanical Gardens (MCBG) gifted me this beautiful Aeonium, I just popped it in to an existing pot of succulents where it looks beautiful. I didn’t appreciate succulents until fairly recently. They come in an amazing variety, are low maintenance and drought tolerant. Facts that are increasingly valuable these days.

The first azaleas and rhododendrons are blooming. They seem to be late this year, it’s been cold.

Azalea

Azalea

Rhododendron

Rhododendron

The rhododendron is one of the new ones and is still small, that didn’t stop it from putting out those amazing lavender/pink blooms.

The MCBG just started a ‘nature journaling club’ that meets once a month. Although not an artist I enjoy the meditative quality of looking closely at nature. Here’s my first effort:

If you live in the area, please consider joining us. You will find information on the MCBG website.

That’s my summary this month. Happy gardening everyone. How is your garden doing? Please consider commenting and giving me an update. I’d love to hear from you.