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RD Texas likes 3 comments on a discussion: Veggie Tales >>> March 2024
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annie1992

I just came here to get my "fix" of gardening talk, LOL.


I'm also in Michigan, northwest Michigan. We got 5 inches of snow yesterday, although I do have garlic up it shouldn't bother it much. I planted peppers today, I grow my own plants from seeds and save many of my own seeds, although I do purchase seeds for various hybrids. Plants and seeds finally got expensive enough a few years ago that I just said "enough" and learned to save my own seeds, set up an old bakers rack with some lights, invested in some reusable pots and started planting. Today it was peppers, a mix of sweet and hot. So for hot peppers there are 8 poblanos, 4 Anaheim, 4 Black Hungarian, 4 Biquino, 4 Sugar Rush Peach, 4 balloon peppers, 2 Death Spiral and 2 Dragon's Breath. Sweet peppers are 6 Ajvarski, 4 Big Red, 4 California Wonder, 4 Glow, 4 Zulu, 4 Snackabelle, 4 of a nice red pepper that I don't know the real name of but call "Canastota" because it came from a forum friend who said that's where she got it, LOL. They are warm and happy on mats in my entryway. Next week it'll be tomatoes, I usually plant a dozen Rutgers for canning, then a mix of Barnes Mountain Pink, Big Rainbow, Great White, SunGold, Black Cherry, Pineapple, Golden Jubilee and whatever else suits me at the moment, although I've been trying to limit myself to 36 total, then things like cabbage, brussels sprouts and broccoli. My garden is about an acre without the asparagus jungle, the strawberry patch, my garlic space, the two small raised hoop houses and raspberries and blackberries. Also apple, peach, plum, pear, sweet and sour cherry trees, elderberry bushes and the grape vines!


Annie

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wayne_5 zone 6a Central Indiana

Yesterday I set out a row of onion plants, a row of glads, butterhead lettuce seeds, and ferterlized the strawberries.

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vgkg Z-7 Va

Whew, we dodged freezing temps here by 1 degree the past few nights but the fruit tree blossoms appear to have survived ok. Here's some pics from yesterday...

Pears..........


Figs waking up...


Peas....


Spinach....


Broccoli & Cabbages....


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RD Texas likes 3 comments on a discussion: 25 years of gardening from the beginnings to the decline
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roxanna

2002 - 2003: some close-ups:





A tall (36") platycodon, which has long since died after being beautiful for several years. Cannot find this tall variety any longer, which is a huge disappointment, as the short ones available these days just doesn't cut it for me...


Delphinium hates me -- the only time I managed to have them. Love them, but not s good fit, sadly:


I adore true lilies -- and over the years have grown many. Unfortunately, the critters love their bulbs also. I am limited to growing them in pots only....


Larkspur, lilies, monarda and my mom's original daylilies (she had these for over 40 years: I took and divided some of her original clumps -- have had those for 25 years):


High summer:


The amelanchier trees on the right were part of the original plantings done by the designer , 5 or 6 originally.-- all no longer exist, even tho the conditions here were supposed to be prime for them:









Bonus! Robin babies:


Front yard, near road -- DH's favorite shrub -- mountain laurel -- in gorgeous blooom. These are all over this property. The staddle stone is from England -- I adore it!! The yellow flowers are oneonthera (sp?):


Stunning lilies, no longer with me, dammit, and a pretty astilbe




Small bed by the patio -- it sure doesn't look like this now! The tall purple is a malva, I believe:


Relax on a hammock??? Not likely!


My charming "Dancing Girl", a lead statue I could not resist. Wish I could have the matching "Boy with Panpipes" to put opposite her across the pool, to complete the scene:


High summer again:


The pink shrubs are spirea:


And that is it for this batch. Enjoy the fairly kempt vista -- it won't last, lol.

It's gloomy here today, two days past the spring equinox with light freezing rain, everything coated with about 1/4 inch of ice. I adore the look but am not happy that winter is still rearing its head.

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roxanna

{ pics can be clicked to enlarge if needed}

2004 - 2005 - 2006:

The new deck and Tudor trim on the rear of the house -- so much more interesting. It pleases me greatly!



off topic cat photo -- all over the Rainbow Bridge now:












Garden shed when it was new -- the door is French blue now and in need of repainting. The green cart is the best thing I ever spent money on (I have another one now as well) -- the yellow standard wheelbarrow is DH's, and I refuse to use it! This shot will change a great deal over the years, with the addition of a pink/white crabapple tree, a self-sown crab tree that is a very dark pink, and the enormous river birch (to be seen later), all mature now:


Love this hollyhock -- wish I had it still; I prefer the simple singles:




Walkway to front door with daffs, white violets (I did not plant these, they just came with the place) and a little cherub my mother gave me (he has sadly lost his feet over time, so I shall just tuck him next to a hosta or two. I now call him "Dan", after my brother, who endured a leg amputation two years ago, and more recently the amputation of half of his other foot. =( ...)


Very blurry foxgloves:


The new shed with self-sown meadow of daisies on the slope. Unfortunately the passage of time and the maturity of trees in this area has led to the demise of the meadow, altho the cheerful daisies still pop up in other areas:


Early summer -- and yes, that is me in the background, slaving away; I am still a sit-on-the-ground-directly type of gardener, but it is a lot more difficult to get upright nowadays!!


This was an experiment that worked out fairly well -- floating hard styrofoam florist's rings suspending naked-root impatiens in the pool. I have not repeated this but might again this year. Why not? The big green frog is a UV filter for the water. This pool attracts many real frogs, which is so nice, and delighted my young granddaughter. The real frogs would hop onto those floating flowers, sometimes flipping them over:


This gorgeous clematis is struggling now after so many years. My brown thumb begins to develop... grrr.


Front lawn (when it was actually a lawn) looking towards the road. Bright pink is a fairy rose, still wonderful and much larger. The cages are for blueberry bushes planted by the previous owner -- still producing.








Mixing up my seasons here:


Amelanchier trees in bloom along with the allee of daffs. Notice the flooded vernal swamp out beyond the tree line has inundated the pathway in the back, an ongoing seasonal surety. Cannot get out to that part of my gardens due to this, a mud season that can and has lasted from late winter to the beginning of June. BUT that is one reason why I never have to water any of the gardens back here + bonus (and saves my well)!


Pure white azalea by the front porch. And my fabulous Bacchus!!!


This is completely different now; that white tree is the crab we planted and the multi-trunk tree to the right is the young river birch. I love that tree, but it is now probably 70 feet tall, shading so much of the area now, causing some re-designing of the plantings. Got it to suck up the groundwater -- when it was installed, the hole dug for it had huge underground boulders a couple of feet below the ground, and the water around them was a fast-rushing stream, heading out to the "back forty" in the woods.






River birch when new:


White dicentra I planted by the corner of the front of the house, now defunct (I must get another). The tulip on the left is 'Carmine Parrot', now also defunct and sadly no longer available anywhere -- it was the most gorgeous color...


Edge of swamp behind the house -- standing water visible:


Water, water everywhere...








And a special treat, a visitor who climbed all the way up a full flight of stairs to the deck to serenade us with his singing (love, love, love) . And returns over the years...




And sufficient unto this day are these offerings. Hope it has been enjoyable, and fills you with joy that the seasons still turn as they ought and bring pleasure. Mostly. There is always something to grump about for an aging gardener -- but I these photos have made me anxious to get out there and see what I can do this year!

And, whether you like it or not, I still have more than a dozen year's worth of pics to bombard you with (to end this sentence improperly, lol. Properly it ought to read "with which to bombard you". Hah! . I shall try to condense them going forward.... =)

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roxanna

I hit the submit button too soon... Still 2006:

To the right is the Japanese Maple we planted (reddish leaves) -- I wanted one with great autumn color, but this one does not . It is huge now, another thing I did not realize at the time of purchase, but c'est la vie. You can see the slope from the front lawn to the back gardens:



Ice Follies, a favorite old one:








I adore this plant -- over the years it grew to a full 4-ft diameter and equally high clump, then began shrinking several years ago. Not dead completely.







Below -- notice that gorgeous white dicentra on the left at the house corner hidden in the shadows:


This trollius is amazing -- I bought a quart-size pot in 2006, dropped it at this location (near the swampy area) and completely forgot to actually plant it. And for almost two decades, it has not fussed about its treatment, and has bloomed every year still stuck in its original pot. I am so contrite, but as it doesn't complain, I am appreciative of its fortitude. A few years hence from this fiasco, It managed to create an offspring several feet away, so now (2024) there are two of these beauties:


Epimedium and lady's mantel near the swampy area as well:


No, it isn't a brook, tho I wish it was...


Lunaria, I believe. I like it very much, tho many folk would not:






This was the Year of the Lilies:












The tallest lily in this photo was so weird -- in a future year, it fasciated, subsequent years it normalized. And a few years ago, it topped out at 12 feet! I kid you not, I measured it.:








And some well-loved daylilies:












Tall phlox showing off. I grew up with these in my mother's garden, and have always loved them.. Their tendency to mildew? Not so much, but I live with it, unless I remember to get pro-active with my milk-and-water preventative spray routine (it does work! mostly). Notice how the amelanchier trees have begun to decline -- grrrr:


Now used as a watering station to handle pots on the deck. I like the look of it, but it never worked well as a fountain. Caveat emptor:








And that is what I have for 2006!

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RD Texas likes a comment on a discussion: Friday Night Music (FNM): Day, Daytime, Days of the Week
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petalique

Last week, with the news of an un-billionaire having a financial crunch deadline ”Come Monday,” that Jimmy Buffet song (chloebud’s pick above) popped into my head and hasn’t left.


Great song and no relation to debt or the topical news.

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JoanM

Thats what I love about Sunday



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RD Texas commented on a discussion: Friday/Weekend Quiz
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RD Texas

Generally speaking, people who yawn when someone else does are empathetic. Substance abuse treatment has one of the highest relapse rates of any type of therapy, so alcohol/substances could be an answer.

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shirlpp

Our sexual being.

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yourresidentdj

Listening to gossip

Giving advice

Blowing bubbles with gum

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RD Texas commented on a discussion: Monday's Daily Quiz
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shirlpp

Air


Ears

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RD Texas

Talking

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