I'm kinda glad summer is about over...

17 years ago

Cuz I'm tired.

It was a stressful summer. This year, the garden has been a constant battle against bugs and disease because of the heat and rain (and a mallow-weed with a root as wide as the county running through my entire yard, spreading rust to the Malva-family plants).

It will be good to clean up the beds, sterilize them, and put them to rest this fall. I need the break and so do they.

I have literal sores on my arms from the mosquitos this year. They were hearty and plentiful (still are, even at a daily high of 65 degrees). A horse died in a nearby town from Triple E just a couple weeks ago. If I could've worn long-sleeves when it was 90 degrees I would have, but that couldn't have been done without my passing out.

I feel like a whiner, but I'm grateful for the change in season this year, to put one tiring summer to rest!

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Comments (4)

laurelin
17 years ago
lblack61,

It was a tough summer in our neck of the woods, too. Car accident, flood, family issues, health issues, garden issues (MILDEW! WOODCHUCKS! GNATS! SLUGS!). I am SO glad it's fall now (well, not officially, but close enough for me). I've started cleaning up the garden for the winter. I've moved a few things, evicted a couple things, and have a couple projects to start (a new raised bed, and mulching everything, since I didn't do it earlier in the summer for health/other reasons). I feel like I'm finally reclaiming the garden after a summer of stress and chaos. Restoring order is therapeutic on its own, and I've got a better idea what I want regarding my design next year. I need to make some notes to remind myself what I want: more late summer color in the front yard (rose/pink and pale yellow - too much purple/blue and white this year), more late summer color in the back yard (critter-resistant annuals to fill among the daylilies). And I need to remember to STAKE/CAGE a few things: the ligularia, the 'Ruby Slippers' lobelia, the peonies, the asters. I need to divide the sedums, too.

I ought to copy this list and post it on the fridge to remind myself!

Thank God it's fall. . . .

Laurel
mamimo
17 years ago
This summer has been relatively calm, compared to spring. Though things are gearing up, probably because I didn't get around to them in summer :) Lets see, I have to clean up old beds, make new beds, finish the rock path we started, harvest the compost, move some unhappy plants, rescue my strawberry and tomato beds from the over enthusiastic marigolds, cage some shrubs -I'm tired of battling the rabbits, probably move some more plants because I changed my mind about the layout.

As Laurel puts it so nicely, these are therapeutic in a way. The real chores are already taken care of, namely overseeding the lawn and getting rid of hornworms from the toms. The latter is taken care of by my older boy who relishes making green goo and making good money out of it (I pay him for each hornworm that he catches).
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lblack61
Original Author
17 years ago
I'm so glad I'm not alone...
As we speak, there is torrential rain (brought on by the beloved Lake Ontario) and accompanying thunderstorms which brings my 72 lb dog to lie under the desk on my feet (can't get much else done but type like that).

Ditto on the mildew Laurel. It is wetter than last summer was dry. Tomatoes, Bee Balm, Lilacs, etc. Can't do much to care for anything because it keeps raining whenever I can get outside.

I still have Marigolds, Summer Poinsetta, Petunias (always Petunias...lol) blooming. Cosmos, which was a reseeder from last year, is proving why I didn't pull up their volunteers. They are delightful to look at as they dance among the Sunflowers that are still hanging on, holding their own. I have California Poppies reblooming (glad I trimmed them a month ago) and the Stocks "Imperial Giants" are turning into a "must-have" for next year...they are STILL blooming...straggly (due to the way I deadheaded them), but blooming.
Dahlias, Zinnias, and Rudbeckia are still giving me vase worthy arrangements, reminding me of why I grow them.

And Laurel, you're right, it will be very therapuetic to put the beds to sleep for the winter. I think I like the snow a bit more, knowing what it does for the ground and the plants. (And DH bought us snow shoes which we never got to use last winter...maybe this year...?)

Blessings to all :-)

I'm kinda glad summer is about over...

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laurelin

mamimo

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I'm kinda glad summer is about over...

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laurelin

mamimo

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lblack61Original Author

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