You bet I'm dying for those clematis, Jodi!

And just look at that dark, rich soil in the bed! I think you're now at the more enjoyable stage of the work, Jodi: planting! Please tell me how the plants will survive snow in winter?

Thanks for sharing with us.

Xuan

I'm watching all the Clematis closely, and I'll harvest the seed pods as soon as they're ready. I should have several types for you, Xuan! I'll have seeds from other perennials, as well... and I have several friends who will be getting some!

Yes, it's much more enjoyable to plant than to rake and pull weeds! But, the prep work must be done before the fun of planting begins! The soil in the garden is fairly rich without having to add anything... that corner has been growing undisturbed as a little forest for over 15 years, and all the dead trees that fell just rotted away into the soil. I was prepared to amend it, but other than a top-dressing of compost, I don't think I'll have to add anything.

Most of the perennials will die back to the ground once a hard frost hits, but their roots will remain alive and dormant under the soil, and they'll begin growing again when the ground warms up in Spring! The sap in the small trees and shrubs will run back toward the roots, and they, too, will be dormant until the soil temperature rises in Spring. Once the sun begins heating the earth again, everything will begin sprouting, pushing up new leaves and branches! It's really an amazing process, when you think about it!

A thick layer of mulch and the cover of snow will help protect everything from the frigid winds and biting cold! As I'm planting everything, I'm also laying down a good 3 inches of wood mulch. That's the darker color that you see in the pictures. The mulch is fairly well rotted, having sat in piles behind the kennel for the past couple of years. It will not only help protect the plants, it will also help make the soil richer as it decomposes.

The tough part is running all the mulch through a large screen made from wire fencing, to remove the sticks and larger pieces! I think the chipper/shredder that ground up the wood was not a very good one! Even though it's a lot of work, it beats having to buy mulch in bags! I can only imagine what it might cost to cover that entire garden with 3 inches of bagged mulch!

I love the bark mulch, it not only keeps the soil moist it also makes the soil look pretty!

Unfortunately, I cannot buy it here as bark mulch is non-existence in 'Nam. Last April, I spotted a dump of pine bark by the road, so I spent three days hauling the bark home to cover my flower and vegetable beds. But I didn't have enough to mulch properly... :-(

I've planned to visit lumber yards to collect the bark myself but never been able to! I don't have a car and going by motobike will take me a lot of time... so it makes me feel lazy! Bad girl!

We don't have winter so literally perennials stay alive all through. However, I have noticed that they don't look as nice as their first season, they will eventually die down and never come back in my weather. So sometime, I trim them to make them put out new growths.

I bet it's very thrilling to see plants come back in Spring, isn't it? I have planted some daffodil bulbs in 2006. They died down after flowering and did come back in 2007. Now I'm waiting for them to come back again this winter.

Oh, thank you for your keeping an eye on the clematis seeds. I have started asking around for people's trips to Vietnam during September/October. I will let you know as soon as I know.

Xuan

People here, who live in the southern States, sometimes will refrigerate their bulbs to give them the dormant period they need. You might try that, keeping in mind how long of a rest each type of bulb requires. You'd have to keep an eye on the temperature, but it could be done. That might help lengthen the life of your bulbs!

Normally, a good layer of mulch is about 3 inches, or more... if I have enough, I try to make the layer thick... but sometimes, I have to spread it out thinner than I'd like.

Spring is my very favorite season! I love watching the world around me come back to life... all the trees and shrubs begin to bud, and the perennials begin to grow... that's when the crocus, muscari, tulips and daffodils begin to bloom! Everything smells fresh and clean, and the sun begins to warm up everything! I love Spring the most!

Fall is nice, too, with the pretty colored leaves on the trees, and there's a certain scent in the air that I find hard to describe... some people begin heating their homes with wood burning stoves, and you can smell the smoke... mums and asters are in bloom. Fall is nice, but it signals winter on the way... and I dislike the cold!

I'm off to work on the corner shade garden some more... today, I'm planting some Hostas, Baptisia, Heuchera, and a few other plants.

When the clematis seed pods are ready to harvest, I'll set them aside, ready to be shipped. Just let me know when you find a "carrier"! LOL! It's my pleasure to do it for you... I'm happy to know that seeds I send are growing and making you happy all the way around the world! :-)

Geeeezzzz, I am enjoying this new pc and high speed internet. Wohooooo!!! And so is Ana and Em by the way for they can play their online games now and won't have to wait for foreeevveerrr for it to download. I had to shooo them away from the pc and remind them to go to bed!

Jodi, that project is lookin good girlfriend! So...when can you come by here in VA and let's do my garden...lol! Oh and please bring your hubby along so he can fix my pc or retrieve my stuff in there. I lost EVERYTHING! Booohoooo!

I on the other hand stopped putting bark mulch on the beds sorrounding my house. Earwigs thrive on them and I had a very bad infestation of them these past years. With the little ones AND the new puppy (digging and chewing) going through mommy's flowers, I have been avoiding spraying fungicides/insecticide/miticides. So far, the weather here has been good to the ammies and I have had no need to spray...yet! The 90s temp. did made the ammies leaves turn a little bit pale/yellowish green. But hey, that's a lot better than seeing red spots. They would green up though after a good drench of rain. I have sprayed at least half lesser than I sprayed last season.

Oh and one more thing I LEARNED this season. VIRUS ALERT!!! You will not believe how much virus infested bulbs are being sold to us here in US. And we have been paying $8-$15 (average per bulb) for GARBAGE!!! I really should start a new thread on this.

Xuan...How are your seedlings doing? Did the old seeds germinate by the way? Inform me too if anybody is going home to Vietnam so I can send you some stuff too.

I'm currently seperating seedlings and potting them up in their own cell packs. They have grown so fast and big after being continously grown under lights last winter. Their bulbs are almost as big as the 2 year olds that I put to rest last winter. Unfortunately, I won't have indoor space for all of them this winter. So they should grow as much as they can now and then they'll be put to rest this coming winter. I have some very interesting crosses this season too.

Thanks, Maria! It's been a lot of hard work, but it will all be worth it next Spring, when everything grows and blooms! If we lived closer, I'd come right over and help you with your projects!

Having a high-speed connection is so nice... we've been fairly lucky to have the highest speed in whatever area we've lived, except for T-1 or T-3 cables... satellite is nice... although, you are a slave to the weather!

Let me ask Larry what he thinks... I know there are ways to retrieve hard drive information, even when it's thought to be lost. Maybe he can suggest an easy way to save your information.

As far as virused bulbs are concerned... I've been fighting mites since I began collecting... but I've got it all under control now. After several treatments with a miticide, and a careful eye on any problems, I think I've got it licked!

Quality control isn't what it used to be... it's all about making that money... and we, the consumers, pay the ultimate price! I suspect a lot of people pitch their bulbs when they're done flowering, so the health doesn't matter. But to us, the collectors, the health of our bulbs is very important!

Maria, you should see the babies and young bulbs I've got growing! They're all doing so well, growing like little weeds! They seem to rest intermittently, and then new leaves will shoot up! Their tiny bulbs are gaining in size!

Maria, Jodi... about 60% the seeds you sent last time via my friend in Denver have sprouted. The seedlings are doing very well but I must admit that my dogs have chewed up some of them behind my back!!! Now I have all the pots of seedling in a cage! I intend to wait for them to grow a bit more before transplant them in the garden.

Maria, how nice of you wanting to share some more of the goodies. Please check your email.

Oh, I forgot to say "Congratulations on the high speed internet connection"! Just love it, don't you :-)

Xuan

I'm so glad you got some germination out of those seeds! I was worried about the long trip they had to make, not to mention the fact that hippi seeds seem to have a short life... as time passes, less of my seeds are germinating for me here. Soon, I think I'll have to pitch the remainder, and wait for the next set of seed pods.

Dogs can't reach my seedlings through the fence, but some type of bug has chomped the leaf tips off the majority of seedlings I have growing outside! I think they'll recover ok... the new leaves are growing in just fine.

Xuan, I've printed your recent email, and I'm keeping an eye on both the seed pods in the garden, and on the calender! I'll keep you informed as to what's happening!