Rain rain rain. We needed it also but like everyone else have so much to do outside. I did get raised beds done and some things planted in it. Had the cats break off a pepper and did damage to a tomato but it will survive. I put a net around them but they climbed and made a spot to get in. I don't even have outside cats but they come over to eat and we feed them. Guess that makes them ours. Wish there was a program to at least assist with neutering them.

Went to Silver Dollar City on Sun and froze out.

Work and TV when it is rainy. Haven't gotten too motivated lately for inside work.

We got about an inch of rain too. We watched the tornado warnings in Oklahoma for awhile yesterday evening. It got really windy here but no severe storms.

It's sunny today and not much wind so I sprayed some weeds this morning. I saw a few things that I know I sprayed last time that still look pretty healthy. Stupid mulberry trees for one. Those things are hard to kill. Also some common milkweed that I planted where I shouldn't have. I've dug and sprayed and it still lives. I will have a 10 foot circle of it if I let it go.

I have iris, dianthus, columbine, heuchera, coral honeysuckle, weigela, ninebark, and a couple viburnums blooming now.

Ladycraft - you're asking for it if you put out food for those stray cats. lol You'll be feeding more and more. Wish people wouldn't dump animals. It's so thoughtless.

I know the cats seem to take over. Every cat in the neighborhood visits. One female was left behind when neighbors moved, her new kitten that made it to the house last night. They are somewhat tamed. The neighbor also feeds them. We use to have an outside cat and it didn't make it through winter so hubs has adopt these. I could do without buying food for them!

I need to get another load of compost if the dries it out enough to haul. More like dry enough for me to shovel. Made a new bed and need something to fill it. My babies in milk jugs are getting pretty big and need to be in the ground.

I have foxglove, iris, sweet william, dianthus and columbine blooming. Poppies and couple other things are about ready to pop open. It is so neat to have flowers again.

Ladycraft, I found this link to the Humane Society of Missouri. It looks like they will spay or neuter if the cat is older than 4 months and certain shots are up to date for $19.95. There's a number to call to find one in your area. Good luck, that's a great price.
Nancy

Here is a link that might be useful: Humane Society of Missouri

Not much gardening happening here these rainy days. Weeds are taking over. I need to mow again and then there is garden to be planted...that will come first when the ground dries out some.

Blooming: Iris, peonies (such as they are after flattening rains), sweet william, roses, foxgloves, perennial salvias, hesperis (white and purple), lamiums, gaillardia, an early daylily, clematis, persicaria polymorpha (seems early for it)and a tiny self-seeded reddish cosmos.

My little fragrant iris are still blooming and I have one iris that hasn't bloomed yet at all. It has buds. It was late to bloom last year too. Kind of nice to have one a little later when the others are done.

I found a couple cosmos voluteers that are barely an inch tall. Did you mean that you have one blooming already Glenda? I wish mine were that far along.

I found a couple volunteers in my yard that look like coneflowers. I moved them to my flowerbed so I can see what they are, also a couple other volunteers that look sort of like cleome.

I have a lot of weeds too but I think I'm keeping up better than last year. I've been cussing poke because no matter how soft the ground is, it just breaks off when I try to pull it. A big clump of grass had completely swallowed a penstemon so I just dug up the whole clump and picked it apart. I accidentally divided the penstemon. Hope it survives.

I think those programs go in and out depending on whether funds are available from donations so keep checking. I tried to find a spay/neuter program to encourage my mother to fix her cat a year or so ago and couldn't find anything. For her, it's not the money. She just hates spending a lot of money on pets. She did finally get it fixed though.

I will give them a call. It says March and April but it is worth a try. I called several places around here but didn't think of the Human Society. There is now a new baby that has made its way into the neighborhood. I think there are four that need fixed. Think the cheapest I found was $110 each.

With all the rain it has really taken a tole of the plants. The blooms are nearly on the ground. The poppy that bloomed lasted about a day. I should be thankful we aren't in a flood area. Haven't been able to get much in the ground. Went out yesterday between showers and dumped some top soil out of bags. Now if I can get the compost unloaded I can get that flower bed planted.

I hate it when people leave domestic animals to fend for themselves but what's worse is they don't get turned in and fined for cruelty. Those people will continue dropping off and leaving animals behind if they are not caught and fined. I would give their names to the humane society and the SPCA.

Regarding the cosmos, yes Christie it is blooming. It is right at the ground and about the size of a penny. I have had a few self-seed from the free pack of red-flower seeds that some company sent with my order. It was one of them. I would have to get on my knees in mud to take a picture. I will try when it gets taller.

I mowed yesterday afternoon. The mole runs would bubble up with water! Hope it killed some! It was really too wet but I thought I better get it done. Just have about 20 minutes left to do today.

We had a stray show up a few weeks ago; she lives in the barn....but, of course, we are feeding her. She has gifted us with three kittens! I refuse to touch them.....probably will end up neutering them when the time comes. Blastations!
We had 6 before she came...all neutered. When some poor starting thing shows up we just have to feed them!

How has everyone been? The Ozarks forum has been pretty quiet the last few days. I've been very busy this week and haven't had much of a chance to get on the computer or to work in my yard. I was all caught up with mowing and now I'm not. I'm sure the weeds have been popping up in my flower beds too. I need to get out and pull some up before they get out of control.

Summer is here. We used our air conditioner for the first time yesterday. It seems it jumped to the upper 80's without ever visiting the 70's. That's just not fair. I wasn't ready. lol

I planted Piel de Sapo melons and some cosmos seeds several days ago. I heading out to see if they're coming up.

Please check in. : )

I don't know about the rest of you, but I've been outside hitting it every day. At night I'm just too tired to go to sleep. Anyone have that, too?
Yesterday I trimmed the whole yard and mowed the day before. Also turned the compost bin and had enough for a neighbor to take three buckets and I had at least four. I have a 4-1/2 ft. wide bin and half of it is actively working (I'm adding every day) and the other half is ripening to be used. Turning that is my favorite garden job!
I must cut shrubs today and deadhead roses. Plus fifty million other things. Tomorrow I clean off the screened porch as I believe the oak bloom is now over. Same for patio. My poor house hasn't had much housework done this spring!
I didn't order any plants this year but bought them locally. Almost everything is planted and now I must mulch with the shredded leaves.
It's never-ending, but I really enjoy it. I'll send some photos soon.
Everyone have a nice Sunday
Sunny
P.S. Has anyone noticed how teeny the type is in the message box? Or is it just me?

I have just been mowing and trimming; ground has been way too wet for actual planting or anything else.

I hope to get started today!

I did get my corkscrew vine into its pot and outside and the one purple hyacinth bean vine stuck in the fence row.

I was starting to worry about you Glenda. You don't usually go so long without posting. Don't overdo it in this heat. I bet it will be humid again today.
Helen should be back soon. It's quiet without you Helen.

Sunny - I think there's a way to enlarge the type but I don't know how. They might be able to tell you in the Computer Help forum. The mouse that we used to have had a wheel on it that would easily enlarge type. Our new one doesn't have that and I miss it.

Think we have all been outside. I finally got what seemed like a trillion of plants in. Was out there from 8am-5pm yesterday with a couple heat breaks. Hopefully they will survive the cats. The sq ft garden needs some attention too. Cleaned up a flower bed. The daffodils were beautiful this yr but the leaves were knee high and made the bed look awful. So I decided to move them somewhere other than outside my front door. Got my daughter to take half and still have a HUGE amount to get in the ground. But now I need to figure out what I'm going to put in there. Guess that means another trip to somewhere for more flowers!!! We are getting new windows so will leave part of it empty until that is finished. We have company coming in for Memorial weekend so that will force me to take a brake from yard work. But it won't be a real rest. Love my family but we have to cook and entertain.

Howdy folks, I haven't posted here in a good while. Jeeze, it went from cool and rainy to hot and muggy like a switch was flipped or something. My son and I pulled 4 ancient ewe bushes over the weekend at my wifes insistence and are going to put in a new trellis for climbing roses and clematis, wasn't much fun in the humid heat this weekend.

Rick

To make print larger, just depress ctrl button on lower left of keypad and hit the plus symbol button at top right. You can make it as large as you need. Likewise, hit ctrl and minus to make smaller.

I sure didn't get much done yesterday. I pooped out by 10:30 and didn't go back out in the evening which I should have done. I hate hot weather!

More company coming this weekend so I will try to get some done each day to get caught up.

Cobalt blue - Glad you came back. I have a big evergreen shrub at the front of my house that I'm tired of looking at and would like to get rid of it. I can see why your wife would want flowers instead. It will look nice when you're done.

Ladycraft - I confess I mowed down my daffs at least a
couple weeks ago. I think you're supposed to wait until the tops start to brown but the weeds were growing in mine and it seemed like the easiest solution. My hubby is not a gardener and that was his main reason for wanting to plant daffs "because you can mow them down when they're done".

Wish I could remember what day I planted my Piel de Sapo melons and cosmos seeds. I didn't find anything coming up yesterday and it seems like they should be by now. I planted some Orangeglow melons yesterday morning. I sprouted the seeds in a paper towel first this time though.

Isnt the humidity terrible??
We did have a nice thunderstorm yesterday about 5:30, and cool wind about 40 mph, helped.
Tractor is doing good, so I mowed for about 5 hours in the heat, still have orchard to finish, soon as it dries up.
Speaking of orchards--everything is loaded this year, first year to have Pluots, hope brown rot dont hit. Cherries almost ready to pick. Blueberries in pots are loaded too.
I put out 75 strawberries in raised beds, ones last year didnt make the transplant.
Cobalt Blue, good to see you back, nice to "see" everyone this morning.
Dont get too hot today.

Glenda, thank you thank you thank you!! I'm going to use that tip a LOT!
I think it was Ceresone or Glenda who thinned peaches the other day. I went out and did the same. Hope the squirrels don't get the rest. Thinnings went in compost bin, which (ahem) is up to 110 degrees temp now. Love it!
I miss Helen too. Hope she's having fun.
Sunny

Christie, that is why I keep a daily gardening journal. I jot down everything I do each day (very roughly I might add), I can't believe how much I refer back to it.

I got some work done yesterday. It was cooler and I went out at 6:30 AM too. I retilled the garden. Planted a row of tomatoes and my Prosperosa eggplants; finished cleaning and mulching the potatoes, onions and cabbages. I am using flakes of hay from the cold frame. That is going to free up about 6-8 square feet of space. Then I quit and mowed around the house and front yard for about an hour before the thunderclouds scared me inside. We got some lightening and a fast and furious shower.

Helen, hope you are enjoying the time away.

The closest thing I have to a journal is what I write here on this forum. I should keep one though. Sometimes I look back through old posts to remember the name of a plant or something. This morning I was looking back to find when Japanese Beetles arrived in past years. It should be after the first week of June but I wonder if they'll be earlier this year because of the weather and lack of a late frost. I want to cover my sand cherries but don't have anything to put over them yet.

I just use steno notebooks. I keep one laying right beside the computer and the first thing I do when I sit down is jot down the date, time and weather.

Then gardening I did the day before.
I sometimes do a to do list.
I put a large asterisk by things I may check back on so they will jump out at me.

You would have to mention JJBBB! I see my blackberries are getting a little color. I lost the whole crop last year to those bad bugs. This year we will be putting the traps way to the front of the house to draw them away from the garden and yard. They are the most destructive things.

Last year I was thinking the timing would be about right to wait until after the first hay cutting, then put out beetle bags at the back of our field to attract them away from the yard. It's too tall to drive back there right now but I haven't bought beetle bags yet anyway. If you find a good deal on them, let me know.

It smells so good outside the last couple days. Japanese Honeysuckle is blooming and I think it must waft a looong way. We have a little back in our fencerow that I've sprayed with Roundup twice this spring already so I don't think the smell is coming from that. It must be down the road. Wish someone would come up with a way to make it sterile so we could just enjoy it and not have to worry about it taking over.

I see everyone has been busy doing exactly what I've been doing....gardening. :)

I ordered a bunch of stuff online this spring. I spent this week working on enlarging my sunny shrub/flower bed and incorporating it into a large shade bed under an oak in the corner of the back yard. I'll be putting in some big blue hosta, white astilbes, and sweet woodruff in the shade.

My "Canadian Border Patrol" daylily bloomed yesterday (newly planted this year). It's supposed to be cream with reddish edges and center....instead it's apricot with a reddish center. And too short. Dang.

I can't believe beetle season is upon us already.

Teeandsee - Colors can vary a little bit but your daylily should still have dark edges at least. Sounds like they sent you the wrong thing. That's disappointing. Do you think they would give you a refund? Your shade garden will be pretty. I used to have sweet woodruff that survived for two or three years and then disappeared. I may have let it get too dry.

My first Asiatic lily opened yesterday, a dark red that I got in a trade a few years ago. The same trader sent me two others that have lots of buds. I need to try to get in a visit to Close Gardens to see their lilies/daylilies.

I wanted to post a photo of my hydrangea blooming but I'm having computer trouble. It said I don't have enough available space so I guess I need to delete some stuff. The kids have been recording shows on Mediacenter and that takes up a lot of memory.

Verbena bonariensis has just a few flowers blooming and seedlings coming up thickly. Homestead purple verbena is blooming but much smaller than last year.

I have my mowing caught up again but I need to get out the weedeater and trim around the fence.

It IS my honeysuckle blooming even though I sprayed it with Roundup twice. That stuff is tough! I thought I could at least make it sick so that it wouldn't bloom and reseed everywhere. I need to mix it stronger and try again.

Helen - Are you back yet?

Christie, another opened that has the proper edges so now I'm not sure. I got it at Wickman's so I suppose they'd refund or exchange it since it's still apricot and not cream.....but I'm too lazy to dig it up, lol. The height bothers me more than the color but maybe that will change as it matures. I like daylilies with the flowers at the top of tall stems. I need to visit the daylily forum for info on that.

Good luck with your honeysuckle. I hate that it's so invasive because I'd lovvve to have some in my yard.

I have been in Minnesota for two weeks. I have a jungle to deal with. Even though it is wild I have enjoyed walking around my yard. I have lots of weeds and the grass is high, but the birds are singing like crazy and the honeysuckle is blooming.

Welcome back Helen! Hang in there, you'll get caught up ... well, never COMPLETELY caught up if you're like me. lol There's no such thing. I finally got my yard mowed and now trying to catch up on laundry.