Yesterday morning, I spent about 3 hours at a gardening center. You know, one of the ones that sits off the road with no major name or anything. Their prices were high on some things, but lower on others. I walked out of there with a trunk AND car full of wonderful items.

When I arrived home, I knew that I had to get everything out of the car so that it wouldn't bake in the heat of the day. I put the items in shade so they wouldn't dry out to quickly. Most of the items were shade anyways.

I started up the weed-eater and went to work. The area just off the driveway that is built up with R-R timbers is a perfect place for a little shady garden. There are a few trees, but mostly just weeds. I had cleared some area earlier for the hosta and caladiums which I had planted. I whacked and whacked and whacked for about 30 minutes. My arms could no longer hold the weed-eater. Next, I cleared what I had whacked down and put into my 'compost pile'. LOL That pile is just getting started. Some of the items I hated to cut because they are wonderful little wild-flowers, almost look like a daisy, but alas they were getting in the way of my 'plan'. LOL what plan?

I planted three more hosta which were on clearance. I planted tons of Astilibe both pink and white. I planted another perennial which grows to about 6 feet tall, but at the moment I cannot remember the name of it. Currently, those are about a foot tall. After planting everything there, I watered deeply. The dogs may be a problem as they were determined to lay by me while I was working. Alas if I don't work there, they don't go there. They will lay for only so long before they go off running.

After that, I weeded the flower bed by the front of the house. There was things growing in there that I had no idea what they were. I had tossed in a few seeds earlier this spring, but think that most of it was choked out by the weeds from years past. The calla lillies that I had planted are doing great and are in bloom. The regular lillies have mostly bloomed. My daylillies are going like gang-busters. The soft pink one was my favorite. I do so hope that it reproduces.

After weeding the bed, I planted some cleome that I bought as they were good plants. I also planted some nicotiana. I had purchased two miniture rose bushes (amost 2' tall) and I planted them. There are a couple of evergreen creeping bushes that have grown out onto the walkway that I'm trying to determine if they should stay or go. They are cutting into my flower area. LOL The vine that flowered that the humming birds so loved is coming back like gangbusters as well. We had cut it down to remove it from the house. It was starting to go under the roof of the garage. The roots of this plant run, and I'm getting this stuff coming up everywhere. I think I'll dig it completely out at some point if I can't get a handle on it.

I planted a rose of sharon to replace one which was dead when we moved in. I had already cut the dead one down and removed the stump yesterday before I planted my 2' little beauty. Guess it liked it's new home, because this morning one of the buds had opened.

There was a small bed on the side of the house where the kitchen and dining room meet. Think of this as a pie shape. There are a couple of shrubs there that don't look right in that location, but I have left them there currently for lack of anywhere else to plant them. The area is lined with monkey grass, but the rest was dirt. I had planted a bunch of tulips there, but alas their time has passed for the year. I had purchased four purple coneflowers and two flats of tall snapdragons. I put the four purple coneflowers and about 3/4's flat of the snapdragons here. Hopefully they'll grow.

After all was planted, I went back and spread 12 cubic feet of mulch on the area. I really should go back and get some more. Hopefully hubby will be able to see the results of my hard work once he returns. I just couldn't continue to cut and drag dead wood yesterday, as I wanted to see something green and alive.

I got a little pissed as well yesterday. My rose bushes were coming into bloom. I had checked on them Thursday and there were half a dozen or so blooms which were ready to spring open. Yesterday on my walk, I noticed that they had been taken. Grrrrrrr! If someone steals my roses, what will they do with a veggie garden? I hope whoever is responsible finds out quickly that they are alergic to them. :) But I think I have a good idea as to who did the dirty deed.

I got a nasty cut on my index finger yesterday which seems to be infected. Guess I didn't clean it out quickly enough. So today, the finger is very sore but doctored up. I can still get my gloves on to work outside. I have already cut down a few of the yearling trees that are starting to take over around the well-head and the electric meter.

My back, shoulders, and the backs of my legs are letting me know that I may have over done it just a tad bit yesterday. We got a terrible storm last night, so things are just to wet and muddy to do much outside work today. Maybe if the sun dries things up a bit, I can get the field mowed. Other than that, I may just spend the day inside doing cleaning. Or sit on my butt and surf the web. LOL

Hopefully in a few years the grounds here will be wonderful and I'll be proud of them. Right now, all I see are long hours of good honest work ahead of me. This kind of work is something that I can see and feel. It makes me feel good. God, I love my weekends!

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2002

Answers

And next week-end you are coming to do my yard :)

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2002

How would you like to stand around taking pictures of me building fence just behind a survey line? hint hint

-- Anonymous, June 09, 2002

Apoc, got tired just reading!!! but bet it'll be beautiful when they start to bloom!..Pictures...of course!

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

Yes, after reading that I want to take a nap! And someone stole your roses! I had that problem in Norfolk and sat at the window until I saw the guy and called the police. He was arrested! You wouldn't have a video camera to put at a window when you're out, would you?

Did I mention that cleomes will self-seed like mad? I have a veritable forest of them! Had to pull up a bunch so they didn't choke out the daylilies. They don't transplant well. If you try, do it early in the morning, water the spot so you can take a good clump of earth with them. If done quickly before they realize what's happening, a good percentage will survive. If you don't want scores-- I mean SCORES!--of volunteers, pull them up before they go to seed.

P.S. About the roses. Have you thought about painting the stems of nice buds with something like jalapeno or, better, habanero pepper juice? All the thief would have to do is rub his eye. . . Or maybe take a leak, lolololol!

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

sounds like fun. sorry about the roses.

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

I wish that I could use my camcorder to record who is sneaking around the back 40 during the daytime. However, I can't see that part from the house and I'm not about to put the camcorder out in the woods to capture pictures of that individual simply because I don't want for the camcorder to get stolen.

I just might have to brew up a mess of pepper spray to spray on everything. Thanks OG! I should have thought about it, but I'm still so sore that even my brain hurts. It will be a while before the next set of buds are ready.

Helen, when would you like for me to take some pictures? I have to work next weekend at work, but hopefully we can work something out. Hubby is gone so I'll be limited to weekends only.

Everything in my 'plan' is coming into shape ever so slowly. Someday, I dream that I'll be able to just walk and view the beauty that is before me. While I admire the land for what it currently is, I also know that for the health of the land I must continue to do the hard work that I'm doing.

Anyone know when it is a good time to transplant iris? I want to take a few of the hundreds out of the woods and put in my new shade garden outside the front door.

A very sore apoc

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

I don't think of iris as being shade tolerant - they'll grow but they won't bloom in shade. Unless you're thinking of a different kind.

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

BrookS,

This spring while I was walking out in the woods, I discovered tons of iris growing and blooming out in the woods. That being said, when they bloomed the leaves weren't on the trees yet. They were the most incredible color of dark purple, almost black. I think these are wild, and if they aren't, they've adapted to their environment.

apoc

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

Thanks for the lovely descriptions, Apoc! I would love to tour your garden. Mine is still under construction, I'm afraid. The bad weather and now the humidity is slowing me down.

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

Meemur,

Right now it really doesn't look like much. The things which I have planted will not be really beautiful for a few years (if my black thumb doesn't kill them first). But when they are wonderful, I'll invite you over so that you can see for yourself. I'll warn you, however, it'll be a while cause I still have so much work to do.

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

apoc, you must let us visit now, so we can appreciate the Before and After. (Otherwise, how will we be able to appreciate how much you have put into it!)

I recall you had quite a series of pictures before you purchased the place. Do the pictures cover all these nooks and crannies? It has been great to pull out my Before pictures when I want a reminder that I have done a thing or two around the homestead.

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

Apoc, thank you for offering to take pictures. The lawyer said we don't have anything to worry about right now.

I have iris that grow very well in full shade, but they bloom before the leaves are out in the spring.

-- Anonymous, June 10, 2002

BrookS,

If I get the time this weekend, I'll try to snap a few pictures but they will be a 'work in progress' type, as I'm not sure that I have pictures of some of the areas that are completely before.

I've got to charge up the digital camera so that I can take them. I know that hubby is wanting to take the camera on his next trip. I do have to work this weekend some, so not exactly sure if I'll have enough time/daylight to get it done. Hopefully everything will go smoothly and I'll be home before lunch. Then again, something always happens which keeps me here on those weekends when I have to come in.

Helen,

Good news from the lawyer. However, I'd keep a very close eye on that guy, cause something seems up. He's a dirty little SOB, that's for sure.

-- Anonymous, June 11, 2002

Ditto on the iris blooming before leaves come out. I seem to remember August as being a good time to divide and conquer, as it were. You also cut the leaves into little fans, leaving about 4 to 6 inches of leaf on the, um, I forget what they're called. Is it rhizomes? The part that goes in the ground anyway!

Apoc, possibly those iris could have survived from a long-ago cabin. They've been in cultivation for several hundred years, I think. Don't they mostly originate in Japan? There are Louisiana varieties too, I believe they're native. And of course Siberian iris. The japanese have a variety of iris that were used to anchor sod roofs. I think they used hens and chickens for the same purpose too. Btw, hens and chickens are very drought resistant. Ditto for achillea (yarrow--love the paprika-like shades) and coreopsis (favorite is "moonbeam"--very delicate and lovely lemon color, not a glaring yellow).

With all that acreage, have you thought about putting in a soaker hose? Saves hours watering which you can put to better use by planting more stuff! Thank goodness for my soakers and amateur sprinkler system--saved me so much sweat these last few hot days.

-- Anonymous, June 14, 2002