gb - Dodecatheon = Shooting Stars. I have the common pink ones but couldn't think of the botanical name :-) I like those white ones better - now I need to find a source of them....

Michelle - I hope the medical issue wasn't too serious. You were having some sort of gut issue I think you said at one point? Did they figure out what it was?

We had another inch and a bit of rain overnight. We're now up to 5.5" this month! The snail population has exploded. More rain in the forecast for the next few days and then the forecast is for HOT!

Woody, your source for them is here. ;)

Good Morning all. Another wet and cool one here, with several more in the forecast. On the up side, TCS has to build a medieval castle as a project so he will have something to do all week end while his buddies are at Scout camp, and I will not have to water anything....

Like Woody's forecast, next week is supposed to be hot.

Woody, I envy you the Japanese Maple. Not easy to keep them alive here. The shot of the nursery hoophouse made me drool *LOL*

Bug, you have such colour and blossoms! Not really very colourful here but it is probably due to my poor choice of plants. You don't have those rotten red lily beetles at your place? It's a good thing you labelled the elephant video - I was almost teary watching it and I might not have lasted to the end. Amazing.

Michelle, I hope your medical issues are not severe enough to keep you out of the garden on the few nice days we get.

Things must be bad for those who farm - I think of you often, Brenda. They can't even get on the fields here much. At least you have the reno to keep you occupied. Sounds super!

I love Deanne's bromeliads. I am still toying with succulents in my garden window after seeing such nice ones at IU 6.

Kathy don't you have a garden window also? I seem to remember that from a photo some time. I too have lost all of my Euphorbia and also my Jack Frost. The only euphorbia I have managed to keep is a houseplant, Milii, Crown of Thorns. It is outdoors as we speak, but not too happy with the rain.

Yesterday I was moving a small pile of bricks, holding one in my left hand and balancing three with my right. Of course the three didn't stay balanced and I instinctively tried to catch them with the left, resulting in a mashed thumb. Not pretty. Well, yes, it is if you like black, purple, blue and red from nail to knuckle. I will probably lose the nail. Will make the rest of my far less than perfect manicure look good!

I hope you all have a good garden day!

Cheers,

Julie

Ouch! Julie.
Although I'm not black and blue(at least not where I can see anyway). The other day when the tree fell and hit the barn I was backing up to get an overall picture when my pant leg caught on the root of a lying down dead dogwood and I fell hard but landed on soft ground, even ramed my camera lens into the mud. I didn't feel hurt the first day at all but yesterday I had quite a bit of soreness.
Today we had a letter from the IRS about our 2009 taxes. I'm ready for these little dark clouds over me to go away. Both kinds.

It is down right cold here today. I thought it would be a good day to get annuals from the nursery greenhouse, but dang if they didn't have the doors wide open and it was chilly in there too. I stopped at loewes too and couldn't even stand to look there as the wind was whipping through there so bad. I did get a few things at the nursery but they don't have the Senorita Rosalita cleomes that I wanted. She said she has ordered them three times and they have'nt come in so she doesn't think they will. I so liked those last year.
I got a euphorbia Bonfire and a Japanese forest grass. I hope I can keep the grass alive this time.

Michelle, I hope your medical issues are being addressed and you can get some quality garden time. Show us your new containers please.
I'm afraid the one I planted the other day wil rot with the cold wet weather. We are supposed to get hot this weekend. There was no one at the nurseries today. I bet there will be this weekend if people can even work their dirt.

Woody you are quick to get your stuff planted. Good for you.

Think I will go make potato soup. Need something hot.

Norma

gb - Thanks for the Dodecatheon offer - I'll take you up on that :-) I hope they will fare better that the little blue clematis seedling though - that one seems to have disappeared, although the pink early clematis with dangling bells (I can't remember its name) that we got at Lost Horizons last year is growing like mad and has quite a few flowers! The snails haven't got to it yet:-) I'm sure it's only a matter of time before they much down a few of the new ones. BTW we're thinking of checking out that Whistling Gardens place in Niagara sometime next month. You originally brought that to my attention. Any chance you guys could meet up with us there in June?

Woody, Whistling Gardens sounds like a good idea, but coordination may be tricky in June. Let's work on this by email. In the meantime, I'll pot up a few shooting stars to bring to you.

Any of you familiar with Acanthus 'Whitewater'? I bought one recently and hope to be able to keep it alive indoors over the winter.

The soggy weather continues. I staked lilies today during a dry spell.

Here's a dress I made Ms Ivy.

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Getting very nervous as DS's departure date draws near.
'bug

Here is a link that might be useful: Whitewater

Once again we have raccoons in our laundry room wall. This morning the babies were making a heck of a racket! The guy who deals with this was off hunting (joy..) and will come by with traps this afternoon. Last time it involved carving a large hole in the wall and re-plastering later on. :(

Now about tulips. The Candy Kisses are going through a pink and white phase. I never would have guessed this change...

My current favorites are the Stunning Apricot tulips. Here they are as of yesterday.

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This morning DH cleaned out the eaves (gutters in the US) while I removed about 200 Purple Sensation alliums. There are about a million remaining for me to dig out. Le GRAND sigh! And no matter how many I remove, there are thousands of tiny ones I miss.

After a trip to the dump, I think I'll pick up some vegetables to plant in the garden. This afternoon the weather is supposed to change and begin to get sunny and warm. Tomorrow however, rain and heat! Phoebe hates warm weather, so she's off for a grooming on Tuesday.

Happy weekend !
'bug

gb - cute dress! I'm very happy with the 'Willy' clematis that I got on that clematis shopping expedition with you at Lost Horizons last year. It's clearly going to be a vigorous one. It's so cute at the moment:
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Mine got nibbled by bunnies so it will only be flowering next year....

I bought some top soil this morning and found that they no longer will be selling salvia black & blue at this nursery. Now what? Grrrrrr.
So at least I did find a coleus that I like. I think Deanne mentioned this one long ago. The name is a hoot: Religious Radish!

The sun they promised was a lie...
'bug

Chased inside by rain ! Not unheard of at the end of May, but it does interefere with my plans for the day � I was hoping to continue putting off my indoor chore list, lol. I may have to cave in and haul out the house cleaning supplies.

This morning I headed over the east hill for a visit to Morningsun Herb Farm, it�s a nice little nursery and they always have some odd-ball items I can�t find elsewhere, plus they have a couple of display gardens too. I took some pics and will share when I get them on the computer. I found S. Wendys Wish, which I lose every winter for reasons that are still mysterious, it is hardy in my zone. It must be a rot thing.

�bug that A. �Whitewater� is gorgeous ! I always said I�d never be caught dead with an Acanthus (a vacant lot plant of my LA childhood) but I would buy this one in a minute !

Alright, looks like this squall is here to stay for awhile so I better do something useful �

Waves

Kathy in Napa

Morning all, busy weekend here, I�m trying to get the majority of containers planted and am having some success but there is just so much left to do. The weather isn't helping out either. It's been in the 90's for the last three days and today will be very hot again. The temp was 70 when I got up at 5:45AM! That doesn't bode well for a comfortable day. It seems that lovely gardening weather is a rare occurrence this year and it's pretty discouraging to see the tender things like bearded iris fry up in the heat. And so it goes.

Woody, my Japanese wisteria is blooming but only had a smattering of flowers on it compared to last year. It seems to bloom heavily every other year for me. I�m thinking I should have deadheaded it. It did produce a lot of pods and seed. I'll make sure to take care of that this year. My Clematis Vyvyan Pennell is wilting. Grrrrr. it had about ten huge buds on it and they are all dying off. I'm so bummed. I have a feeling it is something the electric guy did. He replaced the electric meter last week and had to mess about with the trellis a bit. Might have broken the canes. And so it goes.LOL So how is your Viv doing this year. Would love to see pics of that beauty.

Bug those tulips are so lovely! the soft peach and pink colors really appeal to me. I'd bought a box of 50 tulips that were supposed to be pink with a white edge and they turned out to be red, red, red they are all dug out and in the compost ~~~ Bummer about not being able to get S. Black and Blue. Have you ever dug it and stored in the basement? Mine do really well that way. Also,I've had them come back in the ground. ~~ Love the little dress, so cute.

Norma, so sorry about the tax thing. What a bummer. That happened to us with state taxes a few years ago and what a drag to deal with something you thought was done and paid for. ~~ So how is your camera after that fall? Hope you didn't damage it and hope you are over your soreness, It's easy to have mishaps when you have a camera in hand. Fortunately I've never damaged myself or my camera.

Julie, hope your fingers are healing up. I'm forever doing stuff like that. I don't pay enough attention when I'm gardening and have dropped the compost fork on my foot, cut a bit of my thumb off with the pruners etc. I guess I'm not real handy with sharp objects.

OK I've got to get outside and get to work before the day heats up, have a great day.
Deanne

Last evening DH and I added soil to the vegetable garden and planted kale, tomatoes, basil & red peppers. Then the skies opened up and we had a huge thunderstorm. It was actually very "satisfying" with bright lights and loud bangs! But this morning it is headed to the mid 80s with sun and 96% humidity. I'll get to planting the eggplants, zinnias and foxgloves I grew from seed at another time.

After our meeting yesterday morning, we stopped at a nursery where I found the Echinacea I was looking for, Fatal Attraction. (Oh those names...) At another nursery I picked up some lovely yellow aquilegias for the "yellow & blue" garden. Still no luck finding S. black & blue though.

Off to start the day! Hope your week begins well!

After last night's thunderstorm, we're now up to 7.3" of rain for May - more than 3x our usual accumulation! It normally takes until mid July to accumulate that much rain since the begining of May. So if June turns out to be dry, there should be enough moisture in the soil to get most things through the month...

Deanne - the snail explosion here resulted in Vyv being knocked back to a foot or so. I had high hopes of a nice display most of the way up the lattice wall on the front porch. I'm now back to about 6 or so buds, so no big display here this year either. We went to RBG yesterday to inspect their Japanese wisterias to see if I could figure out what the early stage of the flowerbuds look like on the Japanese ones. Theirs are already in bloom but from what I could tell, the flowerbuds on the Japanese type are quite different in where and how they arise than on the Chinese ones. I came home and inspected mine again. I have a (faint) hope that mine may yet produce a flower or two this spring. The Chinese wisteria is really late blooming this year because it has been so cold. It's been a haze of purple the last two days so I'm hopeful it'll finally bloom today since it's sunny and warm here today.

Here's a picture from RBG yesterday. I'd love to have a spot where I could do this:
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Shucks, this weekend sure whipped by fast-and I took off 4 days too. My plans for spending a half day on indoor cleaning pursuits came to naught- I should have known better ! I'm going to have to make a list of stuff to accomplish apres' awfice this week, since I have Marin County Open Days on Sat so I will want to be in the garden on Sunday. At the end of of June I'm going to drive up to Portland to visit BIL�s and from there I plan to do the Bainbridge Island Wa Open Days 'Little and Lewis's garden is on the tour . Must see! Not to mention Heronswood..

I did get lots done in the garden ! The weather has been very mild, occasionally showery, and I was in a turtleneck most of the day today. Not normal for the end of May, but very pleasant for manual labor. I did my bi-annual pruning of Lady Banks , followed by the succulent vacuuming and got 98 percent of the plant purchases in the ground or in pots. I still have an active shopping list though, and my Bluestone order will likely arrive next week sometime as it will be shipped tomorrow.

Woody, I am interested to hear you mention snails; I didn't think they were a factor so far north . They have been dreadful here this year. It's remarkable how much those dudes can eat in one night. I am using the new Cinnamon oil spray daily to reach areas that are difficult for hand-picking. When I pruned away some lower branches on my Rosemary yesterday I could see a dozen of them deep inside the plant , taking a snooze. This was a perfect situation for the spray.

Time to close up shop around this place and get ready to go upstairs and read.

Later my friends !

Kathy in Napa

Ouch is right. I hope you have voice activated computer. One handed typing is hard, at least for me. My jjob this week is washing walls. Bathroom is half done. Next Richea's office. I'm finding it better to break down the jobs by sections, than by timing. I get a section done, and know where to start up again next day.

I moved a caryopteris that was impinging on the sidewalk, yesterday, so hope it survives. I have to move a new dawn rose next, so have to armor up for that.

I see tons of snails this year. They like the damp weather, it seems. I don't notice much being eaten, though, so I'm not war-pathing against them. If I were, beer is a favourite bait.

Love the tulips and the dress. I wish I had the skill to sew dresses.

Michelle, I hope you get some answers from your tests. It seems like such a long time since you first went to the dr re your symptoms.

Hi to everyone else. I've run out of steam, so will say good night.

Yeona

Greetings from the sweltering Tropics..... it's about 94 degrees right now, with the heat index way way higher... This weekend did go by in a blur - of dripping perspiration, LOL. I thought I'd done to h*** yesterday - the heat index Had to be 100 and it was impossible to do anything outdoors.

Kathy -- I'm so envious you're going on the Bainbridge Island Open Days -- I see that they have one every year - and thought what a great IU trip that would be --to see some of those legendary gardens.... ooo la la ..... I have friends in Portland that I should visit one of these days and jaunt on up from there, LOL.

It does seem like one can only do either indoor or outdoors assignments - I'm no longer any good for multi-tasking combos it seems.

'bug - cant believe you've still got tulips amazing -- the clematis and first of my lilies are in full bloom and losing petals faster than one can count due to all this heat....

I'm starting to think pots full of succulents and agaves are the only things to do for the summer, if this heated start is any indication. Plants (and people and dogs) are keeling over... and yes, I was lugging hoses last nite.

Stella was on a "devil puppy" ripper on Saturday -- she tried to eat every plant she could leap at, run at and onto and behind..., then she drank my coffee out of my cup I'd left on a table while my back was turned, and after that when I was spray panting some pots outside, she decided to roll in the spray as it wafted down to the ground - the result being a semi-white pup who had stone grey ears, eyebrows and side of face.... I had to clip a lot of it out of her.... good thing I decided against any round-up on the pavement - I know she'd have devoured that. I believe she helped with a few transplanted plants too -- making their holes larger so she could roll in the worms that were nearby and the slugs on the walk... o she just adores those.... I'm calling her the Devil Dog.... and then she looks at you from under the grey-highlighted brow, and all you can do is laugh.....

Norma, I hope you get some quick relief re the IRS inquiry - ugh.... no fun that, and our others who are ailing -- Michelle and Woody - sure do hope you guys get to feeling better soon along with diagnoses where you can get some treatment!!

I love that espalier photo, Woody - I've seen these against houses and walls -- surely you could find an open wall somewhere to try that out?

Okay - gotta get back to awfice chores -- I am officially cranky today after dealing with some stupidity re bureaucratic, small-minded accounting and ofc services folks who require forms, and this and that...I'm sure cranky had nothing to do with the hot metro ride or coming back to work, LOL.

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-cindy

Cindy - we need a picture of the Devil Dog! No available space in sun to be able to espalier like that here I'm afraid.

The temperatures were suposed to be in the 32C (~90F) range today but we're definitely 'cooler by the lake' here as it's only 16C (61F). The sun is strong though so it feels wuch warmer if you're in direct sun. Plus the humidity is 83% so that makes it uncomfortable for active work. It's 29C (84F) in Toronto so it's definitely the lake influence that's keeping us cool. We were at a nursery inland yesterday doing a it more plant shopping and it was quite warm there too.

We picked up some paint just now to repaint the shed door. The color has been bugging me ever since it was done last year so I've decided it has to be repainted. Randy rolled his eyes... :-) I got the paint store to print the details of the pigments in each of the colors. The problem with the door color is that it didn't include any green pigment - it was just a combinations of yellow, black, and white. All the rest of the colors were yellow, black, white, and a green pigment.

Back to work today after 7 days off. One would think I got lots done in the garden, but the weather was somewhat rainy or too wet in the garden or Kenzie was here. I feel quite far behind. We also had 92 degrees and wind on Memorial Day. Crazy weather for sure. Today was cooler but windy.

Kenzie and I had lots of fun though. We had a picnic in her garden shed, picked flowers, crafted when it was raining. She painted a gazebo for her fairy garden. I painted a alocasia leaf that I cast last fall. I visited my local farm nursery and found some cool plants. Her prices are great too.

The heat and wind have done in the tulips, daffodils and short irises. Alliums and tall irises are just getting started.

I�m still dealing with medical issues because I�ve been to see several specialists with a bit of wait in between. Basically I have chest pain and shortness of breath, which lead to several heart tests and then on to a pulmonologist to check lung function. Earlier I was on reflux medication. Now they would like to try a stronger one since the first one didn�t do anything. Thanks for the well wishes.

Kathy, I�m terribly jealous of your Bainbridge Island tour and especially Lewis & Little. Do take pictures of the leaf castings. They look fabulous on their website. I tried to make one with similar bright colors and it just appears gaudy LOL

The talk of snails reminds me of the deer damage I�ve seen in my garden. I�ve taken to spraying. I noticed all the tips of the asparagus were gone. Which I thought was odd until I looked in the jar where Kenzie was keeping her 2 toads she caught. I guess she figured they would like asparagus tips.

�bug, the dress for Ivy is adorable. I�m sure she will love it.

Norma, I hope you are feeling better after your fall and the camera is ok.

Julie, ouch! I�ve never lost a nail but it always sounds painful.

Cindy, Stella sounds very entertaining.

Midnight - I'd best end this and get to bed.

Michelle

Ok so it's June, rained all day, wearing a sweater and turtleneck yet again. I'ts looking like I will rain Saturday , my plans for the GC Open Day in Marin county is dashed asunder. This will be my 2nd rained out garden tour of the spring. I think I'm going to hit the SF Botanical Garden this month if the weather co-operates.

No worries Michelle, there will be numerous photos taken at L&L; this is not their original garden by the way, they moved a couple of years ago, and now also have a home in Mexico. I could see the benefits of that considering the miserable weather in the Seattle area.

Cindy, I'm sure we will have conversations re: IU9 wile we are in Buffalo. I would be more than happy to work up an itinerary for a PNW IU. Lol your little devil..

See y'all later..

Kathy in Napa

IU is in Buffalo this year? When? If anyone going to it finds themselves on this side of the border, we're not too far away and usually welcome garden visitors :-)

Good morning all! Talk about screwy weather! I hope you are all o.k. We had three sweltering humid days, but it wasn't raining so I spent Monday working on my front garden, Tuesday on the back, Wednesday a.m. on a disabled neighbour's gardens and p.m. helping a friend prepare her property for a garden tour. Today is is cold, cloudy and really windy. The cover blew off the pool overnight and the leaves from the park litter the water. My green bin was across the driveway this morning and my hanging baskets look miserable. I have not gone out assess any more issues in the garden.

TCS didn't go to sleep until 11:00 p.m. and so was in rare form this morning.

DD stayed here last night. She is having an at-home interview for a new job on Saturday a.m.and works until 11 p.m. on Friday. Her cleaning person quit this morning and her hairdresser is away this week. She too was in rare form this morning.

DH has shingles. I will say no more.

They have now all left for various and sundry locations, leaving me with messy kitchen, a ton of laundry and unmade beds.

I have had three cups of coffee, two pieces of chocolate cake for breakfast, and read the paper. Aaaah, Peace. Life is fun!!

Like most of you, I am never happier than when I am in the garden. It is such a pleasure to know that each day I can "talk" with like-minded friends like you!

I am so looking forward to IU8, Woody. As I live on the same side of the border as you do, I will have to cross into Canada on the long week-end no matter what, so I hope to see your garden!

Michelle, I cracked up at the toads-and-asparagus story! How sweet of Kenzie to want to feed her pets something special! I hope you are feeling better.

DH and I both enjoyed the description of Stella's antics. Ya gotta love dogs. Well, Chelone might take exception to that. Where is she anyway? Busy as heck right now I bet.

Ivy's dress is beautiful, Bug. I sewed a lot for my kids but I can't knit or crochet. You have done such a great job on these little outfits. I hope things have gone well for Adam's travels.

Woody and Kathy, we too have a ton of slugs this year. Not the great big banana slugs,much smaller, but destructive all the same. Red lily beetles too. Those two plus earwigs can really decimate a garden. Someone told me that if you surround your plants with fine copper wire the slugs will get electrocuted as they crawl over. Don't know if this is true, and it isn't too practical if you have alot of plants, but it might be worth looking into for that special specimen.

Going to sign off now and get started on my indoor chores so I can be out tomorrow weather permitting. The wind is so fierce that I fear for the remaining trees in the park. They have still not been able to finish cleaning up the destruction form the last storm as the ground is too soft to get the trucks in.

Makes me think of Brenda.

Cheers,

Julie

Yoo Hoo, anybody there? Sure is quiet on this forum today. Must be good gardening weather!

Cheers,

Julie

Definitely good gardening weather here today. I weeded the front beds; Randy did the first round of pruning of new growth on the Chinese wisteria, weeded the edges of the driveway and prepared the big pots for planting beans. And misc. other stuff.

The wisteria looks better - and darker in color - once the leaves start emerging. The tree peonies are also superb this year.
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This is what the wisteria looks like looking up into it from ground level where I was weeding nearby. The scent is intoxicationg when you spend a fair bit of time in close quarters with it!
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Absolutely gorgeous! I have never seen Wisteria up close and personal while in bloom!

Cheers,

Julie

Things are really popping in the gardens here too. Today my peony Claire de Lune is out and looks so nice with the blue Amsonia. My yellow & blue iris is blooming too.

I managed to remove all visible signs of the allium 'purple sensation". It was just the perfect day for gardening with cool temperatures, sun and a breeze to keep bugs away. I'm sure new alliums will return next year, but it was a good start. Next on the agenda is removal of the raspberries. I hope DH will help with that horrible task...

There's so much work to do out there, especially now that my garden friends are otherwise occupied. He is in the hospital now too. UGH. Wish I could find someone I trust to help out! I'd pay at this point!

Lots of stressful things going on here...among them the death of my BIL. No surprise, he was 97, but it is a big deal anyway.

I hope I can tidy up gardens a good deal more tomorrow...and get our mower back from 'the hospital'.

Time to soak my tired bones in the tub.
'bug

Black flies! UGH
Coons in the walls and a hunter shooting them. UGH UGH!

Sun is shining though...

Where has everyone disappeared to?!

Before 9 I was in the garden tying up clematis and baptisia, also staking tomatoes. Then the rain and thunder began. So then we had breakfast.

I grabbed a few shots:
Dictamnus
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Primulas everywhere
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Fancy Iris
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Peony Claire de Lune
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Gotta turn the computer off...

We got another 22mm in the thunderstom this morning. Randy just raked all the paths level again after the last wash-outs - time to do it all over again!

gb - odd that things are further ahead there than here. My dictamus, irises and herbaceous peonies are not open yet, although they should be any day now... I love all the primulas you have. They look good with that Full Moon(?) Japanese Maple.

Grinding busy here, but 'tis the season! And complaining isn't really appropriate in a seasonally dicatated business, now is it? :)

You can now nickname me, "the skimmer". I'm so behind that even if I were inclined to apologize it would only ring hollow. How's that for a neat way to sidestep my own shortcomings??!!

I finally washed the deck canvas today. And I spritzed it with seasonal water-proofing, too. Think maybe it may be installed by Monday? The screens are filthy, too, and brittle after 5 long, hard seasons in the sun. They need a bath and a careful examination to identify breaches in the mesh and requisite repair. I'm already thinking about replacement... 5 yrs. is the time frame that beckons closer scrutiny and directs attention to replacement. Where did those years go, my friends?!

Having rejoiced in the stage success of Kathy's #1 Son I now check in with my own review of "Avenue Q". Fabulous! I loved everything about it. I was less than intrigued by the preview but reserved judgement until I'd seen it. Funny, accurately scripted, it is all I really appreciate about theatre... pushes the boundries and engages the audience. We laughed from start to finish. The "older" couple seated behind us left after intermission... I suspect the frank sexual references were more than than they expected. Puppets should not be considered "kid- friendly" or an indication of "tame" content. See this show.

In a marathon session of unbridled gardening zeal I managed to stake 7 clumps of peonies the day before yesterday. It took 3 friggin' hours! who'dathunkit? Every year I swear I'll stake them while they're emerging and every year I look out an they're full size and at the mercy of the next windswept rainstorm. This year was no different, except I've beaten the windswept rain storm I know is soon to to arrive. Hurray for small successes, huh??

FYI, there really isn't a day that doesn't pass when one or the other of you fools doesn't cross my mind, you know. I miss the "old guard" but know that they're within reach "over there" and so that's OK with me right now. I hope maybe they sometimes remember me as fondly as I do them.

Times change, huh?

Oy, what weather ! Permit me to whine..raining all day with a brief (30 minutes maybe ?) interlude just now, allowing a snail inspection WALAT. Those dudes are in hog-heaven this year. By now we are usually well on our way to the drought summer. Today was the Marin County Open Days, feel badly for the garden owners who work so hard to get the home field ready�this kind of rain we had today must have kept folks away in droves.-including me. What a drag; this is the second rained-out garden tour for me this spring. Measurable rainfall in June is probably a once in 20 year event here.
�bug, love the photos you�ve been posting of your spring garden- Almost Clematis time there I bet !

Chelone,somewhat familiar with Avenue Q, hope it will come to my area at some point. Shakespeare is next on the agenda for DS.

Woody, we are doing Buffalo Garden Walk this year for IU, and I think a small cadre will cross over to Canada to see the falls. Saucy is working on the itinerary..how long a drive is it from Buffalo or Niagra to chez� Woody ?
Julie, there is a copper tape that is used around these parts as a snail/slug barrier. It works best as a trunk wrap on citrus or around the rim of containers. I tried putting a rim of pennies around my hostas one year, to no avail. I have since given up hostas altogether.
Working on a pot of Lentil Soup..catch up tommorow

Kathy in Napa

I'm out here Woody. Just been to busy or to tired to get on the computer much. My mantra of no new garden beds this year has gave way to a small but hard to dig one in the area I can't grow grass and the bank area of the barn that is visible from the house. not to mention the upkeep on all the rest of them. Extreme heat doesn't make any of it easy, so none of it will be at it's best this year. I'm enjoying it all anyway. The clematis despite the not so great foilage have bloomed much better this year with all the rain we had. Things are drying out quickly now though. I need to get the iris stalks cut down. the daylily scapes are coming on strong now. A few early ones are starting to bloom.

Niki doesn't much like this heat.
Bob just turned the air on today. I didn't think today was nearly as bad as yesterday but I guess he has had enough.

Like Chelone I think of you all pretty much every day. The weather this year is pretty extreme but I guess we all have to make the best of it.

Waving~~~~ Norma.

Kathy - it's about 75-80 minutes from the Falls to here. If people are going to the effort of crossing the border, I'd suggest an overnight stay in beautiful Niagara-on-the-Lake. Go see a play at the Shaw Festival. Visit the Niagara Botanical Gardens and Butterfly Conservatory (Niagara Falls http://www.niagaraparks.com/garden-trail/botanical-gardens.html ). Detour up this way to check out our garden. Head into Toronto for a day or two. There are tons of interesting things to see and do.

Norma - you defintely sound busy there! No ac needed here yet - we have only had one day this spring that I'd call warm. I'm sure that will change soon though...

Here is a link that might be useful: Shaw Festival

Frankly, I think Toronto could be an Idyllunion all on its own, perhaps another year.

Got a lot done today...sealing up the raccoon entry hole, re-installing the clothes dryer where the babes nested, began removing raspberry plants, trip to town with DH and Phoebe, cedar mulch on a first section around the veg garden, etc

Hoping for more completed chores tomorrow.
Book Club on Monday

OK, so I was all prepared to put the deck canvas up on Monday, but the helpmeet said the magic words and we did the major hoist this morning. It sucked. Clearly my "foreman" role needs to be refined. I thought the directions were clear, but a futile attempt revealed the flaws in: 1.) my plan, 2.) my ability to relay that plan to the helpmeet. After 2 abortive attempts, the canvas was hoisted aloft successfully. I took it from there and it's now securely laced in place; a snapped finger on the canvas relays the pleasing ring that only an installer fully appreciates. :) (I can't believe I've done the entire thing by myself... a sentiment the helpmeet echoed several times).

There were a couple of rain "deferrment" issues I had marked and noted last fall. Did I do them in a timely manner following the fall "take down"? Hell no! I had to hunt for my notes this morning (found 'em!) and then had to decipher them by studying the piece in question, but I "figgered it out". And they're done. It will be interesting to see if my modifications will staunch leaks effectively.

Next up is how to clean the screen panels (3) so they may be mended without soiling the sanctity of the Salon. ;) My years in the trenches of canvas repair has revealed 2 facts:
1.) It's grimey, dirty work, that should be charged accordingly.
2.) If you're willing to do that sort of dirty work the price of cleaning is included in the price of the repair!
The Biddy Suite bathroom is about to become ground zero. I have a large garbage can that will receive the sodden screen panels. Once transported outdoor and spread on the lawn they will be easy to rinse and areas in need of repair can be flagged.

OK, gotta get to it.

This morning I got an e-mail from an old friend (we first met around age 4...) that they'll be coming up this way in early September so will be stopping in for an overnight visit. We lost touch with each other after high school but reconnected again in 1996 and have been in touch ever since. We were both 'horse people' and both of us turned into gardeners so we we still had a lot in common. While we've been in touch via e-mail regularly, we haven't met face-to-face since 1996, the last time I was 'home', so it'll be nice to see her again.

Beautiful day here today - washing the porch decks on the agenda for today :-)

Like most others -- busy busy - battling weather and awfice, LOL...

We're back in the extreme weather dynamics - had a gorgeous day on Saturday when I got lots done in the garden, and then Sunday return of humidity -- and back to the 90s tomorrow... starting lugging hoses yesterday when the "promise/threat" of rain did not appear... the Weathermen have been way off in that regard for this region.

I love that Spring is still Somewhere -- goregous photos, 'bug and Woody....

Yep, fatigue plays a big role in trying to fire up the laptop....

Woody, I was going to tell you I cannot get a decent photo of Miss Stella, but then a friend stopped by to visit in the garden on Saturday, and got this good shot of her, in a more "serene" moment... and you can't see the grey-paint remains either, LOL.

I agree that Toronto would be a super stand-alone IU stop - I'd love to see some of those fantastic gardens there...maybe soon in another year -- I am looking forward to IU and the Buffalo city gardens this year -- having a small wild garden I'm always looking for new ideas to incorporate or redo ... hope for some great ideas to steal this year.

I'm sorry to hear of your loss of your BIL, 'bug -- it's always sad to lose family no matter how long or well they lived. Speaking of which, tomorrow is my Dad's 80th Birthday -- I'm hoping the siblings will do something nice for him, but who knows... I was going to visit him last weekend to celebrate early, but he had some social engagements, LOL, that I would have spoiled by being there... no not a new lady friend (at least I don't think so... but one never knows - sometimes ignorance is bliss). I sent his presents and a cake - and will drive up in a few more weekends.

Kathy -- I'm sorry for your weather woes too -- we sure are complaining about this all over the place this year, arent we? - too much/too little rain, too hot/too cold - a year of extremes!

Adieu --

Stella in an innocent moment....

{{gwi:160414}}

-Cindy

Adorable beastie! I was hoping to see her paint job though :-)

Cindy that is a cute picture of Stella.

Finally got the tax issue settled this morning.

Been dragging hoses all day.

Another miserable hot day today and a sleepless night last night led to a non productive day. I plan to get out at first light in the morning.

Woody, Nice that you will get a visit from your friend. It's always fun to catch up.

I bet Michelle had big time heat today too.

Headed out to turn the water off for the last time today.

Norma

Evening all, We�ve had a lovely few days and the weekend couldn�t have been prettier. Looks like we are headed back to the high 90�s the next several days though. I can�t believe Saturday afternoon was 68 degrees and Thursday is supposed to be 97. These large temperature swings are bizarre. The gardens here are filling in and I�m almost done with putting my containers together for the season. Can�t wait until that job is done. Soon I�ll be at the puttering about with my plants stage which is my favorite thing to do. I�m loving these looooong days� so beautiful. From now until mid July we get beautiful sunshine in the dining room in the early morning and its such a treat.

So now I�m crashing and am ready to get ready for bed, yep, I�m in bed sleeping at 9 so I can be up at 5AM and enjoy the beautiful mornings. Waving hello to one and all. Love all the pics everyone, keep them coming. That Stella is such a cutie Cindy.

Nite all
Deanne

Not much rain today, but there was sun predicted and it was a no-show. Looks like tommorow will be the day we get backto a normal weather pattern,and I�ll be happy to see it ! I think I�m going to go to the SF Botanical Garden on Sat or Sun to placate myself for the 2 rainout garden tours I�ve missed in May.On the plus side all my new fledgeling plants are getting a nice start with the rainwater .Snail patrols have been intense !
Deanne, it�s so interesting to look at the pics you posted this weekend on FB, and compare your garden progress with mine. It looks like you are so way ahead of me here inzone 9, but I had to remind myself that I have lots of brand new 1st year plants that are still small. Trying to figure out a way to invite myself to see your gardens this August, as it is very likely I will be going to Boston on business in the middle of that month.

Cindy, that little Stella is mighty cute ! I�ve been monitoring your weather ..and everyones actually, when I got my I-phone I set up the Idyll temps on the weather app.At this moment my phone say it�s 80 where you are , too damn hot for 8:30 ! A balmy 74 at Deannes.
All for me, cooking an artichoke for dinner and need to do a snail WALAT .

Kathy in Napa

Escargots with your artichaut Kathy?
Just back from book club, which was a nice gathering.
It's been a busy day....but I managed a bit of gardening too. More busy days in the offing.

ahh 'gb, the escargot did not meet their doom in a garlic sauce here, instead they were dashed to smithereens against the fence. RIP.The choke was served with a slice of sour dough toast and a curry dip.White wine of course.

I think of you every day too. I wish I were able to write about my days as easily as some of you. It is interesting that journaling and letter writing are not a thing of many people now, but I still see the merit. Maybe I'll try my 21 day program on writing here.

I've been trying to work every day, but haven't quite got that, so far. I work for 2 days then 1 day off or some variation, but not a straight 6 days of work often. There is lots of variety though, and most have pets, which I enjoy. The place I was at today is an irregular regular. She calls me 1 to 3 times a month. She has a 9 year old dog who has had benign tumors removed, and is recovering nicely. They have to keep their doors closed because the schizophrenic man 2 doors down has decided to allow coons to grow in his garden and the mother raccoon attacks, Bailey, the dog. Apparently the young are trying to learn from their mother, as a youngun attempted to block my path. I put my hands in the air to appear large and it took the hint and ran off. Adventures in the wilds of Vancouver. At least it was warm and sunny here today.

It's the past the witching hour, and I have to work in the morrow. Night night Idyllers.

Yeona

Sorry, Woody - the worst of the paint was hand clipped off (I would have been too chastised by the groomer this weekend harshly and Stella would have gotten a buzz cut I think)...Last nite I worried that she'd somehow managed to get into bleach - she smelled of it - and I think she found or rubbed against something the cleaners had left - but she was spry and perky this a.m., Never a dull moment with Stella!

Egad - talk about dealing with wildlife issues, Yeona -- I had to laugh with the idea of throwing your hands up - great idea - and it worked.... neighbors can certainly be very vexing - rational or otherwise!

I'm glad to hear you're almost to puttering and hose lugging stage, Deanne - so you can relax and enjoy before the big event - and coddle your green children to flourishing performances...

Sounds like you needs some days for chillin too, Norma!

It's working on the getting to stinking hot stage here -- these will be days I'll be happy to be at the awfice (if metro cooperates and doesnt turn in to bake ovens).

--Cindy

Managed to get some things done today between moving the hose around. Of all that rain we had things are to dry now. Our sandy clay drys fast on top. did some weeding in the areas that were wet from the sprinkler. Lots more of that to do.
Need to thin a bunch of petunias and vinca that have reseeded. Impatients too.

Wanted to go back out this evening, but tuckered out after eating. Been awake since shortly after 3 am when the earthquake woke us up. It lasted less than a minute but was a bit unnerving. Just a loud noise and vibration of the whole house.

Bug do you ever grow a companion clem with Roogucchi? Have any ideas of what would work? Anybody?

Woody how is the clematis swag coming along?

Kathy I am always surprised that though my garden starts earlier than those north and east of me , theirs catch up so fast.

Yawning here :0 so off to bed. Norma

Sun has arrived here at last, and I spent some time this evening deadheading rose-blobs. They all look pretty crummy right now, might as well cut them off and wait for the next flush. My Bluestone order came yesterday to, but I won�t plant til the weekend, and the Agastache was DOA. I�ll e-mail them tommorw;I understand they are really good about credits and such .

Norma, a 4.2 is pretty mild around here, though it depends on how far you are from the epicenter. I always go onto the National Geographic Survey website as soon as I feel a quake to see if it is reported. Link below. I report what I experienced as well. There is a very seismically active area just north of us, with action every day.

Ok my friends, I am really tired to night so going to hit the hay early�waves to all

Here is a link that might be useful: National geographic Survey

My son was here for the weekend from Texas. It was so good to see him again. I had basically lost my voice though. After he left on Sunday I was down right sick. I have a horrible cough that either keeps me awake in the night or wakes me early in the morning. I had taken Monday off of work and had hoped to accomplish much in the garden but the temps hit 99 degrees which slowed me down a lot. Today was another scorcher along with wind but its supposed to cool down tomorrow.

Of course this ridiculous weather blew away the tree peony and the first of the iris blooms. The containers that I potted up on Monday aren�t looking so hot either. They will come out it though.

I'm enjoying the spring pictures from your gardens. I've taken some and will have to post some when I get my energy back.

I�d best hit the hay. Lots of stress at work these days with a huge fiber optic project beginning this month.

Michelle

Michelle - I hope you get well soon!

Norma - most of the clematises for the swag are growing like mad. One of the white ones was flowering yesterday. I was doing some weeding along the fence side on the weekend and I accidentaly yanked some stems from a small one, so I may end up having to replace that one. I'll try to take some pictures soon, but there's not much to see yet.

Today is supposed to be a scorher here. I got up really early and was in the front garden weeding by 6:15! We walked Misty about 7:30 and ran into a lot of the dog-walking neighbours who were also out early to beat the heat.

GB called this morning and said their Internet connection was/is down. There was a big storm last night - we only got a bit of it here.