Beginning of Summer in the Garden

Happy Spring

My garden, today.

And more coming down fast, which is why I just ran out to take pictures before everything gets buried.

Day 0 of the Gardening Year

It was very warm here this week and rained almost every day, a combination that has plants shooting up and buds ripening. So I went out in the muddy drizzle this morning to start my year's work in the garden. I cut down the dead plants I had left to provide a bit of winter interest and raked out a winter's worth of leaves and other trash.

The daffodils are coming up everywhere, more every year; eventually I'm going to have to start throwing some away.

Irises. Normally I would have applied my first spraying of DeerOff but since it rained all day and is supposed to rain all night I put that off.

I came in damp and coated with mud from the knees down but it was still nice to get out and enjoy growing things and rich earth.

Morning Glories

In a Cool September

We had only one hot week in August, and since then four straight weeks of cool, cloudy weather when the temperature has rarely gone above 82 (28 C). This has been hard on the butterflies but the late summer flowers are thriving like I have never seen before.

Dahlias

In the garden today.

The Garden on Memorial Day

The garden is a bit of a mess after two weeks of cool, rainy weather, with a couple of windy storms thrown in that knocked down most of the remaining sunflowers. But the argeratum is putting on its pale blue show, and there are some lovely dahlias and zinnias.

Meanwhile at Home

They just sent me this picture from home to show me what happens in my yard when I'm at work. Two of them, in broad daylight, just ambling around looking for something tasty. Yes, she's small, probably a spring foal.

Half a Fairy Ring

In my front yard.

August Garden

This year the deer seem to have almost everything that isn't yellow, leaving much of the garden looking like this.

But a few spots of other colors have survived the assault. And the front bed (below) has gone mostly red and orange.