Today was dreary and rainy the entire day, but the garden is appreciating the soak and my wrists are appreciating the rest after this week’s nonstop weeding. Most of these photos were actually taken Friday afternoon because I appreciate not having to slog around in the damp with my phone.
One — Bleeding Hearts in Bloom
The dicentras started blooming this week, and I’m unreasonably pleased about it. I’ve got three pink and one white Dicentra spectabilis, all of which are filling out more impressively each year. The pink flowers are pairing especially well with the potted fuchsias and impatiens on the steps — one of those happy accidents you can’t really take credit for but will absolutely accept compliments about.
Yes, the alba is being photobombed. I accidentally planted Hosta ‘T-Rex’ behind it and ‘Blue Mouse Ears’ in front of it, which is… a juxtaposition. In my defense, it was hard to remember where everything was during planting season that year. I will probably have to relocate those hostas eventually, but for now, the absurdity of it amuses me.
At the front of this bed, I also have one Dicentra formosa ‘Luxuriant’, though when I checked this week I definitely saw at least two plants. I didn’t realize it self-seeded, but I fully support this behavior. It’s much smaller and shyer than its spectabilis cousins — or maybe it’s just taking its time and will size up in a couple more years.
Two — South Slope: Before and After
Before and after shots, because I want credit for what I’ve been doing on the south slope. Last month, it was the wilderness of bergenia and weeds that it’s been for the past decade. There were a couple of half-hearted attempts over the years — one rose and two peonies survive from the first go, and there was the year I unsuccessfully tried to grow artichokes — but nothing stuck.
This year, I committed. It’s the sunniest microclimate on the property and it was time to reclaim it. So I went in there wearing wellies and elbow-high leather rose gloves and started ripping out all the nettles and horsetails and tufted vetch until I could actually see what was underneath. The previous owner had planted daylilies and lilies here, and I was pleasantly surprised to find a few small patches had survived.
The organic matter got left to dry out and mulch the ground, since it’s really dry and sandy there and will take a few years of work to build up. Then came the vegetables: a row of tomatoes along the wall, four varieties of potato in black grow bags next row down, and seven varieties of cucurbits in plastic soil bags lower still. They all seem to be settling in nicely, and I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of harvest we get.
Three — Vegetable Beds: 15 Down, 25 to Go
Another before and after — this time two months apart. I probably won’t finish completely weeding and planting the veg beds until next week, but I’ve been inordinately pleased with my progress after letting the whole thing go untended last year. (See: before shot.)
I’ve cleared two-thirds of the right path now — fifteen beds out of forty, plus one freestanding pinkcurrant bush, on maintenance mode. The contents of individual beds will probably show up in future posts once they settle in and start looking photogenic. Right now they’re still in the awkward teenage phase where everything’s leggy and uncertain.
Four — Dwarf Banana
Right, so my latest trip to get more soil ended in… a dwarf banana.
It was a good price, and it’s not the first time I’ve had one — though this is the first time I’ll be properly equipped to get it through the winter. In the meantime, its pretty leaves are right there waving at me where I can see them from the terrace, and the Southern Californian in me is very happy about this.
There’s also a Canary Island date palm I’ve had my eye on, so it might follow me home before long too. Finland’s climate is a suggestion, not a rule, if you have enough grow lights.
Five — Apple Blossom Bee Safari
I got a text from my neighbor the other day asking if I’d seen any bees. Specifically, her bees. They just got a new hive of Carniolan honey bees, which are supposedly larger and more winter-hardy than what they had before. Both her previous hive and one of my son’s class hives died this past winter, so it was a tough one.
She’d seen that the apple trees were blooming and knew I had the biggest ones on the street, so she surmised they must have figured that out by now. So I gamely pulled on my boots and spent a good twenty minutes taking photos of the apple blossoms for my own use and as a bee safari on her behalf.
Please understand: this tree is as tall as my second-story window and was absolutely smothered in blossoms. The whole thing was buzzing loud enough to hear from yards away. I found plenty of bees. Were they her bees? Some probably were, but there’s no way of knowing. I took a picture of as many bees as would hold still and sent them to her. Any bee experts out there who can confirm if I succeeded? The bee itself was too busy stuffing its face to respond to my interview questions.
Six — Wood Cranesbill Volunteer
I’ve had a few Geranium sylvaticum pop up over the years along the forested edges of our property, but never as many as I’d like. This latest one moved in under the kiwi vine, which was very brave of it.
It doesn’t look big enough to divide yet, so I might try taking cuttings later this summer and see if I can get a little patch of them going. They’re one of those native woodland plants that feels like it should be everywhere and somehow isn’t.
Thanks for visiting — see what the rest of the SoS crew is up to over at Jim’s page!