I got a call from my friend Barb yesterday afternoon asking me if I wanted the huge Fire Spike that she had dug out. Well, actually she was still digging it out when she called me. It was the size of a No. 3 wash tub, those huge tubs my mother used to use for wash day with the old-fashioned wringer type washing machine. We carried it to our vehicle and pushed it in. She was telling me that she had tried to break some of the root ball apart and I assured her that I would split it somehow or other, and not to worry. She wanted to pour water into the big pan that she had it in, but I said no. That would have just made a mess in the back of our SUV.
We got it home and I took my spade and cut all around it and was able to break the outer parts off the mother root ball. It was still pretty big, but it fit into a big tub that we had, and I started putting rainwater into the tub and pushing all the roots down under. That tub is full of Fire Spike, and I have enough to plant a whole row of it along the front garden bed and still have plenty to share with all my volunteer garden friends gardens. If I get blooms this year it will be a major Hummingbird attraction.
For years I have been wanting something to make a nice hedgerow at the front garden to give us more privacy from the street, and to have a delineation around that planting area. The pavers alone are just not enough, and all those Agaves and Spineless Yucca plants are getting bigger and filling out that space, so it's time to get something around it.
As you know I have been removing the big Red Lava Rock from that garden in front to the Bank and I've almost completed that project. The Bank is covered on the one end where the soil erosion was the worst and I'm happy to be away from the Agaves and Spineless Yucca. I got quite a few jabs and pokes, but thankfully no real bleeding damage. Those things are ultra dangerous!
This picture was taken last year after I had put down pine straw and I have since removed most of that and will retake a photo after I get the Fire Spike hedgerow planted. My garden has come a long way, and it is really beginning to look pleasing to me, but I still have seeds in there that have to grow and bloom.
It's the weekend and I've got plenty to keep me busy today. I just love this springtime weather we've been blessed with. Sending sunshine to those in the northern clime. Peace & Plenty.
We got rain! It was looking like a drought around here, and that rain was right on time. The rain barrels are full, the tub at Ray's was overflowing for a good long time, my grass plugs will live, and the seeds I sowed will come up. Now, how you gonna beat that?
Roxxie & I didn't get to take our walk in the morning, but we still managed to get a good walk at the end of my very busy day. I spent a good portion of that day carrying Red Lava Rock to the Bank. I read that it's good for slopes to prevent soil erosion. That is exactly what I need, so I carried it from the front garden bed where I had dumped it to the Bank, and I really believe it will make a difference. It looks good too. I pressed some of the big rocks into the soil to adhere before the next rain. That is another thing the rock is good for. It slows down the run-off. I think I'm going to start saving my toilet paper rolls, bury them above the plants and let the water go down the tubes and get nearer the base of the plant. That Bank is very steep and when it comes a torrential rain it washes down fast. I could also use the tubes for hand watering.
Barb said she'd like to have a wagon, like a child's wagon, to carry things around the yard instead of a wheelbarrow, which she already has. I will start looking for a wagon today for her. As many plants as she has gifted me, I'll buy her a new one.
Ginger Lily ~ Barb has it and wants it gone so guess what, my garden will get some today. Her's is quite established and is just coming up now. She needs it moved to make room for the other plants that are pollinators for wildlife. There are a bunch of Milkweed plants in that same area, and they are priceless for the Monarch's as we know. Her many Milkweed plants in her yard have already been nibbled to the stem by the caterpillars and she got a picture of one of Monarch's emerging from the Chrysalis. How fascinating! Her stems were just full of those caterpillars every time we've been over there.
I will be sending pics soon. The Cosmos, Buttercups, Vinca, and Silene are really starting to bloom. A few more hot days and it will be pretty around here. Peace & Plenty.
We did another haul of rock yesterday and Barb gave me more plants. Two more tomato plants, a Fig, and an unidentifiable plant. She also gave me Tithonia seeds, (a 4 ft variety) and California Giant Zinnia seeds. I put down all the rock and planted the plants and seeds. Today we are in a Tornado Watch so I will not be out there doing anything.
The rock that we get in the future will go on the bank. I read today that it is good for slopes. I need all the help I can get on that Bank. I counted more tomatoes this morning, but not sure about the count.
Peace & Plenty.
OMG! I was totally surprised yesterday when I saw the Widow's garden that I had made for her back in winter. She came to visit us in the afternoon, and we got caught up on happenings because she had been on a short vacay. Afterwards, I showed her the progress of our garden, and what all I've been doing. We showed her our little first tomato and saw that we had 3 or 4 tomatoes formed just from morning to evening. I just couldn't believe it. I showed her all the new plants, the rock work that I had done, and the Silene. We walked home with her, and I was floored. Almost all of the plants were in bloom. The Lantana, Cosmos, and Hardy Poinsettia were just beautiful. That Lantana is the pink & yellow one and it was huge. I rescued that from behind a hedgerow on her property. It was a gift from the birds. She is extremely proud of that garden, and it makes me so happy that she is. We had a nice long visit on her Lanai and loved on her 2 dogs. She had sown some of the seeds that I had given her for Christmas, and they were up and looking great in containers.
Yesterday I made the banana emulsion and will continue to stir it and let it ferment for 2 more days. Then it will be ready to put on the tomatoes. Those tomatoes are really growing bonkers on their own, but that Magnesium is going to put them riper quicker.
The little Wren has been checking out an extra gutter drain that has been lying in the back for quite a while now and I spooked her when I walked by yesterday. It has the elbow at one end, and you know that Wren's will build a nest anywhere. I decided it was time for me to put that gutter piece up in a tree so she can build a nest in it. We have a Live Oak and Cherry Laurel that are joined at the trunk in our backyard, and it has branches that were perfect for fitting the pipe into. If she builds a nest, I will take pics and post. Our friend Barb has a pot of Oregano that has a perfect Wren nest in it. The plant is still alive, and they didn't compromise it at all. I love that!
I checked all of my transplants late yesterday evening and they are all alive. Yay! It's starting to get too hot for transplants, so now I can safely sow Zinnia and Marigold seeds. Today we are going to Barb's to get more stone/rock. I am still babying my Rotator Cuff/Bicep, but my right arm is fine.
Peace & Plenty.
I couldn't believe it, but there it was. One tiny little Cherry Tomato on the biggest vine of the first 6 plants I put in the ground. I'm so proud! I was out there filling my bottles with water. I don't know if I told you, but Ray told me about this hack of putting tiny push pin sized holes in the bottom of a water bottle and burying them in the ground beside a tomato, or any plant really, then pouring water into the bottles when the roots need water. That way the water goes where you need it and believe me, we get periods of drought between rains. So far, I've only had to fill them a couple of times, but that plant with the tomato looked especially wilted and I examined the bottle and saw that it had too many holes in it, so I replaced it and only put 2 little holes at the bottom edge. Keep the caps on the bottles to prevent evaporation and only bury the bottles two-thirds deep. If you have a slope, be sure to bury the bottle above the plant.
Ray invited us up yesterday to view the Solar Eclipse and it was awesome. Maybe I won't be alive in 2044 to see the next one, but who knows. She was telling me about the Magnesium Emulsion you make from banana peels and said she had a whole bag of banana peels in the freezer and reminded me again of how great mag is for the tomatoes. I did learn that many years ago from a nurse who took home the bags of Mag Sulfate that the docs had discontinued of her patients. She had the most beautiful tomatoes and brought us many to work with her. So I brought the banana peels home and cut them up and put in a bucket with a lid. Today I will pour boiling water over them, and stir it up for 3 days, then scoop it out by the cupful to the tomato plants. Jolly good!
Meanwhile, my friend Val needed attention in her garden. I had taken a heavy hanging basket and hung it on her Shepherd's Hook, and it fell. I figured it would drop, but at that time I could not find a suitable hanging pot of flowers for Easter. Guess what! We went to Lowe's yesterday and found a beautiful hanging basket of Calibrachoa. Val loved it and I put all the plants that were in the original HB in her patio garden. They will love it. She is happy, and I'm happy.
