It's been warm here and I've been busy in the garden weeding and planting. First part of the week I weeded the gardens - got rid of all the bits of grass that snuck into the perennial beds out back and raked out most of the leaves in front - and have it all ready for flowers. First up were the … [Read more...]
Top 10 Gardening Challenges for 2016
My garden has several problems that I need to figure out, plus the usual challenges we face every summer. #10 One of my personal problems is that I feel terrible when I discard a living plant. Last year my iris struggled with pests and took over the best garden spots. When I cleared the plants … [Read more...]
Iris Plants and the Icky Iris Borer
I like iris flowers just fine, although we have too many plants and not enough different varieties. What I don't like is how the plants look when they finish blooming. Ugh. Several plants were especially bad, with brown leaves and spots and soft rhizomes. I remembered iris get … [Read more...]
Grass Wars – Removing Prairie Grass From My Garden
If you've read my Bunny Wars posts about the depredations from our rabbit friends you might think we are besieged by critters. We are. There are a gazillion chipmunks, ground squirrels, big squirrels and rabbits in our yard. These fauna threats can do great damage but they are small potatoes … [Read more...]
My Garden Late June 2015 – What to Change for Spring 2016
Spring ended a week ago and I'm already looking forward to planning improvements in the garden for next spring. This was an odd spring. Iris, Sweet William and peonies bloomed heavily - but started late and ended fast. I don't think even my peonies lasted more than 8 days, which is very short. … [Read more...]
Flower Paths Weekly Calendar – May 21, 2015
Friday, May 15, 2015. High 70s but so muggy it feels like 90. Applied Spray-N-Grow with Bill's Special Fertilizer. Saturday, May 16, 2015. Finished weeding, fertilizing and de-bunnifying the last large perennial section. I'm pretty sure the odd plant coming up is the Eupatorium. Sunday, May … [Read more...]
What Flowers Should I Plant This Year?
I'm trying to decide what flowers to add to my garden this year. I know a few that are must-haves. Phlox I had oodles of phlox in our old house, from a couple purchased plants plus seedlings. I let the seedlings bloom and kept the best. My favorite was about 2 1/2 feet tall, had coral red … [Read more...]
My Poor Zebra Grass – Too Much Snow! And Maybe Too Much Fertilizer?
We have gotten a lot of snow and ice and icy snow this winter. My poor zebra grass (Miscanthus) is showing the effects! Here it is all sprawled over coated with ice. It looks like a sad sea creature washed up on shore. This grass is vigorous and picks itself up after the ice melts or the … [Read more...]
Moving Means a New Garden – Flower Gardening in Our New Home
We moved here October 2011. The former owners didn't have a flower garden, only a few small spots with flowers. I needed much more room for the flowers that we took with us. Dave and I picked out our favorite phlox from our old garden. Then he divided most of the peonies and daylilies, dug up … [Read more...]
Planting Last Fall Perennials for a Beautiful Summer Garden Next Year
We started with eight plants from the $1 markdown table at the garden center. This collection of perennials needing a good home were all in good health, and most were flowers that I planned to get - sometime - but there are two that slipped in. The plant second from the right back row isn't … [Read more...]