Last night, the weatherman said that today would be sunny in the morning and then it would rain in the late afternoon. However, just the opposite occurred. It sprinkled off and on in the morning and then cleared up. So Ken and I were both able to do over two hours of yard work. The picture on the right shows one of the sweet pea vines that I want to train to grow up the wooden pot holder. The vines have been growing very slowly but then seem to be healthy.

He mowed the lawn and then weeded the bed attached to the front of the house. After that he took out the grass around the back part of the north side of the house and spread pea gravel in this area. It looks so much nicer! It works well because that is where we have a water spigot. He also weeded the bed that is next to this area.

I started to prune the bushes in front of the house but I didn't finish. I did weed the area around the mailbox and planted begonias in the bed. I also planted the large pot that is directly in front of the porch with four begonias and one purple Wave petunia. I put down newspaper and cocoa mulch in this bed. After that, I planted ten purple Wave petunias in the large front bed. I still have to cover the area with newspaper and cocoa mulch but I'll have to do it later in the week because I ran out of newspaper.

The purple Wave petunias had become very leggy in the six pack so I had to cut them back so that the center wouldn't become bare. I told Ken that the neighbors would probably mistake them for weeds right now because they look so ugly. But I know that in a few weeks they will start to grow and bloom. Last year, I had two colors of Wave petunias in this bed and they made a dazzling display by the middle of summer.

Earlier this evening, I picked the last of the early-sown Cherry Bell radishes and then thinned the carrots. Soon I will plant more carrots in the empty pots.

One nice thing about having multiple beds is that there are always some of them that are spectacular at any time. Right now, the long brick bed on the side of the front yard is beautiful. All of the plants are growing well. The texture and coloration of the leaves on the minature shrubs compliment the varigated grasses. Also, the violas in the pots look stunning.

Another bed that is especially beautiful right now is the small bed in the back yard that contains the irises. Not only are the irises in full bloom but so are the Nana coreopsis, the pinks and the potted violas. The daylillies have lots of buds and the salvias should begin to bloom soon.

The last few days have been warm but rainy. Today, is sunny and in the low 80s but it is beginning to become very windy. I was able to get out in the garden today and I was astonished how so many things have grown in just a few days. Earlier this week when I inspected the daylillies for buds there were none but now the Stella d'Oros are loaded with them. In fact, one of the plants is beginning to bloom. Also, the irises are now in full bloom. So many more flowers have opened and I had to pick off four spent blossoms.

I noticed that there is a lot of blue/purple, yellow and pink colors in the garden right now. It really shows when I look at the recent pictures that I have been posting.

I was surprised to see that the bleeding heart sent out another stalk of flowers. I didn't expect much of it this year but it is growing nicely. I look forward to seeing how it fares next year. I am so glad that I bought this plant. I usually hate spending $10 for a perennial but the expenditure was well worth it. Actually, I should have done it much sooner.

I'm impressed with how well the Salmon Velvet petunias are doing. They have a lovely colored flower and their habit is compact for a spreading plant. I haven't witnessed any long, lanky stems like I often get on the Wave petunias. However, time will tell. I will definitely take the time and trouble to plant these seeds again next year if they keep so well this year.



The columbines are at their peak but I think that they are not going to last much longer. It seems as if they bloomed earlier than usual. It also seems as if the coral bells flowered earlier too. Maybe it has something to do with the beautiful spring weather that we have had this year. On the other hand, the violas are still going strong. If this weather continues, I might not have to replant the 14 pots containing violas until mid-summer.

I have to pick the early crop of Cherry Bell radishes this weekend. It looks like the second crop of radishes and the carrots both need to be thinned. Last Sunday, Ken put more compost around the Yukon Gold potatoes and their leaves are now above the pots.

I cannot remember having such beautiful weather for Memorial Day weekend. Yesterday's weather was perfect for gardening just like the other three days. However, I have to admit that after four days of intense work in the garden, I was ready for a day off. It was supposed to rain last night and today but it hasn't so far.

We were finally able to finish weeding and mulching the large back bed. I hope that all of our hours of work and effort pay off. Two summers ago, it was really a scorcher; it was consistantly in the 90s every day. Last summer, the weather was much more mild but the mosquitoes thrived. I didn't keep up with the weeding the last two years because of these problems. I want to make sure that I don't have to spend a lot of time worrying about weeding that bed this summer.

The irises started to bloom yesterday. My neighbor gave me these plants two summers ago after she thinned out her bed. Last spring there was only one flower stalk but this year there are twelve. I know that I will have to dig them up in another year or two so that I can rejuvenate them but that will only mean that I will have more to transplant in another area! I think that these flowers have a very attractive shape (not too frilly) and I like their soft purple color.

The Coral Bells are in full bloom.

Driving home today, I saw some beautiful flowers in other people's yards. One house on Farmington Road had a beautiful display that included two large bleeding hearts. I also saw some Stella d'Oro in bloom so when I got home I checked out mine. I don't see any buds yet but I know that I should see them in the next two weeks.

The Salmon petunias that I grew from seeds and planted in hanging pots are doing very well. Each plant seems to have a slight variation in color. I noticed that one of them almost looks like it is red and not salmon.

Pots with four types of lettuce.

Yukon Gold potatoes growing in barrels.

Sunday, we enjoyed some of the bounty from garden. I made radish and lettuce finger sandwiches with cream cheese on pupernickle bread for a snack after we finished gardening. Then Ken made grilled chicken tacos for dinner and we used lettuce and basil as toppings. The basil was a great accompanying taste to the BBQ sauce on the chicken. YUM!

There was a light rain late last night but it cleared up early this morning. Today and yesterday were beautiful--in the 70s and sunny. What a great holiday weekend so far!

Both Ken and I spent three hours yesterday and two hours today working in the large back bed. I never thought that it would take so long to weed and mulch. And we are not even finished with it yet. We spent a lot of time carefully removing all of the little weeds growing in the bed. Then I put newspaper down and covered it with the cocoa mulch. I still need to go back and cover some of the missed areas with more cocoa mulch but I only have two left. We'll stop by Panettas Nursery tomorrow (if they are open) and pick up more mulch. I'm planning on finishing this bed tomorrow.

The coral bells are beautiful. I told Ken to keep on eye on them when he is sitting on the patio because the hummingbird will feed on them. I know that the new purple ones are popular but I like the old-fashioned types that I have. They have been very dependable.

I also weeded and spread cocoa mulch (no newspapers) on the butterfly house bed. I left areas open to plant three zuchinni plants. However, I decided not to plant green beans in this bed and instead I put the pink Wave petunias that I purchased several weeks ago around the edges and in the bare spots. They should give this bed color in the middle of the summer when the rest of the bed has only foliage.

The small bed next to the butterfly house bed is looking beautiful. The irises should be opening next week. Also, the Nana coreopsis is beginning to bloom and the Pinks look spectacular. I have had this one Pink plant for years. I bought three (or maybe six--I'm not sure) for 99 cents at English Gardens but the other ones did not survive. I moved this one to its current home a few years ago and it has been doing very well. It blooms for a long time and has repeat blooms later in the season.

Three out of six of the delphiniums that I planted last year survived the winter. I read that they are heavy feeders so I will be feeding them with the worm compost fertilizer.

I saw a black swallowtail butterfly on the lilacs today. The lilac flowers are beginning to fade. Ken is planning on cutting back the bushes so that they maintain their shape and height.

The weather has been very erratic this week. We had a heavy frost on Monday night/Tuesday morning and then it was in the high 80s during the next two days. Today was in the low 70s and sunny. It was a great day to do some gardening.

Yesterday, I went to Ken's Nursery. I purchased two flats of pink begonias and one flat of Blue Victoria salvia ($9.99 each). I also bought two six packs of deep pink Wave petunias ($5.99 each). They had a good selection of hot peppers so I selected four packs of Serrano peppers, Red Chili Bombs peppers, Ancho chiles, and Poblano peppers ($1.50 each).

I worked in the garden for over three hours today but I didn't feel as if I accomplished a lot. I spent most of the time weeding part of the big bed in the back yard. Small weeds were taking over. I decided to used the hand cultivator to dig them up and then pick them out by hand. I recently read that a really good weeding in the spring was a more effective method of weed control then Preen or landscape fabric. This spring I want to do every thing possible (organically of course) to avoid having to do heavy-duty weeding this summer.

After I did a thorough job weeding the area, I planted some of the Blue Victoria salvia and pink begonias. I laid newspaper over some of the sections that did not contain plants and then covered the entire area with cocoa mulch. I also repositioned two boulders from the opposite side of this bed to the side that I was working on. They were being covered by the daylillies at the other end and I thought that they would be more interesting in their new location. Tomorrow, Ken will use the hula hoe to weed the other areas of the large bed. Then I can put down more newspaper and cocoa mulch.

Wednesday evening, Ken and I saw the hummingbird for the first time this season. Ken had remarked that the lilacs were still looking good and I went over to smell them. (They still have a wonderful aroma.) I walked back to the patio and Ken said, "Look over at the coral bells!" The hummingbird was feeding from them. I wonder if I had interrupted it at the lilacs and it went to the flowering coral bells.

Today was the first day in a week that I have been able to work in the garden. It has been raining (at times very heavily) for the last three days. Both Ken and I spent about three hours outside this afternoon. Ken sifted compost to put on the hell strip and then applied seed. It's already looking much better. Some of the seed that he sowed last week is coming up.

I put down newspaper and then applied cocoa mulch over it in the butterfly bush bed and the bed behind the house. Next week, I'll plant the six pink Wave petunias in the latter area. I potted the two Salmon petunias in hanging pots but I can't find the correct hanger for one of them. Also, I pinched back four of the mums that I put in the end of the large back yard bed and applied cocoa mulch around them.

Even though I wasn't able to garden last week, I did buy some materials that I needed. I got a new blue gazing ball, a large pot, more cocoa mulch, and another bag of potting soil.

More flowers are beginning to bud and to bloom.

• The pinks have lots of buds and some of them are beginning to flower.




• Today, I counted more than a dozen buds on the irises.

• The columbines that have come from seeds that I have sown are budding and just starting to bloom.




• The coral bells are flowering.

The radishes that I planted three weeks ago should soon be getting large enough to pull out. I tried one yesterday but it was still too small. It did provide a taste though and it was delicious! I thinned the radishes that I planted over a week ago but I might have to thin them again. The carrots are starting to come up and the onions are sending up green shoots. The most surprising crop has been the potatoes. The leaves are growing rapidly and will soon have to be covered with more soil.

I can't believe what great weather we have had so far this spring. Today was in the high 60s and sunny. I also heard that this summer may not be excrutiatingly hot like it was two years ago.

Every day something new and exciting happens in the garden. Today, I noticed that the radishes that I planted had sprouted. They are very close and will need to be thinned. Also, the Nana coreopsis has big buds and should be flowering soon. The lilac bushes are blooming. Not only do they look beautiful but they smell heavenly. One of the Rococco pansies that I grew from seed is finally flowering. I started off with 27 of them and ended up with 11! Most of them died because I didn't give them enough time to harden off before planting them outside. I didn't think that it was going to be a problem since they are cold hardy but I must have overestimated their tolerance levels.

I had another pleasant surprise when I got home--Ken cleaned out the bed behind the house and edged it. Now the rocks that border this bed really stand out. I am going to plant the six pink Wave petunias and the six Salmon Flambe petunias that I started from seed in it when the night time temperatures become warmer. I have been hardening these plants off so I shouldn't have the same problem with them as I had with the Rococco pansies. In fact, the Salmon Flambe petunias that I have already planted in pots outdoors are beginning to flower.

Last week, the tomato seeds that I sowed on Monday, April 20 started to sprout. I had almost given up on them but now there are two Celebrity, three Lemon Boy and two Jubilee plants that are growing. I have been careful not to overwater them and have been keeping them just below the lights. I don't want them to get yellowed leaves like the earlier tomatoes. However, these plants have begun to green up since I have been putting them outside in the sun during the day.

The weather today was cool and in the high 50s. We had a brief shower in the late afternoon but it didn't wet the ground thoroughly so we still had to hand water some of the pots.




This morning we went back to Panettas to buy four more bags of cocoa mulch, and a bag each of Rose-Tone and Garden-Tone. While we were there, we noticed that they had five pound bags of seed potatoes so next year we can get them there. The potatoes are already sending up leaves in the containers.




I put cocoa mulch in two of the beds, the front side bed and the small right bed in the back yard. The mulch adds a finishing touch to the look as well as keeping weeds out. I'll start adding mulch to other beds as I finish planting them. Parts of the large bed in the back yard are ready to be mulched but I still have to plant annuals in other sections so I'll keep those areas bare for now.


I also was able to plant three rows of Stuttgarter yellow onions. I didn't use all of them though because I wan't to plant another row in a few weeks. Some of these onions will be used as green onions (6 to 8 weeks) and the others will be allowed to mature to a larger size.

It was very windy today with temperatures in the 60s. The weather ranged from being sunny to overcast with light showers. I took this picture of the bird sculpture that is in the middle of the large bed in the backyard in the morning but I wasn't able to do any serious work until the late afternoon. This picture shows the coral bells with flower buds.

This evening, I was able to do some work in the front yard. I dug out the tulips in the front brick bed. I haven't decided what I want to plant there yet. I would love to put orange impatiens in that spot but it is too sunny. However, I did plant impatiens in that area several years ago and they were beautiful so I guess you never know what will happen. If I could find orange wave petunias then I would definitely use them. Last year, I used wave petunias in this spot and they worked out very well.

I also cleaned up the front side brick bed and added cocoa mulch. Even though I had cleared out the grape hyacinths earlier in the spring, there were some that germinated and even flowered. I pulled them out and hope that I don't have any others come back.

Ken and I dug up one of the butterfly bushes that did not make it through the winter and replaced it with another. I put in Black Knight (Buddleia davidii). The tag describes it as having profuse, fragrant flowers in dense clusters that bloom from July to September. It also says to cut it back hard in the spring. I also had to do some heavy duty weeding in this bed.

The potatoes are sprouting.

The beautiful spring weather continues! Yesterday, there was a light rain but today is sunny and warm. The Weeping Cherry tree is in full bloom and smells very fragrant.

We visited four nurserys in the area today. I purchased a butterfly bush (to replace one that did not survive the winter), a bleeding heart and four bags of cocoa mulch at Panetta's Nursery. I discovered this store several years ago and now we give it a lot of our business. They are small enough to be knowledgeable about their stock but large enough to carry a good selection of plants and landscape materials. We were able to buy four bags of cocoa mulch on sale for $17.99. Wednesday, I saw it at another store for $9.99 a bag. We'll be going back several times to get more.

I also purchased six Wave petunias at a nursery in Canton. I received a coupon advertising these petunias for 99 cents each (regularly $3.99). They have run this special for several years and I have taken advantage of it. In the past, I have purchased perennials and annuals from them. There was a wonderful article on local nurseries in a recent issue of Dave's Garden e-newsletter.

One of the reasons that we went to so many nurseries today is that Ken wanted to look at ground covers. I told him about my idea of using ground covers in the strip next to the road and he was interested in the idea. He did some research but wanted to see what the actual plants looked like as well finding out how much they cost. We were able to find some ajuga and myrtle but both were very expensive. A flat of myrtle was $49.99 and the ajuga was $3.99 per potted plant. He decided not to buy any. Instead, Ken decided to weed the area thoroughly, put compost down and then overseed. He was able to get 1/3 of the strip done this evening. He'll work on the rest of it during the next few days. I think that this is a cost effective solution to the problem.

I was able to get some work done this afternoon. I planted the Bleeding Heart, repotted some of the tomatoes, planted a Flambe Salmon petunia in each of the three pots growing around the flower pole in the large back bed, and planted a Salmon Velvet petunia in a pot that I will put in the bed behind the house.

Updates on the garden include:

• The coral bells are sending up flower stalks.
  

• The columbines are budding.


• The pinks are getting ready to flower.


• The lilacs have buds and a few are beginning to bloom. Its fragrance in permeating the air.
  

• The sweet peas are popping out of the ground.


• The hostas have started to unfurl their leaves and are getting larger every day.


• Dug out more Obedient Plant from the large back bed! I HATE THIS PLANT.
  

We saw the first Baltimore oriole (male) of the year today. It was a male and I think that it was tryin to gather material for its nest. The gold finches have started to feed out of the new feeder. Ken said that next time that he fills it with seed, he will mix the black niger seed with the sunflower seed.

The weather has been overcast today but it's still in the 60s. We are supposed to get some rain tonight and tomorrow. That will be good for the garden unless it thunderstorms.

This evening, Ken and I spent an hour gardening. We transplanted 6 mums from bed in the back of the house to the two small beds in the backyard.

I planted more Cherry Belle radishes. I also planted Royal Chantenay carrots. I bought the carrot seeds last year but never used them. The package describes them as having tapered 6 to 7 inch roots. It also says that they are the best variety for heavy soils but I planted them in composted soil so that shouldn't be a problem. They sprout in 7 to 21 days and mature in 70 days. I should be eating freshly picked carrots on July 15!

The three Lemon Boy and the two Jubilee tomato seeds that I planted sprouted. I repotted them and placed them close to the grow lights. I'm hoping that their leaves don't turn yellow like the tomatoes that I've been growing. I'm going to be careful not to water them too much.

The petunias that I have been growing under the lights look beautiful. Their foliage is compact but very green and they are flowering.

The wonderful weather just keeps on coming. Today it is in the 70s and sunny. What a wonderful spring we have had so far this year. The weeping cherry tree is in bloom. It looks so much nicer now that it has been pruned. I hope that a storm doesn't come too soon and blow off the flowers!

I gave away three large bags of daylillies today to two of my coworkers. They are both very excited to get them. One of them told me that her hostas, ferns and lily of the valleys have all been given to her by family. It can be very expensive to garden. For example, I just saw small pots of daylillies selling for $3.99.

Ken filled two more containers with composted soil. I will plant radishes in one of them and carrots in the other.

This photograph show the last of the daffodils (Salome). However, the tulips still look beautiful. Some years the weather gets unexpectedly hot and they lose their flowers quickly but this year the weather has been mild.

Perfect gardening weather--in the high 60s and sunny. Yesterday, we were able to get a lot of work done in two hours.

• Ken dug up some of the mums in the bed behind the house. I split them into six plants and planted them in the large bed. I found a tag buried next to one of them. It identified the mum as being Prophets by Yoder "Beth." It has a purplish-pink flower and blooms in late summer/fall. I have had this plant for many years and it always comes back. I may have purchased it at Home Depot as a $1.97 special.
• I also transplanted the three Alberta mums (see picture in the March 13 post) in the large bed. I placed the gazing ball post (I need to buy a new ball) and placed the mums around the base.
• Ken bought a Asao clematis and planted it on the other side of the trellis. This clematis is described as having rosy pink flowers. I looked it up on Plant Files and other growers loved the how profusely it flowered. It should look great with the deep purplish-blue flowers of the Jackmanii clematis.
• I bought a new bird feeder so now the birds have two to eat from. In addition, I purchased fresh oil sunflower seeds. I decided not to put out thistle (black niger) right now because the finches haven't been eating it.
• We bought a new bird bath and a new basin for the other bird bath. We placed the new one in the butterfly bush/rose bed where I dug out the middle carpet rose. The birds were using this bird bath minutes after it was filled with fresh water. (I saw a woodpecker, nuthatches, chickadees, gold finches, house finches and a variety of other birds within a short period of time yesterday.)
• Ken planted a second Gold Coast Juniper in the back under the forsythia. Now the one that he had transplanted from the front yard shouldn't look out of place.
• We put cedar chips around the hostas in both hosta beds in the back yard. I can't wait until they fully leaf out. The contrast between the green coloration and the golden color of the mulch should be spectacular. It already looks nice even though the hostas have only begun to emerge.

There still are tons of jobs to do but I am very pleased with our progress.

A beautiful spring day! Not too hot and not too cold. The cool weather plants are really growing quickly like the violas in the pots. And all of the perennials are getting huge. The warm temperatures and lots of rain this week have have worked their magic.


Ken mowed the front yard and part of the back yard again yesterday. I couldn't believe how fast the grass had grown in just one week. I noticed that there are some clover plants growing in the front yard but that doesn't bother me. However, Ken is talking about hiring a professional to come out and resod the strip next to the street. He has given up on trying to do something with the lawn there. On the otherhand, I don't see any reason to even have grass there. I would like to plant that area with something else but I'm not sure what. I have seen some yards in Livonia that have this area planted with shrubs and flowers.







These views show areas of the large bed in the back yard. I haven't purchased cocoa mulch yet but I will do so soon. It will really brighten up the flower beds and it makes the ground look so much better. I also noticed that I am not getting as many weeds in the large bed this year. I think that the pathways that Ken put around the bed last summer is helping to keep the weeds in check.



The mosquito sculpture in the large bed.



Daylilies, violas and salvia.


The red and yellow tulips in the front yard look beautiful. The weather has been in the 50s this week so they are keeping their blooms. I want to plant the petunias that I grew from seed in this bed soon. I am trying to wait until the night time temperatures are above 40. The newspaper said that by the middle of next week this should happen.





Ken and I spent 1 1/2 hours working on the beds this evening. We had to dig out more of the Obedient Plant from the small bed and the large bed. I hate this plant!! We also transplanted two salvias (one of them we divided into thirds) and two daylillies (one of them we divided in half) to the small bed on the left. We cut back the butterfly bushes to about six inches above the ground. One of the shrubs is getting foliage but I haven't seen any on the other one. I also did some weeding. In addition, I filled up four pots with dirt and put them in the small bed on the right along with the geranium sculpture. These additions really helped to fill out this bed.