Lisa Bonassin's Garden: April 2018

This is a wonderful thistle growing on the back of the property. Bugs were burrowing deep inside it like it was the most wonderful-tasting thing in the world.

Arrived Friday after work, Bert arrived just before me. It was rainy and cool all weekend. The sun broke through on Sunday afternoon and it was really lovely.

Friday evening I walked around my small native prairie / meadow for quite a while. There has been a step-change in growth in the area, and I have lots of very pretty grasses and wildflowers growing. So I was very excited. In fact I texted Amy Thomeson to see if she could come over to walk the area with me. I had a few questions. I have lots of Gaillardia varieties, Yellow Primrose, brown eyed Susans (which have not begun to bloom yet), several of the pink thistles, some promising-looking grasses, Standing Cypress - yay! Positive progress. The chore will be to stay on top of the crabgrass, and it absolutely will be a chore once the weather turns hot as blazes. The last thing anyone wants to do is trudge around a tree-less meadow in 100 degree weather holding a 50 pound spray bottle of poison. Can't wait... It's about to get even more tree-less. I am having Bert cut down two cedar trees at the lowers section of the meadow. We need more sun down there. There is one massive cedar that I also wanted to cut down, but we can tell by the way it's growing that it will fall right into a beautiful post oak. I don't want to tear up that post oak, so the cedar gets a reprieve. I never thought I'd see the day when I wanted trees cut down. It still pains me, but in this instance it is the right choice.
I spread horse manure amongst my gingers in the Shade Garden. Probably not necessary since the Shade Garden gets the heavy leaf drop in the fall. I don't rake it away. I let the Shade
Garden mimic the woods (except with better plants).
Spread horse manure in the bed with the Harlequin Glorybower and a little in the bed with the Snowball Viburnum.
I sowed sweet corn seeds in the spaces where the previous seeds did not sprout (I was apparently over- anxious to plant my corn and it has been so cool that a lot of it didn't germinate the first time around).
Soaked my vine seeds in water on Saturday in preparation for sowing them on Sunday: Hyacinth Bean, Cardinal Climber, Heavenly Blue Morning Glories, Grandpa Ott Morning Glories, Chocolate Morning Glories, and Cup and Saucer Vine.
I planted two Grecian Pattern Plants in the Shade Garden. Frankly, I thought they were Bears Breeches when I bought them because look so similar. They were a lot smaller - so a lot cheaper - but I didn't read the tag. Both are Acanthus mollis, but the small ones are a different variety. That suits me fine, they have the same winter hardiness. I love large-leaved plants, and I am definitely having a love affair with acanthus mollis right now. I have one planted by the Greenhouse, one planted in the Medicine Garden, two in the Star Garden, and now I have two planted in the Shade Garden.
Amy came by on Saturday and walked the meadow with me. I had a few questions about some plants and whether they were good or bad. And we discussed some that I need to keep an eye on because we don't know if they are good or bad yet.
I pulled up all the lettuces out of the wheelbarrow planter, refreshed the soil and sowed some Cosmos and Laura Bush petunias. It rained really hard later that day, so I imagine the petunias are goners. They need light to germinate and they are the size of dust. But I imagine the cosmos will be fine.
Bert and I sat on the porch in the evening and watched the rain for a couple of hours - better television! That rain should be good for my corn crop.
Sunday. I sowed some zinnias and Cosmos in the Rose Garden.
I planted two African Blue Basil, one in the front flower bed and one in the Star Garden. I'm hoping this is the variety that I planted last year that I loved so much. Really beautiful with very long spikes of purple flowers. But we will see soon enough.
I staked my Henry Duelberg salvia in the Orchard and the Mexican Hat that gets so floppy. I also staked around the Verbena Bonariensis and Montbretia. Just trying to stay ahead of the summer floppies.
I planted 3 bronze fennel in a pot and put the pot in the Star Garden. One of my watering cans sprang a big leak, so I filled it with soil and planted a green fennel in there.
I pulled up almost all of the last of the Purple Phacelia in the Vegetable Garden and sowed some Blue Lake green beans that I found in my seed box. I'm just trying to fill the garden with something since the darned voles are decimating it.
Those devil voles have struck again and pulled one of my potato plants COMPLETELY under the ground. And one of them they chewed off right at the soil level. Those little monsters. And what is so weird is that I had been working in there. I sowed some Sunburst pattypan squash in that very bed only an hour before and that potato plant was still there. The one that was chewed off was already laying on the ground, but the other one was perfectly fine. An hour later it had completely disappeared - pulled right under the soil and vanished without a trace. AND the entire reason I was planting patty pan squash is because the voles had pulled both of my squash plants under the soil since last weekend. I have never had this kind of trouble with the voles. My tomato crop has been destroyed thanks to them.
Bert, me and the dogs went to Carol's to fish in her tank. It was a little too cold though and we only got one bite. Last time Bert fished in her tank he caught half a dozen fish. He throws them back, he is just wanting to fish for fun.
I sowed my vine seeds. The Chocolate Morning Glories were planted on one of the conveyor belts. The Hyacinth Beans I planted on the arbor at the entrance to the Rose Garden. I sowed Heavenly Blue Morning Glories on the arbor at the entrance to the Star Garden. I sowed the Grandpa Ott Morning Glories on the arbor in the Rose Garden where the Ballerina roses are planted. I planted the Cardinal Climber on the trellis at the entrance to the Orchard. I sowed Cup and Saucer vine under the box spring wrapped around the old dead tree in the Rose Garden (this is my second try at this seed , none of it came up the first time - probably planted it while it was still too cold). Assuming no tragedies befall them (including lack of water) we will have a pretty, late summer show.
I tried to spray herbicide on the crabgrass in the meadow, but my sprayer is acting up. I need a new one.
I transplanted some Rudbeckia Maximas from the Star Garden to the Orchard. I have enough of them in the Star Garden.
I cleaned up the back bed where the red greggii is and put down some horse manure.
Weeded in the Orchard. And everywhere else for that matter.
Deadheaded roses in the Roe Garden.
Drove in to work on Monday morning.