Weekend at the Farm July 28 - 29, 2018

We arrived on Saturday morning.  I didn't do anything Saturday except watch Netflix and water in the Rose Garden.  I also picked a bowl full of Muscadine grapes in the Orchard.

• Sunday.  Up bright and early to start working before it got too how.
• I pulled up all the corn in the Vegetable Garden.  And I weeded the bed.
• I did some weeding and raking in the Star Garden.  I sprayed herbicide here and there.
• I pulled up the wild purslane growing in a path in the Star Garden and tossed it in the meadow.
• I dug up a weedy spot in the Rose Garden and seeded it with zinnias that I deadheaded in the Orchard.
• Moved the sprinklers around in the Rose Garden.
• I cut my Indigo Spires down to the ground.  
• Pulled up all the spent zinnias in the Orchard, cleaned out the bed, and threw lots of seed heads into the bed.  If no disaster occurs we will have a pretty fall show of zinnias.
• Gathered seed heads of Giant Rudbeckia from the Star Garden and seeded the Satusma bed in the Orchard.
• Weeded here and there in the Orchard.
• Picked another bowl of Muscadine grapes.
• Sprayed herbicide in the Orchard.
• Came in at noon and made jelly with my Muscadine grapes.
• Rested.  Headed home to Houston about 4:00.

Harvesting the Honey July 15, 2018

Bert and I harvested our honey on Sunday.  We had a very good harvest!

Philippine Lilies July 15, 2018

It's lily time.  Lily time arrives when the weather is extremely hot.  I only grow Philippine Lilies.  They do very well here.  They make very tall impressive seed heads that are filled with hundreds of seeds.  All the lilies I have were spread by seed.  I'm very proud of my lilies.

Red Shrimp Plant July 15, 2018

Red Shrimp plant is a reliable bloomer, it spreads rapidly, and it looks really pretty when it's massed in a large group.  I have mine growing in two places, one is in partial shade and the other is in heavy shade.  It blooms well in both places.

Weekend at the Farm July 14 - 15, 2018

I arrived on Saturday morning.  Bert came up on Friday.  I will probably come up on Saturday morning for the foreseeable future because my new job is in downtown Houston.  It's just too difficult to get to Burton from downtown.

• Mid July to end of August is often thought of as hot and bloom-free.  But right now is the beginning of bloom time for gingers and lilies.  I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for July and August for this very reason, despite the crushing heat.  My beloved gingers are just beginning to bloom.  And the Philippine Lilies are loaded with buds.
• I did some weeding in the Star Garden and laid down a truckload of mulch.  
• Watered in the Rose Garden.
• Trimmed perennial ageratum away from my blue salvias.  As much as I enjoy the blue display of the ageratum in late summer and early fall, I do not want it crowding out my salvias.  
• Last weekend I sowed lots of zinnia seeds in the Orchard and the Rose Garden.  They have all popped up.  I should have a good fall show for the butterflies. I still have more seed and I will sow it either tomorrow or next weekend.
• Worked in the Vegetable Garden for a bit.  I pulled up all the remaining tomato plants.  I threw the tops in the compost pile and the roots into the woods.  They were riddled with nematodes, no good to compost those!  When nematodes are a problem in your vegetable garden you should pull up the plants as soon as you are through harvesting. or else they are just host plants for the nematodes.  I cut away birdhouse gourd vine that was creeping everywhere. 
• A big branch from the old dead tree in the Rose Garden came down sometime during the week, no doubt weighed down from the heavy rains.  We dodged a problem because it did not come down on a rose shrub.  But a disaster did occur last week.  My Lady Banks rose died.  I'm shocked.  It seems to me that it's getting plenty of water.  The zinnias growing right next to it are perfectly healthy.    It's quite a disappointment and a mystery.
• We went to dinner at LuLu's in Roundtop.
• Sunday morning I loaded the cadet with mulch and mulched the bed in front of the dining room. Spread mulch in the Bee Balm bed and the bed adjacent to that one.  Spread the last of it in the Back Bedroom bed.
• I dug up four large plugs of Ox Eye daisy seedlings that were growing in a path in the Star Garden and transplanted them into beds in the Medicine Garden.  Then I surrounded them with chicken wire and staked them well.  Armadillos won't be able to dig them up.  That took some time to do.
• Watered the pots around the pool.
• Watered in the Rose Garden.
•  Bert and I harvested our honey  It was a very good year finally.  The last several years we have not been able to harvest any honey at all.
• Headed home Sunday afternoon.  No more driving in to work on Monday mornings.  Too far now that I work downtown.

Gingers July 14, 2018

Here are a few of my gingers that are just beginning to bloom.

Staycation June 28 - July 8, 2018

Disappointment!  We had all our reservations set to go to Cabo for a week between my old and new jobs.  And I noticed at the last minute that my passport was expired.  Crushing blow.  So, to the farm for a week.

• Thursday.  I pulled up all my Brown Eyed Susans in the Wild Border near the Rose Garden, several wheelbarrows full.  I dumped them in the Meadow so they would seed that area.
• Spent some time in the Meadow breaking the stems of a plant that I don't want to set seed - not sure of the name, maybe Bears Tail?  Anyway, the plant is a single, tall stem and a weedy bushy whitish flower head throws seed everywhere.  When it is young it is easy to pull up, but once it gets mature it's a booger to pull up.  So I snap off the head of it. 
• I sprayed herbicide on the entire driveway all the way to the road.  I have a new sprayer that my dad gave me when he was cleaning out his garage, and it works like a dream.  Every little bit of help...helps.
• I weeded for quite a while in the Rose Garden and pulled up that obnoxious vine that is on my neighbors' property and spreads by underground suckers all over my Rose Garden.  Curses.
• Watered in the Rose Garden.  I lost my Heritage rose.  I will definitely replace that one in the fall, I love it, gorgeous flowers and the best smell of all my roses.
• Worked in the Vegetable Garden for quite a while.  I cut back and staked some of my Mexican Sunflowers.  I trimmed my Birdhouse Gourd and Cantaloupe vines.  Pulled lots of weeds.  Staked and deadheaded zinnias. Sprayed herbicide in the paths.
• Worked in the front bed for a while pulling up day flower weed, cutting back Tickseed and Spiderwort.  Also smoothing out the soil - the front beds are particular favorites of the armadillos.  Last week I re-planted my new Strawberry Candy day lilies for the fourth time and staked the entire area with chicken wire.  Armadillos won't be able to get through that.
• Napped, read and watched Netflix for the rest of the day.
• Friday.  I finished weeding and straightening up the front beds.
• Down to the Orchard to clean it up.  I was in there  until about 12:30.  I hauled off three wheelbarrows piled high.  Weeded tons of crab grass, cut the verbena back, pulled up wildflowers, cut back my Henry Duehlberg salvia and Monarda.  And scraped and shoveled all the dirt back into the beds that the armadillos had strewn all over the paths.  Evil, nasty things.  There is still a couple of hours worth of work to do, and I need to mulch as well.
• I napped totally filthy and sweaty on top of a sheet I draped across the couch.  Went back outside about 3:30 and worked until about 6:00 in the Star Garden.
• I cut back Blue Bedder salvia, staked the seed heads of my Giant Rudbeckia, weeded, pulled up spent wildflowers, staked some ageratum, cut back my red Bee Balm, pulled up wedelia growing amongst the Ehamanii cannas and generally cleaned out the beds.  Also trimmed the Lindlyana hummingbird bush away from the La Marne rose that's getting crowded out.
• Bert and I drove around the property and scared up a doe with her fawn.  So cute.
• Saturday.  I drank coffee and watched the Painted Buntings at the feeder.
• I spent a good part of the morning in the Rose Garden.  I cut back the Horsemint next to the Fortunes Double rose.  I've read in some books it's a perennial and some where it's an annual, so I cut it back rather than pull it up.  Pulled up Brown Eyed Susans in that same bed.  Threw the Horsemint and Susans in the Meadow hoping they will seed the meadow.  I pulled up lots of Day weed, my enemy.  Watered and generally cleaned up.  Still not finished, but every effort makes big improvements.
• I worked in the Star Garden for a while.  I severely pruned the pink Vitex back away from the path.  I pruned the Almond Verbena away from the path.  I weeded in the Almond Verbena bed.  Watered in the Star Garden.
• Trimmed the grape vines in the Orchard again.  Trying to give the grapes as much sun as I can.
• I walked the Meadow and snapped stems of the plant that I'm trying to discourage.  I'm very happy to see ageratum blooming at the bottom of the hill.  I threw down bunches of spent ageratum right in that area last fall.  So it is very rewarding to see them blooming there.  There are lots of cow pen daisies about to bloom.  And, unfortunately, a lot of crab grass is growing throughout the meadow.  I will have to spray soon or I'll miss my opportunity before it sets seed.
• Napped during the hottest part of the day.
• Spent an hour or so pulling weeds in the shady part of the Star Garden.
• Dinner at Volare's in town.
• Sunday.  Bert and I drove around the property picking Mustang grapes.  I picked most of a bowl off of the grape vine trained on the neighbors' fence.  They don't use the grapes, and it's low-growing and easy pickings.  The rest we climbed up a ladder and picked along the back of the property.
• I cleaned out the Mock Orange bed in the Star Garden.  It's a little nerve racking weeding during high summer.  Snakes.  I practically stepped on one yesterday.  It was some sort of rat-type snake.  Not poisonous but always fear-inspiring.
• Moved on to the Rose Garden.  I got about half way done pulling up Coreopsis and cutting back Moss Verbena in the Carefree Beauty rose bed then the sun drove me into the shade.  I pulled weeds and cut back Lindlyana in the shady part of the Long Border.  I also cut back my Indigo Spires to the ground.  
• Made grape jelly with the grapes Bert and I picked.
• Napped.
• Went outside and started cutting back my Black and Blue Sage to the ground.  Threw all the debris in the compost pile.  Didn't get the job completed unfortunately.
• Sprayed herbicide in the Meadow here and there in the thickest stands of crab grass.  Sprayed herbicide in the Orchard and the Greenhouse Gardens paths.
• Monday.  I worked on the bed next to the dining room.  I pulled up armloads of Ageratum.  It was growing amongst my iris and every other place.  I weeded and dug out Four O'clock bulbs.  That is one tough plant to eradicate!  I ended up pulling up all the Cosmos that I seeded in the area so that I could dig out Four O'clock bulbs that I missed the other times I dug out the  bulbs.  I staked the small plugs of Ageratum that I kept so they aren't floppy.  I cut back all the iris flags - they were dried and ragged.  Weeded here and there near the dining room bed.
• Napped in the hottest part of the day.  Drove in to town to grocery shop for 4th of July.
• Tuesday.  I finished cutting back the Black and Blue salvia and Peter's Purple bee balm in the back bed.  I also dug out 4 O'clock bulbs.  I'm so done with those plants.  Did a little weeding in there, not many weeds in that bed.
• A couple of days ago Bert and I were driving around and I saw a spiderlily blooming.  It was one of the bulbs that Debra gave me.  I wasn't sure where to plant them, and I was concerned it was one of the invasive types that I already have, so I threw them in the lower moist area along a trail.  But I was pleasantly surprised to see that it was not a crinum, but a hymenocallis variety.  So Tuesday morning I went back there and grabbed five of them.  I planted them in the Shade Garden.  If they are anything like the ones I already have growing in the Star Garden, they will soon form a beautiful clump.  
• Cleaned house. on Tuesday and we spent Wednesday together for July 4th.  It rained all day on July 4th.  We played Yahtzee and sat on the porch and watched the rain.
• Thursday.  My last full vacation day before I go get Sammy for the weekend.
• I spent about 3 hours in the Rose Garden.  The weather was slightly cool due to the rain the previous day. I weeded in the Long Border, cut back Indigo Spires, and then weeded in the Rose Garden.  I spent a lot of time pulling up day weed.  The ground is slightly damp, it won't get any easier to pull up that noxious weed with the 6 inch roots.
• Bert and I went to Roundtop and had a glass of wine at Prost then went to LuLu's for dinner.  
• Friday.   I loaded the cadet with mulch.  Sowed zinnia seeds and spread mulch in the Orchard, the Rose Garden, and the Star Garden.  
• I drove to Houston and picked up Sammy. He stayed the weekend with me and Bert.  Blake went to Austin with girl friends, and Mr. H spent special time alone with Baby Charlie.  We had such fun.  Nathan, Jess and the boys came on Saturday and spent the night, so I had all three boys with me on Saturday and Sunday.  
• I dropped off Sam on Sunday and staycation was over.