Am I finished purchasing plants?

I made several (A LOT OF) impulse purchases this spring, mostly for the rain garden. Ditto seeds. I tend to go overboard. Unless something dies and needs to be replaced, I think I am done adding plants to the yard. Fingers crossed.

Any exceptions? I've talked myself out of raspberry plants. Maybe the hosta garden needs a fern? I'd like to add smooth penstemon to the rain garden, but that may happen yet this year. And if I get arches installed over the gates, some climbers may need to be added. AND THAT IS ALL! (Except for some asters? I'm hopeless.)

My daughter and I visited a new-to-us nursery near Churubusco this past week. I was interested in some hanging planters (because they don't count as plant purchases, right?) The fuchsia ones were sold out, so I snatched up the last of their fuchsia plants so I could make my own.

I paid attention to which of their hanging planters attracted bees and chose two lobelia. At first, the bees in my yard swarmed those planters, chasing each other off, but their initial enthusiasm has waned. Maybe it is not a good pollinator plant?

I stopped by a local farmers market the next day and could not resist this Black Eyed Susan vine. You may recall I have grown this myself in the past, but this one came ready-made.

And I found some purple basil, not for eating but for dyeing yarn. It's now potted in front of the strawberry bed, flanked by pineapple sage.

My daughter fretted about the possibility of a "flash drought" this summer. So far, the only part of the state that is under threat is the northwest (according to the Purdue Landscaping Report). This week has been less rainy - I went FIVE DAYS without mowing the lawn. I could have gone longer, but thunderstorms were predicted for the weekend. Half-inch of rain (so far); my gutters need cleaning.

What else is going on in the yard? Strawberries and tomatoes have appeared on their respective plants. The safflower has sprouted; I'm growing it to dye with. I planted some sunflowers amongst the milkweed. The big patch of dame's rocket by the strawberry bed is history. The stinky 'Blue Muffin' viburnum is done blooming; it's cousin 'Chicago Lustre' has taken over. The winterberry looks recovered from the winter and is blooming, but the blossoms are so tiny as to be practically invisible. The climbing rose is the opposite - almost gaudy. Weeds are still an issue.

Last June I picked some fruit off the serviceberries and froze it. Now that the berries are ripening, I put the frozen ones outside. We'll see if anything eats them. Just a little experiment.

Inside, I repotted several of my houseplants. I don't feed them at all, as then they would grow and need to be repotted more often. But eventually, I have to give in to their needs.

Finally feels like fall

Besides cooler temps, we received a fair amount of rain. Today is sunny and mild, but we are expecting some more hottish weather this week.

I haven't done much this week in the yard except prepare for the window installers. My daughter deemed the pruning my SO and I did on the mugo as insufficient, so my son-in-law helped remove more (most) of it, using a reciprocating saw. I would never have thought of using that tool, but he was able to cut the trunks very close to the ground. I also whacked at the false indigo that was blocking the front walk, dragged containers and hoses out of the way, etc.

BTW, the new windows look *great*. The house was built with wood casement windows that were a mess, so I replaced them with double hungs about 20 years ago. These were the kind that tilted in for cleaning, but I never really liked them. So it is back to casements, this time vinyl. The installation is almost done; there is some sill replacement that needs to be done, plus new wraps. I am becoming convinced that wood is great inside, not so much outside.

` I am giving the indoor herb garden another try. One basil and two parsley plants in handmade pots. Of course, I didn't make note of the herb varieties, but the pots are crafted by Dowidat Ceramics.

This is the week for my shoulder replacement surgery. I obviously will not be able to garden for a while, but I am stocked up on books and jigsaw puzzles to keep me from being too bored. And there is always TV as a last resort.

Share and share alike

My neighbor across the street, the one who blows my driveway and lends me his truck, asked for a rhubarb plant since he knew I was downsizing the garden. I was happy to oblige and threw in a dozen half-pint canning jars to boot. He responded by giving me a jar of tomato powder. He has made good use of the dehydrator I gave him several years ago (I used it maybe twice), and that includes the reduction of tomatoes to dust. It's a good way to add some tomato flavor and a thickening agent to sauces, or so he says. I'll have to try it out.

As promised last time, I hung out the hummingbird feeder, but only after spotting a hummer in the front yard. Deciding on a location was tough - sun vs. shade, less than 5' from a window vs. more than 15', viewable or not, etc. Initially, I hung it near the compost bin, just outside a window I can view while on the computer. That might have been too hidden, plus sometimes my indoor/outdoor cat perches on the bin. (Sorry for the reflection in the window in the pic below.)

I moved it away from the house but that was too far away, plus the view was blocked from just about everywhere. Now it is under the elm tree. I can watch it from the deck or the "exercise room" (spare bedroom where I do my physical therapy exercises), far enough from windows to discourage collisions, in an area more open but not too open. I don't usually see many hummingbirds until June - that one last week may have been an outlier - and it has been cool lately. Hopefully, they will come soon.

Several (20+) years ago, I laid a clear plastic tarp on the lawn, ostensibly to dry it out. Within a few hours, it had nearly killed the grass. So when I edged a bed along the fence on the south side of the house, I figured clear plastic tarp would be helpful in eliminating the grass and weeds growing there. NOT. Instead, the plastic is acting like a greenhouse. I'm guessing the sunlight is not intense enough to overheat the contents. I will have to switch to black plastic. Or dig out the grass and roots by hand, something I was trying to avoid.

I am amazed at how fast morning glories grow and provided them with a little help by placing trellises nearby for them to climb. Besides the 'Scarlet O'Hara', I planted seeds from my SO's morning glories, which are the traditional blue. I hope they climb all the way up to the top of the pergola.

I have never grown strawflowers, so decided to see what they are like. These are Mohave Dark Rose Bracteantha, or something like that. 'Mohave' is trademarked.

I also planted some sweet basil and English thyme. My cooking has become rather basic for the most part, but I still like some fresh herbs now and then. Also in this pic is a volunteer silver maple seedling. I have been toying with planting it in the backyard but for all the negative aspects of this native tree. Even though it is a fast grower, I will probably be long gone before it becomes a real problem, but STILL. I hate to create a problem but I also hate to throw away a perfectly good plant.

Today I started some zinnias and sunflowers in a tray of peat pots. The zinnias are Cut and Come Again Mixed Colors and Big Red, the sunflowers Mammoth, all from Burpee by way of Home Depot. We were properly masked while there and found the masks to be uncomfortably hot. Can't wait for July and August.

Oh, and I was wrong about being wrenless. The bird house is occupied.

How much basil is too much?

Every year, when I plant herbs, I tell myself I will harvest them when their flavor peaks. And then I don't. But now that I am retired, I am doing a better job of meeting that intention. So yesterday was the day of the first big basil harvest.

Like kale, a whole lot of basil may be reduced to usable portions very easily. I chose to freeze some whole leaves, which I intend to use on pizza sometime this winter. I chopped the rest in a food processor with a bit of olive oil (1T per packed cup (about 30g) of pre-chopped basil), then froze the results in an ice cube tray, for later use in sauces, soups, stirfry, etc.

Unlike kale, I don't think one can have too much basil. It enhances almost any food. This morning, after transferring the frozen cubes to a freezer bag, I mixed the errant basil "crumbs" with a hard boiled egg. Delish!