It's a date... I think

The landscaper sent me an email, setting July 5 as the start date for the installation. However, the yard has yet to be marked by the underground utility people. Also, next week is supposed to be rainy. I'm beginning to get a bit nervous. Or more nervous than I have been.

After all the spring rain, I don't want to say the D word (drought), but it hasn't taken long for my clay soil to crack open from the heat. It rained a trace amount yesterday, so plants absorbed some moisture through their leaves, but the soil is dry, dry, dry.

So instead of mowing, I have been watering. Not a lot, but some. I have some container plants: clematis (which is starting to creep across the top of the pergola), butterfly bushes, rhubarb, sweet potato vine, zinnias ('Profusion' I think), geraniums. The bed on the south side of the house tends to be dry because of the deep overhang. Thistle is starting to bloom, so I have been yanking that. I also sprayed herbicide along the back fence.

Initially, I could not figure out why the Bishop's weed under the hydrangea looked like a deer had been laying in it. Then I discovered that Watson is capable of clearing the fencing in a single bound. I'm guessing Clio is, too, since she has longer legs. My daughter wants some starts from there for her shady front yard once her front porch is replaced. After she gets those, I will take down the fencing and let the dogs finish trampling the Bishop's weed.
I bought a parsley plant at the local food co-op, but when I removed the plastic sleeve, the whole thing flopped over. It is under the grow light now, and starting to recover. It also looks like a bunch of unthinned plants instead of one or two. Not how I grow it.

The birds finally decided the berries on the serviceberry were edible. There have been lots of fledglings which are amusing to watch as they master the art of flying. The wren parents may be preparing their house for a second brood.

I hope you enjoy the holiday weekend. My dogs won't. They are okay if I am nearby, but otherwise any loud fireworks send them scrambling for safety.

I fret about trees

Maybe because trees take so long to get established and grow large enough to cast some shade, I tend to worry about mine. So far, none have succumbed to disease or pests or weather, but still I fret.

This pic is the trunk of the pagoda dogwood. I'm not finding any help online about this issue. So far, the tree looks fine, but this is a worrisome sight.

The 'Perfect Purple' flowering crab in the front yard has a similar problem. Again, the tree looks fine otherwise (except for losing the leader which broke off in a storm). I hope it continues to do well.

At least the redbud in the backyard that lost a leader-type branch in the same storm has several applicants vying for that position. We'll see who comes out on top (so to speak).

I don't worry about the bishop's weed - it's indestructible - but it does seem to suffer from leaf spot, or something like it. I *could* try to do something about it, but like I said, indestructible.

One plant I had completely forgotten about is this Japanese painted fern I received as a gift when I retired. It must like its location at the end of the hosta bed, and I admire its tenacity, but it is too well hidden. Perhaps it would make a good houseplant?

After a week of hot, humid, rainy weather, almost everything that blooms in the yard is leaning if not outright prone. Even the Russian Giant sunflowers are falling over, despite not having seed heads yet. The natives along the fence are particularly bad. And because of the weather, I have not been able to be out there helping everything get upright again. There are several dry, temperate days ahead, so I'd better stop writing and start staking.

Garlic is up, and so am I

Today is Day 12 of the worst head cold I have had in a long time. The fiery throat, sinus drainage, headaches, earaches, and cough aren't the worst - it's the overwhelming fatigue. But I am finally on the mend (knock on wood).

I managed to do a bit of yard work today, including dead heading the 'Limelight' Hydrangea. Standing in that area of the yard reminded me of my plan to install Bishop's Weed as an understory. This corner is a problem area that receives little sun most of the time, then a LOT of sun once summer hits its stride. The Hydrangea loves it, but other plants either starve for light or burn up. Hopefully, the Bishop's Weed will thrive there. And hopefully, I will be able to keep it under control, as it can become invasive. Rumor has it the variegated variety (which is what I ordered) is better behaved.

Inside, I have started broccoli and lettuce plants. I was a little leery of whether Beau, the Feline Destroyer of All Things Nice, would leave them be, but so far, so good. The daffodil my g'daughter picked did not fair so well. Not only did Beau knock over the vase, he broke it. No fresh flowers for me this year.