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.

The Third Plate and a shifting paradigm

After hearing an interview with Dan Barber on the Splendid Table, I picked up his book, The Third Plate, at the library. Although written from a chef's perspective, this book is opening my eyes to a whole new way of seeing my yard and garden. I consider myself somewhat knowledgeable about organic gardening in the backyard, but now I realize I am "old school".

I am only partway through the book, but already I am newly excited about things like weeds. Yes, weeds. Not to eat, not to eradicate, not to hate, but to use as a means of truly SEEING the soil in my garden. As an example, one of my worst enemies is Canada thistle. No matter how hard I try to beat it into submission, it keeps coming back, stronger and stronger every year. Why? Because the heavy clay beneath my raised beds is the epitome of compaction. To get rid of thistle, I need to do something about the compaction, specifically plant cover crops like spelt and red clover; both aerate the soil and suppress weeds while the latter also fixes nitrogen. Winter rye suppresses weeds as well.

Healthy soil produces healthy plants which are naturally less appealing to pests and diseases. I saw that this year, when the zucchini just went on and on (and ON). In previous years, the plants would succumb to squash beetles and/or mildew about mid-season. Ditto pumpkin and butternut, neither of which I have successfully grown before. All that horse manure paid off. Unfortunately, it is also the reason behind the proliferation of certain other weeds.

My gardening mantra has been "Feed the soil and the soil will feed the plants" but there is more to healthy soil than what I have been doing. Different parts of my yard have different weed problems. I'm anxious to get a good weed reference and identify and correct those problems. Fun stuff!

Additional references:
Listen to Your Weeds
Cover Crop Planting Specification Guide