I am my own worst enemy

There were a couple of plants growing in the rain garden that I did not recognize. Assuming they were weeds, I sprayed them. Then I spotted a third clump. Curious, I took a photo and used Google Lens to find out what it was. Swamp milkweed.

I don't remember planting it, but a search on the blog reveals that I did, last spring; it bloomed and produced seed pods. My forgetfulness was so complete that I purchased *more* swamp milkweed this spring. I feel like an idiot. An OLD idiot.

I contemplated cutting down the dame's rocket before it went to seed, but the bees have been in it. Not that there aren't more flowers for them to visit. I just hate to limit their choices.

ALL the perennials I purchased this spring are now in the ground FINALLY. I marked each one with a white flag. The chokeberry shrubs are completely fenced off with poultry netting since the bunnies like them. The additions to the rain garden have a little (old) ornamental fence marking their area, to keep me and hopefully the dog from trampling them. It's a relief to have that chore done.

I've been hearing a catbird along with the wrens and the other usual avian visitors. And yesterday a monarch butterfly flitted through the yard, so I am hopeful that the milkweed will attract them this summer.

I would have more photos, but today has been rather breezy, so everything is dancing in the wind. The forecast for this week looks delightful - 50's at night, 70's during the day - so I hope to get even more done in the yard.

Although I am feeling my 73 years these days, I truly enjoy gardening. I hope I am lucky enough to live here long enough to see everything mature, or mature enough that it all looks complete and purposeful. And if I am *really* lucky, the next owners will value what I have done.

Indoor weekend

It is raining AGAIN. I can tell that a couple of my downspouts need to be cleaned out. One problem with shade trees close to the house is leaves in the gutters.

Lots of weeding this week. Initially, I was a bit discouraged, as they were definitely getting away from me. The string trimmer helped cut many of them down to size so I could spray them without using up too much herbicide.

Some planting has happened as well, although not as much as I had hoped for because of the weed situation. The 'Fluffy' western arborvitae is in the ground. I planted green beans in the milk crate container again.

Fluffy was a bit root-bound

And I was able to find some pineapple sage at the other Stuckey's greenhouse. Man, that place is big! And not easy to navigate. Or park at. But I'm glad to know where it is and what it is like.

There is another nursery in Churubusco, called Fingerle Farms. I may check them out for hanging baskets. Ordinarily, I am not interested in hanging baskets, but for some reason I can't get enough color this season.

The lawn service I use only spot treats weeds in the yard. This past week, they managed to nip two catmint plants. I let them know, they offered to replace the plants if they don't survive (although I think they will), but still. A couple of years ago I had trouble with the neighbor's lawn service spreading their granuals on the catmint on the other side of the yard.

On a dog walk at Salomon Farm this week, I witnessed two birds (grackles?) chase a squirrel down the trail. I wonder what that was about. And speaking of squirrels, this youngster has been visiting the deck, munching on maple seeds.

There must be young (and stupid) birds all about, as I keep hearing them hit the windows. One just would not give up trying to land on the reflection of a tree. As soon as I have the chance, I am going to try this solution for bird strikes. Hopefully, it won't look too weird.

More plants

First, my son and daughter-in-law came to visit with this planter. She works at a garden center, so they always bring something nice for my yard. The colors even work with my front porch.

Later in the week, I visited Stuckey's, a local greenhouse that carries the usual. This year I decided to go with a yellow cherry tomato.

'Sunsugar' cherry tomato

They carry a few natives, so I grabbed some butterfly weed. It never does well in my clay soil, so I'm going to put it in the raised coneflower bed. And cross my fingers.

Asclepias tuberosa, a.k.a. Butterfly weed

I don't know much about begonias, but thought it might be a good choice for the flamingo planter. Once in the planter, I realized I should have gone with the pink instead of the orange. Oh, well.

Begonia hiemalis 'Carneval orange/yellow'

One thing I could not find was pineapple sage. Disappointed. Stuckey's has a second greenhouse on the other side of town, so I may give that a try.

Despite the weather, I managed to get the ninebark into the ground as well as the clematis. The trailing snapdragon is nestled into a pot with 'Cat's Pajamas' catmint which blooms only in the spring. I had plans to work in the yard all weekend, but it's raining. Again.

We came, we saw, we bought... plants

My daughter and I took a trip to Hicksville, OH, to check out the plants at Strait Gate Greenhouses. Rumor has it that their prices are better than around here; see comments below. They had a LOT to choose from, too.

I have not been happy with the aster by the front walk, wanted to replace it with something. I considered a fancy redbud, but visually another tree does not fit there. Then I got hot 'n bothered to put a Rose of Sharon there ('Aphrodite' which does not reseed itself), but I think something yellow would work better. And voila - a 'Lemony Lace' elderberry came home with me.

Sambucus racemosa 'Lemony Lace' (cultivar SMNSRD4)

Some of you may remember that I planted one of these in front of the picture window back in 2017. It's a good plant, but it was a bad location. And most plants deserve a second chance. (I notice that the price on this specimen is less than the price of the one in 2017. Score!)

Some plants deserve a third chance, like the ninebark. Instead of trying to find the same variety, I went with two of these 'Ginger Wine' ones. The price is less than half of what I paid for the 'Amber Jubilee' they are replacing. Another score!

Physocarpus opulifolius 'Ginger Wine'

One plant that has had its second chance is a Canadian hemlock that has been replaced once. In its place will go this 'Fluffy' western arborvitae. I had planned to find another big gold mop like I had in the front yard, but I think this one will do nicely. I might have found it cheaper elsewhere.

Thuja plicata 'SMNTPGF' 

I keep trying to find something that will thrive on the trellis by the front porch, despite the lack of sun in that location. Against my better judgment, I selected this 'Happy Jack' purple clematis. We shall see. Another bargain.

Clematis 'Zojapur'

I have tried petunias and sweet potato vine in the hanging basket on the shed in the past, decided to try something different, like these portulacas. It's a tough location, on the north side of the building, but midsummer sun still reaches it. We'll see how well they do.

Portulaca grandiflora

Coleus for the planter on the front porch has been an annual success story, so why mess with what works. This is ChargedUp Campfire.

Coleus scutellarioides

I've seen lantana growing in containers here and there and admired it. Now I have one, 'Hot Blooded Red'.

Lantana camara 'Hot Blooded'

An impulse purchase was a trailing snapdragon, something I had never seen. I considered putting it in the flamingo planter, but decided I still want to try a tuberous begonia there. The snapdragon will summer on the deck instead.

Asarina procumbens

And that's all for now. My schedule this week is tight, but maybe I can get a few plants in the ground each day. Step by step, hole by hole, slow and steady, etc. If it weren't for gardening, how would we make it through the winter?

I frequently hear bird strikes against my windows but rarely find any dead birds in the yard. Sadly, a white crown sparrow met its demise last week. I thought the mallards in this pic were dead, but they were just keeping a low profile.

My daughter, son, and daughter-in-law all have birthdays this month. We will celebrate with birthday pie tomorrow. Rhubarb, of course.

Have a happy Mother's Day!

A year for dandelions

The dandelions are rampant this year. Untreated yards and roadways are full, full, full. It's a rather stunning vista. My yard is treated, so weedfree, but I've been digging them out of the flower beds and rain garden. Ugh.

Last week I forgot to mention that I attended an Earth Day event where two local nurseries were selling natives: Riverview Nursery and Chapman Lake Nursery.
From the former I purchased three culvers root, 3 rattlesnake master, and one spiderwort, and from the latter three common ironweed, three swamp milkweed, and three dense blazing star.

The four Aronia Low Scape Mound chokeberry shrubs, also in the above photo, arrived from Bluestone Perennials. So now I have some planting to do.

I also have some mowing to do. It keeps raining, which means twice-weekly mows. The temps are going to be low this week, which I don't mind as it keeps the spring flowers blooming longer.

On the birding front, a white crowned sparrow hung out with the locals under the millet feeder this past week. They don't summer here, so I don't expect it to stay. A pair of bluebirds are busy with their nest building. I hear wrens but am not sure if they have taken over the wren houses yet.

Around the yard... what I thought might be a mullen patch turned out to be dame's rocket, an invasive that I don't mind as it seems to just come and go with no rhyme or reason.

I severely whacked back one honeysuckle vine that was threatening to run rampant, then wondered if it would recover, and it is. So is the tree that has been growing up through it, but its days are numbered.

After several relocations and not enough sun, the rhubarb "patch" is finally getting established, just in time for pie season. My SO dug up a neighboring goldenrod clump to call his own, which helps with the sunshine issue.

I usually drag planters into the garage over the winter, but just didn't feel like it last fall. The catmint survived despite the frigid temps, so I repotted it (and will take better care of it going forward).

Out of the twelve coneflower cultivars I planted in the bed along the front sidewalk, only one survived the winter - lesson learned. Two ninebark shrubs are dead, dead, dead, along with one of the Canadian hemlocks. I'll give the ninebarks another chance, but that hemlock has already been replaced once, so a gold mop will go there. Some of the winterberry shrubs look peaked, but we'll see how they do. Otherwise, things look hale and hearty. Fingers crossed!

A butterfly!

The past few years I have complained bitterly about the lack of butterflies in my yard. So imagine my surprise when I found this guy in the shed. I managed to get it outside to a location under the spice bush. Later it was gone, hopefully under its own power and not inside the tummy of a bird.

I've been unimpressed by the blue star in the front yard, but this year it is really making an effort. You can find more info about this native plant here.

It makes a nice backdrop to the ragwort.

More spring beauties are popping.

I've been considering eliminating the aster in the front yard, but what to put there in its place? How about a ‘Rising Sun’ redbud? I just learned there is such a thing, and it sounds like a beauty. It's going on my wish list.

Pinks!

My love affair with redbud trees started with our first house. A family friend gifted us with several redbud starts from her yard. Having grown up in a Chicago suburb with elm-lined streets and during a time people spent little effort on their yards beyond some foundation shrubs and the lawn, I had never heard of redbuds. But now, if I ruled the world, every yard would sport a redbud tree.

Another pink I look forward to each spring is bleeding heart.

And close on the heels of the redbud is the flowering crab.

I would like to add some pink hyacinth to the front yard as well, because one can never have too many pinks in the spring.

It keeps raining and I keep mowing, grateful for my zero-turn riding mower. My next door neighbor has been using a battery-powered mower this year, but runs out of power several times before finishing. That would annoy me.

Yesterday, while handweeding the beds in the front yard, I wondered just how long I can keep up with the yard upkeep. Today I am a bit sore from bending and stretching and my hands ache, but so far, so good.