This lot is a huge gardeners delight. So far I have a little orchard started with 7 fruit trees, the bird sanctuary, doggie yard that also houses the firewood, gooseberry bushes and a flower garden. Then there is the rock garden with mostly shade plants and a big old tree, 3 more flower gardens and the small greenhouse. I have to scrape and paint a small picket fence and arbor and 4 wooden benches. My project is beginning to show some shape and I'm as happy as a pig in mud. Oh, I started a little Aspen grove in case this project gives me a headache. Ha Native Americans would rest in an Aspen grove and let the rustle of the leaves cure their headache. That is where the word aspirin comes from. Oh, the very, very best thing....... the dirt is deep black and alive with earth worms. If I happen to spade up a worm, I gently put it back into the soil. (More worms, Pat....nyuk nyuk)
Anyone like gardening as much as I do????????
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| I admired each red juicy berry as I dropped it in the basket |
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| Cody watches the berries and keeps the magpies away |
haha worms all around you
ReplyDeleteEven digging them up at your zoo
And going right to town
Deserve a gardening crown
I like to look
But not do at my nook
I'll guard with Cody there
And pig in mud is said at my lair
Except I swear
Mud to you know with my blare
Do worms have a face
DeleteCan they make it to first base?
In winter how do they stay warm
Do they drink water, is it the norm?
I've heard these questions long ago
Are worms our friends or maybe foe?
Kids ask these questions when we dig
In our gardens like a little pig.
There is always work when you grow things but the joy is in the tending and the harvest.
ReplyDeleteGail
DeleteYes then all the hard work is pure joy.
Too much work for this lazy old broad!!
ReplyDeleteThat lazy old broad just has other interests.... painting, writing books, designing. I don't call that very lazy.
DeleteI would say that I am slowly learning to appreciate gardening. It is so hot here in FLA that the hours for gardening are limited. It is just too darn hot most of the day to really dig in. I plant to do some fall planting and really get a better start next spring (now that I am feeling a bit better).
ReplyDeleteI answered your Lucinda Williams question in yesterday's post, Show and Tell. I hope that it helps and maybe you will see the resemblance...
Thanks Robin
DeleteI get so into the gardening, I forget to come in the house and sit at the computer. When we lived in Florida I didn't garden either. Too hot. That is when I was lallygagg'n around because I missed gardening and my dear husband told me to go up to Montana and find a summer place for us.... a place where he could fish and go to AAA ball games and with a yard for me to garden. That is when I found the little old house that I live in now. It is a real dump as a house but it had the essentials that we were looking for.
Thanks, I'll be over and take a peek.
All that hard work reaps some awesome rewards I'd imagine. Cody looks like he's keeping watch LOL.
ReplyDeleteCody hates those big ole birds as much as I do. I wish they'd go out on the highway and eat their roadkill.
DeleteFor real, that's where 'aspirin' comes from? I am going to sound so very smart at the next family get-together.
ReplyDeleteAnnoying, too, but I'm used to that.
Al
DeleteYup, so I'm told or so I read. They call them quaking aspen as the leaves quiver and shake in a breeze. It is really a comforting sound. I always plant a little aspen grove where ever I live. They are a fast growing tree and many people hate them because they send up suckers all over the lawn but I just let the new trees grow into a grove.... well, up to a point, that is. Then I either pulll them or cut off with the mower. I'm always pulling weeds in the summer.
I bet you really entertain your family.
Gardening is not easy. It was a lot of work and the apple trees have a disease, the squirrels ate the peaches and nectarines right off the tree ( I didn't have the heart to shoo them away), the volume was disappointing for tomatoes, bell peppers, string beans and beets. Snow peas did good though. But it is a good feeling to look at all the greenery.
ReplyDeleteAnthony, you are back. Good to hear from you again. Boy, you had tough luck with your vegetables. I planted mostly perennial flowers this year as I wanted to get them started. I did some beets, beans, and peas in the green house earlier. I always have salad makings growing and there are peppers and tomatoes now too. I also plant tomatoes outside. I had meant to plant a lot of veggies so I could dehydrate them but it didn't turn out that way.
DeleteYou are so inspiring...but first, I'll start walking!!!
ReplyDeleteturquoisemoon
DeleteYou are so funny. Now you really want to get that walking started. Ha.
You are so blessed to have dirt and earthworms! We'd be ever so grateful for rain... four years and counting. I love that the word aspirin comes from aspen.
ReplyDeleteBish
DeleteI thought this would be another dry year for us, too. We had quite a bit of rain in the early spring but I think that was "it" for the season. It's now hot and dry like the past 2 years have been. I hope you get some rain soon, too. 4 years is enough to produce another dust bowl.
I really do appreciate worms in the soil. Those little guys really mulch it up and makes for easy planting.
Well at least the shrub paid you for your labor in a pile of berries. Good job Cody.
ReplyDeleteYou really have tackled a lot but have great plans.
Patti
DeleteThose old over-grown bushes can prove to be a challenge, can't they? I still have 2 more big ones to tackle. When left unattended, they get so much mulch around the base that I doubt if the water can ever get to the roots. They look so much better too when they are trimmed. Have you ever tried topiary pruning? I've tried it but just made a big mess.
I would love to try your wine!! Worms, worms and more worms. I have a lot of those in my garden too.... among other places I won't mention. Pat knows where.
ReplyDeleteTerry,
DeleteHahaha we know where all the worms are or rather have been. Are you back home now? Missed your witty sayings. I make wine with all the berries that grow around here. I just have a thimble full to taste it but there are others in the family who kinda like to guzzle it. Ha I just put the berries in a crock and mashed them. I add some raw sugar and yeast and let it ferment. I'm letting the elderberries grow up again. The berries really make good wine. I keep cutting them down but once planted, you can never get rid of them.
I am back home and now doing Laundry, laundry and more laundry.
Deletethose are the kind of berries I need, ones I can't kill.
I used to love to garden in the rich black earth of Maryland. Here, our yard is predominantly clay and granite, so gardening is a bit more of a challenge than I care to meet. However, with all the rain we've had this year, everything is as lush and green as a rain forest, and our tomato plants are as tall as I am. Getting a TON of tomatoes this year.
ReplyDeleteWOW..... Record tomatoes. When I was at my son's in Bozeman, I liked to walk the neighborhood and look at the gardens. Some of the tomatoes were that high too. Mine are still wimps but I had a late start planting the seeds this year. What do you do with the tomatoes, do you make sauce or can them or dehydrate them? Summer is too short here. Seems like I just get going and it's frost time again.
ReplyDeleteClay and granite ....that is hard to work with for sure. That is what I had at the ranch and I'm happy to be away from that. I use the "Clay Buster" by what's the name? Something like Echo.
You are getting all that rain and they are still crying for rain in parts of Texas. The greenery is so pretty when it rains a lot.
I've spent summers in the past canning tomatoes, tomato sauce, pasta sauce, chili sauce, you name it... but not this year. I don't want to mess with all that any more. So I've been giving a ton of tomatoes away.
Deletei'll be right over just to EAT them!
ReplyDeleteTammy
DeleteIf you wait for the wine, it's even better. Ha
It sounds as if you're having as much fun as I did when I moved into a yard with deep near-black soil and thousands of worms(years ago). I planted, harvested, ate...it was wonderful. The fruit trees and grapevines were already there. It was heaven! Rented heaven, but still heaven.
ReplyDeleteRiver
DeleteWOW-Wee
That sounds like my kind of place too. And the plants were already there and you didn't have to wait a year or so for them to mature. Too bad you had move from that spot.
A watchful eye you have there as a helper
ReplyDeleteJohn
DeleteCody is my ever faithful helper. (Except when she sees a squirrel)
I like your berry guard. :) I like your picture on the banner too (if I've already said that, never mind me, I've thought it but can't remember if I told you).
ReplyDeleteGlad your gardening is taking shape. This year is my first year doing such things (and I have little projects going on, nothing extensive while I get a feel for it). So far, I'm loving it, even the mowing, weed eating, etc.!!! It's peaceful being outside, and awesome to see things growing that you put there. :)
Rosey
DeleteI'm happy for you and your new found love of the outdoors and gardening. You said it all. It's the most peaceful hobby I can think of. And you are teaching your kids to respect the soil too. I've had my own little garden since I was 2 years old. I can never remember not looking forward to spring and planting season.
Your yard sounds lovely! I have always wanted a yard like that.
ReplyDeletetm
Wife
DeleteI saw some pictures of your yard. I thought you had a well thought-out yard. I remember the gate your husband made for you.
Hi Manzanita .. Magpies .. say no more.
ReplyDeleteThe Juneberries look just wonderful - your husbandry is exemplary ..
Cheers Hilary
Hilary
DeleteThanks. It's the thing I enjoy most, perhaps next to dancing.
Haha
Wow. What a rewarding experience. Congratulations, Manzanita! I'd love to try those berries...
ReplyDeleteThe berries are a lovely treat. The bush WAS large so that basket was full by the time I had finished. After all the removal of dead wood and pruning, it is now a rather small bush but water will reach the roots faster now. The wine is on it's way to fermentation.
DeleteShould be on one of those home reno shows
ReplyDeleteHoly Ghost
DeleteHey great but I don't know what a home reno show is.
Just how large is your property?! Love the produce you gather.
ReplyDeleteSusan
DeleteIt's in the city and considered a "lot,"I guess..... but the house is old, old old. There is a log cabin under the house structure (they just built over it) and the cabin dates back to just after gold was discovered here about 1865. (When the civil was was also going on) When the streets were platted, this house and the one next door (that had been the bunk house) did not fit into the regulation size lot so they were grandfathered in as much larger lots. Not acres but just bigger and a handful for an old lady to keep up. (but the old lady loves it and will try to keep it up as long as she can). Already it is rewarding as people walk by and comment that I'm doing a good job of "bringing the old place back to life." Ha
The place had been a run-down rental when I bought it about 25 years ago. At that time I planted a lot of fruit trees and bushes and that is what I'm try to save.... and adding on to them. When the flowers get more mature, I want bees.
And Manzanita, here I am to now comment on this posting. I'm definitely in for bonus points. Blurry-eyed and now almost four in the morning, I attempt to comment before I do something weird like sleep.
ReplyDeleteI'm in a bit of a jam trying to think of something to type. So I will just say this was a berry good posting.
Goodnight! :)
Gary.....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....
Gary,
DeleteThank you for letting me know you were here. Nothing more to say. I hope you enjoyed your sleep. Why up at 4 AM? I was the other night also. I was thirsty and reached for a glass of water by my bed and spilled the whole thing on me and the bed. It was cold. I had to get up and change everything. I know how bed-wetters must feel. LOL
That looks so wonderful. I've always wanted a Juneberry bush but couldn't find one at the stores. I wasn't sure you could eat the berries. Actually I've seen service berries in our area, but I never saw the fruit.
ReplyDeleteKay
DeleteI don't know if there is a definite difference between Juneberry and Serviceberry because all the books list them together and of course I don't recall the botanical name. But, the berries are delicious.... so sweet. I guess they make wonderful jam too, although I usually make wine. I have 2 more smaller bushes that were volunteers but they are NOT a shrub where bothersome suckers are coming up all the time.
Manzanita, I've got a little something for you on my blog! :)
ReplyDeleteBish
DeleteI congratulate you, my beautiful Caribbean lady, on your windfall of winnings that you so richly deserve. Thank you for including my name in your sisterhood. I feel honored.
You sound like you have a small farm, I would love that I only have a regular backyard but would like more room for fruit trees but no I filled it up so no room.
ReplyDeleteMerle........
Merle
DeleteThank you for visiting and your gracious comment.
No, I did just move into town from a small ranch. Although it's a town lot, it's way oversize because the house is old, old, old and was here before the platting happened. It is a good size to work with but almost too much for one who is getting older. Perhaps you could squeeze in a couple of the dwarf fruit trees. I love the pictures of the gorgeous yards that are mostly flowers and beautiful shrubbery but I know they are attended by professional gardening crews and it is almost too much for one person to do.
I probably like gardening as much, but I just can't do it as well. However, my trees and plants and things without fruit on them are coming along. I wonder if a fish will bite a Serviceberry?
ReplyDeleteJJ
DeleteI didn't garden when we lived in Florida, mainly because we lived in a condo and it was too hot. I can take the cold a lot better than heat. Everything is so green year around in Florida.
Sounds wonderful. I'd love to taste that wine!
ReplyDeleteDenise
DeleteI hope it turns out. I usually let it age a long time and then we'll see.
Thank you for visiting and leaving a nice comment.
Cute post. Aspen trees do have a soothing sound as the wind rustles through their leaves and branches. Enjoy the wine!
ReplyDeleteDear Mary
DeleteThanks. Nice to see you again. I always feel close to Minnesota again when I talk to you. Yes, love the aspens and their comforting rustle.
They look yum,
ReplyDeleteI am sure the wine is going to taste heavenly!
Goku
DeleteThanks for visiting. I don't really drink any alcohol but I just have a thimble-full when it is done so I know how it tastes.