Long time no see! I’ve been pretty disconnected from politics ever since I left Twitter, and weighing in on any of the threads here has just felt like a heavy lift. Been working a lot, writing/programming a lot on the video game (website btw, more on that soon), house stuff, travel (nowhere exciting). You know how it goes.
But, I have been meaning to drop a note about my garden, so, here it is! For all pictures, click to embiggen; the small versions are a little blurry. I’ll start you off with a picture of these lovely irises that TaMara gave me last fall:
When we bought this house, it was just surrounded by a dirt lot. The builders put some low-maintenance stuff out front, but the rest has been up to us, which is to say, up to me. I’ve been throwing stuff at the proverbial wall to see what sticks. It’s been pretty tricky—we get a crazy amount of sun in a lot of places, even on the narrow strip between houses because of the way we’re facing, and I’ve been avoiding bluegrass, because it’s boring and so thirsty. So I’ve been shotgunning ground covers around. The creeping thyme and sweet woodruff have been big successes; the phlox isn’t creeping like I’d like it to, though it still has lovely flowers in early spring. So this year, I planted a bunch more thyme, and phlox, and some strawberries for good measure. Hopefully I’ll have a nice jungle going on in the back by this time next year.
I have had pretty good success with my roses. They didn’t do so hot last year, but I did plant them in June, which is not ideal. This year, though, my hybrid tea and top gun roses are looking great. I have a floribunda that’s underperforming–thrips, I realized. Trying to get rid of them. I also planted some columbines this year. Wasn’t expecting any blooms, but it looks like they managed to get one out. Er, ignore the bugs… still figuring everything out!
For the remaining unmulched dirt, I sort of just gave up and bought a kilo of wild grass seeds last time I was at the garden center. It’s coming in patchy, but that’s a lot better than nothing, or more mulch! I also tossed wildflower seeds in some of the bare strips, which are coming in and should actually bloom next year.
And then there’s the veggie garden. I decided to try doing everything from seed, which was a real crash course in… everything… I got four good tomato plants out of it, and several pepper varieties from Matt’s Peppers (it looks like the Purple Naga is going to be doing the best; hopefully the one Carolina Reaper I got to sprout will bear fruit). Also some giant “Megaton” cabbage that I’m very excited for.
Oh, and we’re growing corn out front (“glass gem” variety), because there’s nothing in the rules that says we can’t.
It’s not much to look at from this angle, but it’s coming in, and more importantly, I’m proud of what I’ve managed to do with a pile of dirt and some elbow grease!
Finally, some wildlife pics. Obligatory cats, who are getting on a bit better:
And, we had a family of great horned owls in a nearby tree! The two weeks when the wee ones were out on the branches were delightful.
karen marie
Oooh! If you’re looking for some lovely flowering shrubs, you can’t do better (imo) than spirea. I love them.
This article gives a better idea of the varieties. When I had my garden in Boston, I had five or six varieties.
They don’t get tall enough to block a view – I think the tallest any of mine got was just under four feet but they can get pretty wide, especially the bridal wreath.
Major Major Major Major
@karen marie: the builders put four out front, big fan!
karen marie
@Major Major Major Major: Good! Get more! They come in such a variety.
Major Major Major Major
@karen marie: I’m also going to start replacing our turf grass out front with other stuff. This fall I’m going to put in some giant Ravenna grass my dad wants to get rid of.
Baud
Good to see you.
karen marie
@Major Major Major Major: I don’t know – that stuff is BIG. Plus, Washington State classifies it as a “noxious weed.” Your neighbors may not be delighted.
Listen to your father. He’s getting rid of it. Hahaha.
MagdaInBlack
OMG the owls ❤️ How fun to be able to watch the babies !
Major Major Major Major
@karen marie: he’s getting rid of it because it’s along the driveway and makes it hard to open the car door, otherwise he loves it! There’s actually quite a bit around the neighborhood, just not on our street. Plus I’ll already be the Corn House by then
Major Major Major Major
@Baud: ❤️
NotMax
Something in the neighborhood came into bloom. Eyes and nose running like nobody’s business this afternoon.
HumboldtBlue
The landlord had to replace a large sewer pipe that runs from my apartment out to the street where it connects to the city. That meant the front yard got torn up during the work, and I am currently trying to fix the damage. Landlord wanted grass seed put back down, so the lawn guy did that, and I said I would handle the watering and such to get the regrowth started.
I also tossed down a package of wildflower seeds near the rhody bush that sits at the corner of the alley and sidewalk, so hopefully we get some lovely color once they get going. The grass seed was put down a week ago and is starting to sprout, but I worry that maybe the pigeons got the wildflower seeds, I came out earlier this week, and they were pecking around right in the area I threw the seeds down, so we’ll see what comes from that.
CaseyL
You’ve packed a lot into what looks like a smallish space, surrounded by tall buildings, no less!
It’s true, gardens can look a little sad when they’re brand new – but you should get a lot of tomatoes this year, and peppers, and by next year the space will look lush and abundant.
NotMax
FYI.
pieceofpeace
Love those owlies/fledgings!
geg6
The saga of the AC continues. A new unit was installed but was not putting out much, if any cold air. We let it run a while in case the heat of the last week or so delayed the cold air but it didn’t seem to get better. So we went around to all the cold air returns and nothing. He had gotten here around 5 and it was now about 7:30. He had to go into the attic!! It had to be boiling up there but he searched around and found that whoever had put the original unit in had not hooked up a cold air return and where it had been was just stuffed full of insulation and broken. So he pulled that out and some cold air started coming through. He didn’t leave until about 9 pm. He said he’d be coming back to fix that but couldn’t do it in the attic until the weather had moderated a bit so he could spend some time in the attic without getting heat stroke or dying. So we have some relief. Not enough but it’s better than it was.
geg6
@geg6:
Ugh. Wrong thread. Will copy and paste my reply to Cole.
Major Major Major Major
@CaseyL: thanks! Yeah, if the thyme works as well as it did last year it should look a lot lusher. I’m theoretically almost out of space, but still waiting for everything to mature! That blue spruce alone I need a five foot radius for.
raven
It’s been almost a decade since this big dude got caught out in the daylight and was subject to “mobbing” by other birds. Note how the feathers on it’s head were pecked off and then check the claws!
Kayla Rudbek
I like the plants, M^4!
Still cranking away on the shawl 27/30 clues done, and I need an extra pair of hands so I can knit and surf the web at the same time. Thank you very much to the recommender of the gel manicure. Now maybe my right thumbnail can grow back properly without splitting vertically. The one icky work project is done, the next one can wait until next week.
I still want to pick a dead easy, TV-watching level project for embroidery/cross-stitch. Or get the loom properly warped up, as weaving is less heavy than the knitting would be.
Cathie from Canada
Canadian author Farley Mowat wrote a book about the owls he had as a boy here in Saskatoon during the 1930s – Owls in the Family. His description of going on holidays with his parents, his dog Mutt and his two owls Wol and Weeps is priceless.
CaseyL
@Major Major Major Major:
It…it’s… not going to be too close to the house, is it?
Geminid
@Major Major Major Major: That’s some nice work. If you have clear skies tonight ypu can see what it looks like under a full moon. This one’s the Strawberry Moon.
Major Major Major Major
@CaseyL: haha, no it’s all good I measured carefully and it’s a dwarf!
prostratedragon
The difference between dogs and cats, in about a minute.
Major Major Major Major
@Geminid: cloudy…
eclare
@prostratedragon:
Hahaha…that poor kitty!
NotMax
@prostratedragon
Covered in passing (4:38 – 5:34) in Why Some Animals Can’t be Domesticated.
;)
HumboldtBlue
@prostratedragon:
Just a few clips down…
HumboldtBlue
@NotMax:
If you right-click on the red button on the video player, a dropdown appears, and you can choose to copy video url at the current time.
eclare
@HumboldtBlue:
Awesome!
NotMax
@HumboldtBlue
Well aware of that (have done so dozens of time right here) but the whole video serves to put that portion in context. Besides, it’s a fun watch.
prostratedragon
@HumboldtBlue: 😁😁!
That guy is brilliant. Plus, I imagine people send him great video.
HumboldtBlue
@NotMax:
Ain’t nobody got time for that! We’re an instant society!
@prostratedragon:
Such a funny guy.
eclare
Watching Office Space here for the 1000th time, but it’s so funny. I guess I’m out of ideas.
opiejeanne
@Major Major Major Major: It’s been so long! Great to see you, and I’ve been wondering about you just this week, and it looks like you’re having fun exploring gardening.
Who is the darling orange kitty?
rikyrah
@geg6:
Glad that you are getting relief
Barbara
Visit local public gardens and find local gardening or native plant groups. I also look at catalogs for ideas about plant combinations. Also, consider pots for narrow spaces.
I have a small space where I planted some dwarf Alberta spruce, surrounded by dwarf hollies and a few other small, native varietals. I’m going to plant bulbs to get some spring color.
The spruce really anchor the space and are slow growing — 4 feet circumference at their largest.
Miss Bianca
@Cathie from Canada: I loved that book! I had it when I was a kid. Wol and Weeps! It made me a Farley Mowat fan for sure.
(And for sheer howling LOL, nothing beats “The Boat That Wouldn’t Float”.)
Major Major Major Major
@opiejeanne: that’s Momo! Check my archive for some other posts about her. She’s coming up on two years old.
Manyakitty
@Kayla Rudbek: late to the thread, but in case you see this, I recommended the gel manicure. Glad it’s working out for you!