Newest entries at the bottom.
They are in chronological order.
| July
11, 2000
Weather: Hot and Humid high of 96° predicted Supposed to cool into the 80's for the rest of the week Stuart has been a very busy person out in the yard during my recuperation from the surgery. With the biggest being the new large perennial bed on the east side of the property. The list that I had from
June:
3 Peonies that had no tags
so I'm not sure of the colors (2'
to 3')
From Lowes in Smithfield: 1 Caryopteris 'Heavenly Blue'
(5' to 7')
Has been added to. I moved the Crinum Lilies to this bed that I received in a trade. I also moved a rose bush that I believe is the Reines des Violette and a Tinus viburnum 'Spring Bouquet' to this bed. I bought from Jernigans in Dunn: a Grey Santolina and a Foxglove for the bed. On another trip to Lowe's this past weekend I picked up: Sedum
'Matrona' for the Perennial Bed
The Sedum is one that I have wanted for awhile now and I snapped it up as soon as I saw it since there were only one or two left. The Hellebore I got for the shade corner by the front steps. I also had two Lily of The Valley's that I got from Jernigan's and had Stuart plant those behind the pond. The
Viburnum tinus used to be in the shade corner but it was just taking up
too much space so I had Stuart move it and put in an American Boxwood in
its place.
July
17, 2000
Life has been not cooperating with me lately, especially when it comes to updating this. The 'Herbstonne' Rudbeckia is a sight to behold right now. One clump towers over Stuart's head at more than 6'. The 'Henryi' Clematis is still putting out solitary blooms. My 'David' Phlox is no more due to an accident with an electrical power cord. I don't think the rose bush that I had Stuart dig up and move is going to make it but the Tinus is doing fabulous. Stuart added a birdhouse and a fence, made from 150 year old wood that came from his Aunt Elise and Uncle Damal's barns, to the large perennial bed. It completely ties in the entire back yard. The Goldfish that he bought for his pond are still alive and kicking. Even though Mike's dogs keep trying to bath in the pond. I bought a Santolina and a Foxglove for the perennial bed.
July 19, 2000 Weather: Hot and Humid high of 92° predicted At only 8:30 a.m. the humidity is at 77% This is the time of year that I start to feel defeated by the heat and humidity outside....the time of year that I tend to want the plants to do it themselves. Which can't happen. later.... The Vegetable garden is still growing veggies. It isn't MY garden but my in-laws. D. works his tail off out there and always has a good harvest. I noticed teeny green seedlings coming up in an area he had just plowed under a few weeks ago so I know he is still going strong on that. His watermelons are HUGE now and he has two different varieties out there...one is seedless I think. .... I'm so mountain-sick I can't stand it. I can't wait until we get a reliable vehicle so I can go to the mountains. I miss that ferny/mossy/foresty smell so much. Since I've been reading every single archived update of The Compost Heap, I've taken to actually LISTENING when I'm outside. She talks so much about birds
that it shows me just how lacking my area is in that respect. Maybe when
my trees get larger and more full I'll hear more bird song.
July
20, 2000
I think it was about this time last year that I was cleaning dead fish out of sprinkler heads. I'm so glad that doesn't fall under my new job description. I detest the smell of raw fish. I could never be a sushi eater. The last of the daylilies are blooming. I'm grateful that there are any considering how early they started blooming this year. I thought for sure they were going to wear themselves out by the second week of July. The fall catalogs have been pouring in and I'm trying desperately to ignore the things. I would so love to have an Allium collection though. I have started two other collections: Rudbeckia's and Sedum's. I have three different Rudbeckia's and 4 different Sedum's. I think having a collection of one plant will be fun. Instead of my regular hodge podge habits. I am also very interested in some Echinops and Alliums. My Mme. Isaac Rose is so very bedraggled and trying to recover from the onslaught of Japanese Beetles we had this year. A bit of interest: In the two large plastic terra cotta containers I have out by the front steps I planted two different combinations. In the first: 'Wilhelm Languth' Geraniums and some 4 o'clocks which ended up being white. In the second: Angelonia and some 4 o'clocks which ended up being the hot pink ones. The beetles were all over the first container but didn't even look at the container with the Angelonia planted in it. Coincidence? ...... The Italian Parsley that I planted as an afterthought, along with some fennel, is doing quite well even with the caterpillars snacking away. My Herb Bed is starting to get carried away with the weeds again. It is a bit hard for me to bend at the waist still which means that I certainly can't sit down and weed with Erica running around. I'd have to be standing up every 6 seconds to chase after her and my strength isn't sufficiently recovered for THAT just yet. Hopefully soon. ... Stuart and I went out at mindnight the other night to cut off the seed pods of the Crape Myrtles. The branches were sagging and I wanted to see if we could get one more bloom from them.
July
23, 2000
It was a nice day outside yesterday. When I woke up in the morning there were still pieces of wispy white fog floating through the trees and above the ground. I knew just by looking out the wndow that it was cool and nice outside. A perfect day to begin my foray back to healthiness. Someitmes you can be fooled by the southern weather; you look out the window and it LOOKS cool outside but as soon as you step out the door you are covered with the blanket of heat. But I knew when I walked outside I wouldn't be fooled today. And I wasn't. Stuart had gone out early in the morning to help his Dad take a lawnmower apart and then I had to run Mikey to town for a start on some school clothes and when I got back, Stuart went to a different town to get some hardware: a mini blind for the one widow that doesn't have one and some motion sensitive flood lights for the back part of the house. So I didn't get a chance to get out until evening but it was worth it. It was proably no hotter than 72 degrees. I wanted to cut back some plants and fertilize and just generally clean up the front . So I cut off the Bleeding Heart that was so crappy looking that I woulcn't take looking at it one second longer. I trimmed off the top of the Boxwood so that it would be a bit more uniform. I watered all the containers , pinched back the Basil that is trying to go to seed on me, cut back the White 4 O'clocks and dead headed the Geranium. Dead heading is the process of clipping off the dead blooms and old leaves. Such a small effort with huge results. I don't know if you are supposed to cut back 4 o'clock but the tops were so ragged from the Japanese Beetles that I just had to. I did collect the seeds that had been made so I have more for next year or to give to someone. The Pink 4 O'clocks hadn't produced but 3 weensy seeds yet but I got those too and have them all tucked in their respective ziploc bags. I fertilized both the large terra containers. .... I pressed the flowers from Stuart's Gramma's funeral in the same books that I put my Gram's funeral flowers in 3 years ago. The big thick books have been sitting quietly under my desk, not forgotten but not ready either. So when Erica was down for a nap, I gathered the flowers to be pressed and pulled out the books. I pulled open the napkins and there were Roses and some Baby's Breath and some Daisies and Lavendar. Her best friend Emma Jean had brought a simple bouquet of Daisies and Lavendar because Daisies were my Gram's most favorite flower. They had pressed well. I am going to do something decoupage with them. I'm not sure just what though. Any ideas? So I pressed Stuart's Gramma's funeral flowers. ... I'm still trying to get Stuart motivated enough to build me a compost bin. He can't stand just throwing something together. It has to be done with brand new wood and brand new hinges and evertyhging just SO. It drives me crazy. If I were able to brandish some post hole diggers *I* would be out there. THAT would gethim out there in 2 seconds flat. I was digging up a small clump of daylilies the other day to send out for afew trades and he was having a fit. "Here. Give me the shovel. You don't know what you're doing." Oh hoho! me find fellow. You better back off before you get a shovel across the head for yer troubles. I can wield a bushax and a shovel and I don't need you to help me. I am not some helpless female but you sure are trying to make sure I am. He means well I know but I have to start doing things again for myself. I used to have the stamina of a bull (okay maybe not a bull but something) : working 45-50 hour work weeks, 5 days a week outside in 100degree heat or 30 degree cold. I can't believe how much I've lost to that stupid surgery.
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The Garden Side has been growing since July 16th, 1999