Hurrah!

With only two days left in May, it finally warmed up enough today that I was able to spend the afternoon in the garden. I poked some bedding plants in -- some white geraniums, another small yellow dahlia and a lantana. I moved some pinks to a south corner and put my favorite osteospermum (white petals with blue centers) behind them. I added some more pink somethings to the front of the east side of the flower bed and then cleaned the weeds out of the peony row.

After I had finished in my yard, I went to spend a few hours at the greenhouse where I work part-time. We enjoyed two hours of sunshine and extreme busyness and then enormous gray clouds gathered in the western sky, the wind started to blow, and it started to rain -- really rain -- hard pounding what's happening to my baby plants rain. We stood and watched the rain pound until it changed to hail. One lousy warm day and we get hail!!! There I was at work and could only worry about my babies. Of course those storms don't usually last very long, and 15 or 20 minutes later it was done.

Phil was a sweetheart and came to pick me up since I had walked to work and didn't want to get too wet walking home again. And I learned that although it had poured and hailed on the north side of town, it had only sprinkled a little on my new flowers. The pounding rain and hail had stopped two blocks from our house. Hurrah.

Still Waiting....

Well luckily nothing was frosty this morning when I went outside. I uncovered my dahlias and some other tender babies, set out a few potted plants I had carried carefully inside, and gave everything a drink. Still, it didn't get very warm today. I think we maxed out at 50-odd degrees and by now it's already below 40. Phil promises me it's supposed to warm up tomorrow, so maybe then I'll be able to put a few more bedding plants in the ground.

I'd like to put some catmint around my new climbing rose, a Don Juan that was a Mother's Day present. Then I'll tuck some chocolate mint into the pots with my little dahlias and geraniums. I love the way it smells (just like chocolate and mint) and the kids enjoy tasting little bits of it and feeding it to their friends.

Other newcomers I'm trying this summer are angel's trumpets, four o'clocks and morning glories along the north fence. My plan is for the morning glories to open up and smell sweet in the morning, followed by the four o'clocks, with the angel's trumpets covering the evening shift. Pictures and descriptions of my success -- or lack thereof -- will follow in a month or so.

Now, one more night of tucking my flowers in and we'll see if tomorrow brings a little more sunshine.

Later,
b

Welcome Spring?

The official beginning of spring in ND is this weekend - the Memorial Day weekend is traditionally our first chance for camping and the optimal time to put in our gardens and start enjoying the weather. After three days of rain and cold, cold wind, today actually got all the way up to 53 degrees on the thermometer and when I was working in the south flower bed I didn't really need my sweater.

Need I say more?

ND is not Eden.

I've started this blog hoping to keep track of what I do in the garden this year, what works, what doesn't, and what I cook from Phil's garden. I do the flowers, he does the veggies, and it works beautifully.

So today I did put the dinner plate dahlias out along the south side of the house and surrounded them with pansies and violas. I guess we'll see since they're new for me this year. I put a new climbing rose on the east side of the house and some smaller dahlias and a lantana in the planter box by the front door. I'll post pictures when that becomes a possibility.

Now I have to take a break from the computer and go cover my babies for tonight. It's supposed to get close to freezing and there's a frost warning for the county. Lovely.

Later,
b