A Breather

Work has been so busy of late that gardening has had to take a back seat. Of course, the busy seasons overlap! Watering must go on, however. While we've gotten some rain, it hasn't been enough to keep the containers or the newly planted shrubs from wilting, so I've had to at least keep up with that. It's nice though, in the early mornings or evenings, to just stand there with the watering wand and enjoy the outdoors.

Somehow, I manage to put away thoughts of all the work that still needs to be done--landscape cloth around the rest of the trees and planting beds, soil amendments and mulch for the planting beds, weeding and more weeding, etc.

Finally, the ugly old picnic tables, with all their moss and sap and who-knows-what, are gone (thank you to my grass-cutting guys!). Of course, now my excuses for not having a garden party are evaporating just like the water in the bird bath...

Early Harvest

I dined on food from my own garden last night. Sauteed swiss chard and the first of my grape tomatoes to ripen. Yummy!

Sage in Bloom

I planted a Russian Sage not too long ago, adding it to the growing row of ornamental grasses along the western drainage swale. I didn't know it was going to bloom! It has purple flowers in spikes along the top of each stem. Just beautiful with the silver-green foliage.

Summer Slowdown

With the summer heat comes drought. The ground--lovely Ohio clay--is too hard for planting lately. So, it's time for sitting in the shade appreciating what is in bloom. Or enjoying the cool of the evening watching the fireflies.

Oh, and watering, watering, watering! This includes the bird bath, which the birds seem to empty as quickly as I can fill it.

I did get the swing stand painted dark green. Much better! Now it kind of blends into the view. The herbs and veggies hanging from it are doing well. I've been eating fresh lettuce already, and the tomatoes and peppers have little green fruits.