The Good - The Bad & The Ugly

Today was an interesting day...after last night's "Tornado Warning" I was expecting to wake up to a mess. We heard the numerous Tornado warnings on the TV, a neighbor called telling us to "prepare" and so we did. We pulled in the cars, took down anything that could potentially be harmed in the wake of a tornado, but alas, it was not to be found here at Tranquil Acres. Thank goodness for small favors!

In the wake of of it all though we found that our gardens are tired of all the rain that has recently found its way here in Hunterdon County. Can we see a forecast without some sort of moisture in it? The next seven days don't look to promising but we will remain positive and pray for sunny skies.

Although we had a few sprinkles early on in the day, the skies gave way to several hours of sun which gave us time to clean up, blow off and get our garden "ON!"..

So, let's review the "Good" the "Bad" and the "Ugly"...

Definitely a "Good" in my front perennial bed..

A Maple sapling that I decided to plant just to see what happens!

A new tomato that I brought home... This one is especially grown for "Sun Dried" tomatoes.. Yummy!

I had Bartlett Tree Experts out to my house today inspecting trees that needed to be pruned and even removed. While they were here I received quite an education on the varieties of trees I have in my landscape. This beauty happens to be a "Black Gum"..

While walking in the woods I found one of my favorite native plants that I've grown fond of... I wonder why they call it "Jack in the Pulpit"?

Do you know why they named him "Jack"? To me he looks like a "Peter" but that's a discussion for another day..

Definitely another "Good" here. Although, you're probably wondering

 "What? Why"? There's a saying that goes, "Once you plant Cleome.. you always have Cleome". This definitely is the case around my vegetable garden. Not only is it an undesirable plant for deer but just wait until you see the tall flowers that appear later on in summer..

My beans are surviving the recent North Eastern rains for sure!

My little experiment.. I'm growing butternut squash in this hanging tin can display..

I was tired of getting confused as to what kinds of tomatoes I was picking last year due to the fact that the tags were lost. So, this year I pinned them to the cages.. Clever huh?

The money I spent on my camera last year just reminded me that it was SO well worth it. Not bad for a weed huh?

My Rhododendron is definitely in a "Good" way right now!

And then there's the "Good" in the Drumstick Allium. Did you know if you let these flowers dry on their stems you can spray paint them and use them in future flower arrangements?

A "Good" look on an old flower.. No, I've not created a new flower, but rather combined two .. a yellow Petunia fits perfectly as a frame for a "Summertime Osteospermum"

While this may look "Bad" it's actually still in the "Good" category as the yellow leaves on this Holly are giving way to brand new growth this spring!

In the past I've always planted pink impatiens in the front bed, this year I was turned on to red and white.. add the blue I'll be getting later with some of my later blooming perennials and I'll have a patriotic 4th of July!

Now for some "Bad".. Recognize this little caterpillar? When I was a kid I thought they were cool with the shapes on their backs, now that I'm smarter I know that they are "Tent" caterpillars and mean trouble with a capital "T" and while they mature to moths, they are gypsies!

No I didn't spit on my plant, it just so happens to be a "Spittle bug".. creative right? While it looks like it's bad.. it's really just annoying than anything else. Someone needs to teach "Leaf Hoppers" some manners as that's the bug that usually come out of these gross displays of spit! They actually use the foam to protect them and keep them moist. Why now is beyond me with the two weeks of worth of rain we've had.. They should be drowned by now!

Now for some "Ugly"... how about a gel like mushroom growing off a tree. There's nothing like taking a break while you're gardening and thinking, "Oh, let me just rest a minute against this tree here.." Only to lay your hand over this gross fungus...

How about more "Ugly"? Ah yes, along with "Spittle bugs, aphids, slugs and mildew" during a damp spring, the worst is here for sure.. Anthracnose. Yes... "there's a fungus among us" for sure. What is it? Anthracnose disease attacks all plant parts at any growth stage. The symptoms are most visible on leaves and ripe fruits. At first, anthracnose generally appears on leaves as small and irregular yellow, brown, dark-brown, or black spots. The spots can expand and merge to cover the whole affected area. The color of the infected part darkens as it ages. What can I do? Nothing, Nada, zip.. forgettabout it!! Until it starts to dry up I'm beating my head against a tree trunk!

　　

Now for the worst kind "ugly"... dead trees that are marked to come down. This is why Bartlett Tree Experts were looking at my landscape today.. I am under a deep canopy of shade but many are tired and have given way to age, disease, deer rubbing into their hearts (or cambium layer for you technical sorts), etc., so it's time to wish them their fond farewell. I'd play that song, "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Around the Old Oak Tree" but most of the trees that are coming down are actually Fir trees...

Until next week!

Have You Ever Seen the Rain?

Although my usual Tuesday morning post would be grabbing your hand to show you my gardens..This morning we'll have to get our umbrellas and rainboots for a quick run through the green grass inbetween the raindrops.

The Viburnum is in full flower and I'm loving every second of it!

Drumstick Alliums are ready to pop open in between my PJM Rhododendron!

Aren't the flowers on this hanging basket spectacular? Can you guess what type of flower it is?

My pretty pink azalea showing its color within my perennial bed!

Another unusual color for an annual.. I guarantee you this flower wasn't in your grandma's garden!

My large native Rhody's aren't naieve this year for sure!

The rain is kicking up again - so let's head inside..

The view of the left side of my backyard taken through my sunroom. Can you see the ferns waving above the pachysandra?

I don't know what kind of rose this is, but I do know I love it!

My husband brought me home this bouquet of roses last week and they've warmed my heart ever since..

What's going in between the rain drops in your garden?

 

The Best Plans Lead to Gardening

Why is it that the best made plans will always lead to gardening this time of the year for Tranquil Acres of Alexandria? Last night my husband and I had made plans to get up early and go to a local flea market on our day off. Sure enough when I woke up this morning and saw the time and how comfortable my husband was sleeping, I knew that our plans were taking on a different direction indeed. 

A Mother's Day gift from my daughter.. :)

After two cups of coffee and picking up a few things around the house I was outside bright and early ready to start my newly planned day. Yet another day of gardening was in store for me as I had lots to do for sure! I grabbed my pruners and set out to do some pruning on those plants that showed some winter dieback. You can read about that detail here on "Today in the Gardener's Journal - May 10".

I brought home vegetables from work so that my vegetable garden could start growing now that my lovely husband spread the composted topsoil last night and of course a few perennials some how got in my trunk as well before I left work on Monday. One of my new favorite perennials is Cimicifuga or otherwise known as bugbane. Last year I planted a green leaf variety and fell in love with it immediately, but then was drooling at the fragrance later on in October. This year my plan was to add more and so I did but with a red-leafed variety this time. Next week I'll post some pictures of it and then tell you a little more about this plant.

Let me take you on a tour of my gardens as they are rapidly changing from week to week now..

A pansy that has apparently reseeded itself in between the bricks of my front patio.



Yes, I am a lover of silly yard art! This is the garden bed that you see when you drive up to my house and enter the front door on the left.



Again in the front of the house on the right side, you can see a little of the Bugbane to the far right of this picture that was newly planted today.

Planted today!! An Edith Bogue Clematis. You would laugh if you saw where this is planted. I have an ornamental blue spruce in the front of my house that had a lot of dead branches, but I just couldn't get rid of it because the top is showing beautiful new growth. The bottom however is as bare as a cupboard without plates, so I planted this clematis in front of it in hopes that it will climb up the barren bottom.. Aren't the flowers stunning!

I'm super excited that my Tri-Color Beech is leafing out like mad!

I'm liking the color combinations here - Are you?

This hosta is three years old and has definitely enjoyed the snow cover it had this winter. I love the blooms of the heuchera coming through it too!

The Pink Dogwood is still a show stopper even a week later!

The row of mature Viburnums are trying to out flower the nearby Dogwood for sure!

Then there's the fragrant Viburnum that I wish I could bottle up the scent and wear!

Now let's move to the back patio where I put this old ladder up today. I found this ladder in my basement and figured it would make a rustic plant stand. It serves its purpose of holding my houseplants that have now turned "patio plants". The plant to the right of the ladder is my Passion Flower that had suddenly started to struggle do to the small pot it was in. I am hoping the transplant will show me some passion now..

One of the garden beds in my backyard that is just about filled with plants.

Then there's my circular vegetable garden. A little story here.. Up until two years ago we had an above ground pool in this area as it is the only part of my landscape that gets a good days worth of sun. Unfortunately, no one swam in the pool enough to justify the cost of the utilities, chemicals and maintenance. So, what did we do? The same thing we always do when we want to sell something.. We list it on Craigs List! Within a week the pool was sold and in went the vegetable garden area. Last year my garden was just OK, but I knew it could be better if I added more organic material, compost and soil. As you can imagine, the area had a lot of sand as the base of the pool required it, but sand is not a good growing medium when there's too much of it. Sure, it's great for asparagus but for everything else it's just sand and nothing else. This year I added a lot of composted soil, freshly aged compost and a box of Dr. Earth.

In another post I'll write about all the different varieties of vegetables I have this year, but for now, as you can see, there are plants in the earth and I couldn't be happier. Let's just say I'll have a great selection of tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplant, pepper, beans and peas.

In just a week the Oregon Pea has done very well!

Just one of my troughs that I have planted leeks, a small compact, "Neat and Sweet" Yellow cherry tomato, beets and a new variety of lettuce called "Tropicana" which is great for warmer weather crops.

Strawberries planted last year apparently are thanking me for the leaf cover I provided for them this past winter!

Last year I had my squash and zucchini planted in the ground on the other side of my garden. This year I switched things up and planted them in large containers to help cure the powdery mildew and root rot problem. We'll see if this is successful by the amount of zucchini bread I will be making.

Year two of the asparagus plantings. Another year away from picking.. I'm dreaming of the day I can pick enough for a good side dish.

And yes, my favorite Maple tree down by the lower portion of our landscape. This year the colors have been incredible!

Another long and productive day we had here at Tranquil Acres of Alexandria. Maybe next week we'll get up early and get to the flea market...