Summer is here

Summer temps are starting to hit this week, we had a drop in temps earlier that had us scrambling for the electric blankets again, but now the temps are going back up and we have the overhead fans on. All of the plants that I planted seem to be taking off. Even the squash I transplanted. The seedlings, however, are a different story. They didn't survive the cold snap and/or Grady laying on top of them.

In the garden and yard. We Have, strawberries, marigold, rosemary, roses, soap wort, coleus, purslane, mint, lemon balm, more marigolds, squash, Grapevine, a Lily, snapdragons, dill, butterfly bush, crape Myrtle, crab apples, red buds, maples, mimosa, a willow, and wild berry vines, I probably missed something in there.

Nick made a fire pit for the house and did a good job after figuring out one misstep, he wants to finish it off with a frame of concrete around it to go with the building blocks and pavers. He didn't get to use the fire pit last night because it rained, go figure.

 soap wort, purslane, coleus, roses

 butterfly bush, dill

 crab apple #2

 crab apple #1

 crape myrtle, butterfly bush, snap dragons, lily

 fire pit

 cat nip

 squash, marigolds, grape vine, a bush I haven't a clue the name of

 marigolds

marigolds and strawberries

Productive! Yay! Wait - it never ends

last two days of work - purslane ground cover planted (after some weeding). Runaway soap wort fenced, mulch around newly planted trees and the red bud, more weeding, lawn mowed, weed whacking partly done, replanted a squash, more weeding, Nick began the firepit, spread mulch in the larger garden. Propane purchased for grilling chicken!

This included three trips to Home Depot yesterday. This in addition to the dishes I must do, the chicken I need to cook and floors that need mopped and scrubbed.
That last one probably won't get done today! LOL

 Crab apple #1

 our "dwarf" crape myrtle

 Nick & Jackie starting the fire pit - crab apple #2 in foreground

 problem corner we need to tackle.  Going to put a retaining wall in front of the retaining wall, the decaying wood and spaces will act like a "french drain" and help reduce soil erosion

 adding purslane as ground cover at the problem corner

 our red bud "bush" - it's probably 30' tall

 snap dragons, a surprise lily return and weeds (working on the last ones there)

 soap wort being fenced in!

 soap wort before being fenced

 a nice little fenced plot for soap wort and roses

 fire pit in progress

 more mulch

 mulch begins

 my purslane is happy today

 re-setting pavers and weeding.  Note the marigolds in the tub.  Love ya, Mama

 our grand supervisor - Deacon! Today he almost caught a bird flying over him.  The old man still has it!

Spring is sprung - Summer hits this week, probably

Well, two trips to Home Depot for building stuff for a fire pit, mulch, bathroom stuff, floor vent covers, switch plate covers, ground cover plants, small fencing to coral my soapwort......

and we have another trip planned tomorrow for a larger project. We're nuts. Thankfully Nick is young and strong! An iris is making a comeback this year and our roses have spread. The dwarf crape myrtle is about as tall as the house! photos tomorrow.

Update

Jackie painted the door frame and inner door to the bathroom.  We're starting to fix the mistakes of whoever painted before us.  They were stoned or blind or both!  They painted the small bathroom a dark green including the trim and did a bad job of it.  She painted the trim and door white.  Looks better, I'll take photes tomorrow.

I transplanted my seedlings.  We'll see if they make it through the shock: coleus, Texas blue bonnets, blanketflowers, lov-lies-bleeding and the catnip.  The love-lies are so delicate, hoping they make it.  Hoping that nick gets the garden tilled under - I'll plant other plants and transfer these (these in a week).  I have foxglove and other seeds I want to plant.  It's hard to garden with my arms messed up.  It was hard enough with a bad back, now we're throwing in bad arms and carpal tunnel.  Joy. 

Jackie placed brick around the trees Nick and I planted last week, that'll keep us from accidentally weed whacking or mowing over them.

Ack - I need to post more

I have fallen down on the job of posting to my blogs badly!

Well, some current photos of the house stuff - gardening has started, some house repair and plenty of plans for the future.  Trying to knock off some of the items off the never ending list like getting matching hardware for the kitchen, including the drawers and doors that had no pulls.  Next will be sanding and painting the doors.

New floor vents and getting paint for the big intake grates that need scrubbed and hit with rust proof paint.

New plants, of course, and caring for the ones I've got coming back....

Never ends.

Catnip 

 Salvia (1 of 2)

 crab apple tree

 the other salvia

 grape vine

 marigolds - for Mama of course

 snapdragons

 crab apple

black walnut (hopefully it makes it out of the winter shock)

 my Xena autographs and badges from the convention (where my pen name was recognized - I have fans! wow!)

August - heat, gourds and mutant plants

our runaway garden - the gourd vines have escaped the large bush and the boundaries of the garden - one vine is heading for the driveway along the stepping pavers, another two are in front of the long garden heading for the holly tree.

I have more gourds now too. The larger one is about the size of a cantaloupe.

The plants next to Jackie are a "MEDIUM" sized marigold, a dill plant, butterfly bush and dwarf crape myrtle

The "tree" is a redbud BUSH

 yellow arrow - a "medium sized" marigold

Shabbat Shalom

gotta love it