Blooming

What is it that we love so much about spring?

Is it the sense of rebirth? The glory of a new beginning? The birds chirping?

For me it’s getting in the dirt. I plant flowers mostly, with a veggie here and there just for the adventure.

I can’t crawl around on the ground like I used to. Well, I can get down there but I’d never manage to get back up. So, I have this neat little wagon/chair/trolley (you can find one on Amazon.com) as my planting buddy. It serves me well.

I also have a really good landscaper. He does a great job as well.

I spent 15 years living in a townhouse with very limited growing space, mostly in pots on the patio, but now I have a house again and can enjoy all the planting Spring has to offer. Not to mention Fall, which is great for planting shrubs and trees. See that pic up there? All those beautiful azaleas were planted last Fall, along with a dogwood and a redbud tree. They already bloomed this Spring and I really should have taken pictures. Darn.

Here’s the other end, in front of the porch.

I’m still working on the back yard, so no pics yet. Maybe next time.

Gettin’ potted …

Posted by goodoldgirl

Having cats in the house can make raising potted plants a bit challenging.

My cats liked to eat and/or play with house plants. Their favorite targets were peace lilies and violets but any old kind of plant would do in a pinch. They did not, however, mess with ficus, which is why I have two 7-foot-tall beauties, grown from sprouts. Any other kind of plant, though, was fair game.

Both Ollie and Emily passed in the last couple of years. I adored them (even when they were being evil) and miss them terribly.

The house felt kind of empty without them (I’m just not ready for more lovable furry creatures) so I decided to get a peace lily. That led to a finger leaf philodendren, which led to a croton, then a spider plant.

I think it’s beginning to get out of hand

They’re all here in my home office, keeping me company on the days I work at home—and not making a single mess anywhere.

No more drifts of fuzzy hair under the furniture, no spills around the water bowl, no water bowl. Ah, the joys of no litter box.

On the flip side, there’s also no snuggling or purring or leg rubbing.

Hmmm.

We have growth!

Posted by goodoldgirl

Melon update …

Last week my first watermelon was about 4 inches long and about 1 inch in diameter. ↓

It’s growing!

Now, a mere week later, it is about 8 inches long and 4 inches in diameter. ↓

See how big it is in comparison to the Black Eyed Susan bloom, which, let’s face it, is on its last leg.

Why, you might ask, is this such a big deal to me? Well, there were two other baby melons on the vine last week as well but mid-week some kind of spidery-grasshoppery-looking insect just sucked the life juice right out of both of them. First, they withered, then they turned black on the bottom, and before I knew what was happening they died.

(The funeral was yesterday. So sorry if you missed it. The wake was great fun. We had helium balloons and everything!)