Ode to Joy

Started stocking up on some plants this week (I had ordered a few by mail only the second time or so I have done that) and my neighbor-niece picked up a few for me while she was out on errands.  I already almost killed those by leaving them out on the step in an “ooops, I forgot the plants” moment when the temps dropped down to near freezing. They may recover IF it warms up soon. I think May 10 is our safe to plant date for 2020.

I told you about the extension of my trail, once known as trail to nowhere and now referred to, occasionally and loosely, as the trail with purpose. I LOVE this addition to our landscape and although it was a lot of work, and still work needed, it is becoming a favorite spot. Except for the poison ivy or poison oak I picked up while ripping out myrtle, hiding in the growth to do its dastardly deed on my arms and ankles.  Now that I know it is there, I look for it and it is discreet, for sure, but its there. Poison Ivy seems to be strong this year as I have seen several people post about it. Devil weed.

This year has turned in to a year of some serious landscape planning. It is nice to have the niece next door as she also is a landscape planner. We talk flowers, shrubs and trees a LOT. We enjoy it and well, she also picked up some poison ivy working in HER beds. So, we share that as well.

The daffodil game has been strong and long this year; the colder temps seem to be keeping them on a nice rotation without everyone blooming at once. There’s a lot to divide and move later to keep this look going.

 

Even with everything that is going on, spring is such a great time of year. Even on days when it is a bit gloomy or cold I walk out onto the porch and take it all in, just sort of survey it. We have a lot of projects, sure, but also a lot of joy. Who doesn’t need a bit of joy?

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Not rushing it, but I'm ready!

It’s doing it to me again, this late January thaw…I am itching to get out in my dirt, with shovel and hoe and plant matter.  This dull, grey weather and the brown that is peaking through the melting pristine snow makes me start to plan and, gulp, shop online.

I was super frustrated over the weekend over the lack of gardening shows that are broadcast these days.  What the heck? As one online article put it there’s a lot more “H” and little “G” in HGTV.  I loved the gardening shows of the past and hope to see the Do It Yourself network continue with Yard Crashers, which does still air episodes, thank goodness.  Limited, but, they are there on Saturday mornings. 

  

My Pinterest board is filled with gardening ideas.  This year, I will be able to spread some rock and more mulch since the interior of the house is substantially finished.  This year, the deck, porch and landscaping are the focus!  I have already spent hours scrolling through pins and posts, and jotted down ideas and color combinations.  I will admit to a slight obsession with pots and planters, and maybe already own more than I need..but a few more won't hurt. 

In the article I mention above, one point made is maybe people who garden spend more time outside and less in front of the TV, which is fair.  Maybe we do like to get outside and get our hands in the dirt and feet in the mud, and not in the living room watching another house flip show. (You can read the article here, but it was posted in 2017) Forgive me, but I do not want to see one more tiny house episode.  Not one.  As I said to my brothers, and mentioned in a previous post, I grew up in a mobile home…ya can put lipstick on a pig, but its still a pig, and those tiny homes?  We called ‘em trailers.  

I made my way out to the shed over the weekend to put two little Christmas trees from the porch away.  I have to come out here, I thought, and take inventory of what I might need for spring planting and there's definitely some clean up that needs to happen, evident from the tow rope hanging down from the ski tube stowed in the rafters. Yes, the list is long and growing.  While January might be a little too early to start thinking about plants, mulch, pots and planters, I can't help myself, especially on days of thaw.  I look forward to the green of spring, those little shoots of crocus and daffodils shoving their way through, assuring us once again, that these longer days aren't misguiding us, that spring really is just around the corner.  


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