| March 10, 2004 Started Royal Carpet Alyssum seedlings (seeds $1.44 at Bi-Mart) today with my first try at the Jiffy product. I plan on planting these plants in the front yard, next to the side walk. Also went outside and sowed the Nasturtium seeds (seeds $1.34 at Bi-Mart); as usual, a few had survived the winter and were bravely trying to grow. Also noticed that I'm down to one mum plant this year. I'll probably try replacing the one that died this winter with a white mum; mother says they tend to be more hardy. March 11, 2004 Weeded the Iris bed today; tons of moss there that I scraped away, too. Also dug up the mystery bulbs growing next to the evergreen clemantis. I was sure it wasn't Iris, nor Daffodils...and I was right. But I don't know what it is. They are big (about 20 inches long plus 5 inch long roots, and about 3.5 inches wide) with onion-like bulbs. Folks online have thought they were anything from Hyacinths to Lilies to Japanese Iris. Mom swears she saw them blooming in my yard one year (!) and they are "Pink Ladies." So I planted them in the front bed, and look forward to seeing what they turn out to be! March 15, 2004 Weeded the front bed today, and noticed that I do have another mum coming up...It's just hidden under the daffodils right now :) Yesterday, I took the miniature rose that Don gave us for Christmas outside and cut back the dead stuff. Unfortunately, that was most of the plant; it wasn't happy inside. But at least some of it is green. I'll let it sit out there a bit before I plant it in the ground, next to the wedding roses. I bought a 1 gallon pot of rosemary at Gray's on Friday, for just $2. It looked healthy and strong, and I bravely cut most of it back on Sunday, and am trying to create a topiary out of it. |
| I'm still debating what to place on the arbors. I like the idea of a colorful, repeat bloomer that would grow quickly--like Morning Glory--but I really hate the idea of fighting Morning Glory all over our yard. Hubby says he'd like Jasmine instead, so I may go that route if I can find two plants at a good price�I hate to wait for it to get established, though. |
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| March 20, 2004 Moved the other Spike plant out of our wedding urn today; my goodness, their roots take over! It's a good thing that the only other plant in the urn was hardy ivy! I transplanted the Spike to the corner of the back yard, and moved the Spike I'd already transplanted a bit closer to it. The soil was rich with decayed leaves, and I think they'll like the spot. For weeks I've been trying to come up with some sort of trellis for the ivy I was leaving in the urn, to help add some height to the porch garden. Everything I found was either expensive or not quite right. Today, all too ready to get the job done, I looked around the yard for some pliable limbs that I might be able to use to use as a trellis. No luck. But I did find an old tomato cage, cut in half. Perfect! The result looks good to me, and should only look better as the ivy grows. |