Sunday, April 20, 2008

That Was Fast ! !

Well, here are Sparky and Gidget. They arrived a few days ago - Gardener's Supply sure was quick this time!


And with them was a flock of chickens . ..



who don't have any names. Actually, I'm glad because the names Gardener's Supply gave the pigs is kind of stupid. I can't imagine what they would come up with . . .



for six chickens. Steve said they were a "bit much" in the back garden and there are "just so many". I said that you don't have just one or two chickens - you have a flock. And, six is a good number for a flock.
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I picked up another "Welcome Dog". He's made of metal and has sort of creepy yellow marble eyes. From the picture he looks like a skeleton-dog -- it must be the angle because he cuter in real life!
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Besides the metal pigs and chickens, Spring came very rapidly. Within the past two days everthing has popped! Just what I was waiting for. Here are some of the flowers that are blooming ...

This is Corydalis. They self-sow all over the place and are blooming in huge masses. When they are done the foliage quickly yellows and disappears. Neat little plant.

Everyone recognizes Hyacinths. Sometimes they aren't reliably hardy in my Zone 5, but I've been lucky - these have been coming back for years.


In the rather hot afternoon sun today, their fragrance was almost over-powering! I was planting green onions nearby in containers, and was getting a headache from it! (Sweet smells bother me a lot - I can't wear perfumes and get sickish when someone who's around me does. What an awkward sentence!!)
I just love these Chionodoxa (Glory of the Snow). I posted some last week but they are so pretty I had to do it again. These are growing all over - in the lawns, the vegetable garden and on the woodchips. I don't know how the seeds get around - animals or the wind probably. They are such a surprise each Spring.
At the front door are the wonderful blue flowers - Scilla bifolia. They are another bulb that reseeds like mad. I'd only planted a few here a couple of years ago and now it's completely full. In Summer a Hosta is right in the middle of this planting area.
This is a close-up them. Isn't blue a great Spring color!!
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I thought the deer had eaten all of the tulips in the Main Garden but I see they missed a couple. I took these pictures for posterity because I'm not sure if they will be here when I get up tomorrow morning.
These are species and kaufmanniana varieties. I especially like the tiny species tulips and have planted hundreds but the deer, voles, squirrels, chipmunks, woodchucks,and rabbits have made short work of them. Sometimes I feel like I'm just setting up dinner for the wild animals. If all the countless bulbs I'd planted in the Main Garden had survived, it would be jam packed and look like a kaleidoscope!
Notice the bee coming in for a landing at eleven o'clock. Totally unplanned!!

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Spring wouldn't be Spring without lots of Daffodils. I've planted hundreds of these also, and here are some of the different kinds ...
These are my latest addition. They are an extremely miniture trumpet variety. I used my hand to show you how small they are (you probably don't believe I lost all that weight from the look of my chubby, short-fingered, man-like hand - but I have!)
What's so unusual and endearing about these daffodils is that there are multiple stems and each plant is like a little bouquet. They are ultra-mini. I'm sorry I don't have their name off-hand and when I find it, I'll post it.
Good old yellow trumpets .
Rip Van Winkle is this guy's name.
This is a favorite mini - Jetfire.
A fragrant split-cup variety that I don't have a name for.
Don't know the name of these etheral beauties either.
These are Ice Follies and I highly recommend them. They have lots of flowers and don't decline over the years like some do. They are eye-catching and sturdy too. Oh yes, they are really cheap as well.
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The temps are supposed to be in the 60s and 70s this week so I brought most of my basement grown seedlings outside. This is a shaded spot at the front entrance and good for hardening off.
The ones that are especially tall and/or sprawling are my ground-cover petunias. They grow so fast once they "catch", as I call it. The smaller more uniform plants are impatiens. Notice on the far left are some Quaking Grass seedlings.
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I'm glad we were able to get most of the gardens cleaned up when we did. Once the weather warms, everything grows so rapidly that your "window of opportunity" is very small.
In a few weeks I'll get the pond scrubbed down and put out the fish. The last white fish I had just died (in fact I can't find the body.) She (I don't know why I always think something albino is a "she"??) was laying on her side at the bottom of the pool for a week. I'd touch her every day and she's swim away. I just can't toss out a live fish and she didn't look like she was suffering (it's hard to tell with fish, isn't it?) so I was on a sort of death-watch. Well, now it's a moot point because I can't find her - dead or alive! Probably under the rock shelf that Steve had constructed in the Fall. I just don't want to reach under there with a bare hand -- icky.
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So, this week will be another vacation Friday and I'll work up the soil in the vegetable garden and then all that's left is to wait. Wait to do the things I like the most - find some new and unusual plants at garden centers and get my containers planted.
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Come to the edge.
We might fall.
Come to the edge.
It's too high!
COME TO THE EDGE!
And they came
and he pushed
and they flew . . .
*****
Christopher Logue (1926 - )
***
Bye for now,
Alyssa

13 comments:

Gina said...

alyssa - do those pigs do anything besides sit around looking cute? I love your scilla and i'm definately planting some of that this fall. It was really nice here yesterday and expected to be today, too. Hopefully I'll be gardening all day again today. good luck finding the dead body.

Tom said...

This really is a great post.. I smiled from ear to ear reading it and looking at the pigs, birds, and the welcome dog.. your flowers are stunning as ids your eye for a pictures.. I think your garden would be a beautiful fun place to spend time..

beckie said...

Alyssa, I love coming here! It is just like we are walking around the garden and you are showing me this and that-making sure to point out each flower and your newest garden ornaments. What fun! Now if I could just bend over and smell those hyacinths!

Mary said...

Alyssa,

You can't have too many colorful pigs and chickens! I love them. Lately I've been finding myself looking at decorative pieces for around the pond (Michael rolls his eyes) but I do want a gazing ball, at least!

Your flowers are wonderful! I've never seen dwarf daffodils before. Cute :o)

My gardens are cleaned up and ready for new. I spent a few hours on Friday (it was 80 degrees!) making two new small beds for wildflowers. Then it turned chilly - I hope the seeds take.

Happy Spring!

Mary

DeeMom said...

Perky Pigs, Cute Chicks great colors on these garden critters…
The Welcome dog is a hoot…
Scilla bifolia pretty need to look into this one. Fabulous collections of daffodils.

Great pictures you have been hard at work…feels good though

alicesg said...

Wow, you have a very nice and exciting garden. I would love to visit your garden via your blog. You do great job in your garden. Well done.

Alyssa said...

Gina - The only job the pigs have is called "Cute Work". Scilla will return your small investment a hundred fold! Hope you were able to do lots of gardening.

Tom - Thank you. I'm glad I gave you a smile and you are welcome to come over and visit any time!

Beckie - I'm glad you enjoyed our "walk" through the gardens. I think of walking around the yard as I'm writing. It helps me to have a kind of script to follow.
Buy a couple of hyacinth bulbs this fall and you'll be able to smell them next spring!

Mary - I'm sure your seeds will really surprise you. I love gazing balls and had one for a few years. It got left outside one winter and broke - dumb! I also had some small floating gazing balls in the pond. I understand about men rolling their eyes - Steve will do that sometimes. I try not to get too garish or corny but I think I may have gone a little far with the chickens. Hey, it's my yard too!!

Dee - Thank you for the compliments. I love my new metal animals too. Yes, definately try the scilla. You won't be disappointed. I always think of gardening as "fun work".

Alice - I'm glad you are enjoying my garden as much as I am. Come by whenever you like!

Lizzie A said...

Wow,
Your flowers are just beautiful! Just when I come back to your blog to see what you had to say about my, your, well...and someone else's too, middle name I find myself accosted by some of the most beautiful flowers I've seen all year! Ours out back have nothing on how pretty yours are. If you think I'm, kidding, well, I'm not.
I have to go! I posted a slightly more up beat post today, you should see my brighter side!
Lizzie~

Alyssa said...

Lizzie - Thank you for the wonderful compliments. I'm anxious to read about your lighter side.

Lizzie A said...

Thank you for your comment!
Actually just today I went around my school handing out "Chocolate Covered Matzah" (matzah=unleavened bread, when Jews left Egypt they couldn't wait for bread to rise so they ate it flat) that I made myself. (I made the chocolate part, not the matzah!) I don't mean to toot my own horn, but everyone loved it. If you want the recipe I was thinking of posting it so that anyone could find it and then get all the like 90% off matzah and try it.
Prom is going to be May 10th, and I am wearing a beautiful pink princess dress. (Think Glinda from Wizard of Oz)
I have to go for now. Hope you are doing well!!
Lizzie~

Lizzie A said...

Well,
I just wanted to update you, the guy that I was going to prom with is no longer going to prom with me. I should feel really sad and stuff, but since we were only going as friends, it doesn't bother me as much. I just wish that it wasn't the case!
Lizzie~

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