Nothing, Really

I was up in the Cities yesterday, at an interview for a new client. It went well. Great. That is all I need, more work.

Our lovely weather continues. I stopped at a few garden centers yesterday and a few new plants managed to jump into my cart. I put a few in last night, but have two flats of ground cover to put in. I paid fifty cents a piece for plants that sold for $5 each just a few weeks ago. It is not ideal to be transplanting things this time of year, but if you water carefully, they usually survive. I am lucky that I can grow pretty much anything. I also bought a few clearance annuals to replace what the rabbits and Gertrude are eating. It is a never ending battle with them, although I haven't seen Gertrude around lately, so I wonder if she has moved on. My petunias are blooming nicely now, so she has left them alone

I am on the run for the next few days. I have a friend staying with me and I am going to her place for a day. I will probably not update while I am having fun with her.

Fruits of My Labor

This little guy and his sister were hanging out on the back deck. They must have just flown the nest. Mom was flitting about, worried.


We have had some seriously nice weather these days. Bright and sunny, with a nice breeze, so unlike our usual July days, which can be hot, still and so humid you can hardly breathe. I spent both days of the weekend outside, yesterday in the yard, putzing here and there.

The sunny garden is in full bloom, with the colors almost riotous. I never plan anything, just plop something in where I have a spot. I need to extend this garden out a bit, it is getting pretty crowded. I don't mind large, big plants, full of blooms, so now that everything is established, it is time to stretch it out.

I didn't think I had a yellow lily, but this one popped this weekend. Don't miss the bee, who was very busy.

Love this purple clematis, with the red bee balm below it. Love the colors together.

It is not all about flowers, although my vegetable garden is way too much work for me now. I spent hours pulling weeds and mulching. I am getting cauliflower, onions and broccoli out now. Lettuce is about done, getting bitter and bolting to seed in the heat. The grape tomato plant has green fruits, but the larger tomatoes are stunted from too many weeds surrounding them. I have that all cleared out now, so they should take off soon.

The raspberries hang on year after year, despite me not paying them any attention. This is for lunch!

Summertime Parade

I had a great day yesterday, with a tour of some local gardens, which I will blog about tomorrow, and an afternoon with friends at a nearby town summer celebration.

This is my good friend, Tim. He won first place in the "Farmer Tan" competition. The picture is kind of washed out, so you really can't see his tan, but it is pretty funny. Cracks me up that they even had a sash for him!

All of the local towns came out with their fire trucks. What is a parade without fire trucks?

Or flags and veterans?

You must have tractors! (Peter, this is Bunny's father.)

We see these sprayer trucks all the time and they fascinate me.

The parade was followed by a nice meal, with turkey off the grill and plenty of side dishes. We talked smart and played with the kids and dogs. It was a beautiful afternoon, on a beautiful Midwestern day.

Critters

I took a couple of videos of Gertrude, the ground hog the other day. She goes from flower to flower, eating only flowers, no weeds. What is up with that? Here she isn't concerned at all about the crow that is in stealth mode, going behind her for a sneak attack.



Critter was in rare form, really mad at me, because I woke him up from his nap and had the nerve to not have treats right in my hand when I walked up to him. I had to go back to my truck to get them and this is his response to that (turn your speakers down if you are a work). There are other videos I have posted of him and Gertrude, so just click around my new channel on youtube to find them.



We have had really nice weather the past week, so every moment I can get away from the computer and work, I spend outside. My shoulder is feeling a bit better now. I am going on a garden tour this afternoon, followed by a cook out at a friend's house to watch the annual summertime parade in his town. Have a great day yourself!