Pages

Monday 11 May 2015

Major Mistake of the Season

OK .. we all do something really stupid each year of the garden season .. come on, you know you do!
Mine ? ... I was so hyper about my worm casting compost .. I bought wet bags.
Take my advice and never by wet anything in a bag but especially compost ...
I was so worried that other gardeners would catch on and it would sell out that I was thinking go ahead and use it ... worst mistake ever ... just too unreal to spread around and I swear I will never do anything that stupid again ... NEVER !!!

Mean while I moved on and bought more plants .... another very "iffy" situation .. but I thought I knew where each one could go so of course I grabbed them
One in particular ...."Junior Walker" catmint .... hadn't come across it in my winter research but wow!
I love Walker's Low but it could be a beast so I think this one might just fit the bill ..please ?
Angel Tiger Eye Viola
Dalmation Bellflower (campanula)
Alpine geranium (Erodium)
Tiny Rubies Pinks (Dianthus)
Diamond Frost euphorbia (annual)
So yes ... I got caught up with collecting some jewels and probably more ....
Here are some pictures (I haven't planted them yet though ... too much going on !

Meanwhile we had two weeks of "summer" heat which made the plants go utterly NUTS and grow like crazy so I am way behind in having them under control ... thus the work this morning and my intense exhaustion ... I just can't seem to do what I used to be able to do and it makes me crazy !
More pictures

Today ? ... these plants are even much bigger ...it is insane how they are growing !

This one barley cracked the soil a few days ago and now ? it is flowering !



The bags of compost were finally spread this morning .... again I will NEVER buy "wet" compost EVER AGAIN !!!!

Fiddle-heads are every where .... this is the Christmas fern.

All the spirea are BIGGER .... the Goatsbeard is BIGGER  .... it boggles the mind ... sigh !

Hellebore are crowding the raised bed .. this is only a third of it ... wood phlox and campanula are edging the border ...


Jade Tiger   is rather striking ...

The Epimedium are up and about to flower ... I hope to catch some pictures of them.
You could barley see them last week ...  it is amazing when plants go "crazy" ?

Bleeding Heart, Astilbe, Hosta, Heuchera, Gold Creeping Jenny, more Goatsbeard .... on and on !


I have a lot to do with my dry stream bed .. but this is how the plants are jumping up at me even now.
It is supposed to rain tonight so I am hoping for a full rain barrel to keep the raised bed ,oist !

OK ... that is me for now ... I am so very exhausted ... and ? what fails when you are in the garden ?
Housework ... laundry .... GROCERIES !!
Garden PA has been cooking so I am very lucky ... but we really need to get groceries so that is a must for tomorrow ..... BIG sigh !!
Does anyone else go through this ???
PS ... the new company should be here early June so the flagstone pathways will be done the RIGHT way instead of being the beast they are now .. talk about the "trip" factor !

13 comments:

Buttons Thoughts said...

Well Joy I have to say I am a big fan of these warm days after that winter. Your plants are obviously loving it too. When you get your path done right there will be no stopping you.
Good luck with those grocery shopping and other boring tasks. Hug B

Nadezda said...

Joy, what the paths! it's my dream!
Love your Gold Creeping Jenny and golden spirea, I planted them dividing veggies area and garden and they look very nice too.

Country Gal said...

Been there done it and never again wet compost is the pits to haul let alone spread lol ! Your gardens are looking wonderful . I am in the midst of getting plants come the May 2/4 weekend as a tradition for me , I am aiming to get more flowering perennials and less annuals from now on but I will still have the odd annual as there are so many I do like . Oh yes once the plants get a taste of good soil and sunshine they grow like mad lol ! Thanks for sharing , Have a good week !

outlawgardener said...

Incredible how quickly spring moves there! Seems like just last post things were much more dormant looking and now your garden is looking downright lush!
We don't speak of housework from April through June. Sure the laundry piles up and the dirty dish towers threaten to fall off the counter, (If they do, the dogs will clean them in their own special way so that's a win/win situation.) but there's so much to be done outside! I'm not getting younger (and a bunch of extra weight doesn't help) so gardening goes a bit more slowly than it used to. It's important to have priorities, right? Oops, the car registration didn't get renewed? Power going to be shut off? The notices must be in that pile of mail somewhere. Talk to me in July.

I'm impressed by how quickly you get your plants in the ground. I still have things in pots from last year in the pot ghetto (plant hoard) that haven't been planted yet.

Angie said...

It's often a good thing to make a mistake, how else would we learn. I make too many mistakes when it comes to gardening. This week it is buying what I thought was a shrub that turns out to be a tree that is way too big for my garden. I should have taken it back but it was love at first sight!
Your garden is looking incredibly lush right now and you've some super plants going on in there.

Casa Mariposa said...

Your garden looks incredible! I love those stone paths. I do stupid things all the time. I decapitated a fancy, expensive coleus the other day with my giant purse. Duh.... When my daughter came home from college she noticed the garden was full but the fridge was bare so I told her to go shopping for me so I could get more work done in the garden. I bought erodium, too. So dang cute!

Rose said...

I think we've all done something like this, Joy. One year I bought cheap bags of potting soil that had been sitting out in the rain. I might as well have put bricks in my pots:) Your garden looks absolutely beautiful, Joy! We had the same hot weather here last week, and the weeds have been growing like...well, weeds. I have been battling them at the same time trying to plant all my new plants. And yes, it is frustrating not to be able to do what you used to be able to do!

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Thank you all for stopping by and chatting with me : )
I very much appreciate it!
I am getting overwhelmed with what I have to get done in the garden though and the landscaper is dropping by Friday to pick up the contract and deposit .. I am so excited to have this done correctly it is beyond belief .. like Christmas to a kid.
Again ... thank you all for stopping by .. you are a great group of fellow gardeners !

Jennifer said...

I have a mistake that can top your mistake (not that it is a contest). I forgot some seed packets outside in the rain and the ink labels on the packets all ran. Now they are mystery seeds! Talk about dumb. Hopefully I can recognize some of the seeds.
Sounds like you made some interesting purchases. I eyed the new Catmint in the store and may go back and get a pot.
I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with all that needs doing too. Spring is always busy, but who would pass up on such a wonderful season.
Have fun gardening on the long weekend Joy!

Beyond the Dog Dish said...

Your garden is inspiring! You have plants that are new to me also. I have lovely lilac, cherry and magnolia blooms on my trees but my garden is no where near growing yet. Yup just mud and yuck still! Looking forward to playing in it.. soon... I hope!

Lona said...

Girl you are not alone in getting behind in the gardening. I have collected all my annuals now to get them planted is another matter. LOL! Everything is growing here like crazy too. Some of my beds are looking like mini jungles.Seems all I do is move plants around. If I keep it up they will end up where they started. LOL! I have Walkers Low also and low is what it is not. LOL! We went from the freezer to the oven here and back a few times already so one does not know what to do anymore. Hope you have been taking care of yourself. Have a lovely weekend.

Victoria Williams said...

Thanks for posting those pics, your garden is beautiful! Your plants are looking fantastic! I'm always failing at housework and cooking during spring, it's our busiest time in the garden. I've potted up all my annuals and now it's time for maintenance!

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Hi again you lovely gardeners and thank you so much for stopping by .. I am so overwhelmed with things on the go or being exhausted I haven't commented back to you individually but soon ? things might come back to almost not so frantic and I can chat with each of you! Thanks so much in any case !