Showing posts with label rye grass. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rye grass. Show all posts

Monday, December 14, 2015

A Fantastic December Bloom Day

 Well, for all my laziness...Mother Nature never stops working, thankfully......if you aren't familiar with bloom day it is where garden blogger's from around the world post what is blooming on the 15th of each month.  You will want to see it on May Dream's Gardens,,,,I invite you to visit
This has been an incredibly mild winter....if I had actually took care of my garden this year, it might have really been awesome...I have literally ignored the garden most of the year but sat back and enjoyed it........  The above is Peach Drift
Now I did plant rye grass.....this is after I just mowed it




The roses haven't stopped blooming despite me.....Grenada Rose

 I wish winter were like this year for the next few months...



Encore is taking off

 This has been the most fantastic December ever!





 A misty foggy morning
Green Ice really likes colder weather




There was no end to my laziness this year.....so the rose hips are abound...

"Johnny Bear"......the first rose I got for Valentine's Day from the man I never want to take a breath that he isn't taking one too......aka my husband

Bad picture but the bottlebrush are blooming

I cannot believe the the hydragea are still blooming and this picture doesn't do justice....they are a brilliant blue


It has been weird, the spring bearers are blooming now...now encores will bloom as much as they need food

Tulip Tree


The greenhouse, the 

The azaleas that bloom in the spring are going now




The popcorn is finally losing their leaves

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Journal Notes..UFOs, Rye Grass & Mexican Heather

Sorry for my delay..I have learned not to eat raw things in restaurants between November and February.  After eating out, I was sitting on my back porch...it was nighttime & dark...  I saw something come out of the sky and land in a 30 ft tree.  I rushed back in to get a flashlight.  My husband asked what was wrong..I said you wouldn't believe me if I told you.  
Well...I wasn't going crazy...there was something in the tree but I had to wait until the morning to see what it was.

I thought  it was a balloon but morning showe it to be a parachute.

I noticed a box hanging from the end of the cord.


It was from a weather balloon.  I guess when the balloon pops, a parachute is launched.  It was a sensor by NOAA. For more information, click HERE. It's called a radiosonde.

Once found they want you to mail it back...which I will, but I want to look at it a little more.

It's fuzzy but it says Harmless Weather Instrument.


Just happy I wasn't seeing things.

I was going to use Mexican Heather for my peacock tail this winter but I have come to my senses.  I do not want to dig it up now...why would I want to do it every year.
Will use lower maintenance stuff...my gardens are getting large & maintenance requirements will become more at a premium.


It is suppose to be an annual but people say it comes back so I guess I will leave the tops burned?
The grass is looking dead.  I underestimate the rye grass from last year...I thought it was still the regular grass that was showing but I am mistaken.  Last year I seeded in the middle of October.  This time in the earlier part of November & I see the difference.  Next year, I will plant it in October.

Friday, June 14, 2013

Journal Notes...Wiring Irrigation, backyard project,etc (really long and boring)

This post is my journal entry.  It is long, detailed, and picture heavy.  It is for my reference.  Feel free to ignore it.
The huge rose garden (well over 3000 sq feet) is getting irrigated.  This will be the last step.  I have a manifold in place that is to cover six zones that will be automated.  My husband is running wire to the back porch for the console.  Here, he has dug a trench.  


Underneath a path.  Need to remember this when deciding what materials to put on this downward sloping path.

He used some type of triangle hoe?

He also used this thing.

This is the six valve manifold.  I couldn't begin to tell you about this thing but I have a feeling I will learn shortly.

It is running through the middle of one of the legs of this L shaped rose garden.
My wonderful husband wiring it.
Began screening the other leg of the L

Steeply sloped both laterally, and vertically.

Need to move container plants, considering planting the hibiscus, outright thinking the other trees will shield in winter.

I am having an issue with how my paths are going to run.  This garden is clearly done by an amateur.  I thought I had a plan but it seems to be doing it's own.

NOTE....if you are doing a big project like this...BUY IN BULK.  Sam's has 225 of screen with staples for about 20 dollars.

Mowed this area, unlike other areas where I let the weeds stay.  Yes, I know better and probably lazy but only relatively.  I work on this garden in the raging heat.  If I don't do something, they will die, so yes, I suppose I am lazy and next year will know better.  All that being said, the mowing made the screen flatter.  NOTE.  When planting beds and intending to do screens.  Be sure to plant in straight lines.  This was a whole lot easier.

Bought 500 sod staples at a time off Ebay which were better and half the price of anywhere.

I am concerned that the holes are not large enough for water to get through.  Will probably drip irrigate.  I think the screen is semi permeable but I see it pool so I am thinking, no.  Also, does the black screen, heat the plant even further despite being under mulch (i.e. radiant energy?)

Used brick to outline.  This is a whole lot straighter than the other leg of the L.

Used pins to push down bulk.  Concerned about the mulch erroding away.  Thinking about putting scrap wood or running the tubes to prevent.  But to use the tubes would  be inefficient.

Does look better but need to smoothe out dirt where the pipes were ran.  For the record, a ditch witch was used and weeds grow in no time.  Next year, consider not using rye grass here.

I wanted to have this area (one side of the pipe) screened by bloom day (arbitrary deadline).  Using cedar mulch on the front part but probably will use leaves as the filler on the back.  At some point, I want to smoothe out the brick.

This side looks so much smoother than the other.  Probably because of more spacing between plants.

The plants that are screened and mulched seem to look better.  Could be an illusion because I don't see weeds around them.  The further up the slope, the more water needs.

Corner of the L.  Not sure if how I am going to run a path.  Most of this area will not be mulched.  Leave as grass? Gravel?  I don't want it to be a "formal" path.

Isabella is an amazing rose.  I can't wait to see her bloom.  I created a rose!  I think.  But she is very tolerant of things and looks very healthy compared to the other roses around her.

Screening more the garden

Camera fogged because of being inside and then going outside in incredible humidity.

Mulching another section.  That pussy willow I thought was a gonner is not dead.  The top maybe but the bottom is growing.





Put cypress mulch under cedar.


Almost to the pipe.

Pen needs weeding and mowing.  The morning glories are starting to grow on the weeds.

Mom gave my a Golden Rain Tree that I planted in the front field.

Bougainvillea needed to be repotted and pruned.



The wildflowers I planted in the front field must have reseeded because I see zinnia and sulphur cosmos.

My willow tree.

St. Joseph's Coat

St. Patrick


I don't know.  Need to tag better.