Zinnias and More

8/19/13

zinnias

     The zinnias I planted from seed have finally started blooming!  I am so glad I planted them on June 2, even though it was a late planting.

cosmos

     The cosmos in the back yard that I planted at the same time as the zinnias are coming along.  One bud is just appearing on the tallest stem.

hardy begonias

Japanese anemones

     Also in the back yard garden, my fall flowers, hardy begonias and Japanese anemones have started blooming.

lavender

     The lavender is in full bloom in the side garden.

marigolds

     The bees just love the marigolds.

reseeded marigolds

     When I cut some of the spent blooms off the marigolds, I threw some of them on the ground in the empty spaces in the garden.  The seeds took root and now more marigold plants are coming up.

tiger swallowtail

spicebush swallowtail

     In the last two weeks I have noticed more butterflies in the garden.  We have had such cloudy, cool, fall-like weather in the last week.  Temperatures did not get out of the 70's during the day, and at night went down in the 50's.  I want summer back for a few more weeks.

Container Flowers

6/3/12

calibrachoa

     So much of the yard is in shade at this house we are renting.  But the two-level deck gets full sun. 

     So this week I went through more unpacked moving boxes and found some of my planters.

     I bought some potting soil and annuals, filled the planters and put them around the deck railing.  Now the deck is bright with color.  These are photos of the flowers I bought.

marigolds

ageratum

     

diascia

     A few of the neighbors have stopped by to introduce themselves and welcome us to the neighborhood.  Our neighbors that live next door brought a lovely potted dahlia for us when they stopped by.

dahlia

Spring in the Desert

4/8/12

backyard  view from house

     While I was gone for my visit to Virginia, my garden and yard burst into bloom.  The middle of March to the middle of April is the best time of the year here.  This is the time when the desert blooms, and the weather is the most pleasant, with temperatures running from the mid 70's to high 80's.

     This is the view out my kitchen window  into the backyard.  Let's walk through the garden and I will show you what's blossoming.

gazania

gazania

     I have several gazania of different colors.  Above are photos of two: a burnt-orange and white variety and a yellow-orange variety.

red rose



white rose


     My rose bushes are blooming away and have several blooms and buds.  I've been bringing fresh cut roses in the house.  Above are a red Mr. Lincoln rose and a white Honor rose.

marigold

strawflower

cosmos

ornamental cabbage

     My marigolds scattered throughout the garden have just started blooming, as well as the strawflowers and cosmos, but the ornamental cabbage has gone to seed.

red mum

     I bought this potted red mum at the grocery last fall.  I planted it in the yard after blooming, and it has buds so will soon bloom again.

blue cup

     My blue cup plants are the color standouts in the garden now.

view of half of the flower garden

     Next week I'll show you what's happening in the yard.

Crickets in the Garden, Scorpions in the House

Diatomaceous earth

5/13/11
     The crickets have been chirping away in the flower garden for about six weeks now.  I don't mind the chirping.  It is a sound of summer to me.  But we live in a known scorpion area, and crickets are the favorite food of scorpions.  So the scorpions come running to my flower garden for their next meal.  And then they wander into my house.  I don't want them in either place.  We had two scorpions in the house last year, and one already this year.  I'm really fearful of them.  They frighten me. They can make themselves thinner than a credit card and slip through tiny cracks.  They can crawl into the house on plumbing pipe, or out of A/C vents.  

     The crickets had to go.  My husband dragged out the bag of diatomaceous earth and spread it in the garden to kill the crickets.  Diatomaceous earth, which looks like talcum powder, is the microscopic, fossilized remains of diatoms, a type of algae that has sharp edges that cut any crawling insect body, causing loss of body fluids and dehydration.  It is supposed to work on roaches, ants. silverfish and other crawling insects.  It is organic and non-toxic to humans and animals, but you shouldn't breathe the dust or get it into your eyes.  It is said to work on scorpions, but in reality, it doesn't work for me.  We put it down at all the doors, but that doesn't stop them from getting in the house in so many other ways that you can't cover with diatomaceous earth.  They say chickens eat scorpions.  A lot of the nearby farms have chickens.  Maybe that's why they congregate in our yard.

Dwarf (?) Zinnia

     On a more cheerful note, the cosmos, dwarf zinnia and marigold seeds I planted have all come up and are blooming.  The dwarf zinnia are only supposed to be six inches high, but mine are almost eleven inches.   The vinca I planted last summer apparently made it through the freezes and has returned. 

     I was walking through the garden section at Lowe's two weeks ago just looking, getting ideas for what to plant in my garden for summer.  Of course, I ended up walking out with a plant.  I bought a beautiful Blue Marguerite daisy which I have never grown before.  I don't know whether it will bloom all summer in our triple digit heat, but I thought I could use some more blue in the garden.  We'll see.








Boy O' Boy Marigolds

Vinca



Blue Marguerite Daisy