sprouts 'n shouts

Happiness is...

...my spring garden.  I will admit to being a little flower-crazy over this past week.  I've fussed over my greenhouse seedlings (germination 75%!  Hooray!!).  I've micromanaged the new growth in the front garden, splitting up clumps of ferns and spacing out my columbines.  I've mercilessly weeded.  I've worried over a dry spell and grumbled over low nighttime temperatures.  In short, it's been heavenly.

Only a gardener would understand as I bend over some mysterious green growth, puzzling over its identity.  "Is this a weed, or did I plant this?!?"  I ask Todd.  He smiles and nods. 

He doesn't understand my euphoria over sturdy peony shoots.  "These were flattened by the drought last year!"  I inform him.  "Absolutely dead!"  I show him my coreopsis.  "These can be divided next year."  I gloat.  "And wait until we build a potting shed and I can start using rooting hormone!"  Since he's not a "flower person," he politely admires and says yes, I've never seen such a healthy euphorbia and oh, definitely, that probably is a coneflower.  In short, he does exactly the right thing.

I am especially delighted because I've built this big garden from scratch.  When we moved in last year, the only things planted were a few hostas, a bleeding heart, and these daffodils (and weeds!).  I'm sure I've got at least 100 plants coming up now, and that doesn't include what's coming up in the greenhouses.  I've got 30 columbines alone!  Squeee!!!

I did have to do something regrettable, though - pricking out my chamomile.  "Pricking out" means thinning your seedlings, as they are likely to be too close.  That means they're competing for nutrients, space, and water, and are not going to thrive.  My chamomile went crazy this year:

I hate to lose even one plant, so pricking out is difficult for me.  Even though I have plenty of chamomile...even though I still have a few seeds left, and it grows easily if you broadcast the seed...I tried to save as many plants as I could.

This is a dangerous time for young seedlings.  First, they have to survive the upheaval of the pricking out.  Then they have to adjust to a new planting - which means that, until their roots fan out a bit, they are going to struggle to draw up water and nutrients.  Finally, they have to deal with "hardening off," or getting used to the sun, outside the comfort and protection of their little greenhouse space.  We have cold nights and sometimes fairly warm days, so this will make them tough - if they survive.  Finally, they'll have to make it through yet another relocation - to their final destination, my garden.  Fingers crossed that I have a healthy crop!

Todd and I have been working all around the property this week.  We walked the fields, trying to decide where to put the fences.

We attacked the fence line next to the house, spending hours and hours pulling up blackberry brambles and dried weeds.

We're both covered in scratches, but it's worth it to clear out that mess!  On our rambles, we discovered...redbud trees!

Another mystery tree about to flower...

Pollinators out and about!

And an entire slope of trillium/trout lilies by the stream leading to the pond!  They should be blooming within a week.

It's also heartening to see so many birds out and about.

And, another great harbinger of spring - our apple tree is starting to bud out!  I can't wait for the blossoms.

Although I'm irritatingly hampered by my sore shoulder, I love this springtime work.  I can't wait to see the fruits of our labor in a couple of months.

Have a great week!

Dragging wings and insect things

Looks like gardenia season is nearly over, but I love the desiccated blooms nearly as much as the young ones.  They remind me of aged ivory parchment paper.

Thankfully, we have lots of new growth to fill in the gap.  Our "Jurassic ferns" are doing nicely in their new location.

Hostas are starting to spike.

The young lantana buds remind me of field clovers from home.

Our beautyberry bushes are sporting tiny purple flowers that are attracting lots of insects.

Trees are setting up their seeds, too.

It's hard to stay inside when all the tiny insects are on the move!  I love this iridescent fly.  Such beautiful colors!

The same goes for this pair of mating Japanese beetles.

I know they're destructive...can't you just hear him chewing?...

...but I can't help enjoying their lovely appearance.  Even relatively monochromatic insects have a beauty in the various shades of color.

These striped leaf hoppers are the same that we had in Indiana.  I'm glad to see them here!

I'm seeing assassin bug nymphs everywhere right now.

You can see their pale, immature rostrums, but just barely.  Soon he'll be able to deliver a pretty powerful bite!

I found a dead adult on one of our screens recently.  Check out the mature rostrum on this guy!

I have, unfortunately, been unable to be outside as much lately.  I was weeding in the yard a couple of weekends ago and was repeatedly bitten by a mystery insect that caused me to break out in head-to-toe hives and necessitated a trip to the ER because of my swollen throat/tongue.

Mystery insect unknown, but from a description of the circumstances, Todd's allergist thinks that it was probably fire ants.  There are two types here in South Carolina:  the native (Solinopsis geminata) and the imported (Solinopsis invicta).  The imported fire ants are the ones you've heard about that stowed away on some transport from South America and have spread like wildfire here in the United States.  They are quick, aggressive, and their bites leave a tell-tale pustule on the welt.  The native fire ants have a much smaller range and leave a welt with no pustule.  I was bitten/stung once or twice on the hand by a native fire ant two years ago.  My hand turned red and swelled, but no hives.  This time, though, I received 8 bites/stings.  But maybe it wasn't an ant at all.  I have an EpiPen now, but I still get anxious when I'm out by tall plants for very long, and I just won't crawl around on the ground to weed again.  Even staying upright, I'm still an insect magnet.  I was outside for about 2 hours this weekend and came in with TWENTY mosquito bites!  Ugh!  I'm mixing up an essential oils-based repellent this week.

I can't stay inside, though, when I see our "goz" coming.

They come right over to me...

...giving me the usual forthright look.

Their baby fuzz is nearly gone!

One gosling has a very noticeable problem.  When he walks, his wings drag the ground instead of tucking neatly away.

I read up on this problem.  I found that it wouldn't do any good to call a local wildlife rescue group. The nearest one is 45 minutes away and most groups - even relatively close ones - won't come out for a single goose, which is considered a bit of a nuisance bird anyway.  I read that it could be a back sprain or a birth defect. One nature blogger mentioned a very similar problem, and reported that the goose in question did eventually seem to improve on his own and was able to fly when the time came.  The fact is, this goose is fat and thriving on our pond.  It never freezes over, and there's plenty to eat.  If winter comes and he is still here, alone, and needs care, that will be another conversation.  I would love to rush in and feed him all winter, but that would make him dependent upon us.  I'm not sure that it's the wisest thing to do.  I'm going to watch and wait.

Have a great week!

The White Stuff

I joked to Todd recently that I've been poisoned (ivy), bit (mosquitoes), stung (bee), and burned (sun), all in the same day.  That's the perils of working outside when you live in kind of a wild, unruly place, but that certainly won't keep me inside.  Especially this week, which I'm proclaiming the return of the white.  Not very catchy, but it's accurate.

Magnolias are blooming.

They don't last too long off the tree before browning and dropping their filaments, but I look forward to that part, because I think the filaments look like teeny, tiny matches.

And, oh, the gardenias!  Suddenly the air is full of their scent and I won't close the windows for a month.

Our nandina bushes are setting up for their fall berries with tiny white flowers.

Some have a pinkish hue, reminding me a bit of the Autumn Joy sedum (second photo) at our old place.  They look almost identical, don't they? 

The hostas are shooting up purple flowers so pale that they almost looks white.

The astilbes I planted a year or so ago are coming up faithfully, but they're a bit "weedy" for my taste.  Now I understand why it's recommended that you plant them en masse and in a spot where a mid-summer bloomer can come up and take their spot.

The weather is so nice that I take Bosewichte outside for a little of the green he craves.

Tabitha sometimes ventures out onto the porch...

...but she's usually much too busy indoors for that.

Finally, to commemorate the beautiful summer days, a rhubarb-strawberry pie that Todd absolutely devoured (recipe here). 

I'm looking forward to many more beautiful summer days.  Hope you're having a great week!