Category Archives: General Gardening

More Spring bloomers and trimming of the beauty bush.

More Spring bloomers are making an appearance. Daffodils and crocus but also a Iris reticulata. This species tends to putter out after a few season and this is the only one I have seen this year out of the dozen I planted a few years ago.

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A unique daffodil:

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More daffodils:

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Digging in the yard and garden of this house built in 1959 I find many unusual things.

I found this sock today in the vegetable garden. The raised beds were filled with bags of garden soil years ago so I guess it has been in there for a few years!

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A few days ago I was leveling a stepping stone a mole had disturbed and found concrete with a pipe sticking out of it. I guess the previous owner had some sort of bird feeder or plant hanger? Or she may have placed it there to support this camellia?

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I usually find a brick or a piece of pipe placed next most of the old shrubs in the yard. When the neighborhood was built in late 1959 this was way out in the country! Now it is only a few miles from the old downtown area.

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Filed under General Gardening, Plants

The return of warm weather also means the return of my arch enemies!

The return of warm weather also means the return of my arch enemies!

Chickweed!

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Wild geranium!

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Wild strawberry!

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Wild raspberry!

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English ivy seedlings and ligustrum seedlings!

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Japanese honeysuckle!

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And Bittercress!

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I have so often thought about getting a goat or a sheep and confine them to an area and just let them eat away at these weeds!

The seeds can live for years so even when you do remove them they have the ability to come back years later!

I have pulled and pulled and even resorted to spraying an herbicide. The patches get smaller each year so maybe they will eventually disappear?

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Filed under General Gardening, Pest

Oh, December!

Cold keeps me inside and I begin to play around with my food, literally!

I try new recipes, make a few up, or make something I haven’t tried in a while.

I was thinking about eggs Benedict the other morning and came up with this.

Hard fried egg on toast with cheese and Sarachi.

A side of homemade cranberry sauce, too.

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It hit the spot so out to the yard I go to clean off the patio, sidewalks, and pick up limbs and pine cones.

The Hellebore are blooming! They bloom in the Fall and Winter and the colors range from shades of burgundy or red to shades of white, ivory, or green. The evergreen leaves create a mound about 18 inches high and 2 feet wide.

This one is called Ivory Prince.

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Gus continues his recovery from the TPLO surgery of nearly two months ago. I am even allowing him to sleep on my bed if its chilly at night! He doesn’t seem to have had any side effects – except for emptying my savings account!

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Of course, I love to either end or begin my day with a visit to Cup A Joe on Hillsborough Street for some sort of coffee beverage. Below is a Chocolate Joe Juice – crushed ice, espresso, and Hershey’s Chocolate!

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Join me sometime and enjoy!

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Filed under General Gardening