English Emma Blooms

Yesterday was a good day. I spent a whole lot of time gardening. I planted the rest of the sunflowers along the south side of the house. I dug up some daylilies and put them along the south fence where I had put some mulch. I then planted some sunflowers where the daylilies had been, in the bed on the east side of the house. I moved some hosta from under the hammock to by the sliding glass doors. The only problem with the backyard is that I cannot get the hose to reach the bed on the east side. I suppose I will have to use the sprinkler.

I will be mad if none of the sunflowers come up. I have put such careful effort into planting them. I had a shoot the day before yesterday, and yesterday it was gone. My little bottomless pots looked like someone had gone digging in them looking for seeds. :(  I planted at least a thousand a year ago and none of them grew.  Yet the volunteers grow under the bird feeder...

I have ordered some cosmos seeds for the front. They are my absolute favorite. I also ordered a book and some licorice for Friday, my last day of school. I sent Den a couple of books for her birthday. All Quiet on the Western Front is my book of the year. I also sent her a Jill Mansell book that I ordered for myself. I love Jill Mansell, and it looks like she has written some new books. I read her first one, which was about a wedding and was really funny. She does touching romantic comedy.

 It was a day of visible progress. I moved plants, made choices about beds, adjusted the yard, planted seeds, and continued turning the garden into something intentional.

I can be disappointed if the sunflowers do not come up without making that mean the effort was wasted. Gardening always includes negotiation with squirrels, weather, soil, timing, and whatever invisible gremlin raids the bottomless pots.

For the sun flower seeds I am cutting out the bottom of the flimsy pots.  I am putting in the ground.  Adding soil and three seeds and a pencil.  The pot protects from the seeds getting eaten.

 I am pleased with the garden progress. I have a few more day lilies to move backwards, and I have the flowers around the fir tree to move to where the day lilies are. That will be part of today's project. Other than that, I have nothing else planned.

I finally cleared the plants from around the base of the tree (they weren’t thriving in the shade) and tucked them into sunnier beds out back. I added a sunflower I found at Kroger—on sale, like it was waiting just for me. A woman asked how I’d eat it, and I laughed: “In a salad!” I hope it takes. I hope it seeds.

'Tournesol' means 'sunflower' in French. Professor Tournesol, also known as Professor Calculus, is Tintin's friend—an absent-minded professor and half-deaf physicist who invents many sophisticated devices used in the series.

I recently decided to plant additional seeds in my front yard to enhance its appearance. Unfortunately, many of the plants from last year did not return, leaving me with several bare spots that needed attention. To fill these gaps, I sowed more sunflower seeds along with a variety of other seeds. I like to think of my garden as a "chaos garden" since I can hardly remember all the different plants I’ve included. The excitement of watching them grow is something I truly look forward to!

As summer approaches, I found myself feeling a bit anxious to finalize my plantings. Time seems to be slipping away quickly, and I want to make sure everything is in place before the warmer weather fully arrives. On a positive note, some of the canna plants from last year are beginning to re-emerge, promising a colorful display in August.

In addition to planting, I also took the opportunity to reposition the badminton net to the center of the yard. I hadn’t realized how skewed it was until I moved it! To add a unique touch, I decided to allow the grass to grow long beneath the net. I'm curious to see how this will look as it could create an interesting contrast with the neatly trimmed areas of the yard. Overall, I am eager for the garden to flourish and for summer to bring its vibrant beauty.

 Good morning, Indianapolis!

This is the first Monday of my summer break. Today, I was planning to go swimming, but it's cold and wet. I think I will set my threshold for swimming at 70°F for later today. Instead, I’ll go this afternoon and try to hit adult swim. I’ll bring a book and do some reading.

Yesterday was productive and enjoyable. I planted some delphiniums, foxglove, sunflowers, and moved some daylilies to make room for seeds. Today, I need to do the same in the front garden, moving the daylilies along the fence by the neighbors. The soil is poor there, making it the best place for them. I also plan to fill the garden under the tree with daylilies. By the end of the growing season, I intend to move all the lilies to the front windows. I’ve been experimenting with plants at the dentist's office, and it looks great! I may even take some from there to my house.

Looking forward to catching up with my gardening today!

 Gardening! I moved some plants around. I put the lilies under the tree, out in the open. I also dug up a sunflower from a pot and moved it to the garden. I staked it as it was looking pretty puny after the move. It will readjust. I also weeded and weed-whacked. I have some more weed-whacking to do today.

Never underestimate, "The inevitability of gradualness."Sidney Webb, 1st Baron Passfield. One of my favorite quotes I live by: things erode by gradualness and also grow by gradualness. My garden did not exist when I moved in 26 years ago, and now it is huge. It is a testament to gradual efforts. I am doing the same thing when I purge my belongings, when I clean, etc. When I weed, when I nurture friendships, and when I cut them off slowly (like with Eric). Nature is gradual most of the time.

My garden is a testament to the usefulness of my efforts. My life is a garden I tend. I prune, water, and feed different parts of my life.

 Yesterday for gardening, I planted some more clover and ground cover. I dug up some poison ivy and moved another salvia. I have five in a row now. My next challenge is preparing the soil and the patch for the new wildflowers I am going to plant. Maybe sunflowers? Actually, I think I will focus on weeding this week because I will be gone for the weekend. It was supposed to rain next weekend, but now it is not, so I can't really plant anything new. Oh! I can plant the Canna and the elephant ear. They don't need to be watered daily. I have to figure out where to put them.

 Yesterday, I did some gardening. I expanded the flower bed in the front garden little by little. First, I put down cardboard to cover the grass, and then I added mulch on top. Tomorrow, I plan to put down some seed, but I’m a little worried about the birds eating them. A few years ago, I planted hundreds of sunflower seeds, and none of them came up. To increase my chances of success, I think I will plant some directly in the soil and start others in a pot. This way, I will have two sources of the same plants. I will cover the pot with plastic wrap to keep the birds away and help it germinate.

Also yesterday, I watered the clover seeds and went into the alley behind the house to trim a tree. Unfortunately, I got locked out of the backyard when the gate shut. I had to run through the neighbor's yard to reach the street. As I crossed their yard, I jokingly said, "Please don't kill me," because their giant dogs went crazy, and I was a little worried I should have been more sneaky. Fortunately, one of the red-headed kids opened the gate and let me out.