Every Day There's Something

Larry has been working on his grill hut.

I planted strawberries in some old tires.  I got the idea from permaculture books.  Larry didn't like the idea so I put them where they couldn't be seen from the road.  I liked the idea because the stacked tires make a raised bed and are easy to water.

This lavender has just started to bloom.  It smells lovely and is full of bees.

Larry found a mimosa tree on our property and moved it beside the driveway.  I love watching the butterflies and bees that enjoy this tree.

Some of Larry's grapes were killed off with the last frost, but some survived.

Larry's running rattlesnake green beans have started to climb.  The peas are coming along well.  He has them mulched with hay.  The hay around the green beans provided plenty of seeds for grass.  I hope he gets rid of the grass before it is time to pick the beans.

I tried to dig a hole to plant this little curly maple, but the clay was too hard.  I used my Mantis to dig the hole.  It turned the dirt clods into powder which was easy to deal with.  The water soaked right in, too.  Since I had the Mantis out there, I used it to edge weeds along the edge of part of the rose strip paralleling the road.  It is hard to cut right up to mulch, so sometimes the strip is lined with tall weeds.  Using the Mantis, I could knock the weeds down, and till in some of the mulch,  win-win.

The flower boxes and baskets are looking better.

Impatiens do well if I plant them and water them.  They also do well if I just drop them on the ground, throw mulch over them and water them.  I have to say, plan two is easier.

This is the first year the plum tree has made more than one plum.

The gardenias have started to bloom.  Aunt Annie picks some to put in a glass in her kitchen window.  She enjoys the fragrance and just leaves them there until they root.  I wonder if mine will root.  I don't think it is possible to have too many gardenias.

This shows the drip irrigation I've spent some time on this morning unclogging the tiny sprayers.  I should have done it sooner.