A Wall of Text

A lot has happened since the last post.  I really need to do this more often.

People in the neighborhood were giving away some plants we got some Japanese Iris Eco Easter and Himalayan Indigo for the shade garden, some orange day lilies (not sure which variety) for a new garden I started by the garage, and a few for the new hummingbird garden. I also added some Goldstrum Black Eyed Susans, Crystal Peak White Obedient Plant, Anouk Spanish Lavender, some variety of bee balm, and whatever that purple flower is I had on the edge of the shade garden to the new garden by garage.


We had to put a fence around the vegetable garden to keep the bunnies out, they ate the peas, beans, and were taking the blackberries.  It worked.  Now the squirrels have the blackberries all to themselves.  We also put the chicken wire fence around the asparagus and roses.

Vine Borer killed all the pumpkins and squash.  We ripped them out hoping they wouldn't move onto the watermelon and cucumber.  Doesn't sound like they bother those too much.  Also sounds like we should try MoschataTromboncino squash, apparently their stems are tougher and aren't attacked.  The peas were done so I ripped those out too.  Replanted carrots, peas, lettuce, and added some new eggplant and melon.  Might be too hot for the peas but we will give it a try and see.  Had extra seeds and extra space so why not.

Need to figure out a way to net all the berries for next year, the animals have eaten all but 2 blueberries and almost all the blackberries.  The blackberries behind the asparagus seem to have gone unnoticed for the moment.  We have 1 persimmon and a couple and no figs.  The tea bushes are starting to take off and the elderberries are covered!

Added a new hummingbird garden on the south side of the vegetable garden. Vernonia angustifolia Plum Peachy, Origanum laevigatum Lizzie, Baptisia Pink Lemonade PPAF, Agastache Peachie Keen PP 25886, Penstemon 'Dark Towers', and Veronicastrum sibiricum.

The cardboard and mulch trick seems to be working. Although the leaf mulch appears to have a lots of crab grass seed in it. Maybe buck up and pay a little extra for the cleaner variety for next year.  We started lying the black fabric down on the garden between rows to block weeds, that is making it much more manageable.  Thinking of trying garden mats next year, the birds are shredding the landscape fabric.  The I Must Garden Vole and Mole repellent is working quite well, just need to keep applying it.  Some say that catmint does a good job of repelling them too.  May want to try that next year.  We had free wood chips delivered, they were great considering it was free.  I don't want to spread it near the house just in case termites like it, but it works well for the gardens.

Got a Giant Reed Grass, Peppermint Stick for the grass garden between the driveways.  Should get to be about 12' tall and hopefully block the back porch light next door.  Here's the Lirope and tall grasses (not sure what varieties) I picked up from neighbors.