Deadline?! Schedule?! Snortingly funny even contemplating that in my garden.

Ditto nhbabs. Que sera, sera.

This year I do have a deadline. I'm returning to work next Tuesday after a three month absence following a knee replacement. I I intend to get the first round of weeding done and plant what remains in pots or needs to be moved before it gets too hot and I get too tired.
The 'first round of weeding' is not to be underestimated. I have hundreds of annual weeds in a main bed. I moved a lot of plants last fall, and I wonder if a lot of weed seeds got moved to the surface. And, as Mayalena pointed out earlier, the number of maple seedlings is beyond counting.
I see the garlic mustard is sprouting by the thousands; can't let that go more than a few days or it will flower and make thousands more.
Fortunately for the garden and my sanity I'll be working 3 days a week, and not full time as before. Less money to buy plants but more time to garden.

I usually want to have things in the garden as soon as it can be ready and never do, so I never realized until this year, when I am ready, that it is not even nearly warm enough at last frost date. Ours is March 6, and my indoor started tomatoes and peppers have started their hardening off ritual at least 3 times, only to be stopped by early morning temperatures dipping too low. I have lost a few seedlings because of it. The seedlings in my containers are too small to plant out. There I was, feeling so proud of myself. Other things I started indoors: (cannas, lilies, irises, glads) grew too tall and I don't know what will happen to them when I put them in the ground. The reason for my grand plan was to make up for the fact that I lost gardening time when I took off for a short vacation last July, got sick and had to be away until early September. Therefore I did not get my fall clean-up done, and knew I would have to do it in Spring hence less time for getting things in the ground. In addition we have vacations planned for late May and mid-June, so everything needs to be 'in' and settled, because the kids are not good garden stewards. But the best laid plans of mice and men... Well, there's always next year.

Well, I didn't mean did you actually meet your deadline. lol
Every year, I want to be done by Memorial Day because it usually gets hot after that and I cut back the time I work to the early morning hours when it's cool, so a lot less gets done until the Fall when it gets cool again.

I'm not going to be done by Monday, at all. Especially with rain forecast for Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I still have shrubs and perennials to plant, lawn to edge, weeds to pull, vegetable beds not filled or planted. I thought I was doing pretty good, I don't know what happened. [g]

Just once, I would like to have no renovation projects going on, and all the spring work done by May 1st and do nothing all summer but sit in the garden with a book and a cold drink. :-) But that can only happen if everything looks great, so I am not sitting there resisting the urge to get up and fix something. So I guess that means never.

Congratulations on getting back to work, Marie! I think. :-) Your knee must be doing well. I hope you are going to post photos of your garden since you moved all those plants.

My aim is to be done with spring clean-up by the first snow next...December?

I've already spread 7 yards of mulch and I still have millions of weeds coming up.

And I am moving plants again, editing.... When will things bloom? Never, at the rate I re-arrange! O well...the process is what's satisfying.....

I'm with mayalena - I hope to be done with spring clean-up by the first snowfall, lol. I'm still doing last fall's clean-up! No, sadly, that's not even true - I still THINKING ABOUT doing last fall's clean-up lol.

I am completely and totally overwhelmed this year. Between the very late start due to the uncooperative weather, and my increased hours at work, here it is almost June and I still have only been out in the garden twice. Sigh....

Dee

I finished 2 years of spring clean up last week.

Memorial Day is a bit early this year. Normally I have my veggies in by now. I'm going to try to get to the nursery today. I have workmen here and it's early release at school. So probably won't happen.

The answer to everything is a SHUFFLE HOE! I bought mine from Walter Nicke last fall after thyme2dig raved about it. I used it for nearly 2 hours last night to decapitate all those weeds. It is a very effective tool. It uproots the maple seedlings easily. It can squeeze in small spaces between plants and easily get under trees and shrubs. And it pulls out the accumulated leaves under them, too.
It made short work of a big job.
I think Walter Nicke is having a tool sale right now. The shuffle hoe is a worthwhile investment.
My equally favorite tool (for reaching my goals) is a pointed serrated shovel I read about on line. It works in really small spaces, digs through roots and hard soil and extracts rocks easily.
Both these tools are worth 10x my Smith and Hawken tools that my in laws bought for me 35 years ago at (even accounting for inflation) at 3 x the price.
Marie

Great question, PM2!

I usually have a big family reunion here in July, so that's been my deadline in the past. This year, my mom turned 95, and everyone came from around the country for her birthday in March, so I don't think they'd want to come back this summer. So, I'm off the hook, sort of! (Which is great, because I'm so far behind that the first snowfall better be late this year.)

I may need to check into that shuffle hoe ... but most of my garlic mustard comes up amid the minor spring bulbs in my tiny woodland garden (something like 20 x 15 feet square, so I DO mean tiny!) so I need to pull each one by hand. Between that and the maple seedlings, it's going to take forever to clean that area up.

Like PM2, I can't really relax in the garden when there are so many weeds to pull. We had guests yesterday for lunch, and my DH was kicking me under the table because, instead of chatting, I was leaning over and pulling up grass between the bricks under the table.

IâÂÂm still bringing my tomatoes and peppers in the house at night. Planting them out early next week probably. On the other hand, I got the brassicas and lettuce in late, so IâÂÂve needed this extended cool weather.

IâÂÂm always moving plants, and itâÂÂs getting warm starting Monday, so IâÂÂve stopped moving until the Fall now. Unless we get stuck in another cool pattern. We got a few things moved this spring so I canâÂÂt complain.

Northerner, youâÂÂre in z5a and your last frost date is March 6th? That seems early to me. I thought ours was later than that in z6a.

We spread nine yards of mulch last year, and I am skipping ordering mulch until next year.

Dee, twice in the garden? You mean you don't at least walk through it on the way to the car? [g]

Wow, DtD, your Mom reaching 95 years old, that is really wonderful! You all are so lucky to have had her with you so long!

No garlic mustard here, just campanula that wonâÂÂt die. I have at least a dozen patches of it that we are going to try to dig up and sift the soil to get it out of there this time. Maple seedlings, *sigh*.

That is pretty funny, pulling out the grass at the table. So much more relaxing when you can get on top of things and get it to an acceptable level before you plan on having company. Butâ¦company is a good thing either way. :-)

I don't have a schedule because I always find some plants that I didn't know about and want to include. I mostly want to include them because I liked them but I don't know much about them, or maybe I heard too much about them and finally found them. So making some area for the new plants gives me experience in having those plants, even if they might end up dying. I'll know how tolerant they are or maybe how I need to care for the next one.

Or as the case is, I may like to know about these things because friends will invariably ask me about them -- and I'd like to be able to help them out!

I just came in from weeding...and ordered an "oscillating hoe" (aka scuffle hoe) from Walter Nicke (gardentalk).

Will it solve all my problems? :)

thanks for the recommendation, Marie!

ML

DTD, you know most of us would have been pulling that grass with you while chatting! Only gardeners can understand those urges.

Well, I could possibly get caught up if these darn plants would stop jumping into my car every weekend I go out. I mean really, I don't know how it happens, but each weekend there's another 15 or so plants sitting on my deck......sigh....,,,,will I ever be able to pass a nursery without stopping and buying?

Then there's all the plants in the garden that yell out to me "move me, please!!" So what's a gal to do, but play musical plants? Between buying plants, then having to move plants in order to plant the new ones, then move other plants to plant the prior displaced plants, and on and on in a viscous cycle. Anyone want to take bets if I can stay out of the nurseries for three whole days this long holiday weekend? No chance.

And let's hear it for the hoe that has many names.....I call it a stirrup hoe. It is such a great tool to have in the shed. I have about a gazillion violet seedlings and I don't even get palpitations anymore when I see stuff like that because I know in 15 min I'll be done. Love it!

No PM2, my car is literally about 8 feet away from my back door, so I don't walk through the garden on the way to the car! Probably a good thing, since I would be late to work every day, stopping to "pull a weed here and there"!

:)
Dee

I haven't even filled my planters yet. I can only find one hanging basket but I think they are too small so I really should just go buy some new ones. It's raining. I was going to get the planters filled today before it rained so I missed today's deadline. Forgot to put down black plastic to kills weeds in veggie beds and was away for about two weeks. I'm digging out the weeds with a spading fork since I don't use a tiller any more. Potatoes might possibly be chitting and I can't put them in beds that are getting this years composted horse manure because it also contains wood ashes. Slowed down because little John Deere mower I used for hauling a cart around kept getting a flat tire. My husband bought new tires yesterday so now I'm good to go. Our son called this morning to ask me to do some errands so Friday I have to stop at the market for marinated steak tips for a party so I'll just have to go to Murray's Farm to check out their plants and see about their famous fertilizer for hanging baskets.

My deadline this year is not to plant the parsnips so late that we only get one or two meals of tiny parsnips and to think out the firecracker perennial that's choking out some primroses. So my deadlines for perennials is to thin out the beds so I don't lose anything. I think that's it.

I'm glad to see others have the same non-schedule that I have! Normally I start planting annuals from seeds in April, but because the hubby had eye surgery this year and was out of commission, I missed that deadline and will be buying a few annuals. Also I use the old Memorial Day (May 31) as the time to plant things outdoors.

Back in winter I ordered about 25 seedling trees so I've been hauling water to them and praying for rain. Four river birch don't look like they will make it and one crabapple and one white birch look iffy, but all the rest seem healthy and are leafed out. My tree planting days are done, except for collecting more cones, apples, and seeds to scatter. Mother Nature will be taking over the reforestation effort from this point on.

Also I've been dismantling the paddock fence which looks sort of junky and blocks my view of the vegetable garden from the house. It served a purpose while the pony was with us. Unfortunately when I build something it is built to last, so removing this wire and post structure requires much digging and brute force. It's still a work in progress but I hope to get it done in the next two days.

The lawn and pasture are hayfields and I try not to look at the knee high grass. It's depressing, but DH has the green light from his surgeon to mow and to lift things again, so as soon as things dry out he'll be able to see if the lawn tractor can go through. I know I'll be happier when the mowing is done. At least, thank goodness, he can go grocery shopping now without me along to lift the heavier items. He usually shops and I cook, but the division of labor has been skewed during the past month.

My vegetable patch has re-seeded itself with sunflowers, so I'm going to take it as a sign and let this year's crop be entirely sunflowers, and maybe add a hill of summer squash.

I did clear out the little patio orange garden and planted 3 pots of orange gerbera daisies, as well as nasturtiums from seed in another planter. That is mostly the sum of my gardening efforts this year.

All my gardens need weeding and trimming, but I will get to that when I get to that, maybe some time before the snow flies!

OMG I haven't planted sunflowers yet and our daughter-in-law suggested I should have a sunflower teepee for the grandchildren. I should at least get them started in peat pots. What else have I forgotten? No germination on lemon gem marigolds - the tagetes variety with delicious lemon scented foliage. Has anyone seen them for sale? This is a hard-to-find annual.

My husband thinks I got more planted than I did. I have a box of plants hiding.

Front riding mower tires replaced then one of the tires on the cart fell off. My husband is going to fill it with spray foam.

I have calendula and borage seedlings in one bed but they are so hard to transplant that I'm just giving them the heave ho. I need to pull all but one borage seedling since the plant gets so big it takes up too much space. Bees love it though.

Need to start watering the transplants. Why did I bother to shop for a chaise lounge yesterday? I have no idea when I'll have time to use it.

Dee, I have to go a distance to get to the car, from one side of the house to the other, so I always end up going through the garden. It is hard to pass by without stopping for one thing or another. :-)

Defrost, for once, getting early pansies paid off. IâÂÂve had a couple of pots of pansies going for about a month. Not thinking of planting hot weather annuals until this weather pattern changes. Too cold out there! Brrrr!

I just realized yesterday that I never started Basil seed indoors this year. Not that itâÂÂs warm enough for Basil outdoors, but now IâÂÂll have to pick some up. I am going to try to add some marigolds to the vegetable garden this year, and wonder if IâÂÂll see any Lemon Gem at the nursery.

I havenâÂÂt spent even a half hour on the chaise lounge this season yet. I have only dragged the cushions out there twice so far. But we've been too busy rebuilding the vegetable garden this spring, any way.

Spedigrees, only have one tomato planted so far, just to take a shot at an early harvest, but it really has barely grown in the past couple of weeks. Not enough sun.

Sounds like your tree project is working out well and I bet this weather helps. I hope you will post photos once they seem established.

Glad to hear your husband tolerated his surgery so well and is on his way back to his normal routine.

IâÂÂm still waiting for Nasturtiums to germinate.