Wow, sounds great, wish I were that far along...lol!

My Goodness, Glenda, that seems high to cut up trees. (Continued from May1 thread) My SIL cuts trees up that are downed for the wood!He dosent have much time right now, with all the bus, truck, checkups right now, or I'm sure he would do it. He brought us a load of wood from my Daughters yard, in the bad ice storm Spf. had.Do you have a free cycle near, where you could advertise free wood for the cutting?
Last night brought a lot of lightening, but havent been out to check for damage. We recieved 1 1/2 inches of rain from the last storm.
Iris are so beautiful now, anyone seen "Batic"?
I think I have the tall grass killed out, might have gotten a few daylilies with them, but now the others are doing better.I'm afraid I might have lost a few red peonies too.
Enjoy the beautiful weather coming up, going to be a lot of what we call "Deck Days".

4/10 of rain last night.

I finallllllly finished planting all my bare root plants and can now move my attention to my shade garden under the deck. I have some hosta there from the previous owner and moved them out of full sun yesterday and into a more appealing pattern of planting. All the rain we got last night did wonders for them.

I went to Wickman's yesterday and found the most gorgeous black/purple ornamental peppers that I'm mixing with some lime green coleus in some pots on the front porch.

ceresone, part of the problem is that the huge elm tree fell in the garden into the lagoon from the dairy and it stay wet until late summer and there are fences on two sides of the tree so he has to get in there on foot to cut it up and just stack it....can't get his equipment to load back there.

The front tree is easy pickings just laying right by the drive. I will get another bid before making a decision.

We got slightly over 1/2 inch last night. New plans...won't get any gardening done this weekend probably. Had to go to MIL's today and tomorrow will make a cemetery run for decoration. Might get busy in afternoon...we will see.

Need to mow again.

Our mower had a flat so we got behind on mowing the yard. Sure grows fast this time of year with all the rain we've had. Your elm sounds like a pain to clean up Glenda.

Teeandcee - Sounds like a cool looking combo to put peppers and coleus in your containers. I have two containers by my front porch that I still haven't planted. I'm late getting to it this year.
I planted annual vinca in a little raised bed in front of my porch this week but have some more of it to plant.

okra transplants are rotting in the bed. cool weather and rain have done it. it was 42 this am at 6 o'clock. crazy!

william

42 here also, this morning.
My mowing is behind, I need to get a fuel filter for my tractor.
Glenda, I've had a dozen strawberries, all to myself (hubby has decided my food is making him sick) and he will never try Kohlrabi--so I ate it too!!My nephew told of his friend that planted a huge garden of Kohlrabi, he asked how it tasted cooked? said he didnt really know, his never made it to the house, LOL--Thats me!
should explain abit about my above statement, my husband has dementia/alzheimers/brain spasms/ take your pick.
I planted several different kinds of cucumbers, and one entire package hasn't came up. I'm hoping they are just going to be a bit later, and not that I recieved bad seed.
I've read elsewhere on the internet that there seems to be seed that isnt coming up, and perhaps , with a unprecedented demand for seed this year, some may be selling old seed.I know its not allowed, but...
A whole week ahead--of sunshine!! I feel theres soo much to do-and such little time!
Enjoy, everyone.

We just built a small fire....the house was cold! It was 41° here this AM and DH said he thought there were patches of frost...............I am calling this Blackberry Winter.

Surely the cold is over.

I haven't planted any warm ground things like sweet corn, okra, cucs or melons or squashes. This should be the week.

You all don't mean you already have kohlrabi this year, do you?

We will all be busy this week!

Cool here this morning also.
I have so many plants I need to get into the ground. I need to wait a day or two though since it is so muddy.
So I will clean out the gutters. The front side is full of the tree droppings. That is an every year thing around here spring and fall. That big ash tree is such a mess maker, but I have to love the shade it creates in the hot of summer : )
I need to get my melons and such in this week as well. It really just depends on when the soil dries out enough.
Have a wonderful day in this sun shine.
Granddaughters B-day this afternoon so going to eat cake and soak up the sun.
Bonnie

My Sweet Potatoes should be here this week, little work to do on the bed before I plant, other thsan that, everythings in.
Didnt olant as much this year, since I want room for beds.
Yes, I have kohlrabi, several more are almost ready, it's one vegetable I'm glad that noone else likes!
Potatoes are over knee high, onions about that.
Tomatoes looking good, so is the peppers, minus the ones a dog dug up--and the hail got.
Cucumbers are up, minus one entire package! I'll have to figure out which one is missing.
Strawberries, plants, arent as big as I'd like, but I have to move them anyway.
Have Blueberries too!, and the raspberries, blackberries are blooming.
Have you ever heard the term "failure to thrive"? I have a couple fruit trees planted last spring, that are alive, but just not growing as they should. have had compost, etc.
My adult fruit looks as if a bird has pecked it--all of it. I suspect I'm looking at hail damage.

I had three blueberries that 'failed to thrive' didn't make it through the winter.

I see I have 4 tiny apples on my summer apple tree, none set on the other two. This is just their second full year.

I ate a couple of strawberries while tilling this morning. They seem sweeter than usual to me.

I finished trimming the front ditch, what a job that always is.

I hope I have the energy to go back out this afternoon and plant the peppers and a few more tomato plants. Got the sorry looking eggplants in this morning. My plans are to get everything in the ground, seeds and plants this week!

I am thinking about trying to at least cut enough of the elm tree off my hoophouse frame that I can use it for beans.

OK, I know I am not the only one gardening............

I did get the peppers all planted and today planted sweet potatoes. Yesterday planted the sweet corn.
I still don't know where I will put the pole beans because of the tree.........I am running out of space.

I did get the cole crops under mulch and cleaned out the berry patch jungle. The blackberries are covered with large white blooms,,,,just not as many plants. I do see sprouts popping up way beyond where I want them. Will need to take action soon.

In bloom, iris, roses, clematis, gaillardia, two oriental poppies, buds on rudbeckias, Walker's Low Nepeta and a few perennials salvias and annual blues.

I need to plant my warm season flower seeds. So much to do, so little energy. I need a gardener about twice a week until I get it all done.........not going to happen.

Check in everyone and let's hear what is going on with you.

I am still doing the same task every day which is trying to find places for all the plants I have sitting around declining in pots. I have resolved to plant all my impatients today before they die. I took care of them inside and they were looking good. Now they are getting yellow leaves. I planted all the space I have for tomatoes and still have tomatoes left. I am trying not to discriminate against yellow submarine. I grew the poor thing, it is the biggest left in a pot but I don't like yellow tomatoes. I had the seed and I planted one or two. I almost planted it in the bermuda and then I though that would be mean. Everything I plant takes a little soil prep and it is taking me forever.

I finally tackled the downed Elm in the west end of the garden. Worked 2 hours, but got the hoop frame dismantled, posts pulled, and cut enough of the tree that I freed up the berry patch and can now mow around the garden again. Some of the tree is still brushed against the peach tree, but I can tackle that later. Figure I just saved us $500 and the rest can lay there into the end of time....not bothering anything that I can see.

Today I better get the frame reassembled and plant pole beans and maybe zinnias and others.

Can you believe it's already the 25th of May?
Still raining here, and for me, thats a good thing--except I need a hay-baler for my yard--when I get to cut it.
Good thing, because I have the No.1 raised bed planted. I pushed getting it ready, because I knew the Sweet Potatoes were coming. And, they did, right on time.
The back side of it is the chicken yard, and I can easily put a fence around the other 3 sides. These plants are candy to deer, you know. I built a low cage around mine a few years ago, and the deer trimmed every leaf that made it outside the cage.
I had to use a lot of peat moss, and cottonseed hulls for filler down inside this bed, so a lot of rain is necessary to wet it good, but with a bed almost 2' deep, they should do good.
Everything else looks fine in the garden, I do think the color would be better, if they had more sunshine. One entire package of cucumbers failed, I must check to see where I bought it, and give them a call--complete failure on a package could only be the seeds-since the others are doing fine.
Stay dry, everyone.

I was beginning to wonder if you were all finished with your work and sitting around eating chocolates -- I'm still planting, watering the poor things that haven't made it into the ground yet, turning and harvesting compost, and hauling stuff around by hand since I have a flat on my small dump cart. Don't know how I can get so dirty out there, but the shower water runs black! My tractor mower is down because I must have hit something and the blade won't engage now. Having it taken in Tuesday -- hope they don't keep it long.
I'm welcoming this occasional rain as it makes the ground easier to dig. Even though it thundered from the east/south last evening, it all went around me. Hope no one had a bad storm.
Today it's back to the stuff left to plant. My raised vegetable beds are looking good! Lots of fun.
Sunny

No chocolate, but I was eating strawberry pie when I read your post Sunny. My folks shared their strawberries with me and I made a couple pies. yum
This rain is giving me a second chance to plant some things that I didn't get planted while it was cool. I don't mind the mud. I planted the last of my cherry tomatoes and a few perennials I had sitting around in pots. I still have a few flowers sitting around but I like spreading it out and having something to plant when I work in the yard during the summer. It's not as fun to just pull weeds.

I still need to plant my watermelon seeds. I found a couple volunteers coming up where I put melon chunks out for the butterflies last summer. Wish I knew what they were.

Glenda - I need a gardener too. If you use one for two days a week, I need him for the other five. Sure would be nice to get caught up for a little while.

Ceresone - Let us know where you got those cucumber seeds. How disappointing. : (

I was eating cheesecake! I had made it expecting company but our daughter canceled her visit because of both of us have bronchitis. DH is feeling better; he is on antibiotics. I didn't go to the doctor so mine is going to be slower. I felt really bad Saturday but am better today.
I made myself mow yesterday afternoon because I knew the rains were coming.

We have had a gentle rain here all morning long.

I picked the spinach and processed just a few bags along with some poke. Got some zinnias planted and that's about it.

We are glad to get the rain. I was surprised how dry things were.

ceresone, congratulations on getting that bed finished. My sweet potatoes came too but I just planted 10. They still look pretty sorry.

Tomatoes are looking good now and the potatoes are beginning to bloom.

I took a picture one or two days ago of the garden but will post it separate for dial up users....they won't have to open it.

We are eating lettuce almost daily with spinach and green onions. I know I could pick some strawberries but don't want to do it in the rain!

Still haven't got the pole beans in, but did plant some haricort vert (little french string beans). Still no kohlrabi at my house.

The cherry tree is loaded.

I haven't done any melons, squash or cucs (one self seeded one is coming along). I think I will do a bed out in the east field. Will have to hot wire it to keep the cows out!

LOL, chocolate funny. Just coffee here.
I have been planting in a new raised flower bed. Putting sunflower and 4 o'clock seed out. Mowed and weed eat the whole thing. Have not had much in the way of rain here. Some showers on Saturday but that is about it. A little cloudy right now.
I need to put our a few melon plants. I keep getting side tracked buy other things I want to do.
Cleaned up where the fire wood was and even though it was raided up off the ground I had a wet layer of leaves under there. You should have see all the worms when I was raking up that area. I thought... jackpot. so here I am running around putting them in the raised beds. Yes I know they my not stay there but I can dream.
Hope they send you new seed to replace the bad ones ceresone.
Listen to you, cheesecake, strawberry pie. You are all making me hungry for something sweet.
Well starting to rain now. So I guess that means I will have to find something inside to do now. Or I could clean the garage out.
Bonnie

I finally had a day I was feeling good enough to work outside and it didn't rain! That's a great combination.

I decided to tackle the rebuilding of the hoophouse frame....first had to take a double pickup load of elm limbs off the garden and then the work began. I finished but the poor thing looks a little worse for wear (or storm). I don't care; it is up and I can now plant pole beans. Normally, I would have just tilled, but I have some kind of grass in that end of the garden that has tiny white roots and I was afraid I would just spread them around. I sprayed that end of the garden and under and around the frame with Gly-4. It is very safe to use around other things just as long as it isn't windy.

I will wait a week and plant.

The corn is up but the sweet potato plants are looking sorry. I may pick up some more to finish the row.

I finished the day by mowing around the milk barn and garage area. The whole yard could use it again but I refuse to mow more than one time a week.

I hope everyone's poppies and snow on the mountain and KMOTGG is coming up. If not, you can stop by my place and I can give you as many seedlings as you want! I even have poppies in the grass where I laid the dead plants as I pulled them.

Strawberries are coming on. I picked my large tupperware bowl full a couple of days ago.

Potatoes are blooming, tiny potatoes can't be far behind.

Lots of blackberries on the vines and a few raspberries.

Helen, I planted my 4 o'clock seeds and am keeping my fingers crossed.

What a nice, cool day yesterday to work outside. I got 95% of the new hosta bed done and mulch on the other part. I found that if you put cardboard down on grass, wet it and cover it with several inches of soil and keep it damp, the cardboard will degrade so eventually it is easy to plant through with a shovel. In some places, the cardboard was overlapped several times. Photos soon.
Helen C. I have your Lemonade honeysuckle in a sunny part of that bed on a trellis and it's doing great!! I think of you every time I admire it. Hope your Heckrotti made it.
I found I ran over some wire and that knocked out the tractor mower blade. Fortunately they were able to rescue the shaft and fix everything up a bit. I'd be sunk without that tractor.
The shrubs are getting huge here due to all the moisture. Today I have to start cutting everything back that has bloomed. Not my favorite job. I'm planning to burn everything when they dry out a little in my "new" burn barrel which I haven't used yet. I've had it since March. Having a burn barrel makes me feel I know what I'm doing. NOT.
Have a great day, everyone
Sunny