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aloha2009

A Big Thank You to Skybird

aloha2009
12 years ago

I want to thank you for all the preliminary work that you did to make the Spring Swap of 2011 such a success. It's so kind of you to open your beautiful garden for all of us to enjoy. Thank you for your starts and your teaching us about propogation of various plants. I wish I had time to stay and learn about all the other information you were going to be reviewing.

It was great meeting you (and everyone) and it will be nice to put a face with a "name".

Comments (29)

  • treebarb Z5 Denver
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    It was a wonderful day! Loved meeting the newcomers and catching up with the regulars.
    Skybird, your organizational talents are unreal. I don't know how to thank you for all you do for the group. Your garden and home are truly lovely. You have a wonderful knack with plants.
    I'm not sunburned for the first time after a swap. Sunscreen and big dorky hats work!
    I can't wait to get planting the new babies.

    Thanks to all for a great day!

    Barb

  • mstywoods
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Ditto on Aloha's thank you! Thoroughly enjoyed everything and everyone :^) These online postings and inperson swaps are such a wonderful way to share knowledge, plants and friendship.

    Hoping to get our veges in the garden this week - my mouth is watering for home grown tomatoes especially!! So happy to pick up a few more at the swap, along with all the other goodies.

    Thanks!

    Marj

  • mayberrygardener
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    As always, big thanks to Skybird for all her work; I see why she wanted to host--I can't imagine toting all those babies to a different location! What a beautiful yard!
    Thanks also to all those who brought food and plants and conversation! My Lily is already in the ground, and the others are scouting out permanent locations as I write this.
    Again, if you got tomatoes from me, they are night-hardened to about 40 degrees or so, but they have not had full sun. Some look a little scary--it's not blight, but sun scald and wind burn. Plant 'em deep, and they'll have a stronger root system--for you 'mater rookies ;)
    I'm off to dig holes for raspberries! Thanks again for all the goodies!!!

  • sorie6 zone 6b
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Ditto to all said!!
    I'm very impressed with your garden and your gardening skills. You make it all look so easy. Thank you so much.
    I had a lot of fun and enjoyed meeting the ladies.

  • dsieber
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Sorry I missed it. Working in our Phoenix yard in 94deg temp, much better than 110 deg August temps!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • woliver
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I agree, thank you so much, Skybird! The amount of work you put in to the exchange was much appreciated! I can't wait to attend the next one!

  • polygonum_tinctorium
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We had a wonderful time, as always. It's great to see old friends and make new ones. The food was yummy. The plants are fantastic!

    Skybird, thank you so much for all the work you put into making this such a success! Your garden is beautiful. You are so helpful with advice and generous with your plants.

    Serpent_Moon and Chcolate Dog both enjoyed themselves tremendously.

    All of the cuttings are in pots, hopefully growing new roots really soon. The rest of the plants are waiting until we have somewhere to put them outside. I hope we can keep most of them alive!

    We are looking forward to the next time we can see everyone again.

    Thanks again to everyone who brought plants, food, and their own good company to share today.

  • jnfr
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Skybird's the best!

  • provogirl
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am so thankful to have found this forum and very grateful to all the friendships I have made because of it. I have learned so much!

    THANK YOU SKYBIRD for all the hard work and the HOURS of time you put into the swap. It does not go unnoticed and is very aprreciated.

    Thank you to all I recieved plants and seeds from.

    My HB and the eight year old had a wonderful time also.

    The food was great too!

  • Skybird - z5, Denver, Colorado
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Skybird is too tired to breath tonite!

    I'm glad so many people, the regulars and so many new ones, were able to make it, and glad you all had a good time. And I admit that I'm glad all those plants are out of here and I don't have to hover over them anymore to take care of them! Sure wish they hadn't gotten clobbered by the hail, and I strongly recommend you all keep the plants you got from me in the little pots for a week or two until they start to recover---and don't overwater them while they're recovering--let them dry more than 50% before you water again. Whether they were badly bashed by the hail or not, keep them in the pots till they're well rooted to the bottom to be sure they transplant successfully. (The hen & chicks are the exception! Do whatever you want with them---and it's unlikely they're gonna root to the bottom anytime soon!)

    I'm brain dead right now! Note to self: Get more than two hours sleep before the next swap! Gonna take me a couple days to recover from this one-----but I should be fine again by Fall Swap time!

    :-)
    Skybird

  • kvenkat
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Props to Skybird- the hostess with the mostest! Thank you for all your hard work and care. It really showed!

    The Swap was like Christmas, with all the great food, good company, wonderful plants and lovely surroundings.
    I learned a few things about plant propagation today too. The hours flew by but I had a great time. Thank you to everyone who helped make it a very sucessful Swap!

    Ah, now I have to get some more soil for my new babies...

  • lattefairy
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thank you so much for the wonderful day, Skybird! It was great getting to meet everyone! And thank you all for the beautiful plants I received! :) Looking forward to the Fall Swap!

  • gjmancini
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Skybird, another hit. Thank you for all of your hard work that you put into our swaps, I know it must be exhausting. Your garden is beautiful and I enjoyed being in the prescence of such beauty with great people and great conversation. The food was wonderful, thank you all who brought such good treats. I loved, loved, loved the compost cake. How cute was that. I think I have been on Garden Web 6 years now and it has brought so much to my life. Thank you Sky bird and all my gardening frineds.

  • david52 Zone 6
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I wanna see pictures. Otherwise, I'l think this is an internet hoax.

  • billie_ladybug
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Yes, the food, the company, the plants, the day, the garden and, of course, the hostess were all fantastic. It was amazing to me about how many people showed up and yet somehow we all managed to keep everything neat and orderly (maybe that is the gardener thing: carrots line up here, onions over there!)

    Anyway, everything was great and I hope to get to make the fall swap this year, finally!!

    And thank you again Skybird for everything. You really are awesome

    Billie

  • billie_ladybug
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Yes david it is a hoax!! The world actually ended on Saturday and your dreaming that your reading about everyone else's fun on the computer. LOL I'll get pics up when I can (if I can figure out how.) I'm sure one of the teens can show me.

  • pumpkin2010
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Ditto on all the accolades above! Skybird, you did an amazing job wrangling all those plants, people, the food, schedule, and even the manure! Thank you so much for opening your home to all of us, and sharing your knowledge and your wonderful little plant starts. I can't wait to get everything in the ground, and I'm already looking forward to the fall swap :)

    Thanks again,

    Pumpkin

  • catnohat
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Skybird, Your organizational skills are amazing. Your home and garden are beautiful. Thank you very much for the plants and for hosting the swap.

    It was a pleasure meeting you all and trading plants and stories!

    Cat

  • nunchucks
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    HUGE! HUGE! HUGE!!! Thank you to Skybird for her GREAT BIG efforts! and ALSO HUGE thanks to Billie and her husband ( I am sorry I forgot your name!) for bringing the extra chairs, the lovely BS all the way and I am sure stayed to clean up. Wanted to stay for more demos but had to run before HD closed and get my DH his beer since I wasn't home most of the day to help haul the big rocks! This was my first swap and I had a super time. I mentioned to Skybird at the swap that my yard wants to be just like hers when it grows up! ....hopefully it will begin to grow at the end of the summer...that would be a good start right.

    If anyone is interested, I saw on Bluestone today whom are having a Spring sale, the Strawberry Lipstick plant which is 50% off.

  • b2alicia
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thank you so much for all your hard work!
    Also, I noticed your beautiful tree in the back left corner, against the fence, in your back yard. It looks deciduous, with the bottom layers of leaves removed, and a cord wrapping up the bare branches. The blooms were so pretty! What kind of tree is it? I have an idea, but I'm not really sure.

    Thanks again for the swap!

  • redemt333_yahoo_com
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Wonderful day with wonderful people!
    Skybird, thank you for your amazing organizational skills, you help to make this event a success every spring and fall!!!

    Skybird - you have such a beautiful yard! I'm inspired to start clippings already for the fall swap!

  • polygonum_tinctorium
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    b2alicia: I think that was some kind of honeysuckle.

  • jclepine
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thank you, Skybird and thank you to everyone who helped, showed up and shared plants, food or conversation.

    This was such a large swap that I hardly spoke to half. It was amazing!

    I must say, long sleeves really helped! The hat and sunscreen help but my hands were ten shades darker than my arms this time! I'm glad none of us were burnt this time!!

    Thanks, B2Alicia, for bringing the rusty things!! They are happily sitting in my yard, looking rusty and old and like nifty mountain stuff.

    Off to work I go. Looking forward to the next one...

    Jennifer

  • Skybird - z5, Denver, Colorado
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'm really glad everyone had a good time! That definitely makes the effort well worth it! I've been busy working on some stuff I didn't get done before the swap that I couldn't put off anymore--and then have Jury Duty on Wednesday! Really, really, really hoping I find out I don't have to go when I call on Tuesday evening to find out! And then there's trying to get the rest of the veggies planted, which I worked on for a couple more hours today, but it become nastily windy out there, and just too unpleasant to stay outside anymore today, so I'm back inside lookin' out! Hope the wind is gone by tomorrow again!

    I didn't even think of this till the next day, but I had been warning everyone about all the flies that were going to be here--and there weren't any! Total surprise to me! The two other swaps I had here were in fall, and the flies were really awful! I assumed they would be this time too, and still have no idea why there weren't any since all the neighbors with MULTIPLE big dogs still don't clean up the poop in their yards. Maybe all the rain had something to do with it! Very curious!

    From me a big thank you to everyone who helped with everything--the chairs, plates, cups, drinks..... It seemed to me that everyone enjoyed having a choice of beverages and maybe we should try to do that at future swaps. And I was surprised to see that the two gallons of the water I put out was gone too--just assumed most people would rather have something else, but I think plain water should be an option for future swaps too!

    Thank you to everyone that helped put all the tags on my plants--which I hadn't been able to do early since they were outside and it kept raining pretty much right up until the end! I don't remember saying this this time, but the pink slips that come with my plants are just plain paper, so if you want the info that's on them, DO NOT leave them outside! They'll "go away" very quickly if they get wet!

    And a BIG, BIG thank you to Billie and James, her husband, who helped me with SO MANY things. Before most of you even got here James fixed my garage door picker upper, which had gone on strike a couple months ago! I asked for help "picking the door up" so I could get the car into the garage and out of the driveway---and I wound up with the Picker Upper totally fixed---AND all the loose screws in the door tightened! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! And thank you for all your other help, carrying the heavy tables out, bringing so many chairs, carrying things in for people, and helping direct others as they arrived when I was busy doing other things! And, James, thank you for being at my General Beck and Call! Several times I asked you to do this or that, and I really appreciated your being willing to pick up the slack for me! It was so nice to have a Go To Guy!!!

    Thank you everyone who took pictures! I'll be waiting--whenever it gets done--to see the pics! I've been so tired and busy that, believe it or not, I haven't even looked at the pictures Jennifer and others took with MY camera. Some day I'll get Picasa into the Mac, and I'll be back to post mine too. It's gonna be a while!

    Thank you, Soire, for the pretty pink ornament--I'll find a special place for it in December. Thank you, Kat, for the lemongrass tea--it's in the freezer right now. And thank you to those who brought plants and seeds for me! Nothing in the ground yet--MUST get the veggies in first! But if I have future swaps here, they will be labeled with proper attribution to those who gave them to me.

    I hope everyone is having good luck with my Hail Battered plants! The few I kept here because I wasn't sure they were gonna make it, are starting to come around again, and will probably be on the menu for the Fall Swap! If ANYBODY has any questions about the plants they got from me, please ask! After taking the time to pot them up, I like to see you all succeed with them!

    I have a question I'm embarrassed to ask, but I definitely want to know, so I'm gonna ask anyway! Who was it that brought me a start for the lavender quill mum that I wanted so badly to get back? I was SO tired, and running around so insanely because of all the things I didn't get done because of the rain, that a lot of the day went by in a haze! I'm so, so, so glad to have that mum back, and I really want to know who it was that took the time to bring me a piece--which is now in a small pot and looking very good! Might get a couple flowers this fall, but I'm really looking forward to next fall when I'll have a good size plant again--and it's gonna be right near the front along the railroad ties somewhere!

    Another mystery for me! I had asked for the blue, Rocky Mountain Columbine, and Provo said she was starting seed, but at the swap somebody, it was you, wasn't it, Provo, said it was too small to bring! BUT---I got two seedling blue columbines in 4" pots with white markers---and I don't know who they were from! I kind of half remember thinking that I might be getting it from two different people before the swap, but I've looked over the bringing/want thread, and I can't find it from a second person there---and I was actually spending more time trying to keep track of what I was giving away than what I was getting!!! And between the three separate threads and the private emails I was getting, it was getting pretty confusing in the end! Provo, if it was you, or whoever brought me the two blue columbine, please let me know who you are! (TreeBarb, was it you? I noticed that the tag in the lily is the same as the ones in the columbine!)

    B2, Polygonum is right, the "tree" is a plain old honeysuckle bush! It was DEAD when I moved in here, and as I was trying to move enough of the rock mulch to start to plant things I started stacking it in that corner---on top of the dead bush--didn't have ANY idea what kind of a bush it "had been" at that point! I had rock piled on top of it a good 3' deep when we got a heavy rain one time and I noticed a couple green leaves on the very top! Laid the hose at the base of the bush--on top of the rock, and let it run for an hour on a trickle! It got more leaves! Found somebody to come get part of the rock mulch I was trying to get rid of and kept watering it! When it started to grow enough to figure out what it was, I decided I wanted to keep it for the Privacy Factor, but because I need all the sun I can get, I didn't want a "bush" there--which would also take up too much good perennial planting space, so I decided to try tying the branches together and removing any/all foliage that developed below about 5'. Up until last year it was quite an ongoing project since honeysuckle bushes sucker a lot on the bottom, but I just kept cutting out all the stems on the bottom, and removing all stems/foliage up to near the top of the fence, and this year, for the first time, it's getting MUCH easier to maintain it on the bottom, and the top is finally providing the privacy I was hoping for. It's been worth the effort! I call it my Bonsai'd Honeysuckle Bush! There were actually two of them in there when I bought the place. There was another one in front of that one, just a little bit to the left, and I think it was actually the original plant and I think the one I saved was a sucker from the original. Both started growing when they got water, but there was no way I was gonna leave two of them there--didn't even know if my idea for the one was gonna work at that point, so I sprayed the one in front with RU and put a black pot over it, effectively Steaming it in RoundUp! Took a couple months, but it died, and just this spring I was finally able to wiggle out the remaining stubs of the stumps that were left there! Glad to have them gone!

    I was thinking that if a few people wanted to come over to my house for a few hours one afternoon later in June, I could give you more of the info there wasn't time for in the demo. I have info about planting and care of perennials, deadheading, and things like how to get your "sprawly" plants, or plants that are dying out in the middle, looking good again. There are a lot of perennials that can be "fixed" without digging, dividing, and replanting them. With fewer people it would be easier to discuss things, and answer individual questions, and it's a lot easier to do in person than it is to try to type out complete information and answer questions online. There was also more propagation info I didn't do at the swap. Totally informal type thing! I'm not gonna "advertise" it anywhere but right here and right now, but if anyone's interested, email me, and a date could be decided in a couple weeks.

    Now back to the Stuff I still need to get done!

    Skybird

  • chcolatedog
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    thanks so much for the swap, skybird! It was really fun!

    chcolatedog

  • mstywoods
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Skybird - Wow, what a fantastic idea for training your honeysuckle bush into a "tree"! I got one fom Catnohat at the swap, so I think I'll try to do what you did with mine as well (after it gets much bigger, of course). Very cool - yours looks terrific!

    Marj

  • treebarb Z5 Denver
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Skybird,
    I'm sorry I missed this earlier, but I did bring you the two Rocky Mountain Blue Columbine Seedlings and a ziplock baggie of seeds in the original seed pack so you'd know what type you got.
    I had to try a couple of times to get that seed going and ended up with 3 plants. Mine is still alive and I'm glad the other 2 are in your capable hands.
    Are you still thinking of having a propagation lesson part two? I'd love it. There's an old house near here that's being taken out to add a few lanes to the highway. There's a glorious, huge yellow rose bush on the place that I'm sure is a Persian or Harrison's yellow and I'm determined to get some of it before the county destroys it. (Secret... dusk... covert operation).;o)

    Barb

  • Skybird - z5, Denver, Colorado
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Misty, if you have any questions when you start your Honeysuckle Bush Training Program, let me know!

    TreeBarb, thank you for letting me know for sure that the columbine were from you! I just finally got the lily planted yesterday, and I compared the tags, and was virtually certain they were from you. About the lily---somebody please tell me it shouldn't take more than an hour to plant ONE one gallon plant! Digging in Potter's Clay is bad enough, but then the tangle of huge cottonwood roots makes it totally impossible to easily plant anything! Very frustrating when a job that should be so simple takes SO long!

    Still planning to do the Part Two, Barb, but it's gonna be at least the last week in June, or maybe even the first week in July--like right after the Fourth some day. I've been way busy dealing with some medical appointments I couldn't put off anymore, and I finally, finally, finally just got my tomatoes in the ground the beginning of this week (they're lookin' GOOD). Still have to get the squash in the ground! They're working on their second set of true leaves in the pots, and must go in the ground soon---and the soil on that end isn't ready yet, so I have to get that done in the next couple days! Will be out near Nederland most of tomorrow--helping a friend with her garden! LOL! (She's getting all the cactus cuttings nobody wanted at the swap!) It's so beautiful out in the foothills, it'll be a wonderful break from my tiny backyard, Lowland Gardening! Polygonum is the only other person who responded about the second little mini-information session, so I'll email you about possible dates when I email her.

    Re your Rose Operation, Barb, I'm not really at all into roses (after potting up 18,000 bare root ones one year at Paulino's, is it any wonder???), so I've never tried to root them, but your absolutely best information around here is going to come from Cnetter! So if you want to know the best way to try to start them, start a thread about propagating roses that she'll see so she can tell you how to do it.

    If anyone else is interested in coming over for a couple hours one afternoon, late June/early July, PM me! There are so many things I can quickly, easily show you how to do here, with my plants for examples, that would be really hard/complicated to try to explain in a post on RMG--even with pictures.

    Skybird

  • polygonum_tinctorium
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    treebarb wrote: "There's an old house near here that's being taken out to add a few lanes to the highway. There's a glorious, huge yellow rose bush on the place that I'm sure is a Persian or Harrison's yellow and I'm determined to get some of it before the county destroys it. (Secret... dusk... covert operation).;o)"

    If it has suckers at the base, it's relatively easy to dig up a few of them that already have pretty good roots and get them re-established at your house.

    If it has a lot of suckers at the base, I wouldn't mind getting one of them, too... Or pot them up and offer them at the Fall Swap.

    skybird wrote: "If anyone else is interested in coming over for a couple hours one afternoon, late June/early July, PM me!"

    Yes, please!

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