May 9, 2019 by Born To Organize

Temporarily Sidelined From the Garden

It feels good to be back in the garden. I did something to my back a few weeks ago and for a few days the pain was unbearable. It subsided and then my neck went out. Good grief, I am so over it! It’s spring for gosh sakes. This is no time to be sidelined from the garden.

I pulled a few weeds sitting in a folding chair, making it official: I’m an “old woman gardener.”

Last weekend, in between back pain and neck pain, we got things done. Mike hung the shade sails on both patios which we leave up for six months of the year. Shade sails make the San Jose sun bearable, while at the same time creating “rooms” in the garden. Once our shade sails are up we spend more time outdoors.

I repurposed a decorative shower curtain once again to cover the swing cushions. After sewing two or three replacement covers over the years, only to see them in ruin, I no longer dedicate any sewing time to a swing cover that is generally faded by the sun and gnawed on by squirrels at season’s end. It’s a decent compromise.

A mix of geraniums and sage

Plum tree

A mixture of colors and textures in the garden

Pink geranium about to bud

Bougainvillea bracts

Last summer’s sage going to flower

I hung a few mirrors from a local shop called Not Too Shabby along the back fence. I’ve always wanted to do something like this. It creates a focal point while covering up the boring fence. The mirrors are in the shade of the fruit tree and reflect different plants in the garden, depending on where you sit.

I planted tomatoes in my EarthBoxes® this year. Last summer’s crop was a bust, so I’ve moved the boxes into a more open space. Wind is more important for pollination than bees, so I’m hoping the new location on the gravel path pays off in delicious summer tomatoes.

pair of Earthboxes planted with tomatoes

Astoundingly, this is the first time in ages that I don’t have any self-seeded pumpkins. That said, as the garden fills in, there is less and less room for the seedlings to take hold. I’m going to plant pumpkin seeds in the front garden this year, so as the sweet peas die back in June, the pumpkins can fill in the space. It just doesn’t feel like a garden without pumpkins.

We had above-average rain this year, so everything looks healthy and refreshed.

My favorite, self-seeding flowers are back this year including Nigella (love-in-a-mist),

Nigella closeup

Nigella just about to break bud

sweet peas,

Sweet peas with poppies in the background

A variegated pink sweet pea

Pastel pink sweet pea

Soft white sweet pea

A sea of white sweet peas

Assorted sweet peas

Sweet peas in the front garden

nasturtiums,

Nasturtium

Nasturtium growing near the New Zealand flax

A rich orange nasturtium

Soft yellow nasturtium

Almost red nasturtium

and our state flower, the California poppy. I liberally scattered poppy seeds at the end of last summer and it paid off.

California golden poppy

California golden poppies spread throughout the garden

Poppies closed for the night

Mixture of poppies and sweet peas at the curb

Front garden natives mix with annual self-seeded cornflower, California golden poppies, & sweet peas

For any of you royal watchers, here’s a bit of California poppy trivia:

To commemorate Meghan Markle’s Californian origins, Clare Waight Keller included the golden poppy in the coat of arms.
Source: Wikipedia

Perhaps the most important plant in the garden each spring is the Nepeta. Nepeta, also known as cat nip or cat mint is briefly intoxicating to cats. Lindy likes to eat it, Tessa dives in head first and all three cats take turns using the plant as a lounge.

Lindy snoozing between the Nepeta and the violets

Back garden and patio. Lindy standing near the Nepeta

Tessa dips her nose in the Nepeta

Tessa enjoying the garden

Spring. There’s a little something for everyone.

November 15, 2012 by Born To Organize

Blooming Thursday: Dark Shadows Waiting for the Rain

Rain is forecast for the rest of the week, but this morning it was bright and clear. I love the shadow play on the flowers this time of year as the earth maneuvers into mid-autumn. Angled shadows and bright light equal beautiful flowers.

Pink Cyclamen

Our cool season plants are starting to bloom, and will continue to flower through March. Prolific Azaleas and Camellias line the back fence and the side yard, with two more planted in the children’s garden. I potted a few more cyclamen last week. Holdovers from last year reemerged as well.

Begonia

Begonias from last spring are still holding up, but we’ve not seen much cold weather. They are in good company in the Hodgepodge pot, a planter for misfits. When I end up with the odd annual, or a small plant in need of relocating, I plant them there. I love the variety and an always-full pot outside our bedroom window.

Status

California Poppies, white Begonias and pink Cosmos passed through the Hodgepodge this year, as well as yellow Snapdragons, a small pumpkin and a few assorted wildflowers. I’ve really enjoyed the variety, not to mention a dedicated space for the odd plant.

Coming Soon

Camellia Bud

Abutilon Buds

White Camellia Bud

Fingers crossed that the rain arrives on schedule tomorrow.

July 18, 2012 by Born To Organize

And Then There Were Thrips

It’s been a month of pests for Gardening Nirvana as we’ve worked our way through aphids, scale and now thrips. Three different plants, three different pests, all living within a few feet of each other.

Foreground (emerging sunflowers); under window (Viburnum tinus), right of photo (scale-infected Magnolia)

Thrips now reside on the lower leaves of the Viburnum tinus immediately outside of our home office window. It took us two summers to figure out what that…uh…pungent smell was. We knew it was organic in nature, but it was so odoriferous, we assumed a small animal had died under the house or deck. The smell eventually went away, the plants looked fine and we didn’t give it another thought.

Spring rolled around again, then summer and…that smell! Aren’t you glad you are only reading about it? The damage seemed to be happening at the base of the shrubs and along the back, making me wonder if it was lack of air circulation. My husband’s sleuthing and a magnifying glass revealed that yes, we had a third infestation on our hands: thrips.

Plant Damage

Thrips

Through the wonder of the Internet and our postal service, a shipment of lacewing eggs, nested in bran, is headed for our front door. When the tiny larvae emerge they feast on the thrips. Adults need nectar and pollen to survive, so it’s important to have insectary plants in your garden to support the adult population. The exciting news is that my sunflowers will flower within the next week or so, providing pollen to the emerging adults. They like Cosmos and Sweet Alyssum, too, also growing our the garden.

Resources:

Beautiful and beneficial green lacewings
Beneficial insects 101
Do you have thrips? Identify them here.
A list of insectary plants is on page two of this pamphlet from Our Water- Our World.

March 21, 2012 by Born To Organize

A Case of Mistaken Identity

Well I’m embarrassed! Yesterday I posted a photo thinking it was a carrot about to bloom. Imagine my surprise today to find this beautiful California poppy flowering away in the sun.

Yep! That's a Poppy

For starters, I’ve never planted poppies. It’s our state flower and we’re not supposed to pick them. I worried that if I planted poppies I would be tempted to snip a few blooms to bring indoors. I’m no law-breaker!

Closing Up Shop for the Night

We planted carrot seeds last summer. That they never grew is irrelevant. If I’ve learned anything, it’s that nature has her own schedule. When the foliage first appeared at the soil line, I dug down with a finger and discovered an orange-colored root. I was sure it was a carrot. I looked up “carrot foliage” today and it does resemble our fair flower.

Buds and Greens

It’s not that I’m disappointed to have our beautiful state flower in bloom, but that I was so convinced it was otherwise. I snapped a few photos late in the day, but the skies were clouding over so the lovely bloom was already closing up shop.

Never a dull moment in the garden.