week 11

Planted another 8 plants from Annies. I took out the lantana (it's garbage) and am going to try snapdragons there in front. The red poppies are in front too.
The tulips are blooming, and a few of other things. The clematis is working against the round-up. The japanese maple next door is leafing out. There are buds on the fucshia out side the window!
Here's one of my first arrangement for the year.
I put out lots of sluggo. I also turned the water on in back to 10 minutes/day. I need to do some more work for the new plants. The top of the soil is dry now. Didn't take long. Fixed the lower barrel so I can screw the soaker hose to it.

Week 10

Got the big order from Annies, and planted about 45 plants, including a few that I had bought 12 weeks ago. (Gave away a licorice, heliocrysum, a russian sage peristroika, and the yellow meadowrue, thalictrum. )
Planted over 3 days. Soil is moist and workable - it generally looks really good. Almost makes me want to mulch. There are little stems coming up- from a lot of places. I took more of the anenome out. The old cyclamen is blooming! There is a purple iris that bloomed. Of course the red maple. The pyrethrun is blooming strong. There are blooms on the hellebores. Thee early one seem to be under the ceonothus and the later ones are red, beneath the big pink rose. Many buds on the wisteria.

Week 9 ,

In week 9 there was a lot of rain, and I did planning- looking at the web sites, deciding what to buy, and where. Seeing my list(s). I ordered from Annies. Decided on Digging Dog, and Half Moon Bay for a lot of the rest. There is one plant at White Flower Farm and one on sale at Sloat. I did it all by mail to save time and $$ (not sure if this was right) and because I am weak!
Margaret showed me my old standard burgundy iceberg rose- she's happy with it. She said the yellow african daisy is a garbage plant. I thought so.
I had to cut back, and then destroy the big potted leucanthimum. I guess the root to the patio was doing a lot. The leaves died slowly over 6 weeks. sad. especially after we had worked so hard on it. But it opens up the space.
I cut a big limb off the pink tea tree too. There are lots of lemons now.
I was very unhappy with ther rain barrels so used the pvc we had and made hard connections between them. This seems to work. We'll see over the year if it continues to.
I was looking at the budget the whole time. I cut the quantities when buying.

My Garden to buy this year 2009 279 Mangels

Front-

Felicia amelloides +elongata- blue marguerite daisy 1 ½

Gerbera daisy 2 ½

Heliophilia longifolia 2 A

Lithodora ‘grace ward’ 2 ½

Papaver Lady Bird 3 A

Asarina vine 2 A

Back- CUTTING GARDEN

hyssop; agastache Korean mint, rupestris 2 A

Antirrm majus double azalea, chanitilly, night+day 3 front A

Astrantia majoe ‘rosea’ or ‘magnum blush’- pink master wort 2 DD

Calceolara purple 2 A

Campanula

Summertime blues 2 DD

Campanula punctata sarastro 2 DD

Campanula Kent Belle 2 DD

catenache caerulea,- purple cupids dart 2 A

Centaurea cyanus ‘blue boy 3 A

Cosmos apricot 2 A

Delphinium wild 1 A

Delphinium royal aspirations 1 A

Dianthus- probably maroon sooty 2 A

Echinops ruthenicus, globe thistle 2 A

Echium plantagineum‘Blue bedder’ 2 A

Eryngium‘saphirreblue, sea holly,blue star 2 A

Lathyrus odoratus; LordNelsOldSpice, Cupani, MollyRilstn 4 A

Lisianthus 3 who? ½ moon

Lobelia - cardinal flower, compliment deep red 3 A

Lobelia – purple 2 A

Nicotania Only thr Lonely, Hot Chocolate 2 A

Nigella damascene Mrs J Dk Blue 3 A

Papaver- drama queen 2 A

Scabiosa Fama 2 A

Senecio stellata ‘giovanna selection’Cineraria 2 A

Verbascum pink/white/ purple 3