Weeds Are Flowers Too!

 

I love this quote by A.A. Milne. It is late spring, we have had many rainy days, and the weeds are flourishing. It is certainly their season to shine.

Today I felt like I needed to get to know a whole bunch of weeds. I wish each and every one of those weeds was a flower. Weeding is just a part of the process of gardening. I try to break up weeding into smaller tasks as not to get overwhelmed. Today it worked.

When I weed I bring my favorite tools. I also have my water, iced coffee, and music. Today I had two dogs assisting. Riley is always with me, but today we were joined by his cousin Cleo. 

The weather was perfect. The weeds were plentiful. I discovered a bunch of new muscles. I felt a sense of accomplishment when I finished my first little section. Who could ask for more?

Ten Things To Do When You Can't Garden

Where I live we have had a cold, wet spring. Don't get me wrong. I know we need the rain, but when the temperatures are cooler, it is hard to plant a garden. I realize I could bundle up, wear a rain poncho, and go out and pull weeds, plant containers, and put out my garden décor. I don't want to. I only last a short time outside when I get wet and cold. I have found some other ways to use my time.

Ten Things To Do When You Can't Garden:

1. Go shopping for plants. Eventually it will warm up, right?

2. Start trays of plants from seed. They will get to be planted someday.

3. Fill up the bird feeders.

4. Go to another store shopping for plants. You hate to have them sell out the first day it is warm again.

5. Arrange bouquets with my spring flowers.

6. Cuddle with Riley, drink coffee, and read a good book.

7. Reorganize the She Shed and deadhead the plants that wintered over

8. Plant flowers in the containers in the garage and hope there is enough sun to keep the leaves green.

9, Go to one more store and buy plants. Do you see a pattern here?

10. Take Riley outside and have him do a Sunshine Dance.

Ten Things I Could Do When I Can't Garden

 

Ready for a road trip

The weather is cold. A few days ago there was snow. I can't dig in the soil yet. What can I do instead?

Ten Things I Could Do When I Can't Garden

1.Thumb through my collection of old garden magazines and plan a new low-maintenance garden.

2. Clean the fireplace.

3. Try to locate the slip of paper that had the list of lilies I planted last October.

4. Think about organizing the garage... the key word is think.

5. Browse paint colors at the hardware store. You always need paint samples laying around.

6. Take a friend/sister/Riley road trip.

7. Think about washing the windows.

8. Binge watch every show someone has recommended to me (I think the list is about twenty shows).

9. While I am binging I can organize every pet record belonging to every pet I have ever owned and figure out what to keep and what to throw away.

10. Grab a blanket, pillows, lights, books, coffee, and Riley and go to a blanket fort until spring really comes.

Sounds of Melting Snow

On Easter Sunday my garden beds were once again covered with snow.

 

In March I loved the sound of melting snow. I dreamed of bright tulips blooming soon. I walked around the yard to look for little leaves emerging. I moved my hands through the dirt to see if the compost and older soil had enriched together over the winter. I sighed when I saw the weeds that forgot to die. 

Mother Nature wasn't ready for me to move outside and garden. The weather kept returning to winter, the temperature kept dropping below zero, and I often woke up to snow. I am waiting a bit impatiently for  the first faint scent of spring again.

The Silver Lining in the Snow

 

Signs of spring have been emerging in my flower beds for weeks. I have already made a bouquet with the small mini daffodils. They are the flowers that bloom first whether it is cold or warm, sunny or snowy. Above is what I brought in today to keep them out of the snow. 

The grape hyacinths spread all year and when spring arrives the bright purple blooms pop up all over the front flower beds and the raised beds in the backyard. They aren't picky about the weather.

The earlies tulips bloomed a few days ago. When snow began to to fall yesterday,and then again today I went out and picked the tulips to make sure they would survive. 

The weeds I needed to pull are back under the snow. The freezing temperatures are allowing me to stay inside and finish some projects not completed during the winter. I can now build a fire again in the fireplace. 

All silver linings. Yes, I wish it was warmer. Yes, I wish I could dig in the dirt. It is okay. I still have bouquets, I have color popping out from the snow. I have a nice fire burning in the house. 

Now Riley is having a hard time finding silver linings. He is tired of getting snowed on and coming home wet. He wants to run in the sunshine.

Grayson is tired of it also. We had a long talk tonight and I tired to explain unpredictable spring weather. He was very puzzled. I guess I have to admit I am a bit puzzled also.

Quarantine, Day 42 : Hello Spring

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“I love spring anywhere, but if I could choose I would always greet in a garden.”   — Ruth Stout

I am embracing spring this year. During early spring I brought the spring inside with grocery store bouquets.  After being inside so much the time in the first part of the quarantine the warmer weather was a welcome relief. The beautiful colors of the spring flowers are just what I need right now to put a smile on my face. Longer days and sunshine are the icing on the cake.  Here are some favorite images of the season. Hello spring!

Thankful, Grateful, Blessed #2: Grateful for Four Seasons

Throughout the whole year I pause and take time to be thankful, grateful, and blessed. November is a perfect month to share things that surround me that make me thankful, grateful, and blessed.  Here is #2.

Today I am grateful for living in a place that I can enjoy four seasons. I have always been an autumn girl, but now that I am retired and can be home to enjoy the changing of the seasons, I love parts of each and every season. 

Growing up in Kellogg spring was late in coming and very short. There was a long period after winter of gray, foggy days partly due to the smelter smoke. When spring came and the lilacs bloomed it was wonderful, but it came late. 

I have learned to love summer much more in recent years. I enjoy watching the gardens come to life with blooms and a bounty of vegetables. I also enjoy the longer days, the slower pace, and garden tours with my camera.  A highlight now is birthday gatherings and family dinners outside in the yard.

Autumn has always been my favorite season. I remember that smell of Dad burning leaves in the street after he raked the leaves. Even with the smelter smoke, the trees burst into vivid colors of red, orange, and yellow when October came around. Autumn also evokes memories of comfort food on Sunday and birthday celebrations,  Today autumn represents the slowing down time of the year. It the time for dinners in the slow cooker, putting the gardens to bed for winter, warm,cozy sweaters, and coffee in the morning by the fire. Also, there is Thanksgiving, a holiday I truly love.

What I loved about winter as a child was building snowmen, sleighriding on Chestnut Hill, hot chocolate when we returned home, and Christmas. What I didn't like were slick roads that made Mom nervous and getting wet on the playground and trying to warm up back in the class. Now I love winter almost as much as autumn. Why? I don't have to go anywhere unless I want to. It is a photographer's dream when the snow falls and it is frosty and cold. It is hibernation time. Life slows down even more. More books get read, more craft projects get done, and the holidays bring friends and family together. 

Here are some favorite photos of the four seasons where I live: 

Cataldo Mission in autumn

Winter sunset at 514

bird in the spring

summer up the river

The Shed Notebook: Winter Keeping Away Spring

According to the calendar, spring does not officially begin until March 20th.  Around these parts people are ready for spring to begin today. Weather has been quite a topic of conversation because we are still buried in snow and we are waking up to temperatures below 10 degrees. Many days roads have been difficult for travel, and our dogs are tired of being couped up.

Arriving at a grocery store and seeing a display of primroses, a rack of garden seeds, and Easter decor makes that desire for warmer weather even stronger. When I revisisted my Facebook memories I was reminded that two years ago, we had sunshine and green grass and JEJ was building our new raised beds. Today we can't see any grass and the raised beds are buried in the drifts of snow. 

I am taking advantage of this longer hibernation period. I am planning my garden beds, getting caught up on reading, and moving slowing toward creating a studio in the basement for my creative ventures. I am saving money on gas by not traveling as much, but I am missing being able to get out and exercise. Soon enough is will be safe. 

I just love the quote below. I do love all four seasons. It is certainly a process. Yes, I am working on growing in life also. I am getting better. 

"I believe in process. I believe in four seasons. I believe that winter's tough, but spring's coming. I believe that there's a growing season. And I think that you realize that in life, you grow. You get better. "

Steve Southerland

The Shed Notebook: Glimmers of Spring

In north Idaho spring is a funny season. There are days you can enjoy an hour of glorious sunshine, but then have to run back in the house and turn up the heat. There are days you think it will work to begin garden work . Guess what? It snows . Today the sun shone, it rained, it hailed, the wind blew, and then the day ended with blue sky. See what I mean?

It is a good thing I can enjoy this fickle season inside The Shed. Today was a good day to spring it up and , even if the heater was blasting inside, I felt glimmers of spring. At least if it snows tomorrow, it will cover up the piles of debris I couldn't clean up today.

Another sure thing about spring in north Idaho. The debris, dead leaves, doggie doo, weeds, and spent flowers from last summer don't go anywhere. The wind doesn't even carry them away.

Darn.

The Shed Notebook: Am I Ready to Garden?

With all the rain this week, I looked around my front flower beds looking for signs of spring bulbs. No bulbs. What did I find? All the weeds that didn't get pulled last fall. When the weather got so cold in December why didn't those weeds get killed. Maybe I am not quite ready to garden.

When I think about two big galvanized tubs that were moved from Mom's during the winter, I see dirt that needs to be added. I see items that need to be pulled out that ended up there during the winter. I think I can blame sweet Riley for that. Maybe I am not quite ready to garden.

Seeing roses that didn't get cut down, vegetables that didn't get pulled out, and more weeds in the raised beds that didn't get removed I know now I am not ready to garden.

I think I will creep back into the house, pull my blanket around me, and watch cooking shows. I know longs days will bring the energy it will take to tackle the garden projects. Right?

National Poetry Month #9 : Favoring Billy Collins

Billy Collins came through today and provided a priceless poem to describe one of those rare, perfect spring days. 

Today  

by Billy Collins

If ever there were a spring day so perfect,

so uplifted by a warm intermittent breeze

that it made you want to throw

open all the windows in the house

and unlatch the door to the canary's cage,

indeed, rip the little door from its jamb,

a day when the cool brick paths

and the garden bursting with peonies

seemed so etched in sunlight

that you felt like taking

a hammer to the glass paperweight

on the living room end table,

releasing the inhabitants

from their snow-covered cottage

so they could walk out,

holding hands and squinting

into this larger dome of blue and white,

well, today is just that kind of day.

Source: Poetry (April 2000). 

A Time to Plant

Today was the first time I got my hands into the dirt and did some planting. I started this week-end with containers since there are not many plants safe to put out in the ground yet. I did some plant shopping over spring break and today I mixed soil, added fertilizer and got the plants into the containers.

Primroses are such warriors in a spring garden. I love those first blossoms after a long winter. I love the color of the one at the top of the post.I discovered a new primrose on my recent trip. This is called a Drumstick Primrose.Of course I had to buy it. I love the pansies at the base of the container.

Pansies are another early spring favorite of mine. So many colors and "faces". I always know they will endure cooler weather.

I brought home two blooming shrubs from my trip also. I am just going to keep them in their original pots for now not to disrupt their blooming. I couldn't resist their bright blooms.

One Word Essay: Green

Enjoy my green collection.