gardenthoughts

i rescued this plant from a compost pile a year ago last autum .. there were two plants, actually .. it sometimes happens that people will throw plants away which, for me, is like having a free nursery at my fingertips .. anyway, i knew their family name was ‘geum,’ and that their christian name (a comparison phil used to try and instill the rules of plant naming in my mind – i’m not sure it worked) was mrs bradshaw .. and so i planted them in a small raised bed in our back yard .. they had already bloomed, so i didn’t have the opportunity to watch them up close as they grew through their ‘season’ .. which, much to my delight, happens to be most of the summer .. however, the next year i did ..

when i saw the yellow bud break i felt a bit of a disappointment, at first .. they had been a brilliant scarlet red in the other garden .. what happened? .. something in the soil? .. not enough sunlight? .. too much water? .. how come they were yellow? .. making my way past disappointment, i then invisioned all the new buds bursting into swaying stocks of brilliant canary yellow .. not red .. not quite what i’d anticipated ..  but, hey, i’m open to change .. and, boy, did things starting changing ..

those beautiful yellow buds began opening .. and they weren’t yellow anymore .. the emerging colour was orange .. i was in awe of how such a small bud could negotiate such a tremendous change .. and so i peered deep into the heart of mrs bradshaw, anticipating yet another change .. i felt no disappointment .. how could i, being in the presence of such a stunning outworking .. and then, the orange changed to brilliant, scarlet red .. ah .. just as i remembered ..

and not only that, but she continued to open, giving more red, then once again revealing a touch of original yellow .. how do they do that .. marvellous ..

this year i had to move the geum from the raised bed as that part of the yard is in a state of evolve at the moment .. they are both planted in a large, ceramic pot,  and live out on the corner of the deck, outside the garden shed, where they receive lots of sunlight and warmth .. and so, right now, while i’m here writing this our back yard is graced with the presence of mrs bradshaw, in all her scarlet glory ..

and so, to the mrs bradshaw, whoever you are, thank you, madam ..

this is the beginning of our veggie garden in the back yard .. frank built this in one day with wood he was given by a friend .. perfect for a raised bed .. the further rise at the back of the bed is planted with rhubarb .. four plants .. almost a month ago ..

i’ve just come in from outside .. i’m making us some dinner, and frank’s out working on a fence to go around the garden to keep out the deer .. i’ll be back to continue with the story of our latest veggie garden ..

okay .. i’m back .. dinner’s done .. frank’s back outside tiddling up the corner post where the gate will be .. so, where was i? .. oh, yes .. our garden bed .. we got the rhubarb planted .. it was so happy, as it had been sitting in plastic bags on the ground below the garden shed deck over the winter .. poor things .. but they didn’t seem to care .. as soon as their roots hit the dirt, they were off .. it’s so great to have rhubarb because it grows in leaps and bounds almost before your very eyes .. and it’s so beautifull .. and we love eating it ..

newly planted ..

baby rhubarb leaves

a few days later

when the rhubarb was planted in the intended bed, there were still three more to put in the ground ..  our neighbour had recently been clearing his back yard of overgrown blackberries, and in the process started uncovering six, four by four concrete and stone garden beds, adjacent to our own .. as it was burning season, and because our neighbour had kindly told us to use the beds if we’d like, we decided to burn the blackberry debris and clean the beds, discovering the soil to be rich and fertile ..

getting the new beds ready ..

you can see, on the left, how much the rhubarb has grown .. and, we got onion sets (spanish and walla walla), which, in this picture, have just been planted .. also, there are three onions, at the far right (you can’t really see them), that are our “competitors” in the island’s community garden’s “who can grow the biggest onion contest” .. and, in the first of our neighbour’s beds, we planted the last of the rhubarb, and the rest of the onion sets .. we’ll use the thinnings as green onions ..  and so,  with the continued revival of our neighbour’s beds our garden grows ..

four beds cleaned, and turned over ..

on the last burning day, the final two beds were cleaned up, and yesterday frank cleaned them out, and turned them over .. today, those two, along with the other three unplanted beds, have been topped up with about four inches of composted manure, which will be turned under before we plant on the may long weekend .. they look wonderfull to me ..

i’ve already planted a few things in our original garden bed .. i get anxious this time of year .. impatient for the soil to be warmer .. so i pore over books, and talk with other gardeners about the present weather, and then get seeds that i think can withstand the coolness of the soil .. the onion sets can, and i’ve recently read that planting onions and carrots together can be beneficial (although it seems early for carrots, to me), and i know that lettuce can handle cool soil, as can radishes, and apparently, swiss chard .. so, i’ve planted some seeds .. and the quail have had dirt baths around them .. and the deer have stepped through them, as have cats, and coons .. and today, frank started building a fence ..

posts and rails ..

it’s dark out now, so no more picture taking .. however, a lot can happen in a short amount of time around here, and i’m determined to keep up with the changes .. and so our garden grows ..