IN LIKE A LION
Yesterday started out a little rough. I was supposed to go to the lilac festival with my girlfriend who just moved back to the area. I really wanted to go it was a pefect day in the low to mid 70s and not a cloud in the sky. My husband called to ask for the number to Ithaca College (where my son goes to school) Human resources is going to call to make sure he is a full time student. I called the school and his status is that he is not a full time student (he is on a leave of absence due to medical reason) my hubby thinks he is uninsured now and I don't think he will fight it at human resources even though I think he should be covered. It is a new job and he probably is afraid of jeopardizing his position there. So I spent most of my morning on the phone and had to cancel my plans because I had a little bit of travel time there and back and not a whole lot of time at the fest already I was bummed but decided to take advantage of the nice weather and went to work in my yard. My yard was neglected last year as I didn't spent as much time out there as usual. I didn't plan it but just didn't realize how much work I got done while outside smoking. I did not like to just stand there so I would walk around the yard and pull a weed here and deadhead a flower there, rake a little or trim a little and I had nice flower beds for it. I decided to work on some raised beds I have behind my garage. When I first moved in they were overgrown with holly bushes evergreen christmas trees, mint, and snow on the mountain (pain in the arse weed that grows like crazy underground) as does the mint. I pulled out the bushes and got rid of everything else with careful digging and a little roundup to really get rid of it, this was 8-9 years ago. I then planted a clematis (flowering vine) in one of the boxes and have used the other boxes for various things throughout the years. tomatoes, tulips, herbs, roses, It has not had any real purpose or put together look at all. I consider it my cutting garden because it is behind the garage so it is kind of hidden from view. I decided to change it and make it more useful and hopefully better looking. I cut back and dug out the clematis and moved him to a new home behind the shed. Behind this I found several holes in the foundation of the garage so I had to wait for hubby to do his concrete work so I could get back to my gardens. I think those darn spreading roots from some of those invasive critters is what starts the foundation problems. The mint and the other stuff never went completely away and I have been battling it ever since, yesterday I spent what was left of the morning digging out weeds and roots from all of the boxes I moved the tulips that were left there and then I called my mom and she and I went to out favorite garden center which is right in my neighborhood. I bought a basil plant, some sage, two tomatoes one regular and one grape tomato, a flat of impatiens, 2 daisy looking flowers, I didn't even look at their name, one was different shades of purple and the other one was white with a chocolate center. I had already bought pepper plants, oregano, and chives and I already have flat leaf parsley that came back from last year. I am going to use the raised beds as a little herb garden with the peppers and tomatoes also. I will use the biggest bed it is in the center and put 4 pepper plants in there, I will use the boxes on either side of that for tomatoes in front of those three boxes is one long but narrow box my parsley is on one end and I will but the basil on one end the chives and oregeno in the middle. I planted my daisy like plants on the side of my garage they look very perty. I recruited my daughter to help me plant the impatiens out front, I have a hard time being on my knees for long so I did all of the prep work and had her do half of the planting. She didn't seem to enjoy it at all. My little guy seems to be the most interested in gardening so far. He likes to plant something and watch it grow. Last year they had a contest to see who could grow the largest cabbage. His got so big that it exploded (split in two) right on the vine. This year is a sunflower contest.Overall my day was a good one. It is very rewarding to see a well tended garden, especially rewarding when you are the one doing the tending. I did miss seeing my friend but my productive day in the yard was a pretty good back-up.
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