Garden Stroll.........

It's been a busy week here; so I thought I'd share a few pics- from my garden to yours...

So far... my worst garden pests has been spiders.
The raccoons are coming every night to eat birdseed but so far they haven't bothered anything.
I may be taking all this back when the corn tassles!  Oh and yes; I said raccoonS - plural!  We now have two! Maybe its them who keep knocking down the fairy door.  But when I went to pick it up the last time....

There was this big fat black widow under neath it.  She's about the 5th or 6th I've killed this week around our place.  I really hate spiders.... alot!  Especially the black widows and brown recluse. 
Thankfully I've not seen any snakes around the garden or coop... so all in all... the pests haven't been too bad.  I did see a few stink bugs around the zucchini plants though and as soon as the weather dries up, they will get a shot of 7 dust for sure! 

So on facebook the other day; some friends and I got to talking mulch and tillin. 
They inspired me to make a run to the Graphic and I picked up  two bundles of old newspapers.  I think they were only 2 bucks each... maybe 2.50.  Then, I ran to the Feed store and got 4 bales of straw.
I had a partial bale still in the barn and used that too... and actually ran out.  If anything else has to be added; I'll just use our last years hay.  

On my way home; I stopped at the end of our driveway abit to take this picture of the roses growing in the fence row.  They look like thee olde Pink Grootendorst- but I'm not sure if that's the proper name.  Last year I dug one up and planted it on a fence out from our back porch.  It looks pretty good!  I hope one day it does like these!  I love them!

So once home, I got the water hose going and wetted down all the newspapers.  It helped  to keep them from blowing away when I started layin them down.  All the  tomato plants had already been straw mulched  but when I did; - didn't  have any newspaper so there will still be a little weeding to do around those but not too bad. 

It was so sticky humid out when I started doing this.... the air so thick... ! 
By the time I'd finished I was soakin wet.  yuck. 

Little by little.... I got down through the rows.... and then put the straw on top. 

 I hope the new Dahlias here like it.  

It's my first time growing the big dinner plate Dahlias... and although the stems

are strong on them now... I think I better get to tying them up. 

 Here's one little bunch of my new favorite 4 oclock flowers.  Soon they'll be bloomin their purdy lil heads off I hope!  I have others planted here n there and today found a few fancy little flowery plates 

at one of my favorite flea markets so put them in the ground in front.  I forgot to take a picture. 

 I bought a couple more blue wine bottles today too and hung them on the tree.  

See the little plant in the center of the photo?  I dug it up in the back pasture a few years back.

I'm pretty sure it's called Butterfly weed.  It gets orange flowers on it and the butterflys 

absolutely LOVE it!  It's close to blooming now!

 This is how the tomatoes are lookin... 

Just got them all tied up the other day and so happy I did with all the storms 

we've had. 

The hollyhocks have been a big disappointment this year.

They grew well, and flowered but all got the rust.

Uggg... see the warty yellow leaves on this one.  It doesn't 

look too bad but several got pitiful lookin.  I actually pulled several of them up.

I think I still have alot of seed left so I need to put that on the to do list.

Speakin of rust/ and garden disease... at the beginning of the year everyone was talking

about how there was a disease in impatiens and they'd be so hard to find this year.

I bought a whole flat of them anyways and they're doing great... so you just never know

do ya? 

This is my Snow Queen Hydrangea that I planted in memory

of my Angel Mother who ... once won the 

Snow Queen title when she was young.  

It has a little rust on it too... overall it's doing well though.  

 

All the hydrangeas are blooming now, so I cut a few

and have started putting them in olde jars here n there.  

This was my first bouquet with the Snow Queen blooms!  

 Usually the  biggest problem with take overs here has been  with 

the Morning Glorys and I'm sure that will happen again this year but 

THIS is my biggest... overgrown ... what on earth do I do?

It's the Autumn type of Clematis... and this one little plant

has grown up one wooden post... across a picket fence and onto 

another post.  Last Spring  I wacked part of it back and the thing 

pitched a royal fit!  It did not bloom hardly at all to pay me back.

And I'm tellin ya; when it blooms it puts on SUCH a show!

So... I've just let it have it's way...

 I know the groundhogs used to hide in it from me.  

Pretty sure I could get right in there and you'd not 

see me either. lol

Ohwell.... 

The shabby in me 

likes the mess of it all.

 It's also pea pickin time.

I love me some peas don't you?

Raw... for breakfast... while I'm right here in the garden.

My tummy wants more right now so after I'm done

bloggin... I think I'll go pick a few more.  

They're just so sweet n good raw right outta the pod.

There's nothin better I swear.

Except for maybe cooked with carrots..

and salt, pepper and real butter. 

Ohmy.

 The moss roses are finally gettin happy.

The olde rusty cart they're planted in barely even rolls anymore.

It's so rusted out that this year when I dumped the old dirt in it to replant

I had to add a bunch of rabbit wire just to hold the bottom in.  

So far so good.

This is how the corn patch is doin.  

I planted two packs of Gurneys 

Gotta Have It Corn.

It's even sweeter than Kandy Korn.

I wouldn't kid ya about something so serious as sweet corn.

And remember how I was wanting to plant sunflowers in the bed of the olde Chevy?

Well I did... and they sprouted real good but for awhile there... it was touch n go.

After they sprouted one day I was out here watering and looked up to find both

our dogs were cooling off UNDER the bed ... right in the planted sunflowers.

I bet everyone in Johnson Co. heard me holler... Get OUTTA there RIGHT now!

Ugggg .... I was so mad.... 

Then after the sunflowers survived the corgi episode...

they got all lanky for awhile.  

See; the actual bed is gone in the truck so I planted them right on the ground.  

But it's down there aways and I think they were starvin for some sunshine.

But they held on... and ....

This is how they're doin.

It looks promising!  

Hopefully; soon we'll have some strong sunflowers 

growing right out of this old pickup truck.  

It's been a fun... and there's more sunflowers growing near the truck too so 

God willing; we just might have this work out yet. 

Other than that; I finally got the snapdragon sign made and attached to the bed they're guarding. 

And yesterday after getting the garden all mulched I finished this rusty chandelier. 
It was a fun project and I learned how to drill through metal and enjoyed wiring up some of the rusty things I'd saved. 

Baby Bleu is growing alot and now has a sweet tooth for sweet feed.  I just love to hear him whinny!  It's so cute in his lil baby talk.
Gracie has actually mellowed out a little.  Do I dare even write that out loud?  Oh why not.

 Oh and look at the sweet surprise from Myguy!  I was so happy he let me take his picture.  ... I hadn't said one word to him about the Pink Grootendorst roses or anything, but he picked me some!  He was driving something and saw Trent parked down there picking a few for his sweetheart Kayla, so Myguy stopped and got these for me.  Blessed my peapickin heart for sure!  (I love this picture of him, in his work duds...and  hat on backwards... I bet he'd been ridin the four wheeler)  happysigh... thank you Lord for my sweetheart.

Tried to get a photo taken out here as it was starting to get dark.   

Hung a few  twinkle lights up ... --What do you suppose the raccoons think of that? lol

The clouds got kinda ugly last night but thank God nothing serious has happened here.

Just wind, ... alot of rain and lots of lightning. 

The little gnomes on this whirly-gig have gotten quite a work out. 

Thanks for visiting the Shed today! 
Have a great weekend!
xoxo