Today in the garden

[spinbaby]

My afternoon in the garden:

I will out to my little fenced side yard and dig out that small patch of hostas, which didn’t like the sun, to make a space for some lettuce and radishes.

Before I start, I’d better trim back that vine thing before it elbows its way into my future lettuce patch. Where are those yard bags and my nippers?

Oh, there’s a sedum! I’d forgotten there was a sedum in here. I’ll plant it out front near the tree peony, which I got on sale and turned out to be that dreadful shade of red. Must remember not to be seduced by plants on sale.

But if I’m to transplant the sedum, I need some compost. Where’s my digging fork? Oh fork, the compost is still frozen in the middle. But I can get half a bucket of the stuff to put under the sedum.

Now that the sedum is moved, it needs some mulch. Oh fork, the mulch pile is still frozen in the middle. But I can get enough to tuck in the sedum.

The other sedums out front look a bit nibbled by deer, so I’d best spread some deer repellent on all of them. I just got a bag of blood meal, which I’ll decant into this empty Osmocote jug to make it easier to sprinkle. While I’m at it, I’ll sprinkle all the pansies.

Where was I? Oh yeah, I was going to dig up the hostas. What time is it? I need a drink.

[MadameButterfly]

1. LOL I'm glad to have some company

I always find 5 tasks on the way to the one that is urgently needed. I make rules like, "put blinders on and don't look at anything but the task at hand," and, "never set out in the garden without my tool belt" (or I'll try to dig up that weed with my fingernails instead of a trowel, or stake a fallen plant by leaning it instead of tying....).

My goal is to be caught up and not have any urgent tasks so I can putter, and respond to each thing needing care. That's when nurturing a garden nurtures me. But life bogs me down and the garden moves on, relentlessly.

The fun part is that for every task I do accomplish, nature takes it and runs with it.

[spinbaby]

2. What is this "caught up" you speak of?

Reminds me of the time my son asked when the garden would be finished and I laughed myself silly.

I’ll dig up the hostas tomorrow, I promise.

[MadameButterfly]

3. It's an ideal

Caught up is doing the garden tasks at the time the season requires instead of when it's too warm to plant beets or the tomato vines are crawling because I didn't stake them when I planted them.

I recall my daughter thought I spent too much time in the garden since she was done planting beans in about 15 minutes and wanted my attention after that.

[Emile]

4. I have probably around 100 different kinds of hosta's. Still waiting

here for them to start popping out of the ground. I made a new hosta bed in my woods last fall with a park bench.. Thinking I will put two giant blue hosta's one on each side of the bench with tall Lady Ferns. This will be Grandpa secret spot to bird watch and meditate.