The air at the townhouse is warming and the ground is showing. The gardens need some love. They need the bigger twigs and small branches removed, and they need the rock to move back inside the lines – haha! Luck would have it – I have time! And a need, myself, to to hang out, exactly where they are.
It’s the little things – enjoying a blue hour that gives way to a pastel sky that gives way to a gorgeous early spring day. Listening to the birds sing their first songs of the day. Taking walks around the early spring gardens and knowing a whole season is ahead – to do as much or as little as you want – and to accept that your efforts may or may not be able to be enjoyed by you and by others. More than ever, capturing the little moments and going with the flow are the current season. Planning seems to be the current fun, and flexibility seems to be the current lesson. Or are these really, truly, the big things? When you finally practice that so incredibly much continually changes, and grabbing the beauty and shedding the disappointments is a way better experience? Truly.
We’ll go with that.
This is how the season at the townhouse starts.
We will clean up, put the energy and materials in to give it a fighting chance, and then we’ll see how things progress. New roofs are supposed to be going on, smack in the middle of the very short Minnesota spring and summer. With the materials and labor realities it may end up fall. We shall see.
We’ll share the beauty as much as it occurs and survives. And look for other “little things” if it doesn’t.
It is a day to celebrate! The giant snow pile finally melted it’s last, and it looks like no blizzards in the forecast – hahaha! Wow! It was a long winter this year!
Spring is here!
Wait, another snow storm.
Yes! Warmer weather. The snow plow pile is almost gone!
Wait, an ice storm followed by more snow.
Such is a Minnesota March. But we have arrived at April! Hallelujah! Although we have had snow at the beginning of June – on the irises I was cutting to bring to our kids teachers – it is super rare. And, in fact, when we were out raking the other day, we discovered the ground is beginning to thaw and a few sprouts are starting to come up.
Over the winter up north we had a dawn and dusk deer parade – anywhere from 3 to 16 deer coming through. Usually around 9-10. We discovered their pattern and where they meet up. There were many wonderful hours of deer watching. And unfortunately one coyote, and one night yipping. The does will drop their fawns soon – always a vulnerable time. And the bucks are starting to grow their antlers – just starting.
I told my husband that for all the wonderful hours of deer watching we have had, it will be hard for me to be upset at their hosta browsing. But maybe stay away from the daylilies ok? We shall see.
Gardening 2022 has begun here. The daylily seeds have gone in the refrigerator for stratification, and plans for the garden adjustments and potential additions are beginning to take shape. This year the plan is to add pumpkin. Pumpkin (singular) you say? For sure! One 20 something pound pumpkin that will celebrate his first birthday in a few months. One little pumpkin that has diverted his Gramma’s attention just a tiny bit away from garden expansions and Grampa’s attentions as well. For instance, Grampa came to Gramma with a plan to capture rainwater from our new gutters up north into raised bed rain gardens. Oh be still my pitter pattering heart! Less watering concerns? Would that be awesome? More time for growing pumpkin ❤️
More to come. As it takes shape. You know how this goes.
In the meantime, the gardens rest. All of them are still under lots of snow.
Yes, those are squirrel tracks. But that too is a story for a different time.
A few posts ago I wrote about Talk is not Do.
Yesterday I said to my husband that I was adding Watch is not Experience.
Here’s what happened. I realized that my favorite ship was coming in to Duluth at noon. I have no idea why I love this ship so much. Maybe it’s awesome magnitude. Not sure. So I planned an impromptu day trip. I want to stop at my favorite candy store. I want to take scenic route 61. I want to tour the Duluth Rose Garden. I want to end up at Canal Park watching the Paul R. Tregurtha come in to port. I want to bring Sandy our dog.
so I finished my coffee, packed a little day bag, grabbed my coat and hat (just in case), and we headed out – Sandy in his crate (safety first), and me thinking “I might have finally lost it – what am I doing?”
We had an incredible day!!! It was not a watch other people’s adventures day. It was a “do a bunch of my own favorites” day. And when the Tregurtha came by and I stood once again in awe, and waved, and had Sandy wave his little paw wave I just experienced the moment in person. I wasn’t watching someone else’s moment. It was my moment.
Last fall when my husband planted the five daylilies in the front of the little house up north, he put the dirt and grass he removed into a plant pot in the garage. Today I was doing the final weeding of the year, and needed a plant pot to throw the weeds in. I dumped the dirt and dry grass into an even larger pot, and went about weeding. When I was done weeding I realized there was a fair amount of mulch I had pulled with the weeds.
Before I had even started weeding I had moved two earthworms from the driveway to the grass. They would have died. They were drying out. I like earthworms. They are great for the soil.
So I had saved a couple earthworms and they were now on their way back to do what they do, I had half a plant pot of weeds and mulch, and some dirt and dry grass in another plant pot. Where did my mind go? Compost.
I put everything together, minus the two worms of course :), put it in an area where I am going to finish a lasagna style garden next year, and walked away knowing I didn’t end up putting all that into the garbage. It’s not official compost, but the weeds and the mulch and the dry grass will mix together with the dirt and the rain that is coming and it will decompose. Go forth and make a good foundation for next year’s completion!
(That tree you see by the base of the shed is coming out. It was there when we bought the house, I didn’t get on that, and my husband knew I was wavering. But that’s no place for a tree, so … )
Up at the little house it has been nice and rainy. Even some thunderstorms. The kind that arrive in the middle of the night and provide that cozy, “just listen and enjoy” treat.
There are a lot of “next year” projects remaining, but for now, the gardens are settling in until spring, the seedlings, rootings, and divisions are doing well, and the deer are leaving them alone. I need to weed (see below) but for now, let it rain.
At the little house up north we have an Amur Maple. I’d know them anywhere. The blooms in spring are delightful. I wish I could bottle that scent! The color is magnificent in fall. And they throw seeds like crazy. Which is why I have a mixed relationship with the Amur Maple in our front yard at the townhouse https://susansdailygarden.wordpress.com/2020/05/24/bonus-free-nail-filing/
I had plans to cut down the Amur Maple in our back yard. It looks like it has seen better days. It is lopsided, and looks more like a bush than a tree.
I don’t know. How much trouble can a lopsided bush sized sweet spring flowering tree cause? Maybe I can trim it. Maybe the seedlings will not be an issue in the spring because our lawn is old and sports lots of different volunteers. Maybe seedlings will not be an issue because there is no garden back there. Wait! Will there not be a garden back there?
It appears the Amur Maple shrub tree will survive one more year. I need to do more research & analysis.
The last of the 2021 daylily seeds came from one of the Marque Moon daylilies. These, like our other seeds, were not intentionally crossed. They were purely the work of our local pollinators. 1 pod, 4 seeds.
I have never had Marque Moon seeds germinate. These also look a bit iffy, but I will try. If the seeds are viable, and the seedlings survive, in 3-4 years we will see what they accomplished 😉
These will go into our “rookery” at the little house up north. See https://susansdailygarden.wordpress.com/2021/09/28/planning-time-a-rookery/
Susan's Daily Garden 