Me, Myself and Memories

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  Noreen 3:12 am on June 12, 2013 Permalink  

  A Tranquil Quiet Place 

  We live on a very busy thoroughfare in St. Jame,s complete with more 18 wheeler rigs that you can count in one day.  There is a food processing plant two blocks to the north.  One block to the north is the railroad tracks that you can almost use as an alarm clock that could set multiple times within a twenty four hour period.  Holding a conversation during the height of the hub bub is impossible.  Did any of this register to us in the late 80s when the house was purchased for $8,500?  Heavens no!

  We began using a patio umbrella put up in the driveway to enjoy coffee and the outdoors.  Other than the noise, the amount of people that would be passing by on the street and wander up the driveway was like “Welcome, Open House” was just as impossible.  We decided to pop out a porch off the northwest portion of the garage and put a patio that went totally around the porch.  That did the trick.  We could sit out, cook out or be out in the porch and have some private time.

  

  The Koi pond with its tranquil sound

  With too much time on my hands and I began sizing up up the area east of the garage porch and decided that this could be the answer to being outside and finding a bit more quiet.  This was the area that Dennis had the grill set up, but with several dozen octagon-shaped blocks, I pushed out the size of the patio to hold a small table and two chairs.  Just the distance from the back of the garage porch to the street made a huge difference in the noise of the traffic plus the Oak and Maple trees are now leafed out, aiding with the filtering of noise.  The winning element to the tranquil quiet is the water pump in the Koi pond.

  The sound of the water can hypnotize me when I take a break from the gardens with my feet up on the neighboring patio chair.  This area of the backyard has become my all time favorite.  No one knows I am out there reading with a cup of coffee.  No one knows I am sitting out there scraping mud off of my shoes.  No one knows that I have decided to stay in my bathrobe until noon.   Such a little effort has made all the difference in the world in creating this tranquil, quiet place.

   
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  Noreen 3:54 am on June 6, 2013 Permalink  

  Ready to Enjoy 

  Even after the half inch of rain yesterday the gardens were fit to work in. I was in my hay day. In years past I have enjoyed creating gardens where it was impossible to grow a good crop of grass.

  

  A clean slate of dirt ready to show off the young plants

  Once perennials are established the maintenance is minimal. The secret is that the maintenance needs to be done in the spring of the year. There is no end to the trash that blows in with the snowstorms. Flooded areas have new weed seeds deposited and birds love to share weed seeds in their droppings.

  As of today my gardens have all been tended to and they can now work on producing lush foliage and even a bit of color from some plants that bloom. Several plants shot out of the dirt and took off like a steak of lightening. A few I found on these last days were just breaking through the soil. It does take a watchful eye. Many of my neighbors put down bark mulch to prevent the weeds from taking over and some even go through the expense of coco bean hulls. You’ve got it. It does smell like chocolate. The draw back on the bean hulls is that they mold if we have lots of showers of rain. The draw back on the bark mulch is that some perennials drop seeds for new plants in the next year and the seeds need to find their home on dirt to take hold.

  

  My favorite hangout for the summer

  As I was using my pusher hoe over these last days I maneuvered around many flocks and bleeding heart plants that are new seedlings. Greenhouses and nurseries generally start their perennials at a cost of $3.99 per six inch growing pot. Being a little thrifty is part of having fun gardening. I do take pride in my tidy gardens. Both Orlin’s mother and my Mother were lovers of flowers and I was a good student. The contentment that I derive from gardening cannot be beat by any tranquilizer a doctor can prescribe. I am now going to sit back and enjoy the fruits of Mother Nature and my labor.

   
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  Noreen 4:39 am on June 4, 2013 Permalink  

  So Weary – It Feels Great! 

  My oh my, too weary to take a camera outside. Stauffer Avenue will be up to snuff pretty soon. Yes, yes, I know – way too many flowerbeds to make sense of. But they are my flowerbeds and I love working in them. I have one more day of taking the beds down to bare dirt and then I can sit in my backyard and just enjoy what each and every moment brings and the Preen takes care of the soil. June 5th may see a ceremonial dig. That is the first day in six weeks that I can go without my sling for the left arm. It’s all been worth it and no more wondering and worrying. It’s done, it’s over and I can say by 90% it has been successful. More another day as this ole Grammie is taking the rest of the day off. Weary, but wouldn’t trade it for anything. It’s a good thing.

   
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  Noreen 5:01 am on June 3, 2013 Permalink  

  A Day of Discovery 

  Oh My Gosh – the sun was out and it felt like what the first day of Spring should have felt like. Though I have my left arm in a sling, I have a great garden tool to whack and stack weeds. It is an elongated triangle one at the end of a very long handle. With just a push of my right arm the triangle slides under the dirt to take out hundreds of little weeds that would like nothing better than to be left to their own and become huge weeds. I think a hoe like this may be what sugar beet farmers use when their workers walk the crops. Holding the long handle waist high and the very top of the soil is skimmed. The higher the handle is held the deeper it digs into the dirt. This is not a job for the faint of heart as many perennials do self seed and the newbee gardener may very well take them out with one swoop. I am starting at the flower bed the farthest from the house and working my way homeward. As each bed is cleaned a very nice substantial layer of Preen is also being applied to keep new weeds at bay.

  

  Some of the self seeders paired with a Hosta

  When I knew I would be recovering from surgery I did promise Dennis I would not do anything more than garden with whatever happened to make it through the winter. Hello! Who knew that when the gardens were under water in the late winter and early spring and then covered with ice that many of my favorite plants would not survive, but many new weed seeds were washed in. Slowly but surly the beds will be cleaned and be a fine canvas for that which did make it. Exercise is great and it gives me plenty of time for quiet meditation as Dennis is not a gardener but he keeps the coffee cups filled.

  It’s a good thing.

   
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  Noreen 1:33 am on June 2, 2013 Permalink  

  Waiting on a Meal 

  These last few days there has been so much to do about me walking through the backyard. The blackbirds are in a snit even though I have no idea where their nests are.

  

  Baby Robins waiting for some fresh worms

  When Mrs. Robin began dive bombing me, it did make me take notice. When I realized where her nest was I made sure to make a huge arc around the area so she could be left in peace. I am not sure if there was no room in the inn or if she preferred the great outdoors for her nest. With all the rain we have had I wish we had put an awning on the birdhouse. The lawns are soft due to all the rain we have had and there is no shortage of worms for the mama.

  I took to a patio chair with a cup of coffee and watched the many, many trips Mama Robin made. There are actually four babies crammed into her nest. Regardless of the multiple trips, the mouths continued to be open and ready for the next treat.

  It will in interesting to see how the babies do when they are about to make their solo flights. We do have several neighborhood cats that cross the yard and they have all they can do to get from point A to point B. Those self same blackbirds delight in dive bombing the cats, so I hope the cats will have their own safety in mind and leave the  babies alone as they take their maiden voyages.

   
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  Noreen 3:11 am on June 1, 2013 Permalink  

  Short Lived Beauty 

  Garden centers offer anything and everything to fill our flowerbeds and gardens. Every once in awhile there is a hand-me-down that grows more precious by the decades. The Fern Peony is a rare beauty and very elusive. When it is found in a nursery or a greenhouse you may find a single stem selling for $40.00 or more.

  

  The Wendlandt Fern Peony shared by many generatons

  This year of 2013 the farm that was my paternal great grandparent’s homesteaded has been farmed by a Wendlandt for 150 years. Ironically, that farm is where my Fern Peonies were gotten from. Peonies grow from tubers and these tubers do multiply. Little by little the tubers have been shared from the farm in Penn Township of McLeod County to untold numbers of decedents. When my mother received her tubers they were sheltered and protected during the growing season and also mulched during the freezing winters. In time to come when my Mom felt she could trust us as adults with garden skills, having been honed, she shared with her four children.

  As the tubers in my garden multiplied, I have made sure to have plants in several locations to insure that if one spot had winter kill, I would have a back up plant or two or three. I did share tubers with Orlin for his Arkansas garden but I have not checked with Martha to see how they are doing. As late as two years ago I started two plants for daughter Carrie for her home. Here is the unfortunate news:  yesterday they came into their glory and today the winds are wicked and the delicate blossoms suffer.

  We need to cherish our beauties while Mother Nature allows and take up the challenge to insure we will have them again for years and years to come. They love full sun and full sun means they are out in the open in our gardens, taking the beating of all of our seasons. Some things we just need to live with in faith.

   
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  Noreen 1:32 am on May 31, 2013 Permalink  

  Seeing Stars 

  As much as I have been walking the gardens, waiting to see what will appear after a nasty winter, I do see more than what pleases the eye. The earliest of greenery in our yards looks a lot like chives. Everyone with a garden would have several plants of chives as that was the perfect finish to a bowl of good potato salad. This greenery knows no boundaries. Dennis pays no attention to it in the lawn as he mows it with never a mind. As my perennials are struggling to get a foothold, they are almost strangled by this early crop of greens. Where they came from originally I have no idea. Birds carry much as they fertilize hither and yon. Strong breezes have also been known to share from yard to yard. As you can see from the photo, the greens are bountiful, much like thick grass. After a bit there appears a blossoming stem, coming out of the soil and the Star of David takes center stage in all of its six inch glory.

  

  Beautiful, but pesky, Star of David

  In time the entire mat of greens and flowers will die off and be left to be raked off as it looks really untidy. I did dig up a bundle and there is no counting all the little bulblets, waiting to be fed by the greenery as it dies off. As I had mentioned, the stars can make one see red. This self-seeding process is nothing new to gardeners. My Mom had Marigolds growing among the cucumber vines and dill plants were not hard to come by when the cucumbers were ready to become pickles.

  So it goes, and I need to remind myself that gardening is anything but dull and boring and you play the hand you are dealt. Each year we find the Stars of David in places where nothing else would take hold and we just marvel. I am quite sure if we tried to cultivate these little buggers we would have a crop failure. Some things are just meant to be.

   
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  Noreen 2:54 am on May 30, 2013 Permalink  

  That Which Amazes 

  During this spring of surgical recovery there are days when I am so close to finishing the process but yet so far away from being the product of the process. Seeking and searching for worthwhile endeavors to fill the day can almost bring me to the brink of “doughnuts.” That is my one weakness when I feel challenged spiritually and physically. In my mind it takes me back to when, as a very young person, my Mom’s baked goods fixed everything – and I mean everything – from stepping  barefoot on a board with a rusty nail in it to not getting a blue ribbon at the fair in my first year of being in 4-H.

  Days such as these I rely on coffee and many many trips out to the backyards to find something that will fill me and take away the gnawing impatience. It is a good thing that we have just about an acre for me to roam. I started out by pulling up the little volunteer Hackberry trees that have sprouted where no tree should dare to be. The heavy rains have made for many that will never see another light of day. It was required that a few be left go for another day as they may have been nudged in a previous year and now the roots are even deeper. One armed . . . but still dangerous out in the gardens.

  

  Soon to be a mini field of Jack in the Pulpits

  I had worked off most of my angst and was thinking about cleaning all the mud I had on my garden shoes when I spotted the plant that made my entire day. In years past my sister-in-law had brought back from Iowa a small Jack in the Pulpit plant. It was evident it had been in a plastic sandwich bag far too long and it needed some good soil to settle into. Now, after five years there are a total of four that come into their own with several other small ones that are just foliage. I am not sure if they are multiplying by sucker roots or if there are seeds of some types that are not readily visible. The canopy of large leaves makes it a treasure hunt to peek under to find the jewel of the plant that is truly amazing in its detail. That right there made me feel so much better for the day. Screw the doughnuts. I found my inner peace.

   
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  Noreen 2:57 am on May 27, 2013 Permalink  

  Garden Art is Everywhere 

  Oh for Pete’s sake anyhow!  Here we are on Memorial Day and the high temp for the day is 52 degrees. We had rain overnight and the ground is too wet to do any one-arm poking around with a hoe for damage control on the new crop of weeds. I still had to do a walk through the yard and the gardens to check on any progress of perennials that may have come up.

  

  Mother Nature and my garden art have
  made for a great Memorial Day

  This fence line between my neighbor and myself has been graced with lilacs. Luckily, they are on my side of the line and they are safe from pruning. Those that love to prune lilacs to conform to a specific shape loose out as the lilacs bloom on last previous year’s growth. I have a deep purple, a lavender and a white.  The base of the trunks are twisted and gnarled with age but low and behold the blossoms are just beautiful as if they were new plants.

  I do try to put out some garden art each year to enhance Mother Nature, and this year – quite accidentally – I knocked it out of the park. The green gazing ball made for a great backdrop of a rain-soak branch that bowed low and needed a resting stop for it’s blossoms.

   
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  Noreen 3:31 am on May 24, 2013 Permalink  

  More Than One Purpose For a Bird Bath 

  I always try to find a use of  what I have on hand and to take care of what I have as I may not be able to attain it again. I have no idea when my Mom came upon the Duck and Ducklings little cactus that she incorporated into her garden. They are similar to the Hen and Chick cactus. Either of these continue to produce off spring with little or no gardening skills.  Mom would share her favorites with me for my garden and then the challenge was on to keep them alive. After I had found a spot in the garden dirt for the Duck and Ducklings the squirrels would also find that area suitable for burying nuts or digging up nuts they had saved from the year before and Ducklings didn’t stand a chance.

  

  The Duck and Ducklings plants, safe from harm and
  from squirrels in their bird bath home

  Thus the bird bath came into the picture as a solution. For several seasons earlier I had been very diligent in supplying fresh water into a clean bird bath for our flying friends. A particular time every spring the Black Birds would clean up after the babies in their nests and dump the mess into the bird bath. This was a nasty business that I and the Robins did not appreciate it.  Shall we say that I decided to kill two birds with one stone? We have a creek two blocks to the south of us so I was very confident the birds would not go thirsty. I felt confident it would take more than me scolding the squirrels to stop their architectural digs that scattered the Ducklings.

  The Duck and Ducklings were elevated into the bird bath and they have loved it now for several years. As they produce more Ducklings and the new ones begin to drape over the side of the bird bath, I do try and save those and nestle them within a pod of dirt, protected by some rocks. Each fall of the year the bowl of the bird bath is taken off of the stand and covered with a blanket of leaves to protect the cactus from winter kill. Gardening is trial and error and I have found this solution to be a winner as it also adds some texture to the garden.