Progress Notes

Hope everyone will bear with me on this very NON-EXCITING post, but I wanted to have a little picture-record of my garden progress. Since I have a tendency to misplace things, it is rather senseless for me to keep a garden journal . This seems to be the best place for me to remember where I put it since I don't keep a garden journal.

After cutting back the lavender (to the ground) last fall, it has made a very nice and full return. Last fall I, also, took 2 cuttings from my one mum and placed them in the propagation pot. In the spring I transplanted them to the garden at the front of the house. Both plants are filling out nicely and are loaded with buds. Red flower (in the daisy family) is spreading like wild fire and needs to be divided and given away or planted elsewhere.

I'm really thrilled with my flower pots this year. I planted several varieties of petunias which thrived, but had to be watered morning and night.



Knowing that I wanted a Hydrangea to plant in the yard, my first born had given me one for Mother's Day. After a few months in the house, it came as close to death as possible without being declared DOA. In desperation, I finally took it outside and continued to water it. I figured it was a lost cause, but I was pleasantly surprised (read "shocked") when it's crumply brown foliage fell off and was replaced with some beautiful, fresh green leaves. Then it went the extra mile and re-bloomed this past week. Who would have thought?

I shot this photo of it for Foto Friday when the topic was "Blue". Now I guess the topic would have to be "Pink" since it has changed its color.

I need to get it in the ground and give it some time to settle in before winter.

Some of you may remember this picture of a Rose of Sharon shrub I had started from seed in the fall of 2008. This is what it looked like in May of 2009; by August of last summer it had
managed to produce 2 lonely blooms.

Here it is today. It has grown approximately a foot since I planted it and has several blooms and dozens of buds.

All of these plants would probably have died while I was away because of the hot dry weather. So I owe a real BIG THANK YOU to my male child (who can hardly be called a child anymore) because he had carefully tended and watered them for me each day while I was gone.