Flowers in the Garden

My flower garden is developing quite nicely. Everything is blooming and growing at a fast pace now, filling in with a variety of color and texture that is very pleasing to the eye.

Last week, the wind blew so hard that it bent the shepherd's hook on the deck to such an angle that the planter containers were tipped off and the the metal rod is bent! This hook was secured to the railing post in several areas and I was confident that it was sturdy. Mother Nature proved otherwise, and now I have no place for two of the containers. Currently they are sitting on the deck, looking lovely, but definitely in the way. I'm not sure what to do with them, as the wind will blow all summer and I'm not stupid enough to put them back where they were.

This year I used the plastic bags that have 12 holes cut into the bag, so that the flowers can trail and display the whole length of the bag. It is quite beautiful, but difficult to water and extremely heavy. One corner of the deck has the hot pink, vibrant purple and lovely burgundy petunias. That is the side that blew down. The other side of the deck has the yellow, lavender, and softer blue petunias, daisy's and trailing lobelia. That end doesn't get much wind, but the bags are still heavy and now I wonder if the shepherd hook can hold them as they grow and get bigger. Such a dilemma!

I planted two tomato plants on the deck, so that we can just step out and get tomatoes for our dinner. I also have a container of herbs (cilantro, basil and parsley) that is finally starting to get big.

In the beginning, the squirrels would dig in the soil to hide their peanuts, and I was having to replant these nearly every day. Now that they are filled in, I don't think the squirrel can get to the soil. Plus, I quit putting out peanuts! My husband pointed out that I can't cuss the squirrels for being squirrels if I keep feeding them. So, I figured it's Summer, there is plenty of other food available, and I'll save the peanuts for fall and winter.

The bird feeders are nearly as full as they were a week ago when I filled them. Guess the birds have found other sources of food as well. Bugs, worms and other natural foods must be preferable to dry seeds and grains. Ha Ha

The garden spot that I share with twelve other gardeners is also coming along nicely. This year I wasn't going to plant any vegetables. They last couple of years we let much of the vegetable crop rot on the vine because we weren't tuned in to how often you have to pick the stuff. I enjoy the flowers, and didn't want to feel bad about neglecting the vegetables.

So, I put in flowers. Lots and Lots of flowers. But then, I thought--I'll plant some peas behind the trellis. They will be over and gone before the flowers need the support. Then, I realized that I needed a few peppers, so I planted 2 red and 2 yellow peppers. Then, someone had extra kohlrabi, so I put in 5 of those. I was using Swiss Chard for variety, texture and decoration, but realized we can also eat it. Same with the basil, parsley, and dill. Finally, I thought, what the hell. There is room for one big tomato plant, so it's in there too.

Surprisingly, the mix of the vegetables and flowers together is rather attractive. Before, there was a flower garden, then a vegetable garden. Guess I'm relaxing my own boundaries and reaping the benefit.

Pictures will appear as soon as I figure out how to download the pictures to the computer.

Every day I visit the garden to encourage everyone to bloom and grow to their highest potential. So far it seems to be working!

Cheep, Cheap Cafe

The critters and birds provided lots of entertainment this summer.

We seem to have acquired a juvenile Raccoon. He arrives every night around midnight.
He grunts and woofs and shakes the tree. The first time I thought there must be a family, there was so
much ruckus and limb movement, but it's just one little guy. He perches in the tree, looks at us, and
then proceeds to try to eat anything he can get out of the bird feeders. I hesitate to feed him something
substantial, as I'm not looking to make him a regular. In fact, I want him to GO AWAY!

He came last night while I was sleeping, and broke one feeder and then tore both feeders out of the tree,
onto the ground, scattering seeds everywhere. I hustled down first thing this morning to sweep off the
porch of the woman beneath us. She has been complaining about the amount of seeds.
I explained about the raccoon and the fledgling birds, hoping she would soften. Time will tell.

I had already altered the birdfeeders to discourage our chipmunk. He's a little one, and I think he's
made his home in my woodpile. It's entertaining to set out a pile of black sunflower seeds and watch him
imitate a vacuum as he hoovers a teaspoon full at a time into his cheeks. He'll use his little paw to stuff the
last one in, and away he goes. He'll come back until the pile is gone. Then one day I watched him jump
into the tree and run up the branch to the bird feeder. He was laying in the tray, scooping seeds into his
mouth, and onto the ground. I had to take the trays off. Now the birds have to use the perch, and spill
quite a bit of seed. Oh well. More sweeping to keep the peace I suppose.

Several of the birds that use our feeders reproduced and I'm watching the fledgling blue jays grow
their head feathers. They were so comical looking. Adult size bodies, and tiny little pin heads!
They cry and squak something awful. Mom and Dad have quit tending to their needs, and the pair
of adolescents let me know when the food supply has dwindled.

The Cardinals had two successful nestings. The first batch produced a male and a female. They are both
smaller than the adults, and are just starting to grow their crest. The second batch produced at least one male,
that is just starting to get his red feathers. It took me awhile to figure out what he was, but now I want to coax
him into my hand and make him my pet. Loren tells me to dream on!

As the season begins to change we're getting more of a variety of birds. We had a pair of downy woodpeckers,
that gave the balcony a little rat-a-tat-tat after they ate. It sounded just like Woody Woodpecker.