Tuesday’s Gardening…

Yesterday (Tuesday) I just did a little gardening, this time in the front yard.

I checked my sunflower bed and a few didn’t make it… but I think a neighborhood cat scratched it up, since there were some cat poo in it. I added a layer of coffee ground on it to deter the cat. I also planted some sunflower seeds that I harvested from last year in the bald spots. Don’t know if it’ll grow, but we’ll see…

I also planted the last 6 packs of a white mini zinnia and some-other flower I can’t remember in the front bed. I amended the soil a bit and sprinkled some random annual flowers. I’m not sure if they will grow, since I have bad luck with sowing seed directly in the soil.

In the back, I checked the newspaper mulch I placed the day before. It turned a light brown instead of that newspaper gray color, so it doesn’t look that weird. I’ll probably add some newspaper mulch in my other beds and maybe add some coffee grounds on top to deter the cats and to also dye the paper brown so it looks a little more natural.

I also got a email reply from our local newspaper editor and he confirmed that the do in fact use soy-based ink in their paper. He gave me the name of their recycling columnist and said to call them if I wanted more info on mulching. He also added that “Wednesday Appetites section is particularly good for helping you grow food for thought” which I thought was funny. He answered my question, gave me a number to call if I wanted more information and also plugged the paper… What a good editor! :)

Oh yeah… one last thing… I learned that they will build a Super Wal-Mart in the old lot where K-Mart use to be. They will then close down the Wal-Mart that is 2 minutes away from our house and guess what will replace it… I freakin’ Home Depot!!! I’m so excited! Imagine, I’ll be 2 minutes away from a Home Depot!!! It’ll probably be in 2 years, which is prefect timing, because that’s about the time when my neighbor will sell his house, which I want to buy… (I’ll write more about the house in a later entry)…

New Library Card…

Today after work, I went to the city library and signed up for a new card. I wanted to see their selection of garden and landscaping books. I got four books to read during my commute and free time:

– Rodale’s Weekend Gardener by Erin Hynes
– The Frugal Gardener by Catriona Tudor Erler
– Succulents for the Comtemporary Garden by Yvonn Cave
– The Cottage Garden by Christopher LLoyd with Richard Bird

Once I got home, I checked the Sunflower bed to make sure bugs or snails didn’t chew it all up. It looked fine.

I also planted 3 pots of various Coleus and placed them in the front patio.

Sunday’s Plantings…

On Sunday, I planted Aurea, a cool little “stepable” ground cover, randomly here and there. I want it to take root and spread because I just love it’s color.

Lyssimachia nummularia “Aurea”
Aurea

My mom planted some Bataw (a Filipino bean)
Bataw

I started planting a 6 pack of Sequoia in the strawberry pot I bought on Saturday, then realized I needed more strawberries to top it off… so I took a trip to Target. I ended up buying 3 more Strawberry plants, a Coleus and a Euphorbia

My Target purchases
Target purchases

Closeup of Euphorbia polygona “Snowflake”
Euphorbia

Closeup of Coleus
Coleus

The completed Strawberry Pot
Strawberry Pot

I also planted 3 other pots: (left to right) Euphorbia polygona “Snowflake”, Acanthorhipsalis monacantha, Euphorbia obesa
Repotted Cactus

In the front yard, I tore some weeds out to create a new bed for some sunflowers.

Sunflower bed (before)
Sunflower bed (before)

Sunflower bed (after)
Sunflower bed (after)

…and finally here’s Kelly (our dog) pretending she’s a lawn mower
Kelly