garden Archives - Page 2 of 8 - Linda Nelson

MY, WHAT FASCINATING PESTS….

July 10, 2017

Devoting the weekend to yard work was both, blissful and tiring, and many tasks were accomplished. I was just about wrapping things up late Sunday afternoon, when I spotted this little creature hanging out at the entrance to my vegetable garden – a hawk moth.

©Linda Nelson 2017

A quite striking specimen, no? Well… striking, interesting and quite lovely as she may be, she’s also the egg layer of the tomato horn worm. And, you know what that means. Your prized tomato plants will be eaten while your back turned, by a green, horned and quite grotesque looking finger-sized monster. But, I hadn’t encountered any green monster worms while tying up my tomato plants earlier in the day.

I took a closer look, and lo and behold, I found tomato horn worm eggs. My, oh, my, are they tiny! They’re roughly 1/16″ in diameter; I removed ten of them from my four tomato plants.

©Linda Nelson 2017

And, look what I also found… baby tomato horn worms! They were just barely 1/4″ in length with a horn almost as long as their body.

©Linda Nelson 2017

Though I don’t like plant destructing pests in my garden, I found the afternoon’s experience quite fascinating.

Last year many of my pumpkin/squash plants had succumb to the squash borer (another pesky garden pest). This season I’m just sticking to squash species that the borer tends to ignore – butternut squash and Long Island cheese pumpkin. I got the cheese pumpkin seeds at a seed swap back in February, and pictured below is one of the plants.

©Linda Nelson 2017

Two years ago I acquired three little ‘Pixie’ grape plants. And, yes, I do mean little. The plants obtain a height of only 18-24″ at maturity, and they do not produce twining tendrils like standard size grape vines do. Do you see the little grape cluster? Adorable. There are two other clusters on this plant (which is only 12″ tall!) hidden behind the leaves.

©Linda Nelson 2017

Did you ever sow seeds, forget to label them, and then find yourself unable to identify the seedlings? Well, something similar happened to me with the plant pictured below. Back at the seed swap in February, which was the first time I ever attended one, I failed to bring ziplock baggies. Lesson learned! Some folks offers seeds in envelopes, and, well, many seeds found their way out of the envelopes and ended up….. in the bottom of my purse. I knew these particular seeds were bean seeds, but I had more than one variety in my possession, and they were all mixed up….. in the bottom of my purse. As it turns out, I’m growing heirloom Oregon Giant pole beans! I did some research on them….. looks like I’m going to need a much, much taller trellis 😀

©Linda Nelson 2017

And, last, but not least…. the art of shell gardening. It’s pest-free, maintenance-free and doesn’t break your back!

©Linda Nelson 2017

Well, that’s all for now.

Enjoy this beautiful summer day!

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CRAZY FOR WING

May 1, 2017

I love visiting my friend at Wing Cottage, and some visits, such as the one this past weekend, was completely devoted to working in her garden. Yes, I’m crazy enough to commute three hours to a job site. But, look at what I get to take in on the way.

©Linda Nelson 2017

A dose of bucolic scenery really does wonders for the soul. And, seeing hay rolls always amuses me.
They remind me of giant beef braciole.

©Linda Nelson 2017

My friend and I dubbed this planting bed the “Linda Garden”. Over the past few years I’ve been restoring it from a neglected, haphazard mess, to an eyeful of charming, unpretentious order. I’m not sure why the previous owner was moved to layering this garden bed with black plastic film and rocks, but doing so certainly made for quite the renovation project for me. I look forward to my friend sending me a photo of it a month or two from now when it will be in all its blooming fabulousness.

©Linda Nelson 2017

I’ve never seen lily of the valley plants as lovely and lush as on this property. They really do thrive here.

©Linda Nelson 2017

And now, for some “art” that occupies this residence, courtesy of my friend’s beau, who loves to sculpt with whatever he manages to find during his oddity foraging adventures…….

©Linda Nelson 2017

And, that’s the latest scoop from Wing Cottage.

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MY FAVORITE FLOWER IN THIS GARDEN

March 7, 2017

I received sad news yesterday that a long time client of mine, a most beautiful showy flower, more so than I could ever grow for her, has just passed away. Her radiance shined on all who knew her, a glorious smiling sunflower with a witty wink whose petals were not just golden, but every color of the rainbow spectrum….. and so much more.

I felt moved to share with you, via the garden and flower pot displays I designed for her over the years, the playful nature of this amazing woman.

I will her miss dearly.

©Linda Nelson 2017

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WATCHIING THE CARS GO BY

July 11, 2016

When was the last time you stole a moment to sit and do absolutely nothing. No cell phone. No newspaper. No book. No TV……… nada. It’s a gift we often neglect to give ourselves. I gave myself that gift the other evening while waiting for some dinner take-out. Now, I don’t use a cell phone anyway, but I could have easily grabbed a pen and paper from my purse and made some notes. I could have picked up the free newspaper lying about and read the local gossip. I could have even snatched a take-out menu and have blankly stared at it…….just for the sake of keeping my hands and mind occupied for a mere ten minutes. Instead, I parked my tush on a sidewalk bench, and with my hands in my lap, just watched the cars go by. I felt so unencumbered and so at peace.

Perhaps I just needed that kind of moment, knowing the task that lies ahead of me. You’re clued in to what that is if you read my last post. I have yet to make arrangements for the lifting and relocating of my beloved dwarf Hinoki cypress. What’s going in its spot? A septic tank.

Okay, enough crap talk, let’s take a little peak at what’s growing at the createaerie.

I’m delighted that my space saving pumpkin plants have taken off, and have already set some fruit. If I had lots of open space on my property I would grow as many varieties of pumpkins and gourds that I could. I love them all.

And, I finally have a nice crop of blackberries. My friend shared with me some of her plants a few years ago, but just as they were getting established, I redid my vegetable garden and had to move them. Now they permanently and happily reside at the back of the garden. My tomatoes are growing like mad, though I always have success with growing them.

Isn’t this daylily just absolutely lovely? I think so. I acquired this plant a few years ago when dividing a big patch of it for a client, and took a few scrapped pieces home with me.

Yellow crocosmia makes for a delightful and cutting-worthy garden perennial. I had to pot up a few clumps of it that are in the way of where the septic system installation machinery will be trafficking. I can’t wait until that saga is over with so that I can get my cherished plants back in the ground.

I accomplished a lot in my garden beds this weekend. The “septic” punch list is dwindling, and that makes me feel good. My friend assisted me this past Saturday with taking down the rock wall and lifting and potting up more plants. I’m pooped.

Signing off with a few more photos I took the other day. Enjoy!

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