29 May: 6 jobs, a garden tour, and dinner

Thursday, 29 May 2014

Ilwaco

Before heading north, we started our project of replacing some of the old, woody Erysimums in the Ilwaco planters (which are still looking dull as we got such a late start on them due to bureaucratic delays).

The exterior of the new Penny Treat art gallery has been well enhanced by Penny herself.

The Erysimum in the foreground planter is scheduled for replacement as its base is all gnarly.  In the background, Allan puts in a new Erysimum in the corner planter.

When I saw the Valerian in the foreground planter above, I remembered that I had wanted to take some to Golden Sands.  Before leaving town, we went back down Lake Street to our own garden and dug up two of them to take with us.  I had realized, when watching Doc Martin recently, that Valerian is a quintessential cottage garden plant (and one that annoyed my mother by spreading all over her garden, which is probably why I had not planted any at Golden Sands while she lived there).

Doc Martin, in Cornwall, with valerian growing all over the place.

Jo’s garden

In Long Beach, we visited Jo’s garden to do a bit of planting.

my wiggly little friend Coco

The garden looks better with the addition of a large specimen of Eryngium ‘Sapphire Blue’.

Jo’s with white campanula

Anchorage Cottages

As we turned from the main highway to the Anchorage Cottages, our friend J9 passed us going the other way and I realized her birthday had been the day before.  I had given her an earlier birthday present spontaneously one day at the Basket Case (a Zaluziankya, so fragrant at night).  That was no replacement for a properly timed “happy birthday”. I texted her and said we would take her to dinner soon.  In the back of my mind lurked the enticing fact that it was Taco Thursday at the Cove, but I was not sure how long the workday would take.

At the Anchorage, we planted 12 more trailies (calibrachoas) in the window boxes.

Anchorage Cottages office

I hope the boxes get very traily very soon.

I’m worried about the Arbutus in the central courtyard.  There used to be two; over ten years ago, one turned up its toes and died (and when I dug it up, it had a rotten root ball).  The remaining one does not look very happy.

It would leave a sad gap if it died.

The Ceanothus next to it also looks unhappy after our cold winter and yet if I cut it back, that cottage window will lose its privacy.

On the plus side: the New Dawn rose on the courtyard arbour is at its best.

Andersen’s RV Park

When we arrived at Andersen’s, I urgently needed a dose of wake up beans.

chocolate covered coffee beans: an essential supply

I had nothing at all to plant; what a pleasure!  We focused on weeding.

Payson Hall planters

Allium albopilosom and schubertii in the Payson Hall planters

I took on the picket fence garden as my project.

picket fence garden…I did not weed this part…

This is the area I tackled…before, east wall of house

before, detail

I felt great joy wading into this job; this is the part of gardening I like best.

after

after

I was not filled with as much joy after, as I did not have time to achieve absolute perfection.

Some choice plants are about to bloom in the picket fence garden.

Phlomis fruticosa and Baptisia australis about to bloom, with an underlay of Geranium ‘Rozanne’ and a nice Geranium sanguineum

the weekly view of the picket fence garden

Meanwhile, Allan weeded in the west side garden…mostly around the edges as the poppies are now gloriously blooming in the center of the field.

poppies, looking east to the house

looking north toward Payson Hall

California and Corn poppies

small ornamental grasses provide some structure

looking west to the RV parking; beyond are the dunes and the ocean.

As we left, I texted J9 again and suggested we might be done in time to have tacos at the Cove.  (I rarely carry my phone on my person while gardening as I would be too distracted by calls and texts and little “pings” that tell me someone has commented on this blog; I just catch up between jobs.)

Ed’s Garden

I also had received a text from Garden Tour Nancy that our friend Ed, owner of Strange Landscaping, had confirmed that he is willing to have his garden be on the Music in the Gardens tour.  So on our way to our next job, we snuck into his garden in Tides West to take some preview photos for the garden tour Facebook page.

I am glad to have a garden on the tour that is a single wide manufactured home (of which there are many on the Peninsula) and a small, city sized lot.

Ed’s place

porch

between house and garage

a corner of the back yard

behind the garage

Ed’s gunnera, second growth

He had fertilized it and the leaves grew so fast that they flopped, so he cut them back and it started over.  I love the way he has the almost white Sedum ‘Cape Blanco’ planted like stepping stones.  I will steal this idea.

Across the street, his friend Judy M has a darling double wide that has been completely remodeled inside.

Judy’s charming porch, across the street from Ed

I love the front porch and wish our double wide had one like it.  (However, I do like the fact that we enter our house on the side, even though “real” houses usually have the front door in front.  There is more privacy coming and going through a side door.)

I wonder why deer don’t browse on these, in front of Judy’s. Love the V shape.

Before going on to work, we went down the next street so I could have another look at the house that had so caught my eye the day we helped our friend J9 move to this neighbourhood.

a fairy tale cottage

detail

Then, back to work.

Golden Sands Assisted Living

Allan got that awful area weeded that is outside our four flower beds.  We’d planted some donated daylilies (the boring Stella D’Oro) there and they were surrounded by the scourge of horsetail and creeping sorrel.

Allan’s project before

and after

The four quadrant gardens are so happy with the new sprinkler system.  I was thrilled that when we arrived, two residents were seated in chairs that they had moved right next to one of the gardens.

southeast quadrant

Allan’s weeded area, right next to southeast quadrant

northeast quadrant

northwest quadrant (the most recently planted)

my mom’s roses

southwest quadrant

The garden is full of “passalong” plants and Sweet Williams from a seed mix.  I added the two Valerian plants I had brought from home.  Hope I don’t regret it when they start spreading!

I already regret the lysimachia punctata, as it is taking over…Later, its bright yellow flowers will have the plus of being visible to fading eyesight.

I never expected this many sweet williams to reseed themselves.

looking north across the courtyard…. (Those two view-blocking trees at the far end are still there!)

Long Beach City Hall

I texted J9 and said we could get done in time to have dinner at 7.  She could not hang around Long Beach that long so we made it 6:30 instead because it was her belated birthday dinner.  That gave us just time to check up on the garden at Long Beach city hall.

City Hall. There was an allium here! Someone stole it and I am mad.

west side of city hall; the sidewalk tiles around town are by Renee O’Connor

The Cove Restaurant

Parking Lot Cat greeted us as we walked from our van to the restaurant.

a friendly fellow

I like this bumper sticker!

“Obamacare” is enabling us to have a life outside work, because we are no longer having to pay over $1000 a month for medical insurance.  That had forced us to rarely take time off and to have much more worry over money.  Life is better now.  We can stop working six to seven days a week for most of the year and that is such a blessing at our age.

the garden outside the Cove

Inside the Cove, our window view revealed that owner Sondra knows how to prune sword ferns.

nicely done, Sondra

Chef Jason Lancaster sent us an amuse bouche..again.  We felt so special and fortunate and J9 got to enjoy one third of it.

prawns and oyster mushrooms in a delicate butter sauce that almost made us weep with joy.  And one of my favourite food items, SEA BEANS.

J9 about to tuck in

the sauce…o, the sauce! At home, I would have tipped up the plate and drunk it. Here, J9 (who occasionally works at the restaurant) got us some spoons.  Not a drop was left.

strawberry salad with feta cheese; Allan ordered this.  I had a bite and am getting this for myself next time.

J9 helps stage the blog photo of the scrumptious fried artichoke with cajun dip appetizer

fish tacos…just $2 each on Thursdays!

home

At home, I just had time to water some potted plants before dark.

Allan’s ‘Dre’s Dagger’ fern

Allan got artsy with some sunset photos from the front garden.

Friday….IF we can get Long Beach and Ilwaco ready for the weekend, we just might get two days off.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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28 May: to the north and back

Wednesday, 28 May 2014

We begin with our compost bucket switch at Olde Towne Café. I had a very quick sit down with Luanne and Bonnie.

It looks like I am actually having coffee; this sit down only lasted about three minutes!

Allan thought this spent Oriental poppy in one of Luanne’s planters looked like a hat with a veil.

Long Beach

In Long Beach, we stopped to deadhead the cosmos in the Veteran’s Field garden….

and Allan took some very nice pics of our red white and blue colour scheme (NOT red geraniums, blue lobelia, and white petunias!).

viola, alyssum, Salvia ‘May Night’, Geum, blue oat grass, Berberis ‘Crimson Pygmy’

violas and alyssum and dianthus

Vet Field planter with cosmos, Salvia ‘Hot Lips’ and viola

Anchorage Cottages

We did what I have been meaning to do for some time: cut down the stinky Viburnums near the office. There was no way to cut them nicely and prettily at this time of year, so we cut them RIGHT to the ground!

Viburnum at Anchorage Cottages, blooming in March of 2013

today: a decisive move!

This time I swear I will not let them get away from me and will keep them cut low. They had gotten to more than the height of the bottom of the windowboxes. In the rain, the viburnums stink terribly.

A few green sprouts soften the blow.

a decisive measure!

center courtyard; still did not have time to pull the scilla foliage

the other bed near the office with a Canadian Explorer rose, and Ceanothus and Barberry, with drifts of Geranium ‘A T Johnson’ allowed to take over underneath (and catmint on the edge)

Nurseries

We then had a round of shopping to get some plants for Jo.

some Cosmos and an Eryngium ‘Sapphire Blue’ at the Planter Box

a blue hyssop at The Basket Case

I also bought some more trailies for the Anchorage window boxes. While I looked at a plant availability list for the next plant shipment, Allan took the viburnum debris to dump at Peninsula Landscape Supply just a few blocks up Sandridge Road.

Peninsula Landscape Supply

When he returned to the Basket Case, we saw a bald eagle way up in a snag. That’s why the tiniest poodle is not allowed to run around the yard!

his eye on the poodle

Klipsan Beach Cottages

On up the Peninsula we drove to Klipsan Beach Cottages.

the rhodo by where we park

 

a stunning variation on pinky-whites

The honeysuckle that Allan pruned last week looks very fine.

Mary’s special plant from Far Reaches Farm

Callistemon. I am envious. It likes this warm wall.

rainy day rose

The drizzly rain meant we would not have to water the Ilwaco planters till Saturday! We therefore did not mind it at all. It will have kept the Long Beach planters wet, as well. (The planters do need watering even after rain if they have dried out, but they have not had a chance to dry out since we last watered them.)

Rose ‘Jude the Obscure’

I wish I’d remember to buy myself this glorious rose.

Dianthus ‘Charles Musgrave’

close up, another plant I wish to re-acquire for myself. Must remember to snag a little piece!

alliums

more roses

the first tall lilies

Asiatic lilies

The cardiocrinum bud. Snails have gotten all the leaves; I hope the flower blooms before the snails get it, too!

view from the garden to the ocean view cottages

about an hour’s worth of debris

through one of the gates, as we are on our way out.

Wiegardt Studio and Gallery

I had a mission in mind at the Wiegardt Gallery: to just put an edge, with the half moon edger, on the curve of the entry garden.

before

I found it difficult to drive the edger through parts of the lawn edge and much bad language ensued.  Just after I finally got to the end of the cutting part of the job, Eric emerged! I had thought no one was there.  Fortunately, he had been in his upstairs north facing studio and had not heard my conversation with the edger.  (Allan had had to listen as he was working along behind me pulling up the strip of sod.)

Eric said that putting an edge on the garden was like putting a frame on a painting.

after

the handsome old house

allium assortment

I got more ambitious than I had planned…

and edged the whole front garden.

Allium schubertii: Eric thinks they look like sputniks.

I held up the water gauge to show the allium’s enormous size.

The west side wall garden (below) really needs help.  I added the Ilex ‘Sky Pencil’ and it is still rather dull.  Years ago, there were two Lavatera ‘Barnsley’, back when the house was pink, and before Lavateras started to not do as well here on the Peninsula.  Then there was an Escallonia at each end; I seem to recall Eric thought they were too big, so we cut them down.  It needs some way to anchor the garden to the tall building.

west side, so blah, hope Todd can figure out a solution! 😉

The west side does have a good feature right now:  lots of Allium bulgaricum, (syn. Nectroscordum siculum).  Allan noticed all the bees going into the tubular flowers and got some photos:

I simply could not pick just one, as all the bees are so fat and adorable.

Ilwaco

We ended our workday back south in Ilwaco, checking all the Ilwaco planters to make sure the new plants are doing ok and don’t yet need watering.  (They don’t because of considerable rain.)

just south of the planter blocks, the boatyard garden

We assessed the planter situation and decided several more of the old Erysimum ‘Bowles Mauve’ need to be replaced.  They get sad, old and woody after a couple years.  Oh goodie, another plant shopping session on Thursday!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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27 May: back to work

Tuesday, 27 May 2014

It’s a good thing I like my job, because it was mighty hard to go back to work after three days off.

Cheri’s Garden

To ease into it, we started at Cheri’s garden just a few blocks east on Lake Street.

before weeding and deadheading

after deadheading the rhodo

The red Oriental poppies go well with the new house colour.  Fortunately, I used a lot of yellow flowers to go with the old house colour, so they should still look good, as well.  Pink does not work well with the new colour!

the former colour

The cats in the outdoor cat room enjoyed having some company.

I really must take a photo of the whole cat room set up next time.

 

In the garden area next to the cat room (which was halved in size to make space, I was startled to see the Buddleia was cut flush to the ground.  While I have no problem with that as it is a noxious weed, it was a surprise.

back garden with a different look, and Cheri had this area well weeded.

In the front: White looks very good with the new colour.

the front garden

Cheri and Charlie’s new dog proof veg beds

While I weeded here and there throughout the garden, Allan tackled a tedious job; I did join him to finish it up.

a garden bed that had gone to the dogs and to grass

done

Ilwaco

After Cheri’s, we planted up the last city planter by the Antique Gallery Too! on Spruce Street.  We were going to try to move it out to the sidewalk, when we realized that it may have been placed by the building owner to keep customers from driving into the wooden post.  We would be in big trouble if we moved it and someone wrecked the place as a result, so we will leave that to the city to deal with!

The Antique Gallery Too! is run by our friend and garden client, Larry.

Just around the corner, we popped very briefly into Olde Towne Café to check out the antique display that had been added over the weekend.

a Jadeite collection

I find these so aesthetically pleasing, but as I have red in my kitchen, they just would not do for me.

Erin’s Garden

Up in Long Beach, we weeded the back porch garden beds at Erin’s house.

the wall garden, before. with bindweed

Allan did that garden as it required the agility to climb atop the wall.

after

after, from the porch

I did the level chickweed area…here, after I had started.

after

The whole time I weeded, I was hoping my feline friend Felix would turn up, as he had disappeared several days before and I missed and worried about him.

Of course, I had to look at the new-this-year boat garden.  Who did I find browsing nearby?

completely unbothered by my presence

the rest of the family

In the garden, they had nibbled Eryngium ‘Jade Frost’ and after nipping some flowers, decided to leave it alone after all.

It’s not as floriferous as it could have been.

They nibbled agastache, but not penstemons, and left Eryngium ‘Sapphire Blue’ and cosmos completely alone.

Eryngium ‘Sapphire Blue’

cosmos and eryngium

a junco for Mr Tootlepedal

Alllum schubertii in the boat

the garden boat but no visit from my friend Felix

dreamy weathered beach houses next door

Then to my great joy, Erin and her son arrived at home…with Felix, who had spent the weekend at the human society in a cage after being turned in by someone.  He was annoyed by his prison experience, with a twitching tail, and surely as glad to be home as I was to see him again.

Welcome back, Felix; I am so relieved.

Jo’s garden

We had promised Jo a weeding session, not sure we’d have time to do it today.  Happily, we did, which will make the rest of the week easier.  (My hope is to do a four day week and then get into a pattern of having weekends off except for perhaps having to water those pesky Ilwaco planters.)

Jo’s garden, the guest cottage

honeysuckle arbour

A hummingbird was all around this honeysuckle.

two pink rosebushes

bee on a very fragrant rugosa rose

My friend Coco, all awiggle but a little camera shy

I can reveal now that we have been worried about Jo, who was recently outfitted with a spiffy new pacemaker and after giving us a scare is going to be able to enjoy her summer of flowers.

Jo and I assessed that the new-last-year perennial area needs something new, so we will shop for it on Wednesday.  Jo would like another Eryngium ‘Sapphire Blue’ and we must find one or two other plants as well.

It’s just not full enough.

After a couple of hours of weeding, we moved on to…

Port of Ilwaco

…to spend an hour or so weeding on Howerton Way where we left off late last Friday evening.

On the way, we paused at the boatyard garden and saw a typical Ilwaco traffic jam.

Nola K on the Marine Travelift coming into the boatyard

a big boat

and then crossing First Ave while a car waits patiently.

off to the boat storage area

on the Marine Travelift

the boatyard garden, looking south from the gate

We then weeded the Shorebank garden beds.  I had the idea for Allan to trim, with the pole pruner, the dead tops of the columnar pear trees.

He got two dealt with (one being behind me as I took this photos), but will need to bring the even longer pole pruner to do the others.

When we went to the east end of the marina after an hour of weeding, who did we find but our client Cheri walking her two boxers!

Beemer

Porsche

They are not good for the garden. I forgive them because they sure are cute.

home

At home, I felt inspired to tackle the wild impatiens in the front garden.

before and after

Onyx from next door came to visit.

I think that the fuzzy Verbascum is going to be interesting.  I snapped the stalk off one day, being too lazy to pull it out from next to the driveway, and it looks like it is going to have four or five flower stalks instead of one.  I did not know that would happen.

Wednesday: more plant shopping (which will result in more planting Thursday) and north end jobs.

 

 

 

 

 

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26 May, third day off

Monday, 26 May 2014

Taking a three day weekend off feels unusual, even over a holiday, unless there is a garden tour involved.  We are increasingly determined to somehow cut back on work and enjoy life more.  We may have decreased our schedule to almost the perfect number of jobs to make this happen.  If the Really Big Job sells, we will, I think, be all set for the perfect work/leisure balance….at least till we get older and maybe tireder.

My Day

I was able to dress in my most comfy warm weather pants, chopped to the right length.

Even though I meant to weed, I got started planting because I first felt inspired to look for the fig tree that Garden Tour Nancy had given me.  I’d moved it to behind the greenhouse, and there I found it…UNDER a five gallon bucket of water that Allan had unknowingly set on it.  Amazingly, it was still alive and got a new home in an old garbage can.

fig

small signs of life (tiny green leaf buds are on there, really)

Then it took a ridiculously long time to fill four big pots halfway down the garden and put Salvia ‘Hot Lips’ into them.  A mix of old potting soil and new involved much bucketing.

And then I had all those cool North Carolina plants and about ten hellebores that I had not planted this spring.

my North Carolina plants…all healthy, even though some look otherwise.

By the end of the day, these were the only North Carolina plants I had left to plant.

great progress

I had only this many plants left for jobs:

And only this many left for me:

Pardon me while I gloat over this great accomplishment.

The epimidium and the polygonatum collection from Todd in North Carolina went here, with green tags to mark the spots so I don’t lose them.

planted!

By the trunk of the former Danger Tree, I thought Todd’s Viburnum dentatum ‘Golden Arrow’ would go well with a golden leafed hydrangea.  (The latter does not show right now, thanks to slug damage. )  Some hellebores complete the picture, along with some perennials from Back Alley Gardens that I had finally got planted a few weeks ago.

all planted up!

I am very fond of gold and of variegated foliage and may use it to excess, according to some arbiters of good taste.

When I began to run out of hellebore room, some went in the way back bed by the bogsy wood.

And some along the edge of the west fence bed. This involved a serious attach on creeping sorrel.

Then I felt too tired to do any weeding…until:

I took a photo of the Persicaria and saw all the dwarf fireweed behind it.

This became a late evening weeding frenzy. Can you tell the difference?

I also dug out a boring rose from the area above.  I’d rescued it from a client’s garden, and waited to see if it would be special or if it had died back to root stock.  Root stock it was, probably the dull magenta Dr. Huey.  Poor Huey…half dead anyway and out he went.

My weeding frenzy continued throughout the big west bed.

I dumped two heaping wheelbarrow loads of dwarf fireweed and thin thready horsetail and left two big piles hidden in the middle.  Will I haul them out or leave them there as an experiment?  I might just leave them.  I am so glad my garden is not on any tours this year.

The patio is still a mess.

patio with empty pots

and a chair of weeds.

piles of weeds here and there on the lawn

Allan’s Day

Allan wheeled his boat out through the garden.

and took it to Black Lake.

holiday picnic

a little dog enjoys the holiday

a fish catch

under sail

other boaters

half mast flags for Memorial Day

communing with nature

The Black Lake Yacht Club

Our Evening

During Sunday’s rain, I would not have thought we had any chance of having a campfire, and yet…we could.  Allan got the fire going while I took a last late evening garden photo stroll.

Cotinus (Smoke Bush) color coordinating with Jeff and Mary’s boat shed.

Sambucus racemosa ‘Sutherland Gold’

Philadelphus ‘Belle Etoile’ was filling the back garden with fragrance.

Clematis on the east fence (have not dug down in the weeds to find the tag!)

This looks like iris foliage, but is this an iris??  It is precious.

intense fragrance by the front porch from night scented phlox

ZALUZIANSKYA CAPENSIS.

And then we had our campfire and instead of a proper blog, I did a phone blog by the fire.

 

 

 

 

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25 May: second day off

Sunday, 25 May 2014

Unlike the first of our three days off, the second began with the good feeling of having had a really good solid sleep.  Right after our midmorning breakfast, I got out to tackle another area of weeds.

back garden, west bed: a blur of dwarf fireweed infestation

Some weeding reveals more slug and snail damage. They have had so many places to hide.

I had every intention of tackling this area immediately.

Allan helped by planting the 2 gallon gunnera.  The sky began to drizzle rain.

And then company arrived: J9 (right) and a visiting friend; Allan gave them some cookies.

We toured the garden all the way back to the bogsy wood.

At the same time, Theresa from the Planter Box arrived to check my hellebore collection for possible ripe seeds.

Teresa examining the hellebores

When I joined her after J9 and friend had departed, she had begun to weed…and she stayed for, I think, at least two hours, helping me weed even though the rain increased.

Finally, getting more and more drenched with my raincoat on, I said to her that I was continuing to weed just to keep up with her because I appreciated her help so much.  She said “I felt like I was stopping you [from weeding], and that’s not what I meant to do.”  She is the only friend who has visited and helped me weed since Sheila did so way back when she still lived on the Peninsula.

After Teresa, dripping wet, left for home, I ducked into the greenhouse to escape the torrent of rain which showed no sign of letting up.

The view was still very messy.

raindrops in the water boxes

a waterfall from one of the rain barrels

I had made a little progress weeding on my own before company came.

rainy day roses

a basket full of weeds that Teresa pulled in the front garden

In the house by late afternoon, thoroughly rained out of the garden, I would have liked to catch up on the Tootlepedal and Miserable Gardener blogs, my favourites, on which I am woefully behind since annuals planting time began.  Instead, I exerted the self discipline to spend the hours necessary making spreadsheets for billing clients for all the plants we have put in the ground since mid-May.  I keep lists on a clipboard.  I am sure I lose track and end up giving plants away by forgetting to write them down.    By the time that and a blog entry for the previous day was accomplished, it was time for dinner (ten PM!) and telly (Mad Men and then Orphan Black; the latter show failing to intrigue me even after four episodes.  I don’t like any of the characters.  But then, I didn’t like anyone in Breaking Bad and thought it was a great show.  The problem with Orphan Black is that a bunch of not very likeable characters share a problem that they could solve in an instant by going together and telling their story to a news channel!)

 

 

 

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Tiny phone blog by the fire

I have much to say about all we got done and did not get done on our further two days off. But for now there is this:

Fragrant night scented phlox

Allan working on a bench

A big mess everywhere….

Some progress and some piles of weeds left behind

Evening light…

And this:

And quite possibly some hot dogs to roast and some North Jetty beer.

Starvation Alley Cranberry beer!

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24 May: day off at last

After 14 mostly long days in a row of work, we at last took some time off.

Saturday, 24 May 2014

my day

misty mid morning view

My true desire was to not leave the property for three days. However, I have set myself up with a self imposed obligation to photograph the Saturday Market in order to help promote it. And the lure of Pink Poppy Bakery was strong. So when the morning rain stopped at 11, as predicted, I took a stroll from one end to the other along Waterfront Way.

On the way, I passed the Howerton Way curbside garden where we had left off weeding at dusk last night, and I could see weeds we had missed, and a blackberry vine.

little grasses, after I reached down and pulled out four.

and an accursed blackberry vine popping out of the California wax myrtle!

And then….I walked on, and left the weeds and blackberry there to shock passersby, because it was my DAY OFF!

At the market….

two garden clients: realtor Cheri Diehl and 42 Street Café’s Blaine Walker

I told Blaine that on many evenings lately I have thought about how pleasant a 42nd Street dinner would be, were we not working till dusk. He said that business actually does drop off a bit during the long evenings of May and June as people enjoying the outdoors tend to lose track of dinner time, and he added something I did not know: I think he said daylight is about an hour longer here than in Portland (is this possible?) and since people eat by the time of daylight, they get surprised by how late it is and miss out on dinnertime.

a new booth with charming plant containers; I hope they did well.

that interesting old garden between Waterfront Way and Howerton

fresh produce

tomato plants for sale

fresh berries, and a vendor who reminds me of my friend Montana Mary’s mother

The Wood Elf: garden furniture

The Wood Elf: garden bridges and gnome doors

A crow got a market treat and dipped it in a puddle.

Ah, the Pink Poppy Bakery booth! (I got rhubarb and lemon curd hand pies and a small lime bundt cake.)

Pink Poppy Madeline with Shelly of Pelicano Restaurant and Shelly’s daughter

These and quite a few more photos of this week’s market are in a slideshow on my other blog.

At one moment I heard my phone ring, and as I looked up I saw my friend Kathleen, down to visit her new Peninsula cottage for the weekend, standing one booth away from me calling me on her phone. We walked together for a little while, then parted as she had not seen all of the booths, with plans for her to visit me after her thorough market exploration.

At home, I had big plans for weeding and very little energy to begin with, so I walked and looked. I saw this vignette of poppy and agastache (below) while walking in from the back gate on my way home from the market. When I moved here, it was partly to be in the sun rather than the shady old garden behind the boatyard, and partly because I thought it would be so delightful to walk out a back gate and right down to the market. And it is.

Some areas do look rather nice.

Siberian iris, on my way in from the back gate.

I sat in the house and rested up for a few minutes and then ventured back out on my mission.

Smokey, in a spot with unpruned fuchsia and plastic pots tossed willy nilly.

I started to weed in the front garden, especially going after Impatiens balsamina (which I love except for its invasiveness) and grasses; then I realized that the traffic on the street was especially heavy because the World’s Longest Garage Sale (from Chinook to Oysterville every Memorial Day weekend) included an estate sale two doors to the east. When two different cars had people just idly watching me work, I decided the back garden would be more peaceful.

east bed, what a mess!

middle bed: Rozanne defeats weeds down the center, but the edges are a blur.

on the east side, Impatiens balsamina has swamped everything!

Just as I was taking the above photo, Kathleen walked in the gate and said “Are you weeding or just taking photos?” Well…it was taking me an awfully long time to get started, so we sat on the patio, shared the small Pink Poppy lime bundt cake with mugs of tap water (because I am such a great Martha-like hostess). I remember discussing topics from Peninsula life to friendship to books to gardening, and my iPhoto info seems to tell me that it was three hours till I got back into my project; I simply had to weed, and she had to go mow her lawn for the first time since buying her vacation cottage.

I was so glad to be home to enjoy this rose on the west fence. Gloire de Dijon, maybe.

The rose is very blackspotty, but picking off bad leaves is not something I have time for. If I were retired, it would be perfect.

Rose ‘Paul’s Himalayan Musk’ covered with buds.

I’m not thrilled with rose ‘Nearly Wild’ (or its backdrop of weeds).

Macleaya cordata (plume poppy) is taking over.

Despite its big roots, plume poppy is easy to pull. I throw it in a space along the fence where I wish it would grow and hide the tarped crab pots next door, and of course it simply will NOT start there!

Plume poppy is hiding this flowering shrub…from Joy Creek…whose name I forget.

the flower, somewhat slug and snail eaten

The damn slugs and snails have thrived in the mess of weeds and have nipped the tops off of some of my lilies…just a few, but those few will have no flowers for me this year. I have put out Sluggo but have been too tired after work to do so as often as I should have.

an Asiatic lily with its bud chewed right off, dag nab it!

an Oriental poppy glows in the garden chaos

much better!

Part of the area above (to the left where the path narrows), a former pile of sod, is STILL a potato patch even though I tried to get them out in order to have it be blueberries and an evergreen backdrop. I will eat many new potatoes to remedy this.

I also tackled this:

under the former Danger Tree

better, and I think there is room for some of the plants that Todd Wiegardt sent me from North Carolina!

I have no idea why there are chives by the trunk of danger tree. That’s just silly.

There’s not a whole lot of room there. Fortunately, I had another area to clear.

before, west fence bed

after

The back of the middle bed was also thick with the impatiens (Policeman’s Helmet, Jewelweed, Touch Me Not).

south end of middle bed

better

Stipa gigantea, my favourite ornamental grass, backed with red Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick

evening light on the west bed

Tomorrow, those reseeded nasturtiums MUST go. They will be pretty enough but would swallow everything.

I had no time for the east bed. The Leycesteria ‘Golden Lanterns’ shines even among weeds.

I threw MASSES of Sluggo around before I left the back garden.

Allan’s day

Allan went to Ed (Strange Landscaping) Strange’s yard sale up in Tides West to pick up a couple of rugs that he had sold us.

He checked on and deadheaded the Long Beach welcome sign on the way.

welcome sign, the back side

Ed’s sale

Ed’s gunnera

Ed told Allan he had fertilized his gunnera and the leaves had already gotten so big they fell over, so he cut them back and this is the second growth.

I remember Dan Hinkley saying, of Gunnera, “Feed the brute”. I guess it is possible to feed it too much.

Allan made a quick stop at the Basket Case to get one Erysimum ‘Bowles Mauve’ for the last Ilwaco planter. Someone had picked a flower in Long Beach and brought it in to be IDed. I hope it was from a large shrub where the flower was not missed.

back view: I have NO idea what it is, do you? An azalea?

On the way home, he finally got my mother’s three tiered plant light table thingie moved out of Golden Sands; all mom’s African violets went to people’s homes (which was fine with me) and the shelves had been empty for months.

one of the residents deadheading Siberian iris; I am so pleased to see someone enjoying the garden.

evening

At home, Allan photographed the rain water drop still lingering on a Darmera peltata leaf by his shop door.

Darmera peltata

He worked on getting the water trailer ready for Ilwaco’s planters. Such is the “day off” of a self employed person.

the water trailer; the problem used to be having to coil and uncoil that hose at each stop: too time consuming. We will try a collapsible hose this year.

I tried a new thing: putting bird scare tape on tall things in the front garden.

The deer are coming in over the low fence and are eating these:

flowers…nibbled off

rose leaves stripped

this one, too

It’s too late to move the roses to the back garden, or is it? I hate spraying with stinky Liquid Fence, so it would be great if the tape worked. Planter Box Barbara says it looks like fire to deer and might keep them away.

We watched two more episodes of Orphan Black. We are not loving it like we expected, but will keep slogging on through season one in hopes that it gets better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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23 May: noon till dark

Friday 23 May 2014

I think this was about work day number 15 in a row.

The day began with the sound of heavy rain and some wind; we decided breakfast at Olde Towne would delay the moment of facing the weather.  We couldn’t take the day off because Long Beach and the Port of Ilwaco were far from ready for the holiday weekend.  After biscuits and gravy and a breakfast panini, we were off….into this.

leaving Olde Towne

onward

We had two errands related to the Ilwaco planters job:  picking up a key to the Ilwaco city works yard for storing the water trailer, and picking up a receipt for the trailer tabs.  The latter was probably not urgent because with weather like this, we would not have to water the planters before the actual tabs arrive.   We also did not have to water the Long Beach planters but since every one had to be carefully groomed anyway, that did not save us much time.

Before Long Beach, we did a little deadleafing (removing dying leaves from the base of the alliums) at the Depot, and I made a string warning around them in hopes of protecting them from damage when the new Clamshell Railroad Driving Tour sign is installed.

The sign, like the one in the Ilwaco boatyard, is going to go somewhere near this window.

I moved three cosmos and three painted sage out of that area, and will plant something else once the sign is in.

an Allium barricade from a fretful gardener

While we were there, I kind of annoyed the chef by asking a question about the sign during food prep for the big weekend.  I decided to make it up to him by FINALLY cutting down, or rather having Allan cut down, the ornamental grass in the yard of the adjacent house (the Depot office).  If we put it off much longer, the new growth would be so high it would be impossible to trim.  Should have been done in early spring but at that time it was not on our list.

before and after

The sign on the neighbours’ garage reads “Hobbit Haven, March-Wiggles Welcome”.  While Allan chopped, I checked out the window boxes and two barrels that Basket Case Nancy had recently planted up in front of the restaurant.

Nancy’s artistry

I also got a closer look at a vintage trailer which had recently arrived at the Sou’wester Lodge, just west of the Depot.

the new one, and next to it, an old Spartan

I was informed by its owner that the style of RV with windows along the top is called a trolley top.

Back to the job:  Chef Michael also wants the rhododendron pruned.  This we won’t do till after it has bloomed.

I like to let plants reach their full size. People always seem to want them made smaller.

The rain had stopped briefly, lifting my spirits, but by the time we went to Long Beach town it had returned along with a nasty little wind.  The worst part of the job came first: planting some annual statice in the westernmost Bolstadt beach approach planters.

hunkering down

And then we did the town.  I carried my iPhone with me for photos, not wanting to get my nice camera all muddy.

My task was to walk four blocks worth of planters and street tree gardens, mostly grooming out the old bulb foliage.

before and after, still looking unlovely because I had cut back the Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ recently.

Dianthus ‘Charles Musgrave’ in a planter; this cultivar is hard to find in these parts. One of the best, I think.

The matching Dianthus on the other side of that planter had died out, from wind I suppose.  I knew I had a pink  dianthus in the van which I could use later to replace it.

Right by gazebo park is a planter with a blue hardy geranium, probably Johnson’s Blue.  Its presence there goes back to volunteer days.  It has already almost stopped blooming and is setting seeds.  The next planter south has wonderful Geranium ‘Rozanne’ which has started blooming and will not stop till frost, with no deadheading necessary.  The older variety is a maddening runner, too, and while we keep trying to get it out of that planter, we will succeed only if we dig out all of the soil.

Rozanne, on the right, is so much better.

Each planter that had room got some nasturtium seeds tucked in.  When I ran across one with an area missing a trailing plant where I wished there was one, I scrounged in a wet and muddy search through my raincoat pocket and found three more stray nasturtium seeds to put there.

By the time I had gotten halfway through town, the rain became a light intermittent mist and finally lifted completely.  The traffic, however, increased, as I expected on a holiday weekend that also included the “world’s longest garage sale” all up and down the Peninsula, including a sale on an empty lot in the middle of town.

mobile garage sale with some very cool junk that I did not have time to peruse

Allan did a wonderful job on the Fifth Street Parks.  They had gotten to be a mess of small weeds…again.  When he was done, the blur had become high definition.

Fifth Street Park, west side

Together, we weeded city hall and the two block of planters and two tree gardens north of the Bolstadt (and I popped a dianthus into that planter just south of the light).  I had hoped fervently that we would be down at the Port by six at the latest; we did not get there till 6:30.

by the Port office, one of the Saturday market tents.

port office garden with hanging baskets from The Basket Case

basket including ‘Pretty Much Picasso’ petunia

and another

a blue basket at the Don Nisbett Gallery

We mostly worked along Howerton Way, starting at Time Enough Books and working our way east.  We skipped the westernmost curbside bed, hoping that its lush poppy display would distract from weeds.

a small curbside bed

looking east from the port office along Howerton

We got as far east as the restroom building until it got too dark to see whether we were pulling dandelions or poppies.  I wished we could have gotten all the way to the end.  The time this week that we had slated to do the port gardens had gotten partly consumed by taking on the planting of the Ilwaco planters at last.

Allan dumps weeds at the east end of the marina…by a big pile of gravel for a road project.

and we head for home

Now, for three days off.  We are by no means caught up, and wished we could have gotten more done this week.  The time off is very much needed.  Allan will be using part of it to get the water trailer working again, so that’s not really time off.  I intend it to be a busman’s holiday and get my own garden weeded, or, if there’s a rainy day, get a head start on billing for May.

Some extra sleep would be awfully nice as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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22 May: north to south

Thursday, 22 May 2014

To begin with, I planted a Lobelia tupa at our post office garden. It’s a tough plant to grow here; last year I planted many and the only one that flowered was at the Boreas Inn.

our volunteer garden at the post office

plant shopping

Next, we shopped at The Basket Case for more plants for the Ilwaco planters. We were delighted to encounter Bob and Jo there.

Bob wheels a trailer of plants to their van.

one the shop cats

There are tadpoles in a water barrel behind the greenhouse.

I hope when I have a day off I can find some tadpoles in my water features, too.

Next, The Planter Box on Pacific Way.

Dutch Iris at The Planter Box

The Planter Box still has some Eryngium ‘Sapphire Blue’ for sale.

my favourite perennial, sometimes not easy to find.

As soon as that Eryngium starts blooming with intense blueness in many of our gardens, people will want it.

Here’s the other side of the bouquet that I saw last time I shopped here. Wish I could grow delphiniums (on the right) that well.

Then: Andersen’s RV Park.

In the Payson Hall planters, Sanvitalia has reseeded prettily.

Allan planted the blueberry. Lorna will assuredly wish it was bigger but…we think a small plant does better when planted at this time of year. And we did not feel like wrestling with a five gallon plant.

little Sunshine Blue

Allan photographed the path he so nicely weeded Wednesday.

down by the garden shed garden, with alliums

and a perennial combo of white siberian iris, cistus, and yarrow

Golden Sands Assisted Living

We did not have long to spend at Golden Sands, as our mission was to get resorts and towns looking good for the holiday weekend. Allan simply had to weedeat the center lawn, so while he did so, I pulled two buckets of weeds and planted some tall sunflower seeds; I think the residents will like them, if they grow.

I remain thrilled and overjoyed at how the garden is finally looking good because of a working sprinkler system.

southwest quadrant

northwest quadrant

my mom’s velvety red rose, finally thriving after being parched for years.

northeast quadrant

another rose bush we moved here from my mom’s garden…finally happy

She did not know its name; it is a glorious coppery colour.

southeast quadrant

I wish my mother could see how well the garden finally looks: a dream fulfilled, and all because she lived here the last year of her life.

Here’s what does not look good:

that pesky horsetail-y area outside the quadrants that we rarely have had time to weed.

I’m hoping that now that we no longer have to spend our time at Golden Sands hand watering, we can get the problem areas finally fixed.

I asked a couple of staff members to put their mind to a question that I consider each time: Would the view from the dining room be better without those trees?

Should they stay or should they go?

I think the residents, especially those who don’t walk well, would enjoy a view of the whole courtyard.

Klipsan Beach Cottages

Allan prunes the uppies off of the honeysuckle and rose arbour.

how it looked last week

so much better

Mary C poses for me to show the height of Thalictrum ‘Elin’ (left)

Allium bulgaricum

Last time I posted a photo of Allium bulgaricum (also known as Nectroscordum siculum), Garden Tour Nancy thought “Well! Why don’t I have that in MY garden?” and then she went outside and there it was, planted by us last fall.

Tetrapanax ‘Steroidal Giant’ by the bench.

I wish there were a place on the Peninsula to buy extra cool plants like that one.

While Allan pruned, I weeded with company.

Primula ‘Green Lace’ (I think)

Allium schubertii and a stem of elephant garlic

Mary’s roses

a GOOD hardy geranium and lavender

what a garden for a cat

one of Mary’s awesome acquistions from Dragonfly Farms. (One of her brothers lives near there.)

a truss of roses so heavy that lays sideways in tree peony foliage

I had gotten all excited when I saw, while deadheading Dutch Iris at the entry sign, how perfectly ‘Bronze Beauty’ matches the sign colours.

Only two don’t show up well…

but look! Maybe lots of them would show up. Next fall…will plant…

The Anchorage Cottages

Back down the road to north Long Beach…

climbing hydrangea in full bloom

and calla lilies

Allan weeded this area.

We finally had time for him to prune the dead twiggy bits that we saw on the background viburnum last week as we were driving away.

I weeded the courtyard but did NOT have time to pull the damnable scilla foliage.

courtyard with Dutch Iris

Geranium ‘A.T. Johnson’ reminds me why I once loved it.

These reseeded themselves in the perfect spot, from a container or window box

Boreas Inn

Allan planted one Miscanthus strictus, our only mission. I pulled a handful of horsetail. Bill asked us to ID a plant: it was Primula vialii. I forgot to take any photos.

Boreas…as we back out of our parking spot by the long grass…just alliums peeking over tall enough to see

Ilwaco

We finished planting up the Ilwaco street planters, which did involve some bucket watering as the water trailer is not up and running yet. Carving out soil spots to insert colourful diascia and lotus vine and a few golden thyme and tricolour sedums is an irritatingly difficult job. And…will the planting NEVER end? Just when I think it is over…

too tired to take more than this one photo.

The Cove Restaurant

At eight o clock, we went back up to Long Beach to enjoy Taco Thursday at the Cove Restaurant. We appreciate being able to go to a fine restaurant that late.

the garden outside, with wonderful Alliums (and Parking Lot Cat, upper right)

view from our table; the Cove is right on the Peninsula Golf Course

Just out of sight was a table with Nancy from the Port of Ilwaco office and some friends!

I was so tired, and knew I would not be home till so late that I would not have time to blog…and blogging before dinner, even if we eat at 11, is easier than after. So I blogged right from the table on my phone. Here is a reprise of the delicious food by chef Jason Lancaster.

the fried artichoke appetizer with a creole dipping sauce

fish tacos, only $2 each on Thursday

an amuse bouche from the chef! The “fries” were thinly cut tortillas, according to what Allan learned. This was exceptionally delicious.

Fish taco Thursday is going to become a tradition; I hope that in the future we will be done with work in time to dine a bit earlier.

Owner Sondra leaves, with THREE parking lot cats.

and….we linger to have our dessert!

 

 

 

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Interlude

Too tired for words. Fish Taco Thursday at Cove Restaurant. Then feet up and telly: Hell’s Kitchen and Orphan Black. Oh!!! We got an amuse bouche from chef Jason. Last photo. Prawns in a lovely spicy sauce with cilantro, sweet chile and a kick. Wish could remember exactly what he said was in there. Tastiness.

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