Friday, 25 May 2018
Kilyn sent me a photo from British Columbia, of her crabby gardener art, a gift from the Don Nisbett gallery, which she has already framed and hung on the wall.
We had the usual watering rounds today.
First, we checked on the new sanguisorba at the Shelburne, which was looking perky enough.
We briefly hared up to the Basket Case to get a couple of jasmine vines for two new big pots for the Shelburne, where vines had been requested.
Then down to the real business of the day, watering the planters in
Long Beach.
First, we hose watered the planters on Sid Snyder, which are plumbed.
This horse had much to say about being left alone in the beach trail rides corral.
The water was not working in the last four planters so we had to gather water in buckets, which added considerable time to the job. I called City Works to ask that they be turned back on again.
We weeded the planters out on the Bolstad beach approach and gave just a few plants some bucket water. We rebelled a couple of years ago on bucket watering those unplumbed planters. I called City Works to remind them that someone needs to go out there once a week with their water truck.
Someone had planted new plants in the Lisa Bonney memorial planter. That is lovely, but no one was watering them. I posted on Facebook that would someone please tell her family members that they need to water these.
I had hoped that the beach approach garden aphids had been dealt with by birds. Nope. We cut off the worst of the damage as quickly as we could.
We made sure to not take any aphids with us. I do not have time for this to be our problem.
In the last beach planter by the arch, we found some very late tulips.
Finally we were ready to water the downtown planters…til we parked and I realized I did not have my homi. Back out to the aphid patch…
Yes, I had flung it down in horror.
At least we got a better parking place on our second try, right next to Fifth Street Park.
We each watered half of the planters.
I was so mad I bought another package of earth staples at Dennis Company at the north end of the planter blocks, and on the way back down I stapled all the agyranthemums and some other special plants, for what it is worth. Double staples, crossed in the middle, might make the plants more discouraging to yank.
I cut back the gaura, shown above after, hoping they will bush out, and stuck the cuttings in the soil. I live in hope.
Allan’s planter photos:
Here are the veronicas at their peak. Their season of bloom is short so they should not be such a main feature of a planter:
We ended Long Beach with a quick tidy of Veterans Field corner garden.
We almost forgot the welcome sign; we turned around to check on it.
Then on to water the street trees and planters in
Ilwaco.
I planted a few more cosmos in the boatyard garden while Allan filled the water trailer…some free plugs of Seashells, my favourite cosmos that I could not acquire this year, except for the tiny free ones, and I think they might be too small to survive. Fingers crossed.
This time, I walked around all of them, grooming and poking in nasturtium seeds. Better late than never? I had thought I should give up on the nasturtiums because deer eat them. Recently, I had looked at photos from last year and saw that some of the nasturtiums had looked good, so I tried again.
A street tree that was taken out by a drunk driver last fall has not yet been replaced. (That is not my job!) I liked the little cottage garden effect without the tree…
…actually better than the ones with trees.
Thus ends a 9.5 hour day. Now, at last, we have three days off; my plan is to not leave my property.
Pride of place for the Crabby Gardener! I love his artwork.
Always a dilemma for the short season bloomers. I have lots of yellow loosestrife in my gardens, great for a public garden because it is hard to steal due to the runners. But it looks tatty after blooming and has to be cut right down. You cannot give it too much real estate.
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There was loads of it at the Shelburne. I’ve been pulling and pulling it because no mAtter how much I pull there will still be plenty.
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Good plan.
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I always love seeing the poppies in the boatyard garden. The lupines are pretty, too.
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