22 July: back to the workaday world

Monday, 22 July 2019

New cat Jazmin is still making my room her territory, still growling at the door and not ready to meet the other cats.

We had checked on the Ilwaco planters upon our return last night and found them wanting in moisture and even, here and there, a bit droopy.  So we reversed the polarity of the neutron flow and did Ilwaco watering first.  Almost unheard of because it’s better to water in the evening, and the parking is harder during the day. Allan had to do more walking with heavy buckets of water. (I think we will be giving up this planter job at the end of 2020. It is too hard on back and knees. Allan will be 68 by then.)

Ilwaco

We filled our 25 five gallon buckets with water at the boatyard and then I weeded and groomed the planters and street tree gardens while Allan applied the water.

at the boatyard

We took time to move the Saturday Market banner, which had been hung up behind a stately Panicum ‘Northwind’ while it was small.

 

Allan’s photo

Better to move the banner than have someone cut down the grass.

The thirstiest plant in the planters was golden oregano.

Allan’s photo

I had some success with calendula seeds under a street tree.

The Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ that I put in the center of each planter (economical for the city because they were free) are somewhat successful.  Deer spray has worked to protect them.  But some, in both sun and slight shade, have diseased leaves.

Per Google, probably powdery mildew. Maybe.  I will try improving the drainage in the affected planters with grit.  I had the same problem with a few purple leaved sedums last year.  Darn it.

Maybe they don’t like liquid fertilizer.

dahlias (not ours) at Ilwaco city hall

Long Beach

We picked up our check and tidied the garden at Long Beach city hall.

Long Beach City Hall

Uh-oh, we might need to lower that rhododendron so the sign shows.

Allan’s photo

elephant garlic, known in the city hall office as the Horton Hear a Who plant.

We moved the van to mid town and separated to water the street trees and some planters (Allan) and the rest of the planters (me).

I realized that I had to trim the police station roses (Rosa rugosa ‘Alba’) where they’d gotten too wide for the sidewalk.

My photos while watering:

Fifth Street Park east side

Tinkertown Mall (getting new paving)

Tigridia

new real estate office

sweet peas, Fifth Street Park west side

a handsome blue agastache

Speaking of agastaches, I was pleased to get this email from Annie’s Annuals: “…whether you say “Aga-STAK-ee” or “A-GAS-ta-key” (heck, you can even call it Aga-STASH and we won’t blink..”   I say A GAS ta key, on the advice of Bob Nold. This was the first other place where I have found that very proper pronunciation.  Even on Gardener’s World, the presenters say Agastashee…. or even Aga-stash. So I was glad to be vindicated.

I noticed another hidden sign, the new sign for the World’s End Pub.

This time it is Not My Problem (unlike the rhododendron at City Hall).

It will show from the intersection.  The pub, which will have a pirate theme, is not yet open.  I feel bad for them missing the summer trade.

Allan’s photos while watering:

golden fuchsia

Sanguisorba ‘Pink Elephant’, Geranium ‘Rozanne’

After watering the planters, we weeded half of the beach approach garden because the Sandsations sand sculpture event starts on Wednesday.  Allan took all the photos out there.

ANOTHER coreopsis pulled out, and not by deer.

I am sure the coreopsis are being pulled by people trying to pick the flowers.

wildflower seed success

Ilwaco

We returned to our Ilwaco watering with our volunteer gardens at the fire station and post office.

fire station

fire station east side, success with calendula and bachelor buttons from seeds and happy, healthy Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ (same sedum divisions as I used in the Ilwaco planters)

 

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8 April: windy work in Long Beach

Monday, 8 April 2019

Long Beach

All but two photos today are by Allan.

Before we even got to Long Beach, I felt that the weather was too windy for weeding on the beach approach. We kept going because of a cheque awaiting us at city hall. While we were there, we deadheaded the city hall garden.

Even though I had every intention of just dumping debris left over from our previous beach approach session and then going home, I suddenly decided that we simply must do one section of the approach garden. And so we did, despite the pushy, cold wind.

It was good that we’d finished this part last time; it would have been sloshy work today:

Weeding this “end cap” was our goal:

We met two darling dogs. The eight month old shepherd is Athena.

Some narcissi has appeared at the edge of the beach grass.

We did meet our goal.

We now have this far to go.

Ilwaco Fire Dept volunteer garden

As we neared home, Allan suggested we check on one of our two volunteer gardens.

An early poppy:

Dutch iris buds:

Tulip greigii foliage:

A fancy tulip:

At home, in the evening, we watched a film that I had learned about in a Gardeners’ World special about allotments. We rented it from YouTube.

It is a complete delight and well worth seeking out.

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2 October: Long Beach projects

Tuesday, 2 October 2018

I had hoped for another reading day.  Sunny weather sent us out to work, thwarting my desire to spend a day reading Marion Cran.

the red rain gauge

the very big spider

Long Beach

Writing up the September planter reference post over the weekend had filled me with desire to clip back the tatty looking Geranium ‘Rozanne’. Like this one:

I did not get an after, but I did get a photo of the Salvia leucantha:

And the smoke shop:

smoke shop, before

after

Not every Rozanne needed clipping, just maybe half of them. Probably depends on how much wind each planter gets.

one of many wheelie carts of Rozanne debris for my compost bins

Meanwhile, Allan had been digging the big old lavender out of the planter we redid last week.  It had looked just awful in the planter reference post:

last week: Fifth Street Park NE, just redone, big lavender has to go

after, today

Allan’s photo, not easy to dig out

new soil and planting

after

We did a bit of clipping and deadheading in Fifth Street Park.  It is looking at its best now—after the tourists have mostly gone home.

NW corner

I love the purple aster.

I divided that aster from the boatyard; I wish I could remember its name.  The tall asters are the ones I like, and I must collect more.

I hope planty people notice my Melianthus major.

SW corner of park

South side; these grasses (which a landscape architect chose years ago for this spot) will flop forward over the lawn soon.

corner

Each street corner had a supposed dwarf pine, chosen by the same landscape architect.  This side it is indeed dwarf, and the other side is huge!

I got to pet these darlings.

We saw Scott and Tony walking Bailey and Rudy through town, two more dogs to pet.

Scott and Bailey

Tony and Rudy

It was past time to dig the dangity blang non blooming cosmos out of the welcome sign—AND the one that was blooming, because it could not stay there all by itself.

before, back

after

both sides, before

after

front, before

after

We saw a big frog, a medium frog, and a little baby frog.

big

medium

little (Allan’s photos)

I am sure they had a bad day, with their shelter being almost all removed.

The debris looked more impressive before Allan walked on it. (This is after).

Well.  That was my worst failure of a garden bed in long time.  I picked Cosmos ‘Sensation’, even though I knew it gets tall, because I thought the Geranium ‘Rozanne’ would grow vigorously and swamp a shorter cosmos.  So the cosmos was too tall for the sign.  Even where I did not have to clip it, it did not bloom, perhaps because the conditions there are too lush.  It is one of the few gardens that has an irrigation system.  I hope that next year will be better.

I kept the non weedy debris for my compost bins.  The cosmos root balls would get dumped at city works because they have horsetail in them. On the way, we did some clean up at city hall.

clipping back floppy Miscanthus ‘Variegata’, west side

after (Allan’s photo)

City Hall, west side

I noticed that the baskets were down!

I am happy to say I snagged all four baskets (minus the basket) out of the debris pile when we went to dump.

On the way home, we pulled Gladiolus papilio out of one last planter.

Last week: Vacant lot, too much running Gladiolus papilio, Rozanne is tired

today

We got home in time to deal with the vast amount of compost.

clipping into smaller pieces and layering green and brown

We had found one dramatically fasciated cosmos:

It was not till a few days later that I read that fasciation may be caused by a virus and such material should not be composted.  Oh well.  I LIKE fasciated stems.

I enjoy fall clean up and composted and petting dogs, so this was a good work day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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19 April: the relief of work

Thursday, 19 April 2018

I was surprised in the morning when Allan woke me up by saying breakfast was ready and that he wanted to go to work.  As (I think it was) Mark Twain said, the proof that worrying works is that most of what we worry about it does not happen.

Skooter having a drink on the plant table (Allan’s photo)

I picked a bouquet for the Shelburne.

Allan dug some borage and red mustard starts for the Shelburne.

removing a deadhead at the Ilwaco Post Office.

The post office garden is looking drab.  Mulch would cheer it up but there is a limit to how much mulch I can provide from my own budget.  Soon the plants will cover the grey looking soil.

I told Allan we could have a light day with just some fertilizing, planting, and deadheading. (The usual story!)

Our first stop was at

The Planter Box 

to buy some Dr. Earth fertilizer.

Allan’s photo

at the Planter Box

With our bags of Dr. Earth loaded up, we headed south again to

Long Beach

and gathered up the very last of the pile of Soil Energy mulch.

all gone, need more

We weeded and deadheaded at city hall and added the mulch to the wide part of the west side garden, where it had been looking beaten down and sad.

much better

even better with horses

Horses make the landscape more beautiful. –Alice Walker

Allan’s photo

We weeded the narrow beds along the side; we did not plant the top tier and would not have chosen so much Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’, because it has a short season of bloom.  I’ve mixed some elephant garlic in along the top because the office staff loves it so.  Last year, the flowers got stolen as soon as they opened; I hope that with MUCH elephant garlic, some will be left.

We checked on Veterans Field again, the main site of this weekend’s Razor Clam Festival, and I remembered that I had wanted to plant some chives in the corner garden.  I happened to have a bucket of chives with me and realized the red mustard would look good there, too, evoking the Farmers Market that takes place there on summer Friday afternoons.

species tulips and nigella (love in a mist)

Allan’s photo

Allan’s photo

I have realized that the red monarda is spreading like mad throughout this garden, even though I had thinned it earlier.

monarda all over the place; will have to thin it some more.

We went after more of the scrimmy little horsetail and too much hesperantha (schizostylis) in Fifth Street Park and added Dr Earth to this area.

looking much better

Instead of putting the Dr Earth bag behind Allan’s van seat, I put it behind mine so I could access it better when parked in traffic.

camassia just colouring up (Allan’s photo)

I stopped a sweet dog named Bananie from running into the garden to snuffle the fertilizer.

Good Bananie. (His person was nearby.) (Allan’s photo)

Allan’s photo

Allan’s photo

We saw a U Haul with interesting artwork.

We like garter snakes. They eat slugs.

On the way back to city works to dump our debris, we remembered to deadhead the little garden at Culbertson Field.

We also remembered to deadhead by First Place Mall….

Tulip ‘Silverstream’ (I still forgot to check it for scent and for silver edges to the foliage.)

Tulip ‘Silverstream’…I can see the variegated foliage in this photo by Allan!

Tulip ‘Silverstream’ (Allan’s photo)

Tulip ‘Silverstream’ (Allan’s photo)

…and, thanks to Allan, we remembered to deadhead the planters on the Sid Snyder beach approach and to deadhead and fertilize the World Kite Museum garden. Manager Patty was just bringing in the display banners.

Our “short” day had now reached 5 PM and we still had the Shelburne garden to do.  I was so glad we had spent more time in Long Beach to make it look better for Clam Festival.

Shelburne Hotel

I got the fertilizer bag out from behind Allan’s seat and fertilized the front garden.  Then I realized I had been using evergreen and azalea fertilizer.  I got the fertilizer bag (all purpose) from behind my seat and added more.  When I do fertilize, I tend to under-fertilize, so it will all work out.

Mustard and borage went into the west garden:

I added nasturtium seeds (in the front garden, too) because the chefs need many for garnish flowers.  Orchid Cream, Caribbean Cocktail, Vesuvius, Tip Top Mahogany, Alaska, Variegated Queen, Dwarf Cherry Rose.

Also some Calendula ‘Frost Princess, ‘Pink Surprise’ and ‘Kinglet Mix’ and some Bright Lights and Celebration swiss chard for some stem color.

By the pub deck and here and there where it might find a space to grow in the back garden, I planted more night scented stock seeds.

We decided to dine at the pub, as the workday had gone on until 6:45, longer than planned, and moved the van and work trailer a block north so as to not take up two parking places.  (Allan took into the pub with him a couple of disinfected wipes to spare the staff from any cold germs on his dishes.)

My bouquet still looked good (especially after I arranged it a little better than this:

Allan’s photo

looking south from the north end of the garden

from the sidewalk

From the front entry, looking south:

looking north

In the Shelburne living room, singer Bryan O’Connor was performing.

He is the spouse of Renee, the creator the tile work in Long Beach that you saw earlier in this post (the sidewalk tile and the obelisk).

I had a most tasty salmon special on black rice, and a cranberry cosmo (with Starvation Ally Cranberry Juice).

and delicious cranberry curd tart

Allan had the black garlic fried rice.  I reminded myself with one bite how tasty it is.  I could eat a casserole dish of it.

and “beeramisu” for dessert.

A local couple who were in the living room (lobby) listening to the concert bought us our dinner!  As we drove away they were just emerging, and I thanked them again. “For all you do!” she called out!

At home: I have whittled down the work board more than I expected this week, and Allan seemed none the worse for wear after a long day.

A most wonderful thing happened: I got an email from the woman who is the little girl pictured in my blog post about visiting the Isle of Skye in 1975, telling me what life was like there, then.  She is not, as I always wondered, related to Donovan, but she did know him when she was a child!

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5 December: compost and work

Tuesday, 5 December 2017

It had been a cold night.

one of our bird baths. clippers resting on ice (Allan’s photo)

We drove up to Long Beach to do a small amount of work and pick up our check.

some lovely seasonal garlanding next to the Ilwaco Post Office

in Long Beach City Hall

Long Beach City Hall: finance staffer Helen does the decorating

City Hall west side

We’d had a frost overnight that had not been hard enough to create the need for the final go-round of planters.  However, Allan did cut down the last of the blooming chrysanthemums in a planter.

Unclipped Geranium ‘Rozanne’ were still blooming.

Geranium ‘Rozanne’ and primroses blooming in December (Allan’s photo)

Goodbye to the yellow chrysanthemum (Allan’s photo)

Allan’s photo

In Fifth Street Park, we took down the remaining old leaves on the Gunnera.

before

Thick stemmed gunnera take the big loppers.

after, with a few old leaves tucked over the crown of the plant to protect it from freezing

We had gotten a call from Oceanside Animal Clinic that our Smoky’s ashes were ready to be picked up.  Listening to the message, I had gotten teary when Dr. Raela said, “We will just tuck them away till you can pick them up.”  She knows just what to say.  We did pick them up, and I couldn’t help but cry.  My best kitty ever.  It’s hard to have the little box of ashes.

We dropped a book into the Ilwaco Timberland Library return box and admired their Christmas wreaths.

Ilwaco Timberland Library

I am enjoying other people’s decorations even though I don’t think we will put up our own tree this year.  The only place to put it is where my living room desk sits.  I like sitting at my living room desk on rainy days to blog with a garden view.  Eventually, I will make my Smoky retrospective photo blog posts there.

We drove along the Port of Ilwaco gardens and, of course, I saw a few things to do.

east end, looking west, before (Allan’s photos)

after

calendula blooming (Allan’s photo)

We clipped a small Miscanthus ‘Gold Bar’ at the Ilwaco Pavilion and an Eryngium at Time Enough Books and that was the end of the work day.

Crab pots are now stacked up in the field to the south of our property.

Allan’s photo

At the western port parking lots, stacked crab pots make a long aisle out of the traffic lane.

crab pots and the boat storage yard

Allan’s photo

At home, I decided that the Ilwaco boatyard garden and the port gardens are done for the year and erased them from the work board.

I then took a closer look at the box containing Smoky’s ashes.  It was so nicely decorated; when I got the ashes of my good cat Dumbles, from a vet across the river, they were in a plain square box.

“If love alone could have kept you here, you would have lived forever.”

I intend to bury Smoky’s ashes where his mother, Mary, is buried by the garden boat.  I need a day when I can do that properly, not in haste, and I do not know when that will be. Maybe I should wait till early spring.  I am wondering if I should finally bury my good cat Dumbles’ ashes in the same spot.  Dumbles liked to go outdoors at our old house.  At our new house, he was scared, and he died before the garden got big enough to be like the old garden.  Surely by now he would like it?  I know Mary would have probably bossed him around, like she did all the cats, but Smoky would have been his friend because Smoky was friends with and cuddled with Frosty, Calvin, Skooter, and of course, his mother Mary.

me and my Dumbles at the old house

Dumbles was a special boy, but even his loss did not affect me like Smoky’s did. I miss Smoky every day, especially while I am reading or watching television.  Frosty or Calvin (not Skooter) will sit on my lap, for awhile, but neither of them are snuggly.  Dumbles’ ashes are on a shelf near where I sleep. For now, Smoky’s ashes are on shelf near my chair.  I find that hard to deal with.

At two o clock, I was able to get back to my compost project, with the goal of emptying bin one into bin two.

I first took some starts of Artemisia ‘Powis Castle clippings,  sticking them in here and there, including by Mary’s grave where I want to grow silver-grey plants.

By the garden boat, the strawberries have taken over again. My vision is silver grey plants, and some catmint, with the scree garden reclaimed from strawberries.

Then the compost shifting began.

2:30 PM

Allan climbed onto the roof to prune the blue potato vine, which was putting some weight on our internet cable.

Allan’s photo, before; the after was after dark and too late for a photo

Here is an “after” taken the next day.

view from the roof

🙂 I do love composting.  I had no idea he was taking these pictures.

By 4:15, bin one was successfully shifted into bin two.

finally at the bottom of bin one!

I added some debris to bin one, clipping the pieces up small (six to eight inch lengths, mostly) to make them break down faster.

After sunset:

Tomorrow, I have one more pile, to the right, to shift into bin one, and then I will still have room for more garden clippings.

Scott and Tony stopped by briefly with a Christmas card.

Rudy and Bailey and Scott; Allan lent Scott a couple of movie DVDs.

Our good friend Tony.

Scott and Rudy

Tony and Scott had just been out on the beach clamming and took these photos.

Tony’s photo

Tony’s photo

When clams are in season and the clam tide comes at sunset or at night, people clam by lantern light.

This photo is just to show those who cried along with me about Smoky that there is still happiness in life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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6 November: fall clean up continues

Monday, 6 November 2017

Frosty looking cute in the morning

Even though my neurotic cat Frosty (the late Smoky’s brother) still wants to sleep in the garage rather than have to spend the night indoors, I won’t let him.  It is cold out there.  He wakes me up at 6 AM yowling to go out, so I then open the south cat door for him.  So far the other two cats have not figured out this happens.  Frosty seems to go out and then come back in soon after, because I find him asleep in my room when I wake up again.

Long Beach

We happened to nab a parking spot right next to a street tree that needed its batch of Lysimachia punctata cut back for winter.

before and after (Allan’s photos)

We found a reversible rock.

not sure what it means

The Anchorage Cottages

We left Long Beach to work at the Anchorage first, mainly because I did not know how long we would be there, and the rest of the time could then be devoted to Long Beach.

Arbutus and Melianthus major in the center courtyard

arbutus flowers (to be followed by strawberry like fruit, thus the common name strawberry tree)

I love arbutus so much, why do I not have one in my yard?

I’ve been meaning for ages for us to dead-wood the arbutus. No time for that today.

I did a nice under-pruning and lowering from the top of the big Solanum crispum ‘Glasnevin’ in the corner; wish I had a before picture.

just an after

Allan pulled Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ from the narrow bed under the blue sign, and on either side of it he planted some starts of shasta daisies.  I know folks who would turn up their noses at that.  I think the daisies will look spiffing with the white window trim.

before and after (Allan’s photos)

I put some redtwig dogwood twigs in the window boxes, just because it is something I like to do.

Long Beach

I planted a whole pot of cloves of elephant garlic on the west side of city hall.  The very few that were there this past summer were a hit with the city hall staff, who called it  “The Horton Hears a Who plant.”  It was so disappointing when someone picked off all the round flowers that I said I was going to plant so many that surely some flowers would be left next year.

planted them on the upper tier

after planting and clean up of the long narrow tiered beds that were planted originally by Gene and Peggy Miles, when Gene was city administrator (Allan’s photo)

lots of clean up accomplished on the north side, too

I do not clean up my gardens this way.  I leave a lot more plants standing into late winter.  In public gardens, most passersby would not understand that and would just see it as messy.

We turned next to pulling Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ at the front of Coulter Park (Allan) and tidying up a planter across the street (me).

Coulter Park, before and after (Allan’s photo)

Allan also photographed the planter project.

before

After work, we returned a couple of forgotten Halloween party items to Scott and Tony’s townhouse in north Long Beach, along with a tall houseplant that needed a place with tall windows.

painted rocks that Scott and Tony’s friends leave in their little entry courtyard

Port of Ilwaco

We did a security check on the business of a friend who will be out of town for two more days post surgery and then had a look at the garden at the port office.  It needs some trimming.  We were almost out of daylight, so it will not get done today.

Allan’s photo

Almost sunset at the marina:

home

I feel sad when I come home to Calvin sleeping alone, in the chair where for the past couple of months he spent the day sleeping with his new best friend, Smoky.  I wish he would bond with Frosty.  He must miss Smoky as much as I do.

Calvin wakes up.

Two nights ago, when I was petting Calvin, I realized I had already lost the hand memory of how much softer Smoky was than any other cat.  Calvin feels soft to me now.  I clipped a tiny bit of Smoky’s fur, before his final visit to the vet.  It felt intrusive to clip very much. It is just enough soft fur, in a little wooden box, to touch with one fingertip.  I can’t bear to go there. But I don’t want to forget that softness.  My hand aches to pet him again.

Smoky and Calvin on October 7th

Calvin and Smoky on October 19th

October 26th

Frosty and Smoky, mid October.  Note the subtle patterns on Smoky’s oh so soft fur.

Smoky was nice to all cats, humans, and nice dogs.

Frosty and Calvin will share my lap, but without affection and with the occasional squabble.

Frosty and Calvin a couple of nights ago

detente but no affection

I occupied my mind with a re-write the work board, dividing the fall clean up list into before and after the first heavy frost, for the purpose of giving me more tasks to erase.  Erasure gives me satisfaction at day’s end.

I then got to erase City Hall and Anchorage.

Below, at 2:45 AM (technically the next day):

Frosty, the odd kitty, has a new favourite place now that he is not sleeping in the garage: right in the middle of the open space in the bedroom.

Why not a comfy chair?

As I write this two days later, he is sleeping in that exact same peculiar spot.

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12 October: Ilwaco, Long Beach, Salt

Thursday, 12 October 2017

We had had much rain overnight.  It was supposed to continue all day, and I settled in for a pleasant early afternoon of catching up on writing this blog.  Mark and Brian of the most excellent north Ocean Park garden stopped by to get some Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen’ starts.

We toured the garden, of course.

After they left, I realized the sun was out and that we must go to work.

our house

reflected garden

across the street: J Crew house with new paint job.

on the way to work: more water

Port of Ilwaco

With a couple of work hours available before a dentist appointment, we opted to clean up two more sections of the Howerton Avenue gardens.

westernmost beds, before

after

before

after

Long Beach

Dentistry followed (just cleaning, which I sort of enjoy).  Allan dropped me off and went to work in the city hall garden.

before pulling city hall crocosmia

after

He got caught in a heavy rain squall which I did not even hear from the dentist chair.

After my appointment, I called him and walked for a few blocks till he arrived to fetch me.

“Seabattical”, 1890 house on the corner of Sid Snyder Drive

Captain’s Cottage, 1905

reflected blue cottage

We still had some work time and decided to keep on with the crocosmia pulling in a planter on Sid Snyder Drive.

The crocosmia was planted by a volunteer years ago.

after (rather dull)

Allan pulled crocosmia from one of the little pop outs on Ocean Beach Boulevard.

Allan’s photos: before (with a rainbow)

No after, because a drenching rain began (and soon ended).

As we drove by city hall to admire Allan’s work, I realized we might have time to dig out the  aruncus (goat’s beard) that has gotten too big for its britches on the northeast corner of the building.  It was not easy.

I tried with the shovel to no avail.

Our strong shovel was not enough; Allan employed the pick.

I felt bad that it turned out to be such a hard task, at the cold windy end of the work day.  We dumped our debris at city works (saving good rooted pieces of the plant) and returned with some mulch.

adding Soil Energy scraped up from the flat dregs of the city works mulch pile

After, with some divisions of pulmonaria, and after hosing the mud off the sidewalk.

We were not able to get every root, so I hope aruncus is not a plant that returns from every little piece.  Constant vigilance will be in order.  I will plant a nice piece of it by the pond in Fifth Street Park.  The plant originally came from the road by my old house, rescued when the road was about to be widened.

looking west from city hall

The sun set as we worked.

That was exhausting, especially for Allan, on what we thought would be a rainy day off.

 

 

 

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21 Sept: more than expected

Thursday, 21 September 2017

Ilwaco post office garden

I always think I do not like the yellow evening primrose. And yet look how pretty this accidental one is.

Long Beach

We began Long Beach at city hall with the plan of pulling a lot of the Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ and then then clearing out the boring Geranium ‘Johnson’s Blue’ planter by the gazebo, getting new soil in buckets from city works, and redoing the planter with the plants we had brought with us.

cars and flowers meet at the edge of the parking lot

There is a whole wall of Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ on the south of the west side (not planted by us! I would have picked something else.)

before

I set out to clip back the Miscanthus ‘Variegatus’ from the sidewalk.

I then noticed that one of the two escallonias had produced three feet of new growth and decided to clip it away from the building.  Look who I found while clipping:

Pacific tree frog and snail

I am so glad I got that photo just before froggie jumped off.

As I clipped the escallonia, Parks Manager Mike drove by and called out a request, that we clip back the roses on the big pop out, one block south, because of sight line issues.  That changed the day’s plan considerably.  Soon after, I decided to cut the escallonia down very low so that it would better match the much smaller one at the other end of the garden.  Meanwhile, I asked Allan to take the pick and remove the big armeria on the corner by the escallonia; it was a haven for creeping buttercup and was too far out over the wall.

Allan’s photos: before…

and after

after

While Allan finished, I clipped back the huge Aruncus (goats beard) on the north side.

during

after

The aruncus has gotten too big for that spot.  Later this fall, we plan to dig it out and put it somewhere in Fifth Street Park (with a division going to my garden; it originally came from my previous garden).

Very little Crocosmia got pulled. 

The one thing we went there to do hardly got done at all.

Before even going to the pop out, we had so much debris that we had to dump.  We need revitalizing, yet the coffee drive through had four cars waiting so Allan said “Let’s go to the two guys.”  I knew exactly what he meant: Abbracci Coffee Bar, owned by Tony and Bernardo.

a Pink Poppy Bakery shortbread

fifteen minutes of relaxation

and a dulcimer player

Allan’s photo

While we were by Fifth Street Park for our coffee break, we went ahead and deadheaded there.

fall crocus (Allan’s photo)

At two o clock, the post-tourist season town was so quiet.

SW quadrant looking grand with Helianthus ‘Lemon Queen’.

9-21-17

Next: the big pop out project.  As we parked, I thought that there was no way the sightline could be blocked by the rugosa roses.

before: You’d look left, and you’d look right when you were further out….

However, in recent years we have taken the pick and tried to push the roses back (to no avail, but at least they stayed shorter for the summer).  I did not mind cutting them.  I had told Mike I wished we could redo the whole thing, rebuilding the wall and putting in all new soil.  By we, I mean the city crew and big equipment.

after; we will prune the rest of the roses down hard later.

As we were working on this, a fellow on a motorcycle stopped and wanted to give us a $20 tip.  The same thing, with a different man, happened in Long Beach a couple of weeks ago, and that time I was able to kindly refuse.  Today’s gentleman would not take a refusal; he tucked the $20 in among the stems of the rugosa roses (and we did not leave it there).

A kitty came to visit.

Her roundness reminded me of my Mary.

With another full trailer, we made another run to city works, and this time we filled buckets with soil for the original project, redoing a city planter. 

While Allan got started digging the boring old geraniums out of the planter, I walked four blocks worth of planters to deadhead.

I saw a pug.

And the pug saw me.

On my walkabout, I collected some Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’, some creeping succulents, and some cut leaf saxifrage and then joined Allan at the planter project.  The sun had become hot, and the town had become busy with lots of onlookers, and we only had two hours to get the project done before a social event. The Geranium ‘Johnson’s Blue’ roots are so pervasive that we had to dig a lot of soil out.  Even then, I thought maybe we had not dug enough.  I was afraid to put in the two Geranium ‘Rozanne’ that I brought.  Rozanne (blooming from late spring to first frost) is related to Johnson (which blooms for about a month, if that), and if Johnson got mixed up with Rozanne, then Johnson could use Rozanne as a base to try to take over the whole planter again.  I’ll wait to see how much JB sprouts back before I add Rozanne to this planter. Allan took all the photos here.

before

before

after; we salvaged two santolinas and two agastaches.

after

As the sun was setting, we checked on the kite museum garden.

kite museum (Allan’s photo)

During our planter re-do, I had gotten a text that changed our dinner plans.  We had been going to meet Dave and Melissa at El Compadre Mexican Restaurant for our weekly dinner.  Instead, we were all invited to the home of Lynn, who until recently was our beloved server at the Cove.

sun setting as we arrive (Allan’s photo)

Our destination was next door to Gene’s garden, which you may remember from the 2013 local garden tour.

Here was Gene’s garden in 2013:

And here it is now, with the changes that Gene made since then:

good job, Gene!

in 2013…

and now with a new west facing deck

Gene’s cottage

Next door, pretty porch lights welcomed us to Lynn’s cottage.

She had stocked the cooler with our favourite cider.

The cottage inside was every bit as perfectly beachy as the best Cannon Beach Cottage.

windowsill lights with shells

Bitty protecting her lair

Chloe was much friendlier than Bitty (who warmed up to us eventually).

my new friend

Chloe’s nook

We dined with seven friends on a pizza assortment and snacks. With Dave and Melissa, we stayed till late, sharing thoughts and stories.

At home, I found it satisfying to erase “planter re-do” from the work board.

 

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29 August: a head start

Tuesday, 29 August 2017

front path before leaving for work

This could have been an all Ilwaco day, had I not wanted to get a head start on tomorrow.  We have some planting to do at Diane’s garden, and I’m not sure how long it will take, so best to get ahead by getting other jobs done today.

On the way out of town, we noted to our sorrow that the street sweeper had knocked out the patch of volunteer poppies that Allan has been nurturing all summer.

poppies reseeded in the street, at sunset last night

today 😦

But wait.  If that was a mechanical street sweeper truck, why did it leave cigarette butts and all?

We delivered our B&O tax form belatedly to Ilwaco City Hall.  It is such an easy form to do; why do I put it off?

Allan noticed this showy nasturtium in a city hall planter.

The Depot Restaurant

after watering

‘Fireworks’ goldenrod hints of autumn.

I hope folks parking here in the evening have enjoyed the scent of Nicotiana ‘Fragrant Cloud’.

Petunia ‘Pretty Much Picasso’ and gold sweet potato vine, combined by Basket Case Greenhouse Roxanne.

spoon petaled African Daisy (osteospermum) in purple…

and white

Long Beach

I belatedly delivered our B&O tax to city hall.

Meanwhile, Allan did some clipping of lambs ears on the west side of city hall.

before and after

Stachys byzantina ‘Silver Carpet’ does not have many blooms, which can be an advantage if all you want is the soft silver foliage.

City Hall west side

There is much crocosmia to pull in the narrow part of the garden (not planted by us! I have almost totally gone off planting Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’).

Meanwhile, I did some sightline pruning in the wee popout a block north of city hall, where a maple that was once planted, then cut down by the city crew for sightline reasons, is returning in a bushy way.

before

after?

really after

That area gets no supplemental water so is pretty sparse.  I now think I should make that determined maple into a wee rounded shrub.

The Anchorage Cottages

Apparently I had sight lines on my mind.  When we had to park by the street below the Anchorage Cottages (due to a big truck in the parking lot), I got the urge to “lift” a tree to make for a better view of the road for folks leaving the resort.

before, looking toward the Anchorage exit

after

Mitzu comes to see what’s what (Allan’s photo)

Mitzu supervising

debris from two trees whose branches I clipped

I’m glad the soft foliage of chameacyparis is set well back from the street.

I then joined Allan in weeding and deadheading by the cottages.

center courtyard

Melianthus major

Note to self: The soil looks thin again, mulch it this fall.

Allan found a painted rock, from a “rocks” group in Pocatello, Idaho.

a late Tigridia (Allan’s photo)

north end of courtyard: Salvia ‘Hot Lips’ and Hebe ‘Quicksilver’ looking grand.

south end of courtyard: same two plants, not so great

Soon the row of seeds from Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ will look a lot like the rope in the painting.  I planned that (not).

Crocosmia ‘Lucifer” seedheads mimicking the rope in the sign in a previous year

Ilwaco

We stopped at home to get the long hose for watering the east end curbside garden at the port.  I could see so much that needs doing in my own blown-about garden.  My foot hurt so I knew I would be doing none of it at the end of the day.

so much dead-leafing to do.

We watered at the port, Allan at the east end and me at the west.

east end garden (Allan’s photo)

I look forward to some rain and to not having to drag hose down the sidewalk.  Just when I was feeling quite tired and sore whilst watering in front of Time Enough Books, a woman came up to me and asked if I wanted any Shasta daisy seeds that she had in her car.  I said no, because they don’t do well in this dry gardens.  Seeing the cosmos in the boat planter, she told me that they were a favourite of her mothers. Then she kindly offered me a large paper cup of sweet tea that she had just bought at McDonalds in Long Beach.  I said no, because it would make me have to pee.  (Well, it would, which is a problem when busy gardening!)  She laughed and said she was prepared for me, though, and she reached into her bag and handed me this present!

So thank you, Christina from Nemah, who is clearly on a mission to spread joy wherever she goes.

looking east from Time Enough Books…

…and looking west

Minutes later, a fellow walked by with a black lab.  Of course, I wanted to pet the dog, and learned his name was Tai and that “he can spell!” said the man.  He then showed Tai a treat and spelled out “S-P-I-N” and Tai spun around.  Next came “S-I-T” and Tai sat.

Then “W-A-I-T” and Tai waited while his guy walked away.  Tai joined him by the green metal box (background in above photo) and the man spelled “J-U-M-P” and Tai jumped up onto the box.  All three of us were delighted.  Tai still had soft puppy-like fur.

Allan joined me at the west end by the Freedom Market, where I watered while he ran the string trimmer down the sidewalk edge.

before and after: Can you tell the difference?

Tai came by again

I still wanted to do a garden along the bark strip by Freedom Market, where in midsummer almost all the plant starts (which were not many) that I had put in there were stolen. Another problem is that people walk through the bark area.  Maybe, thought I, I could plant just around the two existing roses.

would look nice with some flowers

I think I have given up on this idea after this evening, when I saw two young male customers run right through between the roses, where one tiny yarrow start remains, and vault the log.

If that’s a path, too, I think I give up!

Or….maybe I’ll try planting Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ and see what happens.

Our neighbour Devery arrived home at the same time we did.  Her dog, my little friend Royal, got very excited.

How much is that doggy in the window? The one with the beautiful tail!

As predicted to myself, my foot hurt so I got no evening gardening done except for watering essential potted plants.  I hope for lots of gardening energy when the weekend days off arrive.

Here’s a text that arrived today from Todd, showing his new puppy on the job.

Todd’s photo of baby Ansel! (black and white dog/Ansel Adams)

I have not yet met this pup and hope to remedy that soon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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3 August: hot but working

Thursday, 3 August 2017

Ilwaco Post Office garden

I realized that the tall lilies are getting pulled down by a rather pretty and pretty annoying perennial sweet pea vine that volunteered in this garden.  I waited too long to try to eliminate it and now am stuck with this look.  I’d break the lilies if I fought with the vine now.

Rudbeckias donated by Our Kathleen

I’d like to have balls of silver santolina running all across the front.  But I have no budget, and no one has good ones for sale at the moment.  I will stick in more cuttings this fall.

Long Beach

We weeded Veterans Field gardens.  The Jake the Alligator Man birthday party event will be there this weekend, with lots of bands and some “Bride of Jake” contestants.  I won’t be going because, great though the event is, for me it can’t compete with a day off at home.

Just before heading to the main street to water…

Today, we decided the trees needed watering again because of the heat.  That meant I again watered most of the planters.  The trees, while fewer, are harder to water because the faucet connector is underground in each one.  Watering was a good job for this 80°F day.

SO HOT.  Yet 81 felt so much better than yesterday’s 95.

Photos from my walkabout:

Bees loving Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’

Tigridia

I wanted to take a photo of this round ball of lavender, but it was missing some lavender colour….

Because someone had picked themselves a bunch, coming armed with clippers, and leaving stubs.

The other side! I thought….only to find…

…another batch had been picked.

An accountant from Powell Seillor had something to show me.

She had found a beautiful sunflower painted rock!

bonus art on the back

tigridia

more tigridia

and more

My “Ann Lovejoy” plant, pink oenothera, has reseeded at the curb.

Gladiolus papilio

Gladiolus papilio inside

worth a close look

For a refreshing scent on a hot day, smell the santolina foliage.  Lemony!

I love the white catananche

Because Jake the Alligator Man resides in Marsh’s museum, I gave some attention to that corner of Fifth Street Park.  I planted some new lilies last fall.  Apparently, I did not read the description well, because they are ridiculously short.  I like lilies to be at least four feet tall.

Ridiculously short!  Will move them to a planter somewhere.

huge flowers and one foot tall = just silly

Love Helenium!

the carousel

We get lots of compliments on the flowers (and the Basket Case hanging baskets; I always say where they are from).  Sometimes when I am elsewhere, I think about how people are enjoying the flowers right at that moment.

I noticed a huge blackberry in the back of Third Street Park and was unable to pull it down and clip it.

gazebo in Third Street Park

At the Bolstad intersection, I spotted an ugly plant problem kitty corner from where I was watering.

brown flowers on lady’s mantle

only had time to clip some of it

 

I adore agastaches.

Allan’s walkabout photos:

sidewalk traffic jam

I noticed this cutie, too, and remembered my friend Coco who moved away.

NIVA green

Geranium ‘Rozanne’

Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ by Wind World Kites

a cool bike

audience

I sent Allan after the big blackberry.  His photos:

before

also a fireweed (rosebay willowherb)

I had noticed we were losing the sidewalk to rugosa roses on the south wall of the police station, so we finished downtown Long Beach by trimming them to make room for all the Jake brides to sashay by.

Allan’s photos:

Allan tidied the corner garden in Veterans Field while I worried over my foot, replacing the bandage on my sad little toe and removing the Superfeet insert to make the toe feel better, even though that makes the heel feel so much worse.

a sad moment

We hauled water out to just one planter on the dry Bolstad approach…

the Lisa Bonney memorial planter

And we checked up on the city hall garden.  The office staff was sad that someone had stolen the “Horton Hears a Who” flower, the elephant garlic,  I told them I will plant dozens here in autumn.

Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ and clipped elephant garlic (Allan’s photo)

Ilwaco

Allan watered the street trees and planters while I weeded at the boatyard garden.

I weeded from the north end to here…

and as far as the gate.

Tomorrow morning we will finish the southern section.  Our…

…is that there will be an art walk at the port Friday evening, with a few downtown businesses joining in.

Cosmos ‘Seashells’

I suddenly realized I was no longer hot and miserable.  The sun had dropped enough to make the temperature enjoyable.

More of those ridiculous new short lilies, almost hidden.

a helianthus that I acquired from Andersen’s RV Park…quite a runner.

street tree poppies (Allan’s photo)

poppies resseded at the curb near a planter (Allan’s photo)

Helenium (but which one?) at the boatyard (Allan’s photo)

desperately trying to get the horsetail by the gate

the gate

We stopped at seven.  One more hour and I could have had it all weeded to the south end.  However, we were having our North Beach Garden Gang dinner a day early this week because Melissa was going to Portland Friday to visit her mum.

We did not have far to go because our destination was Salt Hotel at the port. (It was busy and we got a seat toward the middle, thus no window views for your entertainment.  We could see the view with diners that might not appreciate being photographed.)

delicious smoked tuna melt with salad subbed for fried

Melissa’s burger

crab mac (Allan’s photo)

nachos for Dave (Allan’s photo)

Tomorrow, we will finish weeding the boatyard.  I also noticed, before dinner, that the Time Enough Books curbside garden needs watering for art night.  I would like to make three art night bouquets for my favourite businesses, and we need to get to the Klipsan Beach Cottages garden, which got postponed due to heat, and we need new plants for the empty Ilwaco planter which now DOES have a hole drilled by the city crew.

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