After The Rain...

I really want this post to be about after the rain...but the problem is, you see...it keeps on raining!!

Friday a week ago, most of corn went in the ground.  Saturday the rain began.  And Sunday. And Monday. I remember that Tuesday was just cloudy, and I regretted not getting the yard mowed. It rained again on Wednesday. And Thursday. Friday was finally nice enough to mow, (I could have baled the grass, it had grown so much!) and then it rained in the evening.  Saturday brought heavy rain all day, and finally, Sunday was nice, with only a brief shower. 

You get the picture.  We lost track of the measurements, but we must have had +-3" of rain in the past week. 

The corn was a concern.  However, as soon as the sun came out again, we saw this...

If you enlarge the picture, you'll see faint green rows running the length of the field.  Most of the corn germinated and came up, except for some low lying areas where the water either washed or couldn't get away in the saturated ground.  We're very thankful!

Now for the colorful part of the post...

Years ago, our neighbor Ruth grew and sold bearded iris.  She shared with us, and whenever I see them bloom, I think of her!

Their blooming season is short...we'll only enjoy them for a week or so...but I just love them!  When I walk past them to the calf hutches, their sweet scent is so pleasant!

Yesterday was perfect.  Just perfect...lots of blue sky, a gentle breeze and low humidity.

And today it rained again. 

Sigh.

Update...the War On Chickweed...One Month Later...

This is a happy story...

One month ago today, I posted about  the downside of a mild winter. Chickweed had overtaken my flower bed along the meadow fence. Granted, it's at a spot where weeds from the meadow can easily creep in, but I'd never had it look this bad in the spring.  Using mushroom mulch didn't help a thing, as it not only builds up the soil and feeds the good plants, but it feeds the weeds as well.

One month later, I'm happy to show you pictures, not only because it took a lot of hard work, but because I'm flower happy this time of year!

Most of the iris came from a former neighbor who grew hundreds of varieties to sell, as did the peonies.  The roses, which are struggling a bit, came from another neighbor.  That's just one of the beauties of perennials...you can enjoy the flowers as well as the memories of friendship!

I know...the edges of this flower bed aren't straight...and that bugs me.  A lot!  Actually, the intended edge is straight...and mulched.  You can see it if you look closely. However, the chickweed also crawled into the grass.  The weed killer that I used worked quite fine...except that now I need to seed some new grass to fill in the gaps.

Here we go...

The peonies will be open any day now.  Their fragrance is wonderful! (and much nicer than what I'm smelling from the fields right now!)

Do you see who photo bombed my picture?!

Iris and peonies don't like mulch, as their roots need to be on the drier side...so I mulched around them, leaving some space around each plant.  It doesn't look as tidy as I prefer, but whatever keeps them happy!  I also used regular bark mulch this year, hoping that it well better hold back the chickweed.

My war on chickweed isn't over.  It never will be, this close to the meadow...but for now I'd say this battle has been won!

The Down-side Of a Mild Winter...

We had such a mild winter this year, and for the most part we were thrilled...hardly any water lines freezing, very little snow to deal with, etc...

THIS, however,  is quite a  problem...

The chickweed is out of control in my iris bed beside the meadow!

Jenna started tackling it on her Easter break, but it's a horrid mess...

It's going to take LOTS of dirty hands...and knees...and patience until it's finished! Maybe even some weed killer.

I'll keep you posted,  as there will be much cause for celebration when it's finished!

Friday's Hunt...

I'ts time again for Friday's Hunt, with Teresa at Eden Hills.

This week's prompts are...

"Starts with V"...

This one was easy for me.  Jenna has two violins.  The one in the black case is her original "school grade" violin that she's had for years.  It stays at school in the orchestra room, and she uses it for rehearsal.  (a sure sign that school is almost over...they're both at home again)  The one in the brown case is the good one, that she bought after our trip to Philadelphia last summer.  It's the violin that she uses for auditions and performances.  It sounds soooo much better than the original one!  I can honestly say that I never tire of hearing her play!

 My "week's favorite" is what I found in two of my hanging baskets when I took them down for watering.  A house finch has a nest with four eggs in this basket, and her friend has five eggs in another one!

Every time we come near, or open the kitchen door, they fly away.  This morning when I watered, they were all out of sorts.  I had to hide inside the living room and take this picture through the window when this one came back to her nest.  Can you see her?

"Sunshine" is the last prompt.  We've had abundant sunshine this week, and are very thankful to be rain-free for a time.  The sunshine was so pretty this evening shining on my peonies, which just opened yesterday...

...and on the iris...

...and of course along with sunshine comes shadows...

Life certainly hasn't slowed down at all here.  We're glad that Eric is home and helping around the farm before he starts his summer job next week.  Jim finished first cutting of hay yesterday, the soybeans were planted on Tuesday, and tonight the corn planter is running.  Jenna will be finished with school next week, and will be able to be a big help too, although she's starting a summer job before long too!

What's happening in your neck of the woods?

Good Fences #8

I've been so far behind this spring with getting ready for mulching in my perennial beds.  It's overwhelming.  A late spring, and falling behind had me in a bit of a panic.  Finally on Tuesday, I edged, weeded, and got the first bed ready for mulch.  That might have to wait until next week, after this upcoming rain is over.

The roses and iris usually look so pretty together.  The roses were hit really hard by the harsh winter and are not near bud stage yet.  In another week or two though, the iris will be in full bloom along this fence...

A couple of them are pushing buds.  Unfortunately, I don't remember the colors until they bloom...

I'll post another picture of the fence when the iris are in full bloom.  (and mulched)  It's much more exciting then!

On another note...a week ago, I got an email from my blogger friend TexWisGirl, telling me I'd won the giveaway for her hand drawn Hummingbird drawing.  I was so excited!  Yesterday as I was mowing, the mail lady came and waved a package at me that wouldn't fit in the mailbox. Here it is!  It's even more beautiful in real life, (and there's a glare on my photo)  I will treasure it Theresa...thanks so much!

She's an amazing artist and wonderful photographer.  Check out her blog at the link above...

Click here to enjoy more Good Fences!

Revisiting an Old Idea...

Some years back, I tried something different in my garden...

 A friend had very successfully launched a "pick your own flowers" business in her garden.  She lived along a pretty major thoroughfare, and sold tons of flowers...mostly zinnias and sunflowers.  Her beautiful flowers advertised themselves well.  When her family moved out of the immediate area, she gave me her sign...and her blessing...to give it a whirl in my own garden.

Well...it didn't go so well.  We live on a corner, with a busy road on one side, and a not so busy road on the other.  But...my garden is just over the hill and out of sight from the busier of the two roads, and thus, the flowers were hidden from view.  I was disappointed, to say the least.

Round two...

I had a little extra room in the garden after my veggies were planted, so this morning I went to my favorite green house, and did a little shopping.  I planted two varieties of zinnias...State Fair, and Cut and Come Again, Blue Bedder Salvia, Indian Summer Rudbeckia, Liberty Classic Snapdragons and Blue Horizon Ageratum.  It doesn't look like much now, but hopefully in a few weeks, the flowers will be big and beautiful!

This time, I'm looking at it with a different attitude.  I'm not doing this to make a lot of money.  I love meeting people, and having something to offer that makes someone else happy.  So, every dozen I sell will be a bonus...and every flower that stays in the garden will just sit there and look pretty.  No problem!

As for the rest of the garden...the tomatoes, potatoes and beans survived the cold nights we had last week and are pushing out new growth...

I planted my lima beans this morning....

...and the Iris opened this week!  I think I post a picture of this every year, but it thrills me every spring, when all of a sudden there they are, blooming like they have nothing better to do than to make me smile.  And they smell so good...

What's growing or blooming in your garden?