Yesterday I took care of more garden chores; planted seeds.
I fertilized several of the plants. And I planted the moon vine seeds that I nicked and soaked overnight.
All of the morning glory seeds have been planted and are growing rapidly.
A company I must have ordered plants or seeds from sent along a free packet of seeds for a bee garden.
So I planted those seeds between two pots, having no idea what will come up or how many I’ll need to move once I begin thinning them.
Of course that is if they germinate. I’ve never planted these seeds before.
I’ll worry about that later. Some things in a garden you just have to pin hope on and move on forward.
I think I’m now officially out of pots to plant in.
I’ve ordered a couple of trellises to hold the vines from all the seeds I’ve planted.
They should get here in the next couple of days.
In one area the vines will need to hop an inch or so from the green pots to the trellises. But I’ve never known vines to lack coping skills.
The Herbs I’ve Planted:
I talked to neighbors yesterday. Ron wanted to know what herbs I had.
I told him they were certainly free to snip any herbs they might want. Then I went around the yard pointing each of them out to him.
I’ve planted quite a few herbs. The ones I can think of off hand are rosemary, mints, Orange Fizz scented geranium, pineapple sage, salvia, and lemon verbena.
As well as thyme, Italian oregano, Genovese basil, lemon balm, sorrel, Vick’s plant, and chives. There may be something I’m forgetting.
Plants I Ordered In April:
The two Berry Taffy bee balm plants are doing well in the ground and have been blooming. At the bottom you can see them putting out new leaves and spreading.
The two Purple Illusion Spike speedwell plants are doing well also. As of now they’re both in containers.
I read that they will probably be about 18 inches in width, and they’re already close to that in height. So I’ll probably be moving them into the ground.
The two Lily Of The Valley plants I ordered haven’t really grown. The description said that they thrive in the shade, but I haven’t seen any new growth since I planted them.
Serendipity Allium is growing in the container it is in.
And the tickseed is about to get too big for the galvanized container I have it in one side of.
I’m considering moving the Vick’s plant but I’m not sure where I should move it yet.
I read that its fragrance can clear up sinuses and ease congestion in respiratory tracts. It is in Vick’s VapoRub.
Its menthol odor is supposed to also repel mosquitoes. And it also attracts plenty of bees and butterflies
I currently have it located over by the tickseed in a container.
Most of these plants are sharing a container, so I’ve probably got a lot of relocating to do. I’ll worry about that as they grow through the summer.
I truly did not think the herbs and perennial plants I ordered online were going to make it at first. But now they seem to be doing well.
Zinnia Seeds:
Above is the galvanized container where I planted the zinnia seeds.
I really hated losing the medium-sized rosemary in a pot that I moved here. But it didn’t make it through the winter of 2022.
I loved that plant. Loved brushing against it and having the sharp scent released.
The mystery plant whose leaves got eaten up by rabbits last year was moved a few months ago over by the bee balm.
It is growing rapidly and so far it isn’t being chomped on yet. If I had to guess, I’d say the mystery plant is a Black-eyed Susan.
I don’t know if you wax poetic about your garden plants quite like I do. My plants feel like friends that I nurture and coax along.
But I think if you love them and do your best by them, they will give you all that they can.
A friend gave me a bag of her leftover zinnia seeds. I scattered them in various places in my backyard over a month ago, and nothing! She scattered them willy-nilly in her yard last summer and got colorful surprises all over the place, so go figure. Could be because it’s so dry here. We haven’t had rain in weeks. So now I took some more zinnia seeds and planted them in a pot and will keep up with regular watering.
I had zinnias planted and some bug made a meal out of the foliage. I put some organic stuff on them but already pulled some out.. the ones I planted in pots with other flowers are fine…my lilies of the valley are very invasive…they have aroot system underneath and just keep spreading…so be cautious.. today I bought some moss roses …just had to have some and they are beautifully bloomed…yesterday we had a humming bird moth here…it was so fun to watch…the hummers themselves have been so busy…it is so fun to see the flowers change everday…and the struggles are real…the deer chewed on my clematis, flocks,and trumpet vine…enjoy each day💕
I do truly enjoy each day. I love walking out among the plants and herbs and flowers just to see if there are any changes. I have my Lily Of The Valley in containers.
Dang squirrels! You have a wonderful variety of plants. This year I am trying a perennial ice plant which reminds me of one of my favorites, moss rose. I just planted a yellow canna and a lavender. I lost my rosemary this past winter also. I am waiting for my sunflower seeds to come up. We really need some rain here which is unusual this early in the season. I feel for the farmers.
Hasn’t rained much here either. I go out with my new watering system I ordered and water each plant.
Your garden is looking beautiful! I may try some herbs. When I plant seeds, I use window screening that I got from the hardware store, and lay it over the pot and anchor it down with rocks. Otherwise, my cats dig in them and lay in them! it’s easy to cut with regular scissors and let’s in the light and water. when the plants start coming up, I lay garden stakes across the tops in various angles which deter the cats from laying in the pots. I usually cut the stakes in half. Marilyn
Great idea! Thanks!
I know I’ve said this before, but will say it again. I am SO happy to see you able to create a garden again. I too think of my plants as precious beings and watch over them carefully. On June 1 I sowed Thumbelina zinnias and they are emerging. Yes, little eggs hatching! They are probably the smallest zinnias which I need for my little balcony garden. But that’s fine.
Bought a beautiful petunia, wave variety I think, called Black Cherry – beautiful deep red.
Everywhere I looked online they were out of those smaller zinnias.
I got mine at Lowe’s.
You have so many different plants Brenda, you must feel like you are living in Heaven. What fun to see each different one of them, kinda sneak up, so to say, and surprise you. All of your herbs especially.
So sorry to hear that your Lily of the Valley haven’t taken off, yet. Anyway, when they do, they will for sure let you know. My plot, is getting pretty invasive, getting bigger each year, and now they started growing next to the house in the bark, which is several feet away from where they are planted. I guess they can fly in the wind, or something. I won’t dig them up tho, I like seeing them where ever they pop up.
Can’t wait to see your Zinnia flowers. I love those, so colorful, and the more you cut to put into a vase in the house, the more the plant thrives.
Enjoy your awesome yard, so happy you are sharing it with all of us!
I feel like I’m not doing something right with the Lily Of The Valley plants. They’ve been in the same pot in the same position since they were delivered. Maybe I need to move them.
Your garden is lovely and I am so glad you are enjoying it!
In South GA my little zinnia patch has been going wild (ie blooming a lot). My seeds were sown in very early April and about 5 weeks later they were 2’+ tall and blooming. I have had a hard time w aphids this year and I think I may dig them up soon – either start over or sow some other seeds that I have. But for right now they are a bright spot in my side yard! I had about 120 stems come up, but I have since thinned out at least a third of them!
I have always had really good results with Burpee seeds and especially the Zinnia Cut and Come Again (Mixed Colors). I buy them at Burpee.com or on Amazon from the Burpee store.
I ordered my seeds through either Amazon or Walmart. I love Renee’s Heirloom seeds. But she was already out of what I was looking for.
IEL, you can put a drop or two of dishwashing soap in water and spray it on your plants and the aphids will be gone. I’ve done this for a long time whenever they show up and this year it’s how I’m keeping them off my hibiscus.
Thanks Teri! I spray the plants weekly either w dish soap or Neem Oil. My zinnia patch is fairly tall (I have the tall zinnias planted) and it is quite dense – each stem has multiple sets of leaves and being close together it is difficult to get the undersides of all the leaves, but I try. Today I thinned them out again which makes it easier to get to the stems to spray them. I have found here in South GA that they will return after a few+ days so a weekly spray is needed. Thank you again for your helpful comment – I appreciate it!
You possess so much knowledge about gardening and such. It’s very obvious this is your passion. It feeds your creative soul, Brenda. I’m enjoying reading all about it.
You just automatically accumulate this knowledge over the years that you garden.
I hadn’t thought about it but you’re absolutely right. I think that’s true about everything. Serious lightbulb moment. LOL
You and your shade gardens are thriving.
I think so!
I miss my herb garden. I will be anxious to see if all your plants thrive that you just planted. Diana
The squirrels won’t stop digging at the seeds. Steve had a crisscrossed piece of wire he lent to me for the pot with the zinnia seeds. But the squirrels seem to be relentless with the other pots. They did holes. I go out and fill them back up. Not knowing if the seeds are being dislodged or not.
I love seeing your photos of your plants!!! Beautiful and fun to see their growth. We planted 2 more Gara this morning and added a canna and sunpatients to our yard.
It’s like watching eggs hatch to see plants come up!