This is where I will be sometime today. It is hot and humid here although with a minimum of clothes it’s not too bad
The Pool
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Category Archives: Flowers
One View of the Canal
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I am here in Weeki Wachee
The Tomato Lady Goes on Vacation
I am on vacation now after a grueling tomato season. I am going to share it with people who read my blog. Mostly because I don’t want to start a new one! BTW we still have more tomatoes to sell at home. My dear, sweet, did I mention handsome husband, is manning the fort.
The flight from Spokane to Denver seemed relatively short. By the end of the flight, as we were descending into Denver I was having a “power surge” accompanied by a queasy stomach. My seatmates were very comforting and understanding as I tried to hide my head in the corner and use the little white paper bag. Ugh! I don’t understand the mechanics behind it but breathing in and out of the bag seem to help. After we landed I was able to get off the plane and stretch my legs and get something small to eat. Eating of, course being supremely difficult due to the fact that I had two teeth pulled and a root canal on Monday, two days prior. I reported back to the plane as requested, 40 minutes later. Now here I sit because they won’t let anyone board due to the small problem of no pilot! So we wait, and wait, and wait. Finally, another plane pulls in, and lets us use one of their pilots. I think that was the plan all along, the hitch being that it came from Chicago which had almost been shut down due to severe electrical storms. Thus, the late pilot. I used to think it would be great to stopover in all kinds of airports giving me a feel for different parts of the country. Alas, one airport looks like the next. One thing that struck about the Denver airport was that is very flat. The fog/smog/clouds kept me seeing any mountains.
After about an hour we were able to board and take off towards Tampa. My new companion was a nice young woman on business. She happened to notice me reading a horse magazine and inquired if I had a horse. Her daughter has an appendix quarter horse whom she shows English. She showed mi pictures, I showed her mine. She lives in Valrico, close to Tampa. As we neared the airport, the pilot thanked us for flying Southwest and mentioned that we were a little late. A little late? We were over an hour late! But what the heck, I’m on vacation.
Tomatoes Are Up!
Sunday, the first of babies started showing up. I’ts amazing, we check several times a day hoping to see a shoot and nothing. The next morning you look and lo and behold they are there! The odd thing is that the peppers have only shown one volunteer, a giant marconi. It is the only one and they were planted at the same time as the tomatoes on the third of March, I think it was. As for outside, there are some yellow anenomes that are cheerfully blooming in the garden. After a tour of the garden beds I see a whole row of garlic that we missed and an onion that are about 3 inches high. No asparagus yet although I do see the tips of the rhubarb.
In the greenhouse, I have cabbage “Copenhagen” that I transplanted into cell packs. I’m thinking that I can put them outside since they can take quite a bit of cold. The hollyhocks and geraniums have been transplanted in cell packs and the alyssum and lobelia will be next. One of our cats got into the greenhouse and there are big footprints in some of the single cell starter packs. I am not happy.
Still it is wonderful to go into my little greenhouse and and see the blooms of the geraniums that I carried over last winter. One of my miniature roses is even starting to bloom!
When Gardening Becomes A Chore
Does this ever happen to anyone? Gardening becomes more work than pleasure? For me, it’s usually when I have too much on my plate. My goal this year is to enjoy it more often and ignore the weeds and all the things I need to do. All the visions I have of the garden rooms, immaculately weeded beds, lush plantings, rose covered wisteria, sitting areas, fire pit, etc. Last year, I did manage to go out and sit in a chair, in my garden and just feel the sun on my face and listen to the birds singing. It was hard to ignore the grass growing in the flower beds and the tomatoes that needed picking, and the flowers that needed deadheading and wait, that patch of lawn needs watering, oh where did I put my watering wand? I think you all know what I mean!
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Gardening Forever
I rec’d a catalog form Gardener’s Supply and this is on the front cover. I thought I’d share this since there are a lot of people who want to garden but can’t get ont heir knees. I will post other things that you can do to make it easier in the coming weeks and days. This is one way of gardening when you have physical challenges and limitations.
Dinathus: Rainbow Loveliness
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This is the flower I mentioned in my previous post. This flower has a sweet, scent that permeates the air around my patio. It is absolutely lovely and flowers are airy and delicate. Very unusual and they last several years before they need to be replanted. I like them in pots up close.
Catalog Fever: Botanical Interests
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I’ve started going through my seed catalogs. If I recycled them by the pound I’d have about 20 dollars worth. Some of these catalogs are miniature works of art. Beautiful pictures and fascinating information make it a pleasure to read through them. So far, I’ve gotten through 3 catalogs. One I’d like to recommend is “Botanical Interests”. Their website is http://www.botanicalinterests.com I was intrigued with their hand drawn illustrations which brought out the beauty in the flowers and the vegetables. Of course I’ve always thought that veggies are decorative in themselves. This year I will order the “Calypso Beans”, Lettuce; “Butterhead Speckles,” and a couple of melons; “Minnesota Midget” and “Canary Tweety”. I know, I know, I’ve never had good luck with melons but these look interesting and have shorter maturation dates. All gardeners keep trying, don’t we? For flowers, I will order a dianthus called” Rainbow Loveliness” one of the sweetest smelling and most delicate flowers I’ve ever had the pleasure to grow. I’m a big fan of impatiens and they have “Swirl Monet Blend”, a picotee blossom that looks like it’s in shades of pink. With all of the catalogs out there, most of whom are offering the same varieties, it can be hard to choose who to order from. It’s nice when a catalog goes above and beyond just trying to sell you seeds and treats you to a satisfying, visual experience, That alone sets them apart from the crowd and makes me want to purchase from them. Check out their catalog!
Notes From The Tomato Lady 