Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Flower garden has been neglected long enough.

A mystery Iris. Isn't it gorgeous.
For the last year and a half the whole focus at the house has been on setting up vegetable gardens, at the expense of the flower beds. It was an easy choice. As I started tackling the flower bed yesterday, I realized quickly, that my vegetable gardening has completely changed how I treat the flower bed. It was very overgrown and just allowed to flower at will. Kind of a cottage garden style. I liked it a bit messy. I'd intervene when something got to the point that it's being crowded out. I was now looking at it with the same ruthless planning and culling I use in vegetable gardening. I cleaned up about eight feet of it and filled, packed and stuffed two very large garbage cans that we use for green recycle. We just had green recycle last week, so I've used up our monthly limit in one day. And that is just the green matter that couldn't reliably go into the compost bin.
This area under the Perdita Rose was so thick with iris and asters
you could not see the rose canes up to about three feet.
Wow. This post has not been 'posted' as I have been having trouble uploading photos to blogger.*** I have yanked out a lot of plants I didn't love. It really made the flower bed look much better. What a big job. I took my new huge birthday pot and put eight foot bamboo stakes in it and have planted Fortex pole beans in it. Thank you for the tip Brenda. I can't wait to try beans again. I don't think I've had beans for about thirty years. Maybe more.
Can't have a blog post without a vegetable. Here is my first ever
cauliflower. It's about baseball sized and has the leaves tucked
over the top now.
***I think I have figured out why I couldn't load photos to blogger. I was using the old version until they forced me to switch over to the new version. I just went in and tried it, and I had no trouble at all uploading photos. I'M BACK!!!!

7 comments:

Mark Willis said...

Well, you know my views on veg. If it comes to a choice between flowers and veg, the veg wins every time!
And anyway, many veg are very ornamental too - such as artichokes, Cavolo Nero, Runner Beans etc.

Diana Studer said...

glad to see your photos are happy ;~)

Indie said...

This year is the first that I've actually had a true veggie garden up and running (not counting the year we unsuspectingly planted several zucchini plants and couldn't give it away fast enough). It's been so much fun! It's hard to balance and give enough time to everything!

Gardeningbren said...

Hope you like the Fortex..they really are the best bean I have grown..tender as young ones, and just the same when older.

I love that overgrown flower style in my beds, and so do the bees and hummingbirds. I tend not to control too much, just keep a neat edge and deadhead when needed. Each year is different, just like the veg garden.

High five for the cauliflower..grown from seed if I remember. Very cool indeed!

Erin said...

I am so anxious to try the beans. So, this may sound like a dumb question. Do you just boil them and eat with butter and salt. That is the only way I've had them...and I was about ten!! I figure there has to be a more interesting way to cook them?
Yes I grew the cauliflower from seed. Yayyy. Today Amanda picked off about a dozen of those green caterpillar things. I am watching them like a hawk now. I've heard you pick at five to six inches across. So we are almost ready. I'm just going to make dip and eat it raw.

Andrea said...

Hi i just saw your blogsite today. I've been out of blotanicals for some months and I am back today to peep, seems like the people in the favored page change a little. I read also some of your past posts, and i love your technique of vinegar and detergent. Do you maybe know the spray concoction for aphids and mealy bugs, they are my enemies! thanks.

Erin said...

I just came in from spraying the buttercups. I think I'm winning,
For aphids I put liquid castille soap with water in a spray bottle. That works. I have never tried it on mealy bugs. I have a jade with them and I just mash them with my fingers when I see them. I use the same technique on spit bugs. Squish.