moved around

I roughly tore up all the milkweed on the larger sideyard last year- it always looks kinda sickly, and no monarchs visit. I knew I wouldn't get it all and sure enough some are sprouting up again. Two also were higher up the slope among the obedient plants and turtlehead- must've come up from seed- I dug those and moved them to a blank spot against the house wall. Maybe they will do better in a different location.

The obedient plant patch is spreading- sideways into the walking path (which isn't paved yet, just grass and weeds I keep mowed short). I dug up a bunch along the edge and resituated them further down.

Also dug up some of the 'autumn joy' sedums from the front bed- giving more room to the pulmonaria I've put in that spot

Since learning that the daisy-looking plant with nice scented leaves (when you break them) is a native that feeds the pollinators, I've been rescuing the ones that come up in the lawn, moved them to a back area under a tree where I don't want yellow salvia anymore. The fleabane actually looks nice there. Here's some I put in pots to take to the plant trade, as well.

spring flowers!

tulips (a few days ago)

and now-

spring beauty 

bleeding hearts emerging 

Camellia!

For the longest time I didn't know what this flower was coming up through my spiderwort, 

but I found out this week that it's Virginia bluebell!

There's grape hyacinths in the backyard scattered here and there

and violets everywhere.

Soon I will also have lily of the valley,

Lungwort:

Lots of hellebores this year:

and that's enough pictures for now

warming up

It's going to be 80° today.  My thyme plant is greening up

and the chocolate mint is showing new leaves

Out front the tulips were getting eaten by deer (or rabbits?) but I have been sprinkling cat fur (there's always a fresh supply around my house!) and human hair (likewise from my hairbrush) around the plants, and it seems to have stopped.

They don't touch the alliums growing in nearly the same spot. I have a nice row of those going partway across the front bed now, and hope to remember to divide some of the larger clumps after they bloom, to extend it further.

It's nice to see other things coming back as well- the clary sage and groundcovers-

the smaller lungwort I moved here in the fall- didn't dig up and transplant enough of the 'autumn joy' sedums right next to it though.

Guess I haven't lost that old habit after all, of walking around in the spring taking pictures of the same things over and over, because I'm so pleased to see them again. Still alive and well.

work!

I made a list of tasks for the garden, and surprised myself by getting more than half of them done today. Plus a few other things that I just started to do while out there. Spent much of the day outside, it felt great though my muscles are very sore now!

Broke apart a straw bale and spread it over the garden beds. I had four bales and was surprised that one was plenty for all eight beds- and a good two inches thick, at that. That stuff is really compact! I already like this better than dry leaves as winter mulch- it doesn't blow off and around the yard again when it's windy. Got to figure out how to store the other bales to keep dry. If I don't have any problems with the mulch (mildew, or tons of wheat sprouts ugh) I will happily use more on the beds in spring, around the plants.

I cleaned up the smaller sideyard today. Cut back joe pye weed where the dead leaves had blackened (from aphids I think). Pulled out flopped over gladiola foliage that was going through fence into the neighbor's space. My black-and-blue salvia is so lush and thriving over there! It had spread to almost completely cover the lamb's ears (which are nearly all gone- or dormant- only one sad plant could I find) and somehow, I don't care. I trimmed the blue salvia a bit, and gave it leaf mold mulch, and pulled up vinca around it much as I could.

Moved some plants around in the front bed, under the house windows. I dug up and moved forward the two small newer azaleas, and moved to the back the one young beautyberry that's doing great, and put in the same row two more beautyberries. They had been in the back side bed flanking panicle hydrangeas, and must've got too much shade or competition, because just thin slender bits compared to the one that's been in front. So hope they will grow more here, and grace my front yard, I can just picture them draping lovely over the edging onto the lower bed (it's two tiers kinda). There's two very cut back little evergreen shrubs in between the beautyberries, maybe they will show some green when I cut the beauties back. Or maybe they will get overwhelmed, not sure how that will work out.

I pulled up and cut back more yellow salvia in front (not so fond of it anymore). Yanked out some sensitive fern- likewise loosing my admiration for that plant. It just looks dead half the year- from heat especially it suffers. I mulched the two young arborvitae- they're actually doing well! Dug up and moved a few pulmonaria, and dug up and moved (divided also, to spread it out) the calamint  that was in front right by the porch (an azalea has taken its place now). I put it along side bed 4 in the garden. Except- there was something else there growing up new sprouts already. I don't remember what else I took cuttings of and stuck in the ground here. Wild geranium?

Broke up the bottom end of last year's leaf pile- the thick mulchy stuff that's (just like my compost pile) full of tree roots. I did a rougher job of it, this just for feeding plants. Gave plenty to the black-and-blue salvia (two bucketfulls), a bucketfull spread around the new redbud out front, and half a bucket each to the young trees on the larger sideyard (redbud and japanese maple hybrid). Also fed one rhodedendron, the smaller forsythia, spicebush, all the plants I moved around in the front, the larger established beautyberry (I had to prop up trailing branches off the ground- it's going to need a good cutback later this winter!), the row of boneset, the oakleaf hydrangeas, and my three surviving ferns in the way back. There's maybe two bucket's worth left to break up and decide who gets it.

I also cut back seedhead fluff off the larger 'chocolate' joe pye plants and the boneset, and scattered in places where I would like more to grow.

Sorry no pictures. Maybe I will get some tomorrow to add in.

the bigger sideyard

I still think of it as the 'sunny sideyard' and the narrower one with the steps as the 'shady sideyard' even though now they both get sun, what with trees removed years ago. So- it was all shabby and a mess over here. At least, the plants against the house. The huge hostas all eaten away, and edges dried out from the heat we had up until just recently, too. All the sensitive fern looking terrible- I ripped a lot of it out, that had spread too far.

There was sensitive fern encroaching on the pulmonaria- dug that all out, pulled mock strawberry, pulled out older dead leaves underneath that had aphid sign, and tidied it up. Mulched with leaf mould.

Sensitive fern had also grown in among the lily of the valley patch- cleaned that all up too. Lots of these crisped edges from the heat and dryness as well.

Here's a long shot of all that. It's so uneven. I really need to edge this bed with stones, too, and I want a path of big stepping stones or pavers all down the side, and then the main group of plants to the right (center of the hillside) just fill in so there will be no more mowing over here. That's my long-term plan.

Closer photo, though at an awkward angle- you can see from left to right (going uphill) the edge of beautyberry, spiderwort, lily of the valley, lungwort, sensitive fern and then ostrich ferns mixed in with the remnants of the hostas, euonymus and yellow salvia at the top corner. Really the ostrich ferns are doing the best here right now! 

I threw down dried seedheads cut off the spent joe pye weed on the other sideyard, into the bare gap against the wall here. Hoping they grow nice and tall. Don't know if they'd get enough sun, though.

Bright spot here, top of the middle flower bed, is the red-hot poker my friend gave me. I did water it extra during that super hot week we had- and cut off the flower stalks when they faded, and it surprised me by sprouting two more! So I think this one's going to do great here.

And when I was pulling up crabgrass and digging in the catmints, I found a little bit of hyssop in the other corner, still alive. I thought that plant had all died out in this area. It's nice to know there's still a bit here, because the one down in the planter by the rear deck, isn't looking great right now. (I've trimmed it and doused with soap against the bugs, and given it new mulch, so we'll see).

on the second sideyard

where the maples came out. This spot against the house looks nice right now- until the deer get at it. I should dig and move that ostrich fern that's come up in the middle of the hosta- but not sure if I can do it without damaging one of the plants. Maybe to divide the hosta.

The sensitive ferns are coming up. 

Pulmonaria is almost done blooming- all the flowers fallen over from center, they sure are glorious. Caught a bee in the photo- upper left!

Lily of valley starting to flower

All the gladiolas arising-

Milkweed is coming up-

It's already spreading! Which the swamp ones on the other side of the house never did. This one is further downslope, right next to one of the little hollies.

Which isn't doing so great. Some leaves yellowing with spots. I think it's holly leaf-spot- a fungal disease. Starting to wonder if this is another volunteer plant I'll regret having moved and encouraged to grow. If a thicket of milkweeds does better in this spot, I'd rather have them here!

Not really on the sideyard, but on that same side of the back area- I was cleaning up more leaf litter and weeds, and found to my surprise that what I think is the canna lily, regrowing! I had planted these because they were freebies, and then mulched them heavy against winter instead of digging up to store indoors, without much expectation they'd survive. Well, I think one did but looks like a deer chomped it. Either that or I accidentally got it with the lawn mower blade.

second sideyard

Starting cleaning up a bit more over here, too. Pulled weeds, mock strawberry and old mulch away from the lungwort. I think I could divide this one next season! It's grown so much.

Did the same around the little clump of spiderwort, and found something that puzzled me

what is this plant, growing near its base? I feel like I really ought to recognize it. Maybe pokeweed.

The ostrich ferns further downhill in shade aren't showing above ground yet, but some here against the house in the sun are, and I found fiddleheads of sensitive fern just starting to push up.

It feels good to get out and work in the yard again, to get dirt under my fingernails. I'm still feeling sad at not having enough energy to go further and plant the whole garden, though. 

One lovage has come up- did the second one die this winter. Which would be okay, I never use all the plant anyway, but I like having two.

the big sideyard

I have to differentiate the two. The first sunny sideyard, which is narrower, I think of it as the smaller one. And the second sunny sideyard, which was in shade before we had those huge maples cut down, is wider and more open, so I think of it as the bigger one. I spent half a day out there, pulling crabgrass and the worst of the weeds. Left some things alone, like the wild violets

Found a few bugleweed (ajuga) that survived the tree-cutting

Yanked out a bunch of wild rose that was all tangled behind the beautyberry (those thorny stems had grown a lot thicker with more sun) and now it looks so nice! Anticipating the purple berries

Lungwort also impressed me how much it grew!

Ostrich ferns are doing way better now, too.

And the sensitive ferns seem to be reviving from the heat, and the bugs-

there's new fiddleheads under there

My shady 'purple corner' looks promising- I need more persian shield!

I like how the wandering jew has done, need more of that also!

Spiderwort is blooming again- floating above the green