cat damage

It is still just cold enough at night that I bring my tomatoes in, or keep them in all day round the clock- they've grown so tall no space under the cage so I had to prop it up on children's building blocks. Must be really happy in the mini greenhouse, because other tomato plants that have been in the coldframe right next to it, half the height and a bit yellowing on lower leaves. Unfortunately, my cat Eliza won't leave plants alone. Even the pot of wheatgrass I have just for her, I have to keep out of her reach and give access too just for five or ten minutes every other day- she chews it down to nothing. She's been sticking her paw through the cage bars, pulling the green bean stems towards her, and eating the leaves off!

Half of these had leaves. It's very frustrating. I had to put plastic panels against the cage sides to prevent her from ruining all of them.

I've also had to re-think my garden fence plans (no it's not built yet). It was going to border the lower deck in a way that would allow the cats access to the ground there, under the deck and through the garden. Now I'm going to just fence a loop around to the edge of the stairs, and access the garden myself from under the deck (I don't think a rabbit will go in via that way, the squirrel might?) Cats are confined to the deck only- and the gate at top of stairs. I've put short fencing around the lower railings so they don't lean out so far- always afraid they might try to jump one day.

They really enjoy being out there and Eliza begs sometimes, pawing the glass and meowing hopefully.

things growing

First true leaves of parsley!

My tomatoes have grown taller than the coldframe.

There's a few nights of frost still expected, I'll have to bring them in.

And move the plant cage again- it's now out on the deck protecting some things from my cat! I put a bit of fencing around the lower part of the deck railings, so the cats don't lean out so far looking like they'll jump. They really like hanging out on the deck with us now. But Eliza chomps all the plants. The foreground pot in here is of sprouted wheat I pulled out of the mulched beds and stuck in dirt for her- but I have to keep her from chewing it down to nothing, give her access to it only occasionally. Also protected are- thyme, chives (which she chewed a lot of) and dill. The mint pot is unsheltered, she leaves that one alone.

I also had to block her from getting onto the greenhouse shelves and biting plants in there. With the coldframe window.

The cats especially like being on the deck right now because there is a bird nesting under one corner of it- on top of that carpenter bee trap I hung.

Today I managed to get a few photos of it- I think they're house finches. The male has a rosy chest and head.

From above, you can put your eye to a crack between the boards and see straight into the nest- five small very pale blue eggs. I can't wait to see the baby birds hatch! 

potting up

the tomatoes. Can't believe they've grown so much in less than a week! There were so many, looking so healthy I only sacrificed a few to the compost (see bottom right corner).  This is the tray that got mixed, but I figured out how to tell the young plants apart. The 'sweetie 100' cherry tomatoes have smooth-edged emerging leaves (at the proximal end of the stem), whereas on the black cherry tomatoes it's already toothy.

I potted up a bunch of extras to either sell or take to the plant swap:

And kept the eight largest/ nicest looking for myself- you can't see them well though because already under the screen box and I didn't feel like taking them out again (it's kinda wedged snug)

Current plant protection measures- for recovery time from transplant shock and cold nights only- after this they will be spending more time outside. I have plants under the short white benches on top of the long bench, shielded by the wire shelf piece, and on top of the benches more plants covered by the mesh boxes I made. And more still, on the floor under the old animal cage. 

Whom I am protecting them from:

I think it's working well- though I can't fit very many more plants in there (and of course they take up more room since now in individual pots).

reckoning

There's a lot to re-evaluate as I start working in the garden again. I found out which plants can't survive the winter without extra mulch and care. I've lost my potted figs, chocolate mint, green onions, tarragon, some stinking hellebores, the hyssop, winter savory and probably more that I can't remember now. Or have forgotten their names. 

I was surprised to find that both rosemary plants are still alive- doing better when I ignored them. My shady sideyard has been overwhelmed by the joe pye weed and black-and-blue salvia (which pleases me). The salvia crowded out the lamb's ears and gladiolas. Somehow I don't mind loosing some glads- I'm not as fond of them anymore- but I do miss the lamb's ears. Mabye I will try to move them to a different spot, because I love seeing the blue salvia thrive. I even saw two hummingbirds fighting over the space this week! 

I find I'm not too keen on the yellow salvia under my trees anymore, or the sensitive fern that looks terrible half the year, or the 'autumn joy' sedums that the deer munch on so they don't look great and have very few blooms. My lilac appears to be suffering, some branches have died, and my lavender is much reduced in size, but I cut out a lot of dead stems and hope it will grow back.

Today I pulled out a ton of mock strawberry in and around some garden beds, and straightened out one whole brick row of edging, on bed 4. I thought I was lining the bricks up straight enough, but then when I got to the end the last brick wouldn't meet the corner one square. So I took them all off again and ran a string line from one end to the other. Redid it- much straighter! Packed the clay soil in tight underneath and hopefully I won't have to re-do this one for several years (the clay gets pretty solid). I'm pleased because this bed has always had a crooked edge where the stump of an old tree never came out. I finally broke up and removed most of that. Then planted some calamint (nepitella) along the edge- which I'd pulled up when trimming in the front bed. Stems had rooted where they trailed on the ground. Easy to move and put in more areas. Such a bright, sharp scent.

The lovage there at the end wasn't doing too great but a few weeks ago I cut out yellowing foliage, weeded around it, mulched and watered. It's perking up a little bit.

In bed 1, I yanked out all the mock strawberry but left half a dozen of this plant that's growing there as volunteer (or weed) also. I've always left a few of these around the yard, they seem to get eaten more by the insects - so I view it as a decoy or trap plant. I still don't know what it is!

I was also pleased to see that the little broken stone "mowing strip" I dug in along the outside base of bed 1, is mostly still in place! There were some weeds in the cracks but once I pulled those up, it was far easier to make this a clean edge when mowing. Encourages me to continue with that project (I have a lot of rocks stacked on my bench intended for this). There are more edging bricks to straighten too (as visible on the left).

Here's the few herbs I have: parsley, thyme and chives. All bought as starts from the nursery months ago, I didn't do anything from seed this year. With my cat Eliza in the window.

She was meowing at me.

I had basil and mint also, but they died. I forget to water sometimes, still. I've removed and dumped the soil from the planter boxes that hung on my deck railings. One was badly cracked and spilled- I'd fixed it with duct tape years ago but it wasn't holding and looked awful. Another was warped, and all four the plastic really faded and discolored. Not sure yet if I will replace those or use them somewhere else. 

It's a lot of work but I'm trying to just do a little bit at a time. Mostly focused on rebuilding and fixing structures in the garden, improving the soil again (when I pulled off the bricks, nice to see the soil was still dark and healthy-looking under the dried crusty top inches), and getting rid of weeds. Have to figure out a fencing solution too, or the rabbits will just eat everything I grow. Oddly, I have not seen many squirrels in my yard this year. We do have red-tailed hawks, an owl and foxes that come through regularly, I wonder if they have just reduced the numbers. Or if they don't have as many nuts to bury, or if they aren't interested in digging in my garden because the soil got so hard and compacted without me working and amending it.

tiny frog

The garden is still neglected, though I have begun to work in it again. Clearing weeds, spreading some light mulch, hauling extra dirt in from a neighbor. It's mostly clay so I mixed in some old potting soil and a handful of compost with live worms, per bag, letting it sit for a while. One bag didn't get the compost. Will see if it breaks down and improves a bit over the next few months (I'm not ready to spread it yet, going to straighten some of the garden edging and maybe transplant a few things out first).

Nicotiana and borage are still self-seeding, and the plant I think is shiso but never confirmed.

I looked over the railing the other day and saw something on a leaf. 

Went down and looked closer: a tiny tree frog. The size of my thumbnail. 

So cute. Of course it kept hopping away from us, but I called my kid down to see and we took pictures and got it to sit on our hands a moment. (Washed them well afterwards).

I think my cats

are best buddies now. They have two cat beds side-by-side, but try to fit in the same one together. It's snug!

Mabel wouldn't look at me when I squeaked to get them both facing the camera. 

baby snake

Found along the edge of garden bed, when I was trimming back the grass. After spending hours out there (or so it felt like) pulling the weeds from the beds. I saw this wriggle away and thought it was a large earthworm, but it moved differently. I actually saw three of them- and caught one (gently) just to take a picture.

Tiny Northern brown snake! (my best guess at identifying). I am fairly sure it is the same species I saw years ago as adult- I'm glad to know they're thriving in my yard. This one so small it's the width of my wedding ring. Literally.

I show nothing of the garden yet because it's in such terrible shape. But there are a few flowers lingering even though the heat- from a mixed packet my sister sent me last year. (I don't know which these are)

our two kitties

are starting to get along! Just a few weeks ago, I would have never seen them relaxing together like this. They still have plenty of spats and swat at or chase each other, but also do friendly greetings, nose bumps and I've even caught Eliza briefly licking Mabel's head, or giving her eye-squints. Good signs!

tiny baby frog

or toad, not sure- so very small! it was on the edge of the door of my car, of all places. Found it when getting out of the car. So glad I saw it, or might have accidentally squished the guy when closing the door! My daughter took a picture of it here in my hand. Later that night I found an adult leopard frog on the porch- missed getting a picture. I'd like to think that's the momma, but no idea if the little one is same species, or even if it hitched a ride home on the top of my car? or was on the driveway and hopped up randomly when we arrived.

some work

I've finally got out in the garden to start doing a bit of work again. Yesterday I cleaned up three of the beds, mostly pulling weeds, where I did a silly thing a month ago. On a whim I planted kidney beans. We've been eating the end of an older package of the dry beans, and I'd been tossing the unsuitable ones into the compost bin. Where some of them sprouted. So I thought hey, if the beans will sprout in my bin, won't they sprout in the ground. And beans will grow fast, like the heat, without needing much attention. So on a day when I really shouldn't have been working, I cleared the ground in three beds, made rows of holes with a stick, and sowed a few dozen kidney beans. No idea if the climate here is good for them, if they'll mature in time (planted late!) or anything, and it was a bad idea that day to do physical labor, even though it wasn't much. It was too much for me. 

But look! Two of the beds, about half the beans sprouted. Ha. That does feel satisfying.

That day I also cut back the dill, which had grown into a towering thing with drying brown umbrels of seed. Tall just like in that book I looked at disbelieving two years ago. I saved the seed.

It's much tidier around there now. I also cut back the lovage which was towering over my head and full of yellowed, bug-attacked leaves. That was all yesterday. Today I trimmed grass edge around four of the beds, and used it as mulch on the beans. I cut back the catmint which was going crazy and flopping all over the place, too tall. The ones I puzzled over earlier in the summer? Also catmint, they look just the same now. This little plant 

did grow up into blue sage! Cheers me to see it, even if there's only one.

In the herb bed I cut back the lemon balm which was making leggy seed stalks, and the sculpit whose balloon flowers were flopping all over the top of other plants, and happily saw the winter savory is thriving again! I trimmed that one a bit just to encourage spread. Trimmed lavender back from the edge but going to do a proper pruning later when I can take more care for the shape.

I startled a rabbit out of the perennials when carrying stuff back to dump in the compost bin. Found a yellowish toad when I was trimming grass edges. And saw the most beautiful thing- a brilliantly gold beetle. It looks like a ladybird that's a jewel. Not kidding, it's spectacular. There were two. I caught one and took inside put in a jar (with a loose lid) to identify. Came back the next morning to take a photo before setting it free- and it had changed color. Now a duller orangish tan with translucent edges and faint spots. I'd read they do that, but hadn't expected to see it. I hope I find another one and get a photo of the gold color, it was just so stunning.

There's a giant squash growing in bed nine. At least, I think it's a squash. I thought it was a volunteer zucchini, from the year before. The leaves are wrong- they're too round and not notched enough. It does have the big yellow flowers just like a squash, but only one plant so don't know if I'll get any fruit to find out. 

There's lots more to catch up on, but that little bit of work just got me so tired- in a good way! I'm happy to be physically tired from actual work again, instead of dragging tired from illness and recovery. 

My milkweeds are tall and robust and making fat fuzzy-edged seedpods. But no sign of monarch caterpillars. I feel like I always expect them too early, so will check again! 

Up the railings to the deck, the handful of cardinal climber I planted late, is finally getting its height. But no flowers yet. And no hummingbirds. The blue salvia on smaller sideyard is in flower, but I just haven't been out there enough to see if the hummingbird visits. I'm sad to think it might have gone to forage elsewhere for the season because I didn't have cardinal climber growing for it yet.

Last thing to note: I learned this week that I can soften crystalized honey in my greenhouse, and melt butter for a baking recipe, and put dough in there to rise. But it's not quite hot enough to melt candle wax out of the bottom of a jar! (Worth a try, I thought).

young mantis

So hi, it's been a while. Hard to find motivation to post when I have not really been gardening. I have a backlog of some photos from June when I did take a few pictures of things but then never found the energy to come post them yet. I really need to get out there and clean up! but still have to take it easy for a while.

My lavender and catmint are going crazy out there, the borage did beautifully this year (no japanese beetles spreading illness to squish- I never saw one!) but is now starting to die off so I need to cut a lot of it out and give the seedling celosia in that spot room to grow. Cranesbill in the front is sprawling all over the bed edge and needs a trim, and the clary sage have all gone to seed so I need to cut back their stalks now too. The sculpit is going wild with balloon flowers all over the place that I also need to trim off- because have found some spread into the front bed of their own accord! 

On the deck my dill and basil finally took off in their deck containers, and the thyme is doing just okay. It's barely enough to flavor lentils once a week. Parsley is small and struggling, the sage cuttings never took- all died, and my garlic chives died too. However I'm happy with my fenugreek- finally got two of those growing okay and they give me the lovely distinct scent again when I brush the delicate foliage. 

I have other stuff to report, but will get to that later. It's still a garden, even if awfully neglected and scraggly this year. The rabbit has got so bold as to come right up against the decking and snack on clover in the empty beds (and plants in the others too I'm sure). Mostly because my elderly cat is not allowed to roam the yard by himself anymore, I think. Milkweed on the larger sunny sideyard has grown tall and robust, sporting some flower heads and I can't wait to get out there and look for monarch caterpillars.

But! I came here today to share a photo I got of a young preying mantis, perched outside the window above my 33L aquarium. It just made me really grin to see him (her?) looking back at the camera thru the window. I am pretty sure they are my favorite insect of all.

I had a bird in my hand

I'd been out in the sideyard, pulling a few weeds and watering some of the newer plants. My cat followed, and there were several wrens scolding harsh little buzzing alarm calls from the euonymus shrub, over and over. I wonder if they have a nest there, although it wasn't just one pair scolding, but three or four birds. Did two pairs nest in the shrub? or another pair nested nearby and they gang up on my cat? probably

Anyway, I went back in the house, where I'd left the sliding glass door to the deck open for some fresh air. Heard a wren again, chirping but it sounded particularly clear, and too loud. In the house. I turned and yes there was a bird in the house fluttering against the window and when I went to try and shoo it outside, it flew onto the mantlepiece, then down near the floor into a corner, then around into the kitchen where it landed on the counter among some dishes, and so on. Trying to hold my coat wide and coax it towards the open exit didn't seem to be working, so I got a lightweight small towel. 

When it flapped along the kitchen windowsill (that has a bug screen so I couldn't just open it for the bird) I moved to hold the towel up behind and kind of cupped it around the bird and suddenly it quieted in my hands. I held them both loosely around the bird in the towel, and stepped outside. Opened my hands more, and for a few moments the wren was just perched on the towel, on my hands. So small, and so very light! If I'd had my eyes closed, I wouldn't know there was anything sitting on that towel at all. When it sprang into the air dipping flight away into a tree, I didn't even feel it leave. 

I was glad to help it out into freedom.

against the carpenter bees

I should feel glad this was successful, but it makes me sad too. Few years ago (after realized the paper bag trick failed) I bought these jar things to trap carpenter bees.

They work, somewhat. Each one now has at least one dead bee- maybe two in the one by the garden.

There's one been persistently flying around my deck every day, of course not deterred by my squirting water at it (bee veers away around the house, comes back within half an hour, over and over) or swatting at it with a handtowel (the idea was to knock it on the ground). 

I finally took my makeshift insect net and nabbed it when it was slowing down to aim at a hole in one of the deck railings. Brought swiftly to the ground and ended with my shoe. I feel bad about it, but I can't have them riddling my deck structure with holes (yes, we do need to paint it).

On the other hand, I don't mind the wasps- there's mud dauber nests under my back awning and I just leave them alone. I don't mind the other bees, either- the smaller ones that use already-existing holes. It was amusing to see one hovering around the holes in my smaller compost bin under the deck, that's made of an old metal trash can with holes in the sides.

Just don't want the carpenter bees. 

small wildlife and things

in the yard. When I was digging compost out of the pile (still a lot to spread) I startled a leopard frog. I reached for the camera in my pocket but in the few seconds it took to lift up, the frog was gone.

But I did get a picture of this little toad that was under the weeds in my garden bed 7. I think it's a Fowler's toad.

The other day I was out picking dandelion heads from the smaller sideyard (just so the poufs don't scatter seed everywhere) and saw a narrow tail disappearing under the stepping stone. I thought it was a baby snake and wanted to see- lifted the edge and there was a fat skink! pressing himself further away from me and then dashed out into the open, scrambled into shelter behind a shrub so fast it made me laugh. The stones have a hollow underneath and I wonder if the skinks shelter there in winter, which pleases me. Though it probably makes a nice place for slugs to stay, too.

Today I found another brown skink, it had fallen into an empty bucket. So glad I found it while still alive. Called my husband to come see it up close (would have hollered for my kid but she was at school) and then set the bucket down laid sideways to let it go. It sat there very still as if stunned on the decking for a moment then ran down between two boards, so quick. Yesterday I saw a very small skink with bright blue tail, on the railing up top. So lively again.

My daughter looked out across the yard and said "oh, is that my favorite weed?!" at the ajuga. I'm not sure if it's the one she's thinking of- she said it grew at our previous house, and she liked to pop the "bumps off the stem in a row." Maybe it's the ajuga she means, when it has buds or seed formed? I just thought it was great she has a favorite weed. Who else but the child of a gardener.

Although I'm dismayed to learn that once again, I planted something that's considered an invasive in my yard. Both the vinca here growing among the bright purple bugleweed.

At least the lamb's ears opposite are not invasive, just alien.

fox glimpse

in the yard behind mine

wasp

found crawling on the windows inside- I let it out

moth

A greenish moth, on a window, seen from underside. Maybe the blackberry looper, I attempted looking up its identity.

wildlife in the yard

I am pretty much abandoning the garden for rest of the year. My ankle is not better from accident three months ago, doctor said it shouldn't still be swelling and sent me to phyiscal therapy. Evaluation there said I did too much way too soon, have to "take it easy" again, avoid all heavy work- that includes squatting to pull weeds and more stairs than strictly neccessary- so now it's difficult to do the minimal to keep the yard looking decent, or tank water changes either for that matter. 

We've eaten the last few rutabagas, the remaining beets are pretty small and pathetic. Tomatoes all look iffy. I still have plenty of chard, collards and yellow squash. And the cowpeas are finally making pods! But I keep forgetting to go pick them tender, so probably will just harvest as dry seed later. I thought my cardinal climber vine was going to bloom way too late to feed any hummingbirds, but there's plenty of flowers now, and I see a hummingbird come by regularly, visit every bloom in methodical order. It's often here when I'm washing dishes, so lovely to see it out the window. Once I saw two hummningbirds, swerving and zooming at each other in the air- fighting over rights to my little flower patch? I'm pretty sure they've been feeding on the black and blue salvia on the sideyard too, but I haven't been over there in a while honestly. 

So here's some pictures of a few wildlife glimpses I had in the past week or so. Marbled orb-weaver spider

Preying mantis- I found it on the sliding glass door above my chocolate mint and basil plants-

and a few days later on the stored coldframe.

And a fox! passing through the neighbor's yard behind ours.