how some things are doing

out there- these are some of the newer plants, from the last swap I went to, months ago. Coreopsis on the narrower side yard did okay- at least, it bloomed- but flopped over into a tangled cluster. Pretty sure it ought to look a bit more tidy?

The Liatris spicata has made interesting spikes topped with purplish-pink flowers- but they're so straight and tall, the few in the front bed feel out of place. And this one's leaning.

I'll move them to join these on the side later

The obedient plants are unimpressive- just greenery. So is the boneset, but it's grown so tall and healthy looking, actually done better than anything else I planted in that spot back near the fence yet. I would like to get another boneset, maybe an earlier-flowering one . . . 

I've got a volunteer baby evergreen back here, too- that escaped my attention when it was smaller (I usually pull them when just a few inches high)

Here's that dusty miller I always thought would die- it survived and grew a little more. I think because I've started pulling out and cutting back all the yellow salvia around the panicle hydrangeas. They're spreading and it's too much.

Still love my false indigo plant, and it has these odd, fat fuzzy gray-blue seedpods now

Black-eyed susans have spread to the other side of the walking path. So bright in that corner. My kid likes picking them.

My milkweeds are tall, tall! But no monarch caterpillars still. I'm disappointed at that. They've got heavy hairy seedpods on them now (not pictured) and quite a few are flopping over- I think probably because growing near the remnants of old maple stump under the ground, which might thwart the roots of new plants still?

Last of all to note, here's one of my redbuds that survived the deer so far (because I fenced it in). Funny, this is supposed to be an understory tree, but all the others which grow in shade are much smaller than this one, which is getting full sun more than half the day.

out in the yard

I had thought that ajuga was a shade plant. But this large clump that survived the removal of maple trees on my larger sideyard, has grown even bigger and is blooming great!

There's also tons of violets scattering down the hillside. I'm glad these aren't considered invasive, because I like them.

More bleeding hearts-

Found the crown of my false indigo is growing back, so I cut down its old stems. Only the larger plant, though. Smaller one closer to the hydrangea, no sign of it.

Nearby, glad to see this bit of artemesia is still alive too.

I feel like every spring I'm still looking for some as survivors, wondering if they made it through the cold. Especially when I wasn't out there mulching protectively as much as I used to.

I planted some stuff

perennials from the swap, mostly. In various edges of the yard, the yarrow, artemesia, spiderwort, strawberry begonia, blanket flower (with red/orange coleus moved next to it), ostrich ferns, and creeping jenny- divided into bits to make a little row of it. Some were looking very sad and I don't know if they'll make it- it rains tonight so I hope that helps. I was in too much of a hurry to take pictures, before a thunderstorm passed over. I did take clippings of the creeping jenny and put in a jar of tank water, see if they convert and root can plant some in the aquariums.

Also momentarily brought my fig trees in the house to repot- slightly larger- they barely gained an inch or two all round. These are the largest pots I have. Might be time to buy some nice very large planters for them.

plant swap!

I was delighted to attend the spring plant (and seed) swap at my local library (not hosted by the library, it's an individual group). I missed it in the fall, and last spring due to covid. This is what I took to give away- pink turtlehead, echinacea, a sprig of lavendar-

some coleus (the best ones leftover from the first set of cuttings I grew out) and one cilantro

A brandywine tomato, and a jade I've been growing for a while- one lady in particular was very happy to get the jade, and asked me how I grew it "so big!" so I showed her how I pinch them to encourage branching. Also, some packets of seed I'll never grow (sweet corn) and of saved seed I have so much of- cilantro, parsley, sage, echinacea, marigolds.

And here's what I got! The idea is you can take as many plants as you brought (though nobody checks, it's an honor system). I took twenty plants plus the seed packets, and didn't bring home quite as much- but some I'm so glad of that I don't mind. To start- a bunch of stonecrop. 

Creeping jenny

Yarrow

This one wasn't marked but I am pretty sure it's artemesia, or dusty miller- which would be nice because the ones I dug out of someone's yard and moved the year before all died on me, and the wormwood I'm trying to grow from seed hasn't sprouted at all.

Salvia lyrata- I kind I hadn't seen before

A sad-looking ostrich fern. There were many more, nicer ones- but other people got them first! (Behind it you can see the row of new geraniums, which I just moved up into larger pots yesterday)

A group of aloe vera pups, and a variegated spider plant- happy to have these because I used to have these plants but they died. I think I'm doing better by the plain-colored spider plant I have now, and with semi-succulents in general, so hope these do well!

Strawberry begonia. Again. The one I got year before, died. I mentioned that to another attendee at the plant swap and she said with surprise: "how did you kill it? they grow back outside!" It's usually grown as a perennial groundcover. Well, I got four clumps of it- one I'm going to try to keep as a houseplant again (because I do find it attractive) and the others put outside like everyone else does.

Not a great picture, because I'd already stuck it in the greenhouse, but this is spider lily, or spiderwort- scientific name tradescantia virginiana. I remarked on it when I saw the tag- yes, it's a native plant but what struck me is that it's related to tradescantia zebrina- or the wandering jew. They look nothing alike.

Most of the plants I got, had obviously just been dug out of the ground, a lot weren't in pots but just bare root. A bit wilting, and it was a warm day plus I am not sure yet where I will locate them all. So I put the bare root ones in pots with a bit of soil, and put most on the floor in my little greenhouse, to get some humidity and recover a bit from their shock. Except for the spider plant, aloe, and one strawberry begonia of course, which I kept inside. And this- my prize: 

It's a crown of thorns plant! Three cuttings, to be exact. I was so thrilled to see this I snatched it up immediately.

Years ago visiting a friend of my husband, I saw a large specimen of this plant in their living room window. I'd never seen one before and it was so striking. Wanted one ever since but never seen it anywhere for sale- in person that is. So I am delighted to have acquired this one, it was worth the whole swap to me. A bit concerned I might not have enough sun exposure for it (nearly all my windows are indirect light, the one window with direct light is always crowded)- but the lady who brought it said she puts hers outside for summers, and just overwinters it indoors. I'm certainly going to read up on it!

two things pink

My first bleeding hearts!

Small azalea by the front porch is really full of flowers.

A surprise- I thought this transplanted dusty miller was dead and gone, I was about to uproot the root mass and toss it. But there's young new growth in there!

Two days ago saw a horror- white clumps of mealy bugs all over my two boxwood shrubs by the front porch. I mixed up dishsoap water with a drop of oil, sprayed them heavily. An entire bottle to each shrub. Very satisfied to see white specks littering the ground- as if the bush shook off dandruff- the dead insects. After heavy rain that night, the plant looked a lot cleaner- still some sign of bugs so I sprayed it again the next day. It doesn't need a lot of trimming but I think I'm going to thin it out a bit to let some air circulation in- it's grown pretty dense.

I really need to get another photo of my clematis. More of its flowers have opened, the petals lie flatter now- and some are as large as my seven-year-old's face!

some stuff I moved around this spring

The little heucherella which isn't doing so great, I dug that up and moved it near the veggie garden, on a slight slope by the blue hostas.

Cleaned up the row of liriope and dug up one to shift it into the line- it was set back from the others and getting over-crowded by a nearby hellebore. Found on it and smashed another pest- one of those pretty cobalt-blue leaf hoppers.

I dug up, divided and spread into other parts of the yard my biggest salvia, which was still in the shade-garden-turned-to-nearly-full-sun. They survived the transition pretty well, considering the day after turned suddenly hot- 92° in may! I dumped extra water on them several times through the day. This one is now by the blue hostas.

Which are so gorgeous

Here's another blue one still in the back bed- which I probably need to relocate as well. Bleeding hearts to the side, astilbe behind it.

I really like this blue/green variegated one- its the only large one left in the back garden- its in the farthest shade side near the summersweet (which is just leafing out now) and where the mayapples got dug up.

Several of the divided salvias went around the tree near these few silver dusty miller that survived the winter. If they do well this summer and spread, I'll try moving a few divisions of that to another spot next year.

I also moved one of the hellebores, but that's for the next post just about them.

signs of life!

from an early spring walk around the yard- in no particular order:

my blue 'dusty miller'. Only the two small ones I grew out as cuttings in pots and planted on west side of a tree in the backyard are green now. Small ones in the front probably got stepped on, and the main plant may have suffered too much from transplant shock, but maybe it is just slower to wake up.

Sage around this backyard tree is still green, too

Although there's more of it in the garden. Time to ditch the dried bunch and start eating fresh!

Found quite a few volunteer borage-

coming up in sheltered spots.

This is the only plant around my mailbox right now. It sprouted earliest of all- over a week ago- between a rock and the mailbox post. Maybe that nook was just a bit warmer.

Green onions have been alive all winter. I need to eat them!

Rhubarb! Perhaps we will actually make pie of it this year.

Sweet peas coming up tons. I needn't have saved any seed last fall, ha.

Arum is more lush.

I cleaned leaf litter out of the crowns of liriope, to see if new growth had emerged yet

just barely- (and it looks bitten) Not time to cut the older foliage down, yet.

I thought it was too early for hosta, but brushed aside leaf cover. The big ones on the sideyard have purple crowns!

Salvia is coming up everywhere

that I planted it last year

stonecrop still hangs on by the edging where other sideyard drops off-

not nearly as numerous as the sedums among it. Which I think will shoulder it out. Those around the stump pushed up through the extra leaf cover I dropped on them before snowstorm, and wow they are thick already.

and there's more to come!