Air, earth and water

There is a sense of release in ridding the gardens of weeds, or grasses as mine are mostly. That was my plan for today.

I woke before seven, pulled on a bathing suit, pants and shirt and headed outdoors in the cooler air before the heat of day could intrude. 

My first task was a holdover from last week: climb the tall ladder and trim the crape myrtle branches nearing the roof's edge.  It was an easy chore, taking only a few minutes.

Since my pool garden fills with wild grasses that blur the landscape I have envisioned, my second task was pulling out the grass.  Afterward, I relished the scene as the red caladiums (or is it caladia?) have more than doubled in number and size this year and, in designer parlance, "make a statement" in the center of the garden.  I have caladiums scattered in other gardens and want to add more, especially the red varieties.

That garden done, I headed to the garden along the fence to check on plant growth, pulling weeds here and there.  The garden behind the pool screen was next.  It too was full of wild grasses, embellished with several other spreading weeds.  They were gone in half an hour and I could dead-head the roses as I traveled the length. 

Last but not least today was fertilizing the roses and the magnolias. 

Then came the best part of the morning:  I eased into the pool to cool off, swam a few laps and sat on the steps to absorb the beauty around me. 

Life is good and I am so blessed.

* An added note: I've commented about following in my father's gardening footsteps; today is his birthdate, 99 years ago.

Up on the roof top

Despite my best intentions, I have not been able to get into the gardens for a few weeks.  Both higher-priority projects and physical conditions have interfered.   The physical is always present -- sore hip primarily -- and this time was caused by the higher-priority: cleaning out the gutters on the roof.  What makes the job difficult is the placement of the gutters: below the roof-edge wedged next to the structure of the pool screen.  The only access from the top of the roof.  The only tool I have found to work is a plastic kitchen spatula that will fit through the narrow opening and dig through and force out the layer of matted leaves and grit on the bottom.  Once the bulk is loosened and pushed toward the drain spout, a hose will wash most of it down the spout as well.  It's a tedious chore and not one I can complete in a day like I used to. 

The heat got me the first day, even though I started about 9 a.m.  However, it did engender a thought about a new tactic.  As leaves had scattered across the roof, I ended that day trying to sweep them off and not back into the gutters.   I sure could use a leaf blower, I thought.  And then as I looked at what was left of the job for the next day, I realized the gutters were actually overflowing for an inch or two with very dry leaves.  Yes, I would try a leaf blower, which I would have to buy.

The next time on the roof was not the exact next day, but when I did get up there, I was very pleased with the results of the blower.  I'm not sure my neighbors appreciated the effort, though, because I had decided I would have to beat the heat and started the job shortly after 7 a.m.   The blower cut the time probably in half. 

Fortunately, last week was a dry one.  Now we are getting almost daily showers and, thankfully, no more overflow on the gutters. 

Maybe I'll get back to the gardens tomorrow.... if the rain holds off until after lunch.

Lovely surprises

On my frequent walks around our community, I am often enveloped in a cloud of lemony scent that means a blooming magnolia is nearby.  This morning, as I prepared to mulch my new bed of lilies, I detected the faint scent.  I turned and discovered my magnolia in the front yard adorned with the creamy white cup of the flower beginning to bloom (above).  This is a relatively new tree so the branches are still sparse with leaves, but how joyous that it is blooming again.

After the mulching, I retreated to the back yard and discovered the magnolia there in bloom, as well -- one opening and another bud just above.  This tree is also small because the trunk's leading branch was broken 2 years ago.  It's more of a bush, which I'm willing to accept if it keeps blooming.

As I looked over the rest of the garden nearby, I was happy to see the dwarf powder puffs growing and blooming like crazy (below).  They are fulfilling my vision for the garden, as I hope they will grow taller and fill the back area of the fence with their color.

Too much fun in the sun

As so often happens, I have one project in mind but get distracted and do much more. 

On Sunday I wanted to clean out the small garden on the south side of the house and then plant more than 60 lily bulbs.  All was well at first, but then I decided I would replant my potted tree bougainvillea in the back yard into one end of new garden.  As I walked back and forth from the back yard, I stopped several times to pull weeds in the long garden in the front yard.  Finally I got back to planting the rest of the lilies.  Through all these activities, the sun was walking across the sky and reducing the shade I had started with.

During these trips I stopped twice to rest and drink some water, recognizing some signs of heat exhaustion.  But I continued to finish my project.  When I finally did finish and went onto the patio to rest and drink, I got sick.  I should have known better.

And now I do.  My task for today was to fix the three sprinklers that were flooding, or one if that was all I could manage.  Fortunately, the fixes were relatively easy -- with a little help from my husband to free broken plastic pipe stuck inside the sprinkler head -- and I accomplished all three within an hour.  

Luckily we haven't needed sprinklers for a week since we've been getting steady afternoon rain storms of an inch or more. 

The next step in the lily project is putting down mulch, on Friday, and then I can sit back and watch for the lilies to emerge. 

More later.....