What did you do in the garden today?

[Swiss]

Got a bed re-weeded (had dug out grass before planting the peas, but little baby grass seeds decided that meant I prepared that bed for them, too), and another fully planted yesterday. All of my tomatoes and peppers are in the ground, finally! I'm planting differently, this year. I'm putting a heavy focus on companion plants. So, almost every bed has the middle dedicated to companions (flowers, herbs, smaller things that would benefit from the shade of larger plants...), and I am really excited to see how everything grows!!

Had my first harvest from the garden (and the wild patch under our utility pole) on Saturday:

Second harvest on Sunday:

Today is supposed to be cloudy, so a good day to focus on indoor chores, and if I get them done, I'll try to get into the garden. Our 2.5 year old pup has what I call Tufty Butt, and needs to be brushed, which is an outdoor chore.

I forgot to put the rice I made last night into the fridge, so I'm thinking I will toss it to the chickens. Does anyone else tell their chickens they have snacks for them by calling, "BAWK BAWK BAWWWK!!" Sometimes, I add, "Chickennnn Maaannnn!" My dad told me about that radio show, and it is perfect for calling chickens.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

We should've had rain all night. I saw the long row of green blobs on the radar, but we only got a few drops.

I just took a short walk around & got a few pics but I cannot be out in the sun at all right now so it is brief. I will be indoors today, wash & crate eggs for market, clean, etc. I will be painting indoors tmrw & on the jobsite daily.

So here are a few pic of what made me smile this morning. I wish Hostas were food, they obviously do the best!





Chicken alert....Rooster in the nest box everyone tries to cram in with him...the empty one on the left stays empty You should have heard the rucus Everyone was making. Too funny!!!

 

[fuzzi]

My fav garden spider, Golden Orb, they pretty much stay on their own web. When they feel threatened they bounce their whole web like it's a trampoline. I find them in many places & often relocate them to the safe garden, if they've made webs in dangerous places where they'll get mowed.
View attachment 3852065

They are called "writing spiders" here in NC, for the zigzag in the middle of the web. I love to see them.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

They are called "writing spiders" here in NC, for the zigzag in the middle of the web. I love to see them.

Yeah that zorro like emblem they make is pretty cool!

Those big gold spiders are all females. The male is a little skinny thing, doesn't even look like the same breed.

I don't mind them or Daddly Long Legs at all. I can't stand Black Widows or Hobos through.

 

[fuzzi]

So here are a few pic of what made me smile this morning. I wish Hostas were food, they obviously do the best!
...
View attachment 3852133

American Lady butterfly, I think.

Your yard has some similarities to mine.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

American Lady butterfly, I think.

Your yard has some similarities to mine.

I'm not ready to photograph my veggie garden yet, let me bounce back from the spinal shots, at least pull some weeds 1st. It's an embarrassing mess at the moment.

 

[TillyPeeps]

I finally found a way to stop raccoons from digging my gardens: neem oil! I saw some brown rot on my cherry tree leaves, so I sprayed them with neem oil. While I was spraying, the strong smell made me think it might deter raccoons too. So I spray around my gardens. The next three mornings, no digging in any of the gardens! I'm so tired of trying to save all the plants being dug out every morning! lost lots of tomato, watermelon, strawberry, and lettuce plants already. Tried deer repellent and pepper, never work. We will see how long will the neem oil work.

 

[chicken opey]

Oh I meant to share this doterra oil for mosquito and bugs! It really works. They land on me but then take off!

I dilute and put in a sprayer bottle. We also use it in a diffuser outside. It keeps mosquitoes away but not all flies.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I finally found a way to stop raccoons from digging my gardens: neem oil! I saw some brown rot on my cherry tree leaves, so I sprayed them with neem oil. While I was spraying, the strong smell made me think it might deter raccoons too. So I spray around my gardens. The next three mornings, no digging in any of the gardens! I'm so tired of trying to save all the plants being dug out every morning! lost lots of tomato, watermelon, strawberry, and lettuce plants already. Tried deer repellent and pepper, never work. We will see how long will the neem oil work.

I had "someone" repeatedly dig up All of my pepper plants. I even tried replanting them in pots. They were dug out again!
Neem oil, huh? Sounds like a plan!

 

[Liz Birdlover]

Since I'm still not allowed to bend yet to put out beer traps I decided to go with sluggo this year & it's worked great. I saw a couple dead slugs being eaten by ants yesterday. I'll only use it till the starts are big enough to survive a little munching.

Oh I know about bending over, or should I say attempting to bend over. And if ya do bend over, good luck unbending! So yeah we're supposed to bend at the knees right? Of course we are. Well, when you've got pain in torn meniscus, you tend to bend at the lower back more. Anyway...loading & unloading a simple dishwasher or getting clothes out of washer & dryer become a challenge. As far as setting the slug traps...I've gotten pretty darn good at a gentle Frisbee like tosses of saucers & pouring beer without bending.

Thank you. I know you have issues too, I hope that you get your relief also. If you ever want to talk about it feel free to send me a message. I've been though a lot with steroid shots, PT, meds, surgeries & the SCS over the last 20 years, lots of fails & some successes.

Got out there & watered the garden got a little epsom salts on the peppers & strawberries, weeded & planted some zinnia seeds before the sun gets blazing. Now back to work. Oh, got a few strawberry runners pinned into little cups to propagate too. I'm going to make a 2nd GS tower from runners.

You are an inspiration to me. Thank you, I will undoubtedly reach out to ya. It is a frightening thing to me...any surgeries involving eyeballs or spines. The rest of me, heck I've had 13 surgeries just relating to breast cancer & ovarian tumors. But my spine & eyes? Ooh, they are definitely my "gross out" spots for any procedures.