Over in the edibles, we are still playing the waiting game mostly.
My spinach has bolted, but I did harvest the largest head of lettuce. I wanted to let it get a little bigger, but we’ve hit the hot humid days of summer already, so it could bolt at any time too. Dave ate it on his tacos the other night.
But for the rest of the garden… we wait.
The cucumbers and gourds (on the left) seem to be growing much slower than the squash and pumpkins (on the right.)
I had to cheat a little with the Sugar Baby Melons (left) and Zucchini (right). The seedlings I started weren’t doing great, so I stopped at a local grower and bought a few more mature plants.
While I was there, this spindly tomato plant hopped into my cart. The variety is called “Chocolate Cherry” and the tomatoes are a dark brown/red. It just sounded to fun.
That said, my Yellow Pear tomato that I started from seed is doing spectacular! I am so thrilled because I’ve struggled so much starting tomatoes from seed.
The Leeks and Green Onions look about the same.
I feel like the green beans are a little lack luster so far, but hopefully they will pick up.
The Cucamelons are finally starting sprout. They need a lot of heat so they are always a little slow to get going.
The carrots, however, are looking fabulous.
The Green Peppers are perky
And the potatoes are really looking amazing. I’ve already earthed them up once and I’ll probably have to do it again soon.
I finally got the string supports in for the snap peas, and they are the happier for it.
We’re probably only a few weeks away from harvesting garlic and shallots.
And there will be raspberries and blackberries to munch on if we can just be a little bit patient.
There’s going to be a bountiful harvest… just not yet.
We’ve marked the summer solstice, the longest day of the year. And the Solstice garden is one of abundance.
There are blooms EVERYWHERE
The Sundrops have absolutely taken over their corner of the catio.
My “At Last” rose is just a glory of stunning peach blooms. I’ve always considered myself more of a Tea Rose person, but this one, Bolero, and Prairie Princess are swaying me to the shrub roses. So much so, I bought another one…
I might also have been swayed by it’s lovely scent, and the fact that it was being cleared out at half price. Now I just have to find a spot for it….
Other roses in bloom include Garden Party, Quicksilver, Good As Gold and New Dawn.
And the Navy Lady Rose tree has really come into her Glory. I had the shrub version at the townhouse and it was just as fantastic as this one.
A couple of the mini-roses are blooming too, but sadly, I don’t know their names.
The peonies are pretty much done, but were lovely while we had them.
Taking their place are the Asian/Oriental lilies and the Day Lilies.. These two are just the start.
They days may start to get a little shorter, but the blooms will light up every hour.
Our recent thrifting adventures have resulted in a few…. childish…. acquisitions.
The first is this lovely lady.
She was only $5 and I just couldn’t resist her. When I was in my early teens, I talked Mom into getting a series of crochet patterns from Annie’s Attic. They were all elaborate Victorian Barbie dress – one for each month. She never did end up actually makin them (though I think she still has the patterns), but I was always enchanted by them. As soon as I saw this – I thought immediately of those patterns. I just had to bring her home.
This particular Barbie is actually Mrs. P.F.E. Albee – the first Avon Lady. I just love all the little details
Especially those shoes!
She now graces the top of Dave’s latest radio restoration (another thrift store find).
The radio is a 1932 RCA. It was just a shell – all the original electronics gone – so Dave put a modern system inside it (completely with blue tooth) that sounds amazing. I think Mis. Albee looks right at home there.
For the next thrift, we’ve gone even smaller.
Yep. A dollhouse. I have been fascinated by dollhouses since I was little. I had the Mattel Littles Dollhouse as a child, but I’d always admired the fancy wooden ones. I’ve wanted to have my own dollhouse for years now. And we actually almost bought a big one at the ReStore about six months ago. But it was way too big.
We came across this on Tuesday at the Goodwill in Sarnia. And the size is perfect. Not too big, not to small.
And… it’s was hard to argue with that price.
It’s around 3 feet tall, and as you can see, has a nice arrangement of rooms. Obviously it needs some work (Dave’s already pulled off all the broken gingerbread and is looking at replacements.), but we have to decide what style we want do do it in? Classic Victorian? Nature loving Bohemian? Full on Gothic Haunted? And then I have to find the time to actually do the renos!
Finally, I remembered to get my oriole feeder out in the yard. I’ve had it for a couple years and ALWAYS forget to get it out in time for the migration.
Last year, I managed to get some pics in July, so I figure it was better late than never. And at least one Oriole has been visiting regularly. Sadly, these are the best pics I’ve been able to get…
They were taken from the laundry room window, because every time I managed to sneak outside with the camera, he flies off. He loves to hang out in the neighbour’s tree where my lens can barely reach him,
I’ve tried waiting outside in a couple of my usual photography spots, but he just flies over the yard. While I have been waiting, others have come to visit.
This wee house wren stopped for a short spell on the fence.
And I’ve been able to watch the fledgling robins slowly mature. He’s lookin quite handsome on the right… though he’s not full grown yet.
I got to watch the sparrows feed their fledglings.
This particular baby was very hungry, loud and noisy!
And this little guy has been buzzing by me, teasing me for a couple weeks now. But the other day he came and sat on the clothesline right above me.
The light was fading fast so the pictures aren’t the best, but I was able to catch that gleaming ruby throat as he flashed it.
And then there was this strange hanging bird at the sunflower seed feeder…
I was plying a tiny needle this weekend, but it wasn’t for embroidery
With the help of Burton….
The Lemmy and Burton (it was a big quilt, needed two snoopervisors), I got the Leader/Ender Four-Patch on Point quilt done!
Isn’t she a beauty? And as I said – it’s a big one – 84″ square.
There are 900 scraps (2.5″ cut, 2″ finished) in those 225 four patches. It didn’t really feel like that much work as they were made as Leader/Enders. Putting them all together into the top.. .that was a bit of a slog, but not too bad.
The result is definitely worth it!
It has a lovely, calming blue swirl for the back, and a fun rainbow stripe binding. And… it could be yours. It’s in the shop now!
Another Blockhead Block was released on Wednesday, so Burton and I headed for the studio right after work that night, since I wouldn’t be doing any piecing over the weekend while I was at Mom’s.
It was another easy block, and we made it even easier by swapping out the centre four-patch for a fussy-cut solid block.
Zebras this time. So now we have a nice little group of three.
I was trying to figure out how Tula decided on these particular animals for the line (it’s called Sketchbook). Then I realized… Lemur, Panda, Zebra, they are all black and white. There’s a skunk print too I’ve yet use. I’ll probably use it for this week’s block… with a fourth accent colour – a nice bold coral.
Weeding the gardens is the time when I get up close and personal with the miniature world that lives amongst the plants. When you start to garden, you realize there’s a who fascinating world in there that has nothing to do with humans.
This little guy is a Crab Spider. They are a common sight in my garden – though I mostly see them on the daisy like flowers – coneflowers, black-eyed susans, etc. This one is on my coral peony while still in bud.
They are ambush predators, and fun fact, they can (slowly) change their colours to match the flower they are hiding on! That’s something new I learned recently. I always wondered how they managed to match so well.
Now this little beauty with the seed bead little eyes.. is a jumping spider. Jumping spiders aren’t rare by any means, but this is the first time I’ve seen on my flowers. I have one that lives in my bedroom window (her name is Janice… don’t tell Dave about her.). Like the crab spiders, they aren’t very big. Some people even keep them as pets!
This one was on the red peony. A few days later I saw one on the cone flowers in the catio. Maybe this year will be the year of the Jumping Spider.
Last, we have not a spider, but a hornet. A Bald-Faced Hornet to be exact. They are a very large hornet, and I’ve heard people say they are aggressive. I’ve never found them to be so – at least in my garden. I imagine near a nest it would be a different matter. Personally, I love their markings, and like the bees… they are pollinators too so are quite welcome in my little corner of the world.
When it comes to June, I think of two flowers. Roses….
BoleroAt LastPrairie Princess
And Peonies
This one is called Raspberry Sundae and those two pics are the same flower about half a week apart.
I also have the red one you saw earlier, a white one that’s just about to bloom, and open coral one called Coral Charm, and a mystery one. I think it’s going to be a mid-pink, but it could be another red one I won’t know until it opens.
Like the peonies, there are many more roses to come. And, as many of you mentioned on last week’s garden post, now is the time that the garden starts to explode with colour.
This wild thing is Scottish Broom. It’s a shrub that I planted last year. I was going to move it because, when it didn’t bloom in spring, I thought I had it in a bad spot and that it needed more light. Turns out I just misjudged when it bloomed. It’s just exploded with little pea-like flowers.
Now is the time when the Foxgloves bloom. Though the show isn’t as impressive as last year. Foxgloves are tricky. They are biennial, and only flower in their second year. If the seeds don’t drop and take, you don’t get more foxgloves after that second year. The ones in the catio seem to re-seed pretty reliably, but elsewhere in the gardens it’s hit and miss.
To make up for this, if you have the space, you can start some from seed every year, then plant them out in the fall. They will bloom the following year where you planted them, and as long as you keep doing that you’ll always have a good show of foxgloves. I have the space, and I did start some seeds a few weeks back in one of the raised beds, but nothing germinated. I’m going to try again… and try some seeds snails too, since that worked so well for my other seedlings.
I mentioned before that I have multiple colours of ornamental Sage, and they are all blooming now. The one on the bottom right is a pale blue/lavender, not white. It’s much more obvious in real life – the camera has trouble with it.
I have cat mint (not to be confused with cat nip, which is different, but equally delightful to cats) in two colours – Cats Pajamas (blue) and Whispurr pink (light pink).
Both the Sage and Cat Mint are a big hit with the bees.
There are still a few irises kicking around. Left is Edith Wolford, Centre is Presby’s Crown Jewel, and Right is Frimousse.
The Poppies are still going though that giant coral one and the white ones are almost done. The real show-stopper is the one’s on the bottom. They are actually the same plant. It’s called Central Park and it starts out a rich deep burgundy and fades to that lovely dusty shade.
Under that coral poppy you probably noticed those little dianthans. I bought them last year specifically to put in the new island garden, but they we’re already done blooming and I didn’t realize just how pretty they were. They are taller than the “annual” dianthans i have, and the flower is smaller and more dainty. However, just like the others the plant is smothered in them. I’d love to get some more for the driveway garden.
Most of the Alliums are finishing, but this white one is in it’s prime. I don’t know the name, as it was part of a mix, but it’s more flat, not ball shaped, like the others. Like the others, the bees love it. It’s like a little bumblebee helipad.
All three of the Spiderwort are blooming. I feel like they are much taller this year, and I’m thinking I may have to split them up. I can put some out back with the day lilies, they mix quite well.
Most of the Columbine is done, but this double-blooming “Pink Petticoat” is really shining. It’s new this year.
Both the White clematis, and Golden Flame Honeysuckle are blooming. They both grow up the catio fence and give the boys a little bit of shade throughout the summer.
My Sundrops have just started to open. Soon this corner of the catio will be awash in yellow. They’ve really taken over! (Something I didn’t realize when I planted them!)
And last, this stunner of a Delphinium is shining out in the middle of the front garden. It’s got several bloom spikes, so we’ll be enjoying that bold dark blue for weeks to come.
Wandering Cat Studio 