I swore this year it would be different. I wouldn’t stress about every storm warning and thunder cloud overhead. I wouldn’t check the weather 50 times a day worried about what could ruin my happy place. I wouldn’t let the threat of hail scare me into covering every plant I could. Who am I kidding? Weather in my great state of Colorado, is a bit..well..unpredictable. I believe there is a saying here that goes “if you don’t like the weather, wait 10 minutes.” I have seen days where we have all four seasons in a 24 hour period. Coming from California where the sun is shining and the weather is consistent, this Colorado stuff takes some getting used to. Weather in the Rockies is one of my favorite and least favorite parts of living here. Obviously, the weathers impact on a garden is vast to say the least. Our Colorado gardens go to sleep at the end of each fall, and wake again each spring. Our growing season is short and sweet. Snow blankets our landscape and cold temps keep us indoors in the Winter, which is one of my favorite parts. One day it could be snowing like crazy, and the next day the sun is bright and warm. I love that I can take a break from maintaining the yard, and plan any new additions for the coming Spring. Spring is my most favorite. (Or is it Fall?) Spring brings rainy afternoons and bright welcomed sunshine. Plants begin to wake up. What once was a brown and dry yard, begins to show tiny signs of green. I spend time each day looking at which plants are waking first, tying to remember what was planted there. I start collecting seed packets and plotting where they will go. When the sweet little Robin birds arrive, Springtime has too. Late Spring snow storms and freezing temperatures are what we experienced this year. Just as my garden began to wake, it was covered in snow. I had already done a decent amount of seed planting and had a lot of seedlings sprouting already. Never fear. The crazy garden girl is here. This passionate gardener, collects old plant containers, cat litter buckets (thank goodness, we have kittens), empty berry containers, pie tins, oatmeal cylinders, yogurt containers and other things you probably put in your recycling bins. These make great snow protectors and hail helmets for my little garden friends. Not to mention my innovative use of lawn furniture, beach towels and tarps. It’s weird, I know. I know what you’re thinking. This girl has way too much time on her hands. That’s actually not true. You see with careful planning and attention to weather reports, I sometimes have plenty of time for this protective measure. And I am not alone. I often wait for the neighbor behind me to cover their plants. And sometimes when I start to pull out the arsenal of weird recyclables, they come out and follow my lead. My Mom has her large container plants on little wheels, so she can move those heavy gardens into safety at a moment’s notice. I feel like it’s completely normal. Right? This past Spring when our temps dipped to record lows in late May, these covers saved my plants. Yes, it took time and was some work and looked kind of odd, but I would have lost most of the seedlings if not for my tiny berry container green houses. Will I always have time to cover my sweet plants to protect them? Nope. Am I able to cover all my flowery friends? Nope. Will I always be home when storms appear? Nope. But if I am able, I cover what I can to guard them from flying balls of ice. I cover new flowers, seedlings, plants that are delicate, plants I have been taking extra care of, and plants that are simply sentimental to me. I feel horrible for the ones I can’t cover, but many are tough and can withstand a bit of rough weather. Which is why planting native and local plants is best. Those guys are used to what Colorado, or your area, has to offer. Which here can be harsh.. from brutal low temps to scorching heat and everything in between. It looks silly I know. At least once or twice each summer, the garden withstands some damage. It makes me sad, which is why I do what I can to protect what I can. I nurture these little guys along and watch them grow and I hate seeing what a strong hail storm can do. Not only to nature, but to people’s homes and cars. Hail is an unpredictable force that comes and goes as it pleases, in all variations of magnitude. It can bring dangerous and violent consequences and it makes me a bit jumpy to say the least. So, this Colorado gardener is going to protect, risk injury (since I wacked myself in the head last year with a metal lounge chair trying to cover plants in a hurry) and give my garden a chance to reach the end of the season intact. My potted plants all get shelter up against our house. It’s a lot of work. It looks truly odd to my neighbors who don’t garden, and maybe even to the ones that do. They must see me sometimes in the wee hours of a summer morning, uncovering plants from the threat of an overnight storm, in my PJs and a sweatshirt, and think this girl is crazy. But they are the same ones who peer over my fence to admire our garden or tell me they enjoy my sunflowers looking over their fence.
Yep. Colorado weather makes this gardening thing a wee bit complicated. But I love it. Except the hail. Really don’t like hail. What kind of weather effects your garden space?
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Speaking of grasshoppers, we have noticed A LOT of tiny little grasshoppers lately. They are super cute, but I'm fearful we may wake up one morning and our yard will be gone. I don't have much experience removing these or wondering if I should remove them at all. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Okay so back to the patience. Anyone who knows me well can tell you that patience is certainly something I don't have. Gardening requires patience. When you plant seeds especially, you have to wait. I actually mark on the calendar the dates of when I plant seeds, and when they haven't emerged when I think they should according to the package, I am frustrated and sometimes heartbroken. There have been plenty of times when the seeds I plant don't yield a single green anything. I make a note of what doesn't work. Sometimes the seeds don't make an appearance until a season or even two seasons later and sometimes not at all. Which is why I keep all the seed packs I plant, grouped by year. I am constantly referencing these to check on what I planted and the stats and info of the plant. If the pack doesn't contain a seedling photo, I google it to keep tabs on what is what. I play "what is this" with fellow gardening friends when I don't recognize the seedling. I let things grow usually long enough to tell if it's a friendly plant or weed. Not that weeds aren't friendly. Funny side note on this. I once had this crazy tall vine creature growing in the garden. I had no idea what it was so I let it grow till it truly was taller than me with leaves the size of something out of Jurassic Park. My Mom suggested I take a clipping and a photo to the garden center to inquire, and after almost the entire staff passed it around, smelling it and looking at it, the head plant guy said calmly "Get rid of this. It's a nasty weed and it will spread." So the landscape foreman had to chop it down. Like a tree or a beanstalk. And I think it did spread. I had these little strange plants come up all over this spring. Some I pulled and some I left just to see if it was my Jurassic Park friend. I will keep you posted. So again back to the patience. Or should I say you, dear reader, must have the patience to follow this post. Plants are all about patience and potential. It's caring and nurturing seeds or reduced price plants that no one wanted. Its watering and waiting and protecting them from bunnies and grasshoppers. It's having the patience to start all over when hail damages your garden. It's believing in its potential. It's an investment and it's a risk. I truly get more from starting plants from seed. I know, me with little patience can wait for 7-10 days and then sometimes an entire season to see results. Some of my favorite parts of gardening is witnessing new flower buds and wondering what color they will be. How tall will this get, and better yet will it spread to other areas. I may be disappointed with the results and that's OK. I came across some seed packets at my local grocery store. Since I love the way cosmos multiply in my yard, I was thrilled when I saw these "Cupcake Mix" variety. ( I love all things cupcake!) It's late in the season to plant these, since many of my cosmos are already a few inches tall, but I decided to give it a try. And this morning I was happy to see, at only 6 days after planting, I had seedlings! Only a few, but I consider that a baking success (get it, cupcake). These are listed as annuals, but again I have had success with annuals coming back year after year. They also are relatively hail tolerant because of their wispy structure. And finally, I love planting with seeds because I get to try different varieties (like the cupcake cosmos) that you may not be able to buy as a plant. It's also relatively cost effective given most seed packs are between 1 to 3 dollars. I like the ability to disperse them around and with many of these plants they reseed on their own magnificently. If you haven't been able to tell, I enjoy a garden with a wild and random look. I do groups certain plants on occasion, but I like the free form style. Kinda like sprinkles on a cupcake.
What are your favorite plants to grow from seed? Comment your favorite! My lovely Aunt Betty asked if I had any blue Lupine. I have lots of Lupine growing in the garden. And none of them are blue. Just yet. I did plant some Texas Bluebonnets last fall from some seeds I received from my good friend living in Texas. I have noticed green foliage on these bluebonnets, but no flower stalks have emerged. I have also noticed here in Colorado, Lupines started by seed tend to take a season to get going. What was a small plant last year, this year is huge. Most of mine come from seed packets. I did have two pink ones when we started the garden that I got at nursery centers, but both of those only lasted the season and didn't return in the spring. Lupines are some of my favorites. The beauties from this year are enormous. The flowers are some of the biggest and tallest I've seen. Most of mine are already going to seed, which I will harvest and replant or share with friends. We had a hail storm a few weeks back and I was able to cover them with using some plant stakes, beach towels and empty pots that were large enough to flip over. Hail is not friendly to these at all. The larger the leaves and flowers, the more damage the plant receives. While these are hardy to most types of weather, hot temps will cause the leaves to wilt if they haven't had a good drink of water. Another danger to my Lupine forest are those cute little furry wiggly nose bunnies. Which I successfully kept out of my garden all last season! The year before they wreaked havoc and ate nearly everything I planted. The landscape foreman spent an entire day sealing up our back yard and it was very effective. Until today. This morning, Olivia the kitten was chattering at something and low and behold a bunny had made in. I ran out in my PJ's and chased him (or her) back under the hole he had dug under the fence. (think Peter Rabbit and Farmer McGregor) I quickly did a search of the yard looking for more of those wiggly nose fluff balls and then sealed up the tunnel under my fence. Hopefully, it will be the last we will see of them. Sweet Ladybugs you can stay.
So that's the lowdown on the Lupine. Good morning! So a few updates from previous posts. First off if you are reading this, I thank you. (Hi Mom) The site manager and I are still trying to see what works best and working out the weeds. I mean kinks. So the Mysterious wave petunia turns out to be the prettiest shade of dark purple. I know you were completely losing sleep over this. (I kinda was) I even added some pink and purple petunias to the basket just in case they were really not as lovely as I would have wanted. I should have been patient and waited for them to open. Mother nature rarely disappoints. Now I think the mix of purples and pinks is gonna be nothing short of happiness. Also, I added a much better photo of yesterdays 'cupids dart' which when the sun went down completely closed up. I am still liking this addition so much and hoping that it spreads a bit so I have more than one next season. And finally a little sneak peak of our evolving gnome/fairy garden. I started this last summer and love the way it turned out though it is still a work in progress. When trying to find little residents, I found these gnome buttons at Joannes Fabric and we hot glued them to rocks for stability. I'm not sure of how long they will last out there in the sun and heat, but they are fun additions for now. Know who else doesn't sleep.? Spiders. I know this because when I went out into the garden this morning I walked through a whole lot of webs that were not there last night. Eek. Since I have been getting out to water early in the morning (Colorado has been toasty) I have been amazed at how much changes overnight. Like this little fellow. He is a cupids dart that I picked up at the same plant sale I got Princess Victoria..(you know the poppy) It's the neatest plant. I picked it because it was tall and lanky and the most pretty silvery green color. It had no flowers, just buds that looked like little silver alien heads. I had no idea what the flowers would even look like. This plant was growing like crazy but the flowers never seemed to appear. I googled 'cupids dart' and found that its flowers were a pretty blue color and I could see a bluish tinge under the silvery fuzz. Last night it was still closed up. And this morning... Hello pretty blue flower. Almost a purple.
It looks similar to a daisy. And it was really sunny this morning so I will try and get a better picture when it opens up all the way. But I was so excited. In the background you can also see those bright pops of royal blue. Those are California Bluebells. I have several patches of these, some from seed this year and some that returned from last summer, even though they are considered an annual. which is the reason I love seeds. But more on that later. So I suppose I am thankful that plants don't sleep. Because what sweet surprises they offer each morning. Spiders? Please take a night off. I really like poppies. I have a cat named Poppy. For a while they were a wish list flower. You know the ones you see and never buy because you love them so much you are actually afraid to plant them. (I feel this way about Peonies. I have yet to plant one.) My Mama gave me a packet of California Poppy seeds. Since I wasn't hopeful they would grow here in Colorado (It does say California in the name) I mindlessly tossed them into a sunny location in the garden and hoped for the best. And well. They grew. And they spread. Everywhere. It's been about 4 years and yes I have added additional seed packs, but they now fill my garden and I love them. Last summer I planted corn poppies. Love them too. This year they have returned, so stay tuned for their beauty later.
I also planted a seed packet of Iceland poppies (As I had now caught the poppy bug) AND nothing happened. Until this summer. Hi Iceland poppies. I love you too. This spring I planted Three additional packs of poppy seeds. ( I told you it was a problem) I sprinkled Premium Select California Poppy Mission Bells from American Seed. I chose these because they show not only orange but pink and cream. I haven't seen evidence that these came up. (insert sad face) I also added Burpee Giant Peony Poppy Mix. (Did you catch that? A Peony and a Poppy!!) As well as Burpee Ladybird Poppy. I planted these in pots and the garden. Unfortunately, we had a late cold snap that wilted the ones in the pot. But the ones planted in the garden seem to be coming along in the sunny locations I planted them. Stay tuned. A side note on these: They are not really listed to grow in my plant zone. So they may be just an annual instead of perennial here in Colorado. And the icing on the amazing Poppy cupcake, was a find at a local garden sale. An oriental poppy named "Princess Victoria". (I had just finished watching the PBS series on Queen Victoria so it was surely a sign I needed this plant.) Princess Victoria has two buds. I can't even. Really. These are a delicate bunch, these poppies. (Though my sweet furry Poppy kitten is far from delicate). Colorado weather can do a number on these lovelies. California poppies are tougher, withstanding late spring snow storms and hail. They take a beating and a few days later perk right back up. I have a alot of hot rocky locations that they love. As far as the other members of the poppy family, I am quick to cover them if any dicey weather is predicted if I am able. They don't fair up as well due to their delicate petals. Height on these beauties can be tricky when covering them, but I've gotten pretty resourceful (Think tarps an plant stakes). So if you have a flower you are wanting to try, I say just plant it. You may be missing out. (Though I am missing out on those peonies.) I would say that about 50% of the plants we buy come from the clearance area of the garden center. I feel like sometimes all these little fellas need is some water and some pruning and a whole lotta love. I head for that area the second we go in and in many cases I can find the plant I was looking for at a much cheaper price.
Take a recent shopping trip to Lowes. The poor little plants in the reduced price section (In our Lowes they are marked with a yellow price sticker and usually look sad and unhappy) sat a whole lot a Wave Petunias. These are great for containers and planters since they will grow over the side, like a wave of color. (Like the name says). All of these sad little guys had no flowers, but otherwise looked healthy, ( I'm guessing the reason they were on the reduced rack was the lack of flowers) So I grabbed one for 3 bucks and decided it would fill an empty metal container I had yet to fill with garden delight. I had no idea what color it would be since there were not any buds and the tag did not give any indication. It's the chance you take, and I always love a good surprise. Today I see buds. I am making a guess of either dark purple or even a cool black petunia that I have been scoping out at other garden centers. Any guesses out there? Give the reduced rack a try. We have adopted many plants like candytuft and cosmos, pansys and petunias, dogwood shrubs and dahalias and my favorite find this spring, a Mango Popsicle Hot Poker. (you have to check back for photos when it blooms) Most importantly you can give these little cast offs a great home and be able to add more to your garden for less. Once a long long time ago, we moved to Colorado. Our yard was lovely. And since we moved in the fall, most of it was dead...or what they call "sleeping". I had no idea what plants were here until spring when I was surprised at all the cool emerging plants and flowers. Our back yard was mostly grass with a rock border some pines and iris. Fast forward to the summer of 2013, when our amazing landscape foreman (aka husband) used his landscape architect skills to remove the sod and add rock paths and two huge areas for garden love. He gave me a few good foundation plants and the rest is all me. This blog will be a diary of sorts of all things in our sweet little garden. I have an extraordinary assistant and photographer (aka son) who waters and tends and photographs and designs. A cool landscaping husband who buys us plants and digs the holes. So we hope you enjoy checking back to see what our garden goes through in a Colorado season. The crazy weather, the creatures, the changes and how much fun we have tending our sweet little happy place.
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AuthorCrazy plant girl who likes all things flowers, gardens and kittens. Together with my landscape foreman and photographer/site manager, we are watching our garden grow. Archives
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