leder legends

  Just changed the title… I have been giving away plants these last few weeks. My perennials are getting too large and there is little extra room for the plants I got free or that I bought. ( I really wasn’t going to buy any this year- haha). I’m part of a Facebook group called Plant it Forward. It’s fun! Members ask for plants and offer up plants. I don’t really need plants but some of mine are getting rather large and I hate throwing out perfectly beautiful plants that cost $20 or more at the local nurseries. This month I have had enthusiastic responses to my offerings. I have met some lovely enthusiastic gardeners - some experienced and some beginners and lots in between. I hope that my plants are doing well in another yards. Unfortunately, I find myself getting very irritated with people who take advantage of free offers…. Like they are doing us a favor. I feel like my response to her (see below) should be pasted on the group’s page. This is what I said in a private message to ...

  I am so thankful for a mere 1/4 inch of rain! Both rain barrels are filled to overflowing! What amazes me even more is that the grass responds immediately! No, it’s not lush but it is greener! The entire yard perked up! Coffee in the yard but now it’s raining!  I’m even more thankful!

I was "gifted" a pile of topsoil... supposedly topsoil!  It wasn't "clean" so I was not sure what to do with it!  Weeds started sprouting and so I did not want to put it on my flowerbeds. I could have dumped it on a front yard bare spot and doused it with weed killer but that didn't sound too "healthy". I decided to try and sift out all the major clumps of weeds. The sifted out material got dumped in composter. Time will tell what happens. Turns out the “soil” is full of sand and my yard is mostly all clay so it might be a happy mix! I’m not happy with the dirt on the driveway but it’s 90° out… it will wait!

  Daylily blooms last one DAY! The blooms get messy and a bit sloppy and in two or three days most drop off of the plant. I’m not a fan of the sloppy look so I do a 15 minute “chore” every morning! My slop bucket lol! It doesn’t take long even though there are around 45 plants! It looks so much better and I enjoy it more! The loss of one or two blooms along the way is ok!

  Krossa Regal Rose and I went to our first ever plant swap event organized by the West Michigan Hosta Association. Each person was allowed to bring up to 6 items to swap- hostas, companion plants, tools, decor.  I brought 3 hostas ( stained glass, striptease, and tears of joy) and two companion plants ( Canadian ginger, Japanese anemome ).  I came home with 4 mini hostas  ( Xanadu, Cookie Crumb, Country Mouse and Surfer Girl) and a liriope muscari (Monroe white). I’m going to make a “mini” section! Rose brought a hosta Krossa regal and a peacock Daylily.  She went home with a Daylily, a poppy and some mini hostas (lemon Lime and Minor Korean).  She got a few bonus items! It was fun! 

 It was a real treat to go out for our Wednesday lunch today! It was extremely hot (90°) and so very humid that there was no incentive to work in the yard! We went to the Brunch House! An old place/ location with new decor, new owners, new menu -  it was nice but noisy! R was in a celebratory mood with good reason - birthday week and she was feeling adventurous.  She ordered the Brunch House Bloody!  Vodka, Bloody Mary mix and lemon juice with the normal pickle, celery and olive. BUT topped with bacon, sweet waffle and a crispy chicken strip! It sounded good but we were not sure what this would look like!! Lunch in a cocktail!    She ordered Breakfast tacos with avocado…. Quite different from her “ you can’t go wrong with a classic burger” !! I had a Reuben sandwich with fries and a Diet Coke!! Pretty tame compared to her but delicious! It was all good but we wouldn’t recommend the Brunch House Bloody!

Earlier, I was anticipating 10 daylily late bloomers. Today I do have 10 new ones but there are 3 that have not yet given us a glimpse of their beauty.  The new ones seem to be of the red variety but the pale yellow one always joins them in this late show.

 There are a few daylilies blooming for the first time today! I had forgotten how fancy this one would be! I need to find a way to show the different sizes of the Daylily blooms. This one is large compared to the next picture . El Desperado  Color amongst the hostas!  

July is daylily month! A friend asked if I was taking photos and I took that as a challenge.  I took one picture of each one and discovered there are 32 in bloom with 10 more to go!. There aren't many doubles either. I recently discovered that if I hold my phone horizontally when I take the pictures, when I post them to the blog they won’t be upside down or sideways!  A little late so next time…