Lazy Gardener's Little Town Farm

[Lazy Gardener]

All tomatoes are planted. Enough lawn clippings to mulch 3 rows of tomatoes, one bed of corn/potato, and one side of an interplanted row of corn/potato. Rain due tomorrow. Should cause the garden to explode with new growth. Hornet nests in the duck house will be tackled this evening, as soon as it's dark enough.

 

[baymule]

Hornets nest? How do you get rid of that without getting bombarded?

 

[Lazy Gardener]

You wait till after dusk! They go to bed, usually have a sentry posted at the mouth of the nest. I had DH go with me for back up. I dressed in appropriate clothing for the attack. Intent was to scrape the nest into a waiting bucket of hot soapy water with a spatula. Unfortunately, the nest wouldn't scrape! So, in a bit of hurried frustration, I just plucked it off it's attachment with my rubber gloved hand, and dumped it into the soapy water, giving it a good squeeze as I did so. I then found the sentry on the ground, scooped her into the soapy bath, and the job was done.

This morning, I inspected, and found that the nest was FULL of fat larvae. The started nest was loaded up with eggs.

FYI, I was wearing flannel shirt under a rain coat, and an insect net over my head, pants pulled down over rubber boots.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Some of my tomatoes already have buds on them! And one of the Jalapeno is loaded with buds also!

 

[baymule]

Blooms and vegetables are on the way!

 

[Lazy Gardener]

This morning, DH started ripping out the plants from the front flower bed around the well. I went out and helped him after a bit. Now, at the end of the day (at least at the end of our ENERGY SUPPLY!) the bed has been stripped down, leaving a few day lilies and dianthus in place. It's ready for a thick cardboard/newspaper weed control, wood chip mulch, and replanting. I have plenty of options to give that bed a face lift!

This job being done was a huge bonus. Because this dear man is ABSOLUTELY not a gardener. For him to take on this task was an ultimate love gift.

A bonus from that morning's labor: A nice bouquet of Iris and Lupine now graces the kitchen table. A neighbor who was out walking when DH started the project saw what he was doing... she went home and brought back her car so she could take a lot of the lupine and other plants home to plant in her own gardens.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

I note folks faces when we are out in public. Whether it be shopping, walking on the sidewalk, or driving... most people have a sour, sad, or totally blank face. I noted that YEARS ago, and made it my life goal to practice SMILING. It takes very little effort to turn the corners of the mouth up. And, it takes very little effort to find things to SMILE about! Smiling does all sorts of positive things to the brain chemistry. And, I'm convinced that smiling builds strong neural pathways to lead to MORE smiling... Just as pain, not controlled, builds strong neural pathways for a positive feed back loop to cause MORE pain.

FYI, and I find it amusing in a sad sort of way: DH and I were talking yesterday. He read an article that stated that 90% of the people who are receiving psychiatric counseling are liberals!!! Golly, gee, wonders the queen of sarcasm: I wonder why that is!!!

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Completely pooched out. 82* outside, but there is a nice little breeze. Today, I "papered" the new front flower bed. Then we picked up 2 barrels full of wood chips to mulch that bed. The bed has about 25% as many "flowers" as it did, so each species stands out nicely.... just the way DH likes it.

 

[baymule]

Got any pictures of your flower beds?

 

[Lazy Gardener]

Not yet. I'm a techno idiot. but, now that one bed is finished, perhaps I can get DH to help me to get some pics of flower and veggie beds up, as well as some photos of the ducks.