Garden Chores – A Gardener’s Work Is Never Done!
I have quite a few garden chores that I need to catch up on today, so I thought I would post about that. Here in Ohio, it is getting decently warm through most of the days, though nights in the 40s F are still occurring. And one of my garden chores that I needed to get done makes me feel like a bad garden Mom. My little hummingbirds had to remind me to get out my feeders!
It’s embarrassing to admit, but my daughter was getting ready for work a few days ago and said “Mom, I see the hummingbirds out back frantically searching for the feeders!” OMG, I totally forgot that I hadn’t put the feeders out yet. So first thing I needed to do was make some nectar, but there was no sugar in the cupboards. So that involved a trip to the grocery store.
Well, those little hummers are starving so I got busy making some hummingbird nectar. I went to the store, and with just a short lingering in the plant department, I bought the sugar and hurried back home. ( I didn’t buy any plants!) I poured 4 cups of water in a microwave bowl, added 1 cup sugar, and set it for about 5 minutes in the microwave. Needs to cool for an hour or more, but that gave me time to get the feeders out and verify that they are clean and gather my hooks etc. No red food coloring!
During the fall when I put my feeders away, I clean them thoroughly and wrap them in plastic bags so they don’t collect dust or get dirty. Then I put all of the hummer paraphenalia in a box and label it Hummers. That way I can find it in the spring. Believe me, I have learned from experience. Put all the stuff together and it is so much easier!
Now the hummers are supposed to be gathering at the buffet. Feeling much better.
Deadheading Some Bulbs – A Necessary Garden Chore
Perhaps this is a garden chore that you don’t feel necessary, and to each his own, but I like to deadhead my bulb-blooming flowers. I don’t have very many. This house didn’t have any when we moved in and I have just planted a few in containers, but I know that I will get better re-blooming next year if I deadhead these.
First of all, I am not interested in the plant forming any seeds from its blooms, so I don’t want the daffodil or grape hyacinth to use any of its energy to make seeds. My main interest is for the plant to store energy into the bulb for next season’s bloom.
Therefore, I spend a few minutes deadheading the withered blooms from the stalks. A little feeding doesn’t hurt either because I would like to have pretty blooms again next year.
I would like these hypertufa pots that I have bulbs planted inside to have a covering of sedum for the summer period. My choice of plants for that is my Sedum spurium “Immergrunchen.” It gives a nice mat to cover the surface and will also bloom in summer. We shall see how they compete!
Replanting A Sunken Hypertufa Trough
One of the chores that I need to get to this spring is replanting one of my hypertufa troughs that has sunken down. I think of it as the plants and its worms inside have “eaten” a lot of the soil and it just needs replenished. It has been many years since I completely replanted this one. It seems to me that I re-potted it fully when I had an ant invasion several years ago. So it is about time. Am I adding new plants? Will I be forced to go buy some more? Hmmmm…great idea!
As a matter of fact, those tiny dianthus have completely died out this year. I don’t see any evidence of them at all. I need more! Maybe I should get the Erodium for this hypertufa. Love that plant so much. As I write this I haven’t yet done the planting, so we shall see how much of my work I can get done today. Check out the video. Here it is!
I love my choices for some new plants. What do you think? For today, that will be enough garden chores for this lady. Other than cleaning up my mess in the garden shop downstairs. And checking on any plants that need water. And pulling a few weeds here and there.
Well, never mind about being done. A gardener’s work is never done, is it?
This was a wonderful video, Kim! You gave me such good ideas about the bulbs in hypertufa’s. Do you just leave these out over the winter months to winter over, or do you place them in a sheltered area like a garage. I just never am sure how bulbs will survive in shallow pots…I can’t wait to try this!
Thank you so much. These large planters have been left out all winter in snow and ice in Ohio. I put them against the house so they did get sheltered a bit. But seemed to really work. Those grape hyacinths got a lot larger than I thought they would though.