Friday I went shopping for lilacs… at my neighbour’s… with permission, lol…
they were heading away for the weekend and she texted me to offer them up… she knows how I love lilacs… and I think theirs are so pretty with the white around the edges…
I had just come home from an appointment and noticed that the bushes on the next street over were blooming and I was contemplating asking if I might cut some…
I got a pailful and filled two vases… one has been outside with me and the other has perfumed the main floor;-)…
I am being intentional about spending as much time as possible in the garden…
it feels important to enjoy every minute when the weather is good…
I’ve also been doing a bit of weeding whenever I feel so inclined, lol…
although weeding hasn’t been one of my favourite pastimes, I am beginning to enjoy it… the satisfaction of a tidy area that I cleared is rather nice… although I am also thrilled after Hilda the Gardener has been by and tidied the beds and paths…
now that the front beds are complete, I am thinking of using some of the landscaping fabric around the Inukshuk… just have to get more mulch before that can happen…
as I enjoy time in the garden I am reminded of how blessed I am…
yesterday I worked on hooking up the pump to the waterfall… the rocks that go around and over the pump were very heavy…
all of the cushions went out and looked good, although those darn elm seeds seem to be neverending and cover everything, lol…
had a meeting in the garden and was pleased with how well it went…
spent the rest of the day reading and maybe having a little nap…
the squirrels have been chatting a lot but there haven’t been many birds around… I did spot a neighbourhood cat having a sleep on the bench in the side garden, lol…
how blessed am I to have this beautiful space and the opportunity to sit and enjoy the serenity it provides;-)…
great wander around the garden before the rain a few days ago…
excited to discover the milkweed is growing in the ground and in the planter where it did very well last year…
it appears that one of the dahlias may be poking through the soil…
and most exciting of all, the Monarch Dark Dynasty Butterfly Bush has new growth on it… this is huge as I’ve tried to overwinter them before without success…
right now only one of the pair shows any signs of buds, although that one came outside earlier than the other… fingers crossed…
brought all the plants out of the garage the other day… I had put everything in after concern that the bunnies might stop by for an expensive dinner, lol…
I have decided that I will be in the garden as much as possible, whenever possible… what with the odd weather I think it will be important to enjoy each moment…
sat by the pond for awhile, although I had a blanket on, before doing a bit of planting…
put in three of my dahlias hoping they will produce again this year…
in the pot on the deck, planted an Eveline and added morning glories to grow up the trellis… this is my favourite dahlia and I’m happy to have two corms that look like they will grow… fingers crossed…
the second one went into the pot in the middle of the garden… last year it did amazing in this particular spot… will add something else to trail down a bit in this planter…
also planted two strawberry plants and a few morning glories in the Bundt pan on the table… hoping the morning glories will climb up the umbrella pole and greet me with many flowers in the morning…
the other dahlia went into a pot that is currently sitting on the deck, but it can easily be moved elsewhere in the garden… I put in two tubers and if them both come up, one will be moved…
of course that bit of planting still left a table full waiting for their new homes…
started my day with a Duo call from the kids in Ottawa… they have been without power since the wild storm on Saturday…
they were at the Canadian Science and Technology Museum testing wifi as she had a video meeting… the Museum is just a short walk from their house, has plugs all around the outside of the building (technology), and the wifi gave an excellent video call, so that was very handy… I was the test for the meeting, lol…
while they waited for the phones to charge she was teaching him how to play Rummy… it was the card game we played for hours as we sat in the hospital with my mom as she was dying… we laughed about him needing to know how to play when they sit at my deathbed… way in the future…
we talk most days, but don’t often video call… it is always lovely to see their beautiful faces… and it was fun to show them the garden…
headed outside this morning and cleaned the glass table-top… I swept the decks, moved furniture around, found cushions and blankets and brought the plants out of the garage…
then I had a sit down by the pond;-)…
got coffee, pistachios, and almonds ready for my BS group… our first in-person gathering since the fall…
everyone arrived with various delicious treats and we had a wonderful visit…
we went from sunny… to cloudy… to windy… and back to sunny… a few times… birds flitted about and jackets came on and off as required, lol…
just after everyone had gone, and the space was back to normal, it started to spit…
I watched a Ducks Unlimited webinar a few days ago on dragonflies and damselflies…
it was interesting and I learned some new things about them… I also learned more about iNaturalist, a free app that I have on the phone…
up until now, I’ve usually used Merlin to search out a species, whether birds or other creatures… going forward I will try to use iNaturalist to record what I find… and I will be what they call a citizen scientist, lol…
recorded this little flycatcher… first time I’ve seen one of them;-)…