Ground Rules

There have been a few problems in my garden this year because I thought the rules didn't apply to me. My plan for an arbor with purple wisteria on one side and gorgeous, white clematis on the other side is not to be, at least not in the spot I planted them.

Wisteria healthy and green.

Wisteria grows like a weed and doesn't always bloom where it is planted, especially when it doesn't get enough sunlight (current location). I thought I could plant it where I wanted to plant it (counting on its 'weedyness'), not where it needed to be planted.

*SIGH*

Wisteria shading Clematis.

Last week I admitted defeat and trimmed it back, I also plan to move it in December to a location where IT will be happy (I'll try to adjust). 

It's a good thing I got pictures of last year's beautiful clematis blooms because I got nothing this year. Too much shade - because of a wildly, healthy, weedy, green wisteria blocking out the sun and giving me a green/yellow, pitiful clematis this spring. Turns out the old garden rule of "heads in the sun, feet in the shade" is one I need to remember and follow, so maybe next year I can have beautiful blooms on my clematis and beautiful blooming wisteria.

After I trimmed up (cut down) the wisteria I added a few pots
so this corner of the garden wouldn't look so bare. (Notice
the clematis is all greeny-yellow and sad looking.)
 

I left a few leaves on the wisteria, and noticed new growth on the plant in less than a week. Now to keep every thing trimmed, mulched, and watered.

Gardening (and baseball) - there's always next year.

*

Loving My Neighbor

I love to grow things in pots.  The last few years my collection has grown and grown - pots all over the patio and pots on the front porch.  I had to set an alarm on my phone so I would remember to water all of them - every other day in the summer and at least once a week in the winter.  Several of them are tucked into the garage in the winter, they get a little shabby, but they survive and, when Spring returns, they thrive.

The trouble with containers is the little saucer that collects the excess water - it keeps the water from going all over the place but it can provide the mosquito with the perfect little incubator and nursery.   

Here in north Texas the West Nile Virus is a major concern.  It is transmitted by infected mosquitoes (not all mosquito's have the virus - most are just annoying) and even if you get bitten by an infected mosquito, you might not get the disease.  I say this so you won't call 911 the next time you get bitten.

I have no desire to be known as a Mosquito Rancher so I try to follow all the rules the City of Fort Worth gives for minimizing mosquito breeding.

I've cleaned up my act - well, my patio actually, and put away most of the saucers.  I've scattered the containers around my garden, tucked them in the mulch - no need for a saucer.  A bonus - I took the time to check where the water goes when the sprinkler is on and almost everything gets watered even when I'm not here to do it.



These seem to be adjusting to their new home.

I still have a few pots on the patio and by the front door but I'm very careful not to over water.  I figure it's worth it to help myself and others in my community stay healthy.  I am helping people I don't know and may never meet, still, it gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling to realize we are all in this world together and little things we do (or don't do) can have a big impact.

Admit it, you are probably doing something to make the world a better place.   I would love to hear about some of your adventures - comments are always welcome.  I'm off to read blogs and drink tea on this hot, hot summer day.

Garden

These days we start early - our (please notice I'm sharing the ownership) garden gets better every day. 

This Spring, I have had another sweet reminder of one of my friends.  I was afraid the red lily that my friend, Paula, gave me two or three Easters ago had been lost with all the pulling of weeds and cleaning out the flower beds - I was happily surprised to see Paula's Lily had survived.

It just popped up one day, tucked in behind the grapevine.
 

Sometimes Mr. J&C's weeding is reminiscent of bush hogging. Somehow we missed this and I got to watch it grow and bloom another year.

It had blooms for about two weeks - thanks, Paula!

Thanks to my garden companion, I'm becoming a better gardener. I have always tried to keep up with the rainfall and water accordingly, but I've been slow to weed. Now I'm checking on the garden once a week for weeds - bonus! Mr. J&C weeds!

I have even (GASP!) thrown out plants that haven't "performed" well in my garden. My thinking being weeds and useless plants are drinking precious water.

Planted in November 2009, this purple crepe myrtle has
 gotten smaller every year. It easily came up out of the ground -
the root ball was almost nothing.

I'm also compromising with Mr. J&C - he wants the plants not so close together so it will be easier to weed. The work we've done so far looks good and it has been easier to weed. 


Update:  I got reimbursed the money taken from my checking account back in April.  This is a good thing for me, but we all will pay for this with higher prices.


*

Here on Gilligan's Isle

We still have a few things to work out - being together all the time is something new for me and Mr. J&C.  Yes, we love each other but, each other all the time is...well...  different.  The first few months life was great.  We traveled, we worked in the garden - then we both got a cold. 

"Cheers!"

Just a common, every day, nothing special cold.  We don't do 'under the weather' very well.

This is not something I planned on and now I'm behind.  I've still got gardening to do, several packages to mail, and I haven't even been in the mood to talk - that is sick!

As the month comes to an end, I looked at my poor, neglected blog and decided to reach out and say "Hello!"  Miss you all, hope you are well. 

For a little more than a week we locked ourselves up in the house afraid if we ventured out we might give someone our cold.  It's like we were marooned on Gilligan's Island.

So being bored and not wanting to really do anything, I googled Gilligan's Island and I found, among other things, a drink.  Here's the one from the Mixologist App on my phone:

Gilligan's Island:  Pour 1 ounce vodka, 1 ounce peach schnapps, 3 ounces orange juice and 3 ounces cranberry juice into a cocktail shaker.  Mix well and pour into an ice filled glass.

At the time I was taking heavy duty cold medicines and all of them warned me not to have alcohol.   So I didn't try the drink.

As if to pile on, a friend (thanks, Dawn!) posted to Facebook a recipe for slushies.

Vodka Slushies:
1 1/2 quarts cranberry juice cocktail
1 (6-ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate, defrosted
2 cups vodka

Directions:  Combine all of the ingredients in a large plastic container. Freeze for several hours. It will not freeze solid, but rather achieve the consistency of a slushy.   Scoop into punch cups or wine glasses and serve.

Due to the meds I was taking I could only think about drinks and drinking.  Now that I'm feeling a bit better (and off the medication) I thought I should put my own spin on an adult frozen beverage. 

Frozen Castaways:
3 1/2 cups of cranberry juice cocktail
1 (6-ounce) can frozen orange juice concentrate, defrosted
3/4 cup of vodka
1/2 cup of peach schnapps

Stir and sample.

Directions:  Combine all the ingredients in a large plastic container.  Freeze for a few hours.  Stir every now and then so you can have a quick taste.  Scoop into pretty glasses, enjoy.

*

                           

Orange Surprise

I flipped my orange bucket over to catch some rain water (rain was in the forecast, nothing happened) instead of water, I caught Rodney.

This makes the second animal I've caught in my
bucket, I've got to stop doing this.

Poor baby.  He (or she) was happy to be free and I am thankful I discovered my prisoner before our record setting cold front arrived in North Texas.

I now have a couple of lizards living in my little birdhouse.  I'm hoping they will keep the bugs away this summer. 

Take a closer look - Rodney's about to
pop inside the birdhouse.

I'm afraid my adventure (the one I hinted at last week) is not a tale of world travel but a sad lesson in 21st century money management.  I got a call from my bank fraud hotline a couple of Saturdays ago and was told someone in southeast Texas was using my debit card at the same time I was using it in north Texas.  I won't go into details because I have very few and I'm still waiting to hear the outcome of my appeal for the charges (just under $900) made on a counterfeit card with my information on it.   This is one of those "What am I supposed to be learning from all this?" life lessons. 

I am still learning. I encourage everyone (no matter where you are in life) to keep learning, be open to new experiences... learn from the mistakes of others, and pay with cash.

*

Wine with Everything

A magnet on my fridge
(Trash Talk by Annie - her humor speaks volumes to me.)

Hope you are having a wonderful week.

 

I'm on an adventure - details coming soon.

 

 

 

*

A Little Something Sweet

I got a newsletter from Redenta's Garden (one of my local garden centers).

****************

Saturday April 6

10:00 am - Canning with the Farm Girls

Come learn how to can and preserve your own food

 in The Farm Girls Canning Demo

Workshop. They will take you

through the necessary steps on canning,

along with canning terminology.

This is a demo workshop,

not a hands on learning class.

 

****************

My friend, Cindy, and I already had plans to make jalapeno jelly that day, we decided this might be fun so we attended the demo and walked around the beautiful garden.  Then we headed back to her house to whip up a bit of jelly. 

Ready for me to add my label.

I blogged about our jelly making adventures (here).   On Saturday, we picked up a few tips from The Farm Girls (loved these women!). I haven't opened a new jar of jelly so I can't tell you if letting the mixture sit for 30 minutes helped the sugar soak into the bits of pepper.  We also took their advice and bought ripe strawberries, sliced, and packed them away in the freezer - later on this month we plan to make strawberry jam.

 

I did save a few of the ripe strawberries for Mr. J&C and myself.  We had a wonderful dessert on Sunday - Strawberry Shortcake.  After breakfast I washed, sliced, and added 2 tablespoons of sugar to the berries.  Covered them with plastic wrap and stuck them in the fridge.

Late in the afternoon, I used a cup of biscuit mix (use what you have on hand or just make from scratch enough dough for two biscuits), added 2 tablespoons of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and cut a heaping tablespoon of butter into the mixture.  I added about 1/2 cup of heavy cream and mixed everything (had to add a tablespoon or two more cream).  Then I wet my hands and divided the mixture in half.  Shaped two biscuits, excuse me, shortbread cakes.  Cooked for 20 minutes in a 425F.  I didn't preheat the oven.

Not quite biscuits, not quite cakes - flash a little too bright.

I let the shortcake cool for almost an hour.  Then I poured 1/4 cup whipping cream, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and a little sugar into mixing bowl.  Whipped the mixture for a few minutes, and (finally) assembled our dessert. 

I could have used a ripe peach (or two) or blackberries, blueberries, or cherries - I just used what I had on hand and it was delicious.  We enjoyed our sweet treat while watching the Texas Rangers - they won! - baseball is back.  Life is good.


*