After all the rain we've had, Judith's garden is bursting forth with many blooms. She also welcomes many birds to her garden oasis.
Greetings fellow gardeners,
I am sparking joy all over the place! As I wandered over to visit the chickens, I saw that my lovely crabapple tree, that has been doing so poorly these past few years, is covered in deep sweet-smelling burgundy blossoms. I am hoping that means lots of tiny crabapples that will lead to delicious dark garnet-coloured jelly. As I stood there gazing at the blossoms, I noticed a branch of pale pink blooms growing up the side of the tree! Years ago, I had a sweet cherry tree that died from a disease. The cherries were so sweet that you could eat them without sugar. The branch with the blooms had been a sucker at the base of my crabapple tree, and I hadn’t removed it. I am hoping with all my heart that it is a branch from my old cherry tree. The fruit will be the test.
Crabapple with mystery blossoms
As I turned from the tree, one of the many birds that live in my back yard zipped past me. She is a flycatcher, and she built her nest over the door to my gazebo. I won’t be using this door for a while, I guess. Flycatchers are really interesting birds. They are about the size of a robin, but they flick their tails like a wren. I think that mine is a Willow flycatcher, and she is catching a lot of bugs.
Flycatcher nest
Another joyful discovery is that all of the lilacs have started to flower. My white lilac is a personal favourite as it stands firm against all the green of spring. At its base is a shock of yellow in the form of a euphorbia while the weigelia is just deciding if it is time to put in an appearance.
White lilac
While I am trying to encourage my vegetables to get started, I am still reluctant to bring all of them outside. I have succeeded with some and soon they will be in the ground, while others find it much too cold. This is what spring weather is all about.
My pepper plants are the right size to go outside, and one even has a flower, but I am reluctant to expose such a sensitive plant to the open air. I like to wait until the end of May before my tomatoes and peppers consider leaving my protection. I have pots of earth in my little greenhouse setup that I am planting with cucumbers, zucchini, and squash. I think my mini pumpkins can get started now as well. I have a few seeds left from what I had collected from my father’s Queensland Blue Hubbard squash, and I am hoping that they will germinate.
The catnip has grown a lot since it has rained. It seems that rain was all that was needed. Catnip is a fun herb to grow, and it will spread all over the place if you don’t monitor it. You can make catnip tea if you wish but I carefully selected a number of stems to take in to the too-many cats. I found it remarkably quiet for the rest of the day.
Maggie and her catnip
Please continue to keep an eye on the weather. If it is cold at night your tender plants will need protection and for some of them it is still too early. Enjoy the bright greens of the spring and remember to take breaks and drink water.
Judith
(Email: sghorticultural@gmail.com)
Veggie Bites are available at https://sghorticultural.wixsite.com/website or https://gardeningcalendar.ca/articles/veggie-bites/
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