I can feel it from here! At last -- warm weather! Now it's about 85 degrees. Gone are all gloves, scarves, and even long pants. What's the farm's status on this lovely May day? Four baby chicks are a week and a half old.
It's hard to get photos of babies when there are two mamas and a fierce daddy standing right there! Adam was called yesterday to come retrieve a swarm hive of bees that had settled in a shopping cart at the Food Lion grocery store. So he did.
He used this portable nuc box. It's fitted out with frames inside, and is a perfect box for a swarm hive to start in. The bees stayed overnight ... but sadly this morning they'd decided to move on. Bees will do what they like. In addition to mowing and watering and weeding and many other tasks, Adam continues clearing the border to the west of the house.
He's leaving the large pine trees. There's a slender little tree in the photo, (just above the word "slender") that we wanted to identify. Here's its leaf.
It's a Washington Hawthorn with impressive spikes. Now that it's free of strangling vines and has sun on its face, perhaps it will have bright red berries and pretty white flowers as it's supposed to. My hostas are looking grand.
Both elephant ears and amaryllis are happy too.
From the greenhouse: Tomato plants are going into the beds. All are Matt's Wild Cherry this year. We like them best.
I have a dozen of these to sell at the market tomorrow, plus a dozen cucumber plants, three loofah plants, and nine basil plants. There's wedding planning in the garden too! How so, you ask? I'm growing gypsophila, also known as "Baby's Breath." You can't have too much Baby's Breath at a wedding.
I've since weeded that bed more, once I was able to identify said flower. I sewed the seeds not knowing what it would look like.
Next to it I sewed a small bed of chamomile. It's the ferny-looking stuff.
Here's a close-up. It's for making tea.
Everything's growing this time of year. So far, it seems only our lemongrass and most of my lantana died over the winter. I'm still holding out for the lantana though. Oh -- if you missed my most recent Herb Beds Tour (I know -- Oh, the excitement!), here it is:
Your hostas are beautiful! Mine are just waking up and one variety is blooming as it is coming up. I don't know what it is, but I love it. Your herbs look so nice. I look forward to fresh herbs growing again. Your video was fun and those baby chicks are so darn cute. I'm getting chicks today from the feed store! God bless you. ~Jody
You are filling me with inspiration. I now follow various gardening forums. Did you know that some people chop up tomatoes and manage to grow them into new plants? I suppose it makes sense if the seeds are still there. Today I found a young oak tree growing in one of my patio pots. Squirrels often hide acorns in them. I have planted the tree into a pot just out of curiosity. I will never be able to plant it into my garden because it is too small. But I might ask around to see if anyone can give it a home one day.
It is so much fun to look around your homestead :-)
Did you time the baby's breath to be in bloom on the wedding date? I grew it one year... the only thing I remember was reading that if you want to have it for very long you must sow the seed every two weeks, because it blooms and is "over" that fast.
I had a lantana plant that I always thought had died in the winter, but then it would surprise me and come back rather late in the spring. So maybe yours... But the different varieties of lantana seem to have varying hardiness.
Your hostas are beautiful! Mine are just waking up and one variety is blooming as it is coming up. I don't know what it is, but I love it. Your herbs look so nice. I look forward to fresh herbs growing again. Your video was fun and those baby chicks are so darn cute. I'm getting chicks today from the feed store!
ReplyDeleteGod bless you. ~Jody
Everything looks lovely! Sorry about the bees. Will they possibly come back? Enjoy the warmth. We're getting there!
ReplyDeleteOh those little chicks are adorable.
ReplyDeleteI do love baby's breath AND sea lavender.
ReplyDeleteSo exciting - the wedding plans!
You are filling me with inspiration. I now follow various gardening forums. Did you know that some people chop up tomatoes and manage to grow them into new plants? I suppose it makes sense if the seeds are still there. Today I found a young oak tree growing in one of my patio pots. Squirrels often hide acorns in them. I have planted the tree into a pot just out of curiosity. I will never be able to plant it into my garden because it is too small. But I might ask around to see if anyone can give it a home one day.
ReplyDeleteIt is so much fun to look around your homestead :-)
ReplyDeleteDid you time the baby's breath to be in bloom on the wedding date? I grew it one year... the only thing I remember was reading that if you want to have it for very long you must sow the seed every two weeks, because it blooms and is "over" that fast.
I had a lantana plant that I always thought had died in the winter, but then it would surprise me and come back rather late in the spring. So maybe yours... But the different varieties of lantana seem to have varying hardiness.