Sunday, April 26, 2009

A Surprisingly Hot Weekend

Chris' photos put mine to shame, but I have been in too much of a hurry to do more than grab snapshots. This weekend I cleared out most of the remaining unused rocks from Gabe's Garden. The hard work is done! Now the space needs mulch and plants.


I paid a visit to Marna's garden, and she sent me home with oodles of plants, including three colors of violets. These tough little beauties are not only native, edible, and resistant to drought, but after being squashed into a bag, they came out looking unscathed. This photo was taken after transplant and a day of eighty-degree sun beating down on them!

More violets, between the Christmas tree and a large stone that makes a nice little seat. My friend Jen saved the day by helping me plant these. I was exhausted, and (as it turned out) rather sunburned.

I lined the underside of the bird-bath with violets. This resulted in the birdbath being a bit crooked. I will have to fix that.

This location will be getting strawberries around the edges, but the central part - where the shell is sitting - will just be gravel. It will be a play area for Gabe to push toy cars around in.

2 comments:

marna said...

Hi Michelle - I can't believe you got it all planted so quickly! I love how you planted them among the rocks. The white really stands out.
Yesterday so many more Violets bloomed. That heat just made them pop open! Tons more, as you know where those came from!! How much fun will Gabe have picking a snack while in his garden!!

You will have to get some Oxalis for there when it comes up. It is a form of Sorrel that all my kids love to snack on all summer.
I got some great ideas for cooking Ramps (Wild Leek) from a dear friend in WVA. They grow wild all over down there. They have Ramp festivals this time of year!!

Michelle Clay said...

Thanks Marna! I'll have to pass on the sorrel, though. We have a giant invasion of sheep sorrel in our yards, flowerbeds, rockpiles. . . everywhere but the woods. I'm not a big fan of sorrel right now as a result! I sent you an e-mail by the way. . .