Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Ode to a Dear Friend

My dear little kitty of 13 years passed away in November 2008 from cancer. All last summer I looked around for just the right think to remember her by. At the end of the season I found this adorable statuary with a kitty looking through spy glasses with a little birdie sitting on top. I waited until winter was over to set up my memorial.

Spookie just loved to sit and watch the birds. In fact that is why I started feeding them, to draw the birds closer so she could watch them from the patio doors. I can not help but look out into my garden and smile.

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Yard Work has Begun


Dear Bloggers -- I am so excited to be back working on my blog. As Oprah would say...here we go.

I am in my glory now that I am able to start working in my gardens. I've been able to get out a few days during the last couple of weeks. We have had such rain during the spring, our yard was flooded. We have a good layer of clay just under the grass which causes water to stand and not drain off easily. We joke that Lake Palczewski appear off and on in our back yard under the crab apple tree. But for now it's dried out and I can get to work. We still are experiencing frost, so I am not able to start planting - but there is plenty of other work to be done.

In the back corner under the shelter of a pine tree and clumps of bushes of the yard there has been an area where it appears the past owners and to some extend us too have dumped branches and extra grass clippings over the years. It has really become an eye sore. I found out I had a lilac bush back there last year after it was done blooming. So all winter I have been spying that brush pile from my kitchen window, plotting my plan of attack. I've been able to clean out most of the tree branches. The smaller ones, I've filled up my yard waste container (actually I've filled it twice), and the larger branches we going to run through a chipper to make them into mulch. There is a thick layer of rich soil from all the grass clippings I will spread around my various gardens.


My herb garden did not fair well over the winter. I've lost all my lavender. But I have to say the mint has done very well...in fact it is trying hard to take over the entire garden -- I need to start pulling up some shoots very quickly (I worked on it some today...but there is much more to pull). Now to find a use for all this mint....hmmmm...I think I am seeing some Mojitos in my near future. Watch for recipes.

Now I need to find the extra strength Tylenol to work on these sore muscles.

Happy garening everyone!