Garden grooming

There was not much deadheading to do, as flowers are getting to peak. I trimmed the bearded (old fashioned) iris yesterday to about 4 - 6 inches. I also trimmed the spent flowers from hostas and heucheras. I used several dozen Y stakes on perennials that are getting tall or starting to lean too much. I added some more 8 foot stakes for the scarlet runner beans.

There are a lot of little weeds to hoe or pull (always!). I got the front beds done - for now. I need to get to the back.

My sister sent me a lion fountain that I put near my new flower bed. She noticed that a lot of homes in Des Moines have lions, so sent this for my birthday.

Marine Hills Garden Club

Had the garden club over for a potluck gathering. See club blog for photos and club information: http://marinehillsgardenclub.blogspot.com/

Spa Flower Bed

The spa bed is coming along. Can't wait to see the cannas and angel's trumpet bloom.

I haven't had time for much gardening this week. Daily watering of pots and replaced the scarlet runner bean stakes with 8 foot stakes.

Volunteering as a master gardener at the Treat garden for Federal Way Symphony garden tour today.

A new flower bed!

We finally decided to plant flowers instead of putting in a gas fire pit - at least for now. So I dug up the old crummy soil to loosen it up. then I mixed in several bags of new soil and compost to make a nice rich bed.

I transplanted agapanthus and canna lilies from another bed. I bought Calla lilies ('Lemon Drop'), white Coneflower, Liatris, Alstroemeria, and Gaura. This is near the pool in the area I call my 'hot garden', so the flowers need to be bright and many of them are tropical looking.

I placed some flagstones so I can get into the bed to weed and groom plants.

The plant in the pot is a red banana, surrounded by bacopa. Red banana is not hardy - I am using it as an annual, but I may overwinter it in the storage room.

Click on photos to see them larger.

Scarlet runner beans

A photo to show how the scarlet runner beans are progressing. We will enjoy the red flowers, then the flavorful beans. Important to harvest these beans early so they are tender and to keep the plant producing.

Water containers daily

Most summer days we need to water our container plantings daily. Hanging pots/baskets may need water twice a day on hot/dry days, such as my calibrachoa.

Composting with worm class

Composting with Worms

Thursday, July 29, 6pm-7:30pm

Federal Way City Hall Council Chambers (33325 8th Ave S, 2nd Floor)

Learn how to set up and maintain a worm bin during this interactive course. Composting with worms is great for people without yard waste service who no longer want to send food to the landfill. Plus kids think ‘red wiggler’ worms are fascinating! Bring your bin if you need help setting it up, and bring your questions and we’ll troubleshoot together. The class is free and light refreshments, educational materials and door prizes are provided.

June 27 photos of garden

The white bellflowers are looking good now, along with hydrangeas, begonias, salvia, daylily, lady's mantle.

I've just finished another "walk-through" with my "action how" to take care of the weeds while small. And deadheading those flowers that have finished blooming, such as iris and peony. Also keeping the pots tidy: verbena, petunia, etc. If the columbine leaves are not looking good, when trimming off the spent flower stalks, I just cut off all the leaves. They come back looking good in no time.

Dogwood

One of my pink dogwoods is still blooming. The flower colors keep deepening. Maybe it liked our cool spring.

Slugs!

This has been a good year for slugs, much to our dismay. All the wet weather is heaven for slugs. They have really gone after my lupines, as well as my hostas and my new ligularias. As I see them out (mainly in evenings) I crush them. I also use iron phosphate slug bait liberally. The two types that I buy (depending on which costs less) are Sluggo and Worry Free. They are more expensive than the other types but not harmful to pets and birds. Slugs eat the bait, then go away to die. It takes a few days for them to die but they stop feeding immediately.

Slug control is another good reason to time your watering in the early morning instead of evening. Morning watering is much better for your plants and lawn as well - less fungus.

Front garden beds

Front perennial garden is coming along, showing promise of more flowers soon.

I got the hillside (native plantings) and berm weeded and groomed yesterday. Used my favorite action hoe.

Ilex crenata 'Sky Pencil'

The Sky Pencil Holly is a Japanese holly (no thorns) that is well-behaved and a terrific size and shape for so many places in one's landscape. It ultimately gets about one to two feet wide and eight feet tall. I planted one in a narrow space next to clematis vine, where I wanted a little more privacy.

I planted another in the center of a large pot. The other plants are red trailing verbena, white bacopa, and Riviera blue lobelia.

Y-stakes are at Furney's

My friend Dave was looking for a nursery that carried Y-stakes. I was at Furney's today and noticed a sign that they had Y-stakes.

I bought 49 more little begonias for edging the front flower bed, some plants for one more pot, two more Heuchera  'Electra'. Also got some Spiraea Nipponica 'Snowmound' (on sale for $4) -can always use more shrubs. These will go on the hillside.

Time to go plant in the rain! I'll take pictures to post when the rain stops.

The Garden Conservancy Open Days June 12

A great opportunity to tour some lovely private gardens in the south end next Saturday at the Garden Conservancy Open Days. Here is the link for the local gardens. Admission to each garden is $5. The tours are self-guided. I plan to go to Powellswood and the Edgewood Garden and perhaps the Skagen Stroll Garden.

Old Goat Farm

Marine Hills Garden Club toured Old Goat Farm May 29. I bought a Gunnera to plant alongside my creek.

Here is a photo of a mature Gunnera from our trip to England in September (along with Sean and Becca).

Seattle Pacific University landscape

Jeff Daley led a tour of the gardens/landscape at Seattle Pacific University for the Burien Master Gardeners on May 23. Jeff and his staff have done a beautiful job creating and maintaining a lovely outdoor environment. Go walk through campus one summer day.

Pacific Tree Frog

This is a good year for frogs. I've seen the Pacific Tree Frog all around my yard. Today they've returned to the window ledge by my shade garden bed.

Sum and substance hosta

I planted a new hosta that I admired on the campus of Seattle Pacific University.

cleaning out the creek

I spent the morning yesterday clearing the weeks out of the creek. I pulled out masses of what our Vietnamese neighbors and friends call watercress. Also some buttercups and shotweed. What a messy job! I was mud from head to toe - threw out my clothes afterwards!
The birds are so happy to have easy access to the water.

Staking plants

My favorite stakes are the English Y stakes. They are flexible to bend around plants as needed and quick to use -  nothing to tie. I've been staking plants, such as iris, astilbe, bellflowers, and lilies. Here is a picture of the stakes with some iris.
You can also see some lady's mantle in the front of the bed and weigelia in the back. I've planted hot lips salvia amongst the iris, so they will be blooming when the iris finish and for the rest of the summer.

red-tailed hawk on my front porch

We came home from a walk to find a hawk on the front porch. It might have been injured. Perhaps by the crows who go after the hawks and eagles and pull out their tail feathers.John took it to PAWS in Lynnwood.

Iris

The iris are just starting to bloom in my yard. Here are photos of three different types. What a glorious time of the year!

Frog/fern garden bed

My shady bed has progressed quickly this spring! We used to call it my fern grotto, but with the pacific tree frogs enjoying it, John is calling it my frog garden.

Plantings:

• Astilbes in the back - two varieties. The white flowers bloom first, then the pink ones.
• Hosta 'Gold Standard' in middle (about six plants).
• A variety of ferns throughout, placed according to height. They include Autumn fern, Ostrich fern, Hart's-tongue fern, Tatting fern, Maidenhair fern, Japanese painted fern, Button fern, and Bird's nest fern.
• Impatiens 'Dazzler White' in front.

hoeing weeds

Yesterday I used my favorite tool, the stirrup hoe, to hoe throughout my garden and landscape beds. It doesn't take long to walk through the garden with the hoe to get the weeds while tiny.

I also took a scrub brush, Simple Green, and buckets up the hill to clean up the plastic adirondack chairs and the big sitting stones by the fire pit. I discovered the coyotes had chewed up one of the chairs!

brought out the tender annuals

I finished planting all my pots and planted zinnias in the front sunny flower bed. I planted 1/2 flat of white impatiens in my shade garden. I think the white will pop in the shade. I planted 1/2 flat of the little begonias (pink with bronze leaves) in my "semi-shade" garden. It gets late afternoon sun, and they did well there last year.
The godietia I planted from seed came up nicely in front sunny bed. I was able to separate and replant a few crowded ones. These are a great annual easily grown from seed. 

Doublefile viburnum and Golden Lawson Cypress

I entered branches from these plants in the district garden club flower show (horticulture) and got a blue ribbon for each.

I've become exceedingly fond of viburnums as a landscape plant, as they thrive in clay soil and do well on a hillside. My favorite viburnum is the doublefile viburnum  - just look at the fabulous branching. Mine is the variety tomentosum 'Mariesii'.

High winds today wiped out the tulips

The wind blew off most of the tulip flowers, so I guess I will go trim the stalks but keep the leaves to feed the bulbs. At least I have my red geraniums planted to make up for the loss of the tulip flowers!

I'm going to begin acclimating (hardening off) some of the tender plants (tomatoes, ipomea, impatiens, begonias)  by bringing them outside for the day. In a few days, they will be ready to stay outside.

Master Garden Foundation resources

I added the link to the Master Gardener Foundation King County web site. It has great resources for useful gardening information.

Composting

John went to Oriental Gardens and got a big compost bin and a worm bin. See the City of Federal Way composting information. They have information for great discounts on compost and worm bins. Stay tuned for our story of setting these up.

Scarlet runner beans

I planted scarlet runner beans for the first time. They are great tasting green beans, but it is important to harvest before the beans get too big. We eat these a lot in England, and they are gaining in popularity here. They make a beautiful ornamental vine, so I have double reason to be excited to add them to my garden.

I planted 4 beans around each tall stake, mostly positioned into teepees. See photo for two of the teepees. I had several 6 foot stakes, so I used these. In the future, I'd like to use taller stakes. Since they are nitrogen fixers, I will look for other spots to plant them next year to enrich the soil in multiple places.