Waiting for Spring

This is a difficult time of year for me.... Is it spring or is it still winter?  Are we going to HAVE spring this year or go right into Fall?  If we have a nice spring, does that mean we'll have a horrible summer?  

So many questions.  Last year our April was absolutely gorgeous!  In the 70's all month long.  Now, this is incredible for a couple reasons.... we hardly ever get weather in the 70's in the middle of our best summer and here we're sunny AND warm in April!  And did we live to regret it?  You bet we did! 

The rest of our summer was horrible.  Normally we will start our winter cleanup around now, picking up branches that have fallen in wind storms, raking up the million pine cones that have fallen, picking up trash that has blown into our yard, more raking, tidying up gardens.  Last summer our weather was so horrible that we struggled all summer long to even get our spring clean up done.  We were still pruning damaged shrubs well into Fall.  Summer came and went at the blink of an eye. 

Yes, this is our dilemma....  what kind of summer are we going to have. But first.... we need to feel that spring has finally arrived.

I can honestly say that I believe it has....  At least the little red nubbins of the rhubarb have poked their shiny red heads up through the frozen ground.  That's no easy task!  We've had a few nice, sunny days but it hasn't been warm.  This weekend it was gorgeous, but the 41 degrees felt more like 32 degrees. 

We've already done a lot of our spring clean up but still more to go before we can welcome summer.  I'm anxiously awaiting some green to start forming on my shrubs, maybe a little yellow from Trollius to shine on our yard. 

But, for now, everything is still pretty brown. 

Yes, spring always brings with it hope.... hope for a sunny summer.... time spent outside without having to bundle up.... picnics.... hot dog roasts.... and a yard filled with color.  So far we're off to a good start.  Wish us luck! 

Later! 
Nancy

Ash Spirea

Isn't this beautiful? 
It's Ash Spirea.
It comes into its glory about this time of the year to give me something to drool over.

It starts out with little droplets of white beads. 

A neighbor took some cuttings for wedding bouquets she was making.

I bet it was gorgeous.

The plant itself gets to be 10' tall and makes a great hedge and barrier.

It can also be considered invasive because it sends out runners for 3' in all directions.

I've decided to let it take over this particular garden as I love it that much.

Soon, it will change colors and I'll have a wall of oranges.

I'll share Fall pictures soon. 

Later!  Nancy

Rain

It's been raining here for what seems like forever.  Course, I know we had some sunny days earlier, but how quickly we forget.  It has been raining for about 10 days, I think. Maybe more.  Nonstop.  Constant.  Heavy rain and lots of wind.  This is our August.  It's always the worst month of the year. 

All this rain is certainly taking its toll on my gardens.  My annuals have been subjected to so much rain, they're just mush.  A slimy mush.

My violas and pansies... done.  That's what's left of them in middle of the zinnias.

My nasturtiums... done... except for a few diehard blossoms.  The rain just pounded them.

My peas and lettuce, done.

My rhubarb has seen its last day and leaves are starting to droop to the ground and turn colors.  Oh, well, it was a nice run of wonderful rhubarb while it lasted.  There's always next year.

 

We're always good about sharing our garden beauty but today I thought I'd show you what it REALLY looks like this time of year! 

Enjoy!  Nancy

The Brightest Spot

As summer starts to disappear, and we see more and more of fall slipping into place, this little clump of dwarf lillies is the bright spot of my entire yard. 

It doesn't matter how dark and dreary our day is, this little clump of yellow is out there waving its beauty as if to say, "look at me!"  And my eyes always fall on that bright spot.  Even at night, when it's getting dark, this little group is what I see. 

I'm thinking next year I need to plant more of them throughout my other gardens.   

Most everything I plant is more muted colors so it's no wonder this stands out so vividly.  Especially now when there isn't much blooming in my gardens.    

I found a couple of these grapevine wreaths at a garage sale this summer, not certain how they were going to be used, but I love that they add another dimension to my birds' watering holes.   

Some of my sedums are starting to come into bloom, and my hostas, but they're not a blast of color, just muted. 

This little darling blooms alllll summer long. Lewisia. It comes from the Columbia Gorge in Oregon, living in the cracks and crevices of the rocky walls along the Columbia River.  It loves the heat and sun, yet it thrives in our wet and dreary weather. 

It's August.  Our worst gardening month of the season.  Little more will be in bloom until the fall colors take over.  The gardens will start to deteriorate and I'll find myself out in the mud and gunk keeping up with the weeds and cutting back perennials until another season of bloom.   

Some times I wonder if it's all worth it....  and the answer is always, yes! 

Later!  Nancy

Life in Juneau

How self-sufficient are you in case of a major crisis?
How would you take care of your family?
Would you have enough food and water to survive?
Do you ever think about such times?

I do.  Often.  Maybe more so than most folks.
Especially after the quake that hit Japan recently.  The devastation.
For weeks I sat with my tablet in hand, making lists of emergency rations I needed to buy and things I needed to do to be more prepared. 

Perhaps I think of it more than most people because of where we live.
Here in Juneau we're land locked.  We have no roads in or out. 
We rely on container vans brought to Juneau on barges, for all our goods. 
Groceries, household items, furniture, construction material, cars, plants, just about everything. 

So if something happened to Seattle and the waterways were no longer usable, we could be in big trouble.
Our grocery shelves would sit empty and bare after a week's time. 
If you didn't already have a vegetable garden you could forget about growing your own food because dirt, wood, and seeds may not be coming for a long while.
It could be weeks or months or even longer before rations made it to Juneau.
Okay, so I might be exaggerating some, but I don't think it's wrong to think the worst case scenario.
And should that worst case scenario ever happen.... I want to be somewhat prepared.

Only this past spring, our weather was bad and the barge couldn't make it up the Channel to deliver the containers for days.  Our grocery shelves got depleted of fresh produce.

It never hurts to be prepared. 
My parents were.  They were totally self-reliant and I admire them for that. 
I suppose that's another reason I think the way I do.  They grew up in the Depression.  They knew how to be frugal and self-sufficient.
They had water jugs stored in the crawl space of our home.  It wasn't a basement, just the underside of our house.  Dark, damp, musty. A place you did not want to go. 
Mom canned and canned and canned.  We  harvested seafood and it was frozen.
We ate popcorn on Friday nights and mom would open up a fresh jar of grape juice.
Dad was prepared for any emergency.
We had wood stoves, a supply of wood, a generator or two.
Yes, they were prepared for any crisis.   

My husband and I decided it wouldn't hurt to become more self-sufficient.
In Juneau it's a little more difficult because we aren't farm folks.
In fact, there aren't any farms in Juneau and the farmer's markets are personal use only.
We can't go to the local fruit stand and buy cases of apples to process.
Or corn to can. 

What we can do is can fish, which we have plenty of here.
And pick local berries found along the road.
We can also buy "bulk" from our local Costco like strawberries for strawberry jam.
At least we know what we're putting in our mouths when we process our own food.

Earlier this summer we drove around town looking for the allusive salmon berry.  We managed to find four berries.  Four. 

And my granddaughter ate those. 

I guess my point is, it never hurts to be prepared. 

To have a little garden for fresh produce.

To have your freezer and pantry filled with bounty. 
Have some home brew for special occasions.

Next year I hope to have a larger garden. 
Maybe even a green house.
I'd like to grow enough food to share with family and friends on a weekly basis.
Help lighten the financial crunch we're all feeling.

To be better prepared should a crisis happen.

And if you aren't.... that's okay because I'll gladly share my rations with you!   

One Lettuce Leaf at a Time

Some might say I have a green thumb.
Others might think I have all the answers.
But I don't and I certainly don't! 
I'm just lucky and I don't give up.

My husband wanted to try his luck at growing cherry tomatoes a couple years ago.
So we bought a couple of those Topsy Turvy things and hung them on the south wall of our home where they would get plenty of sunshine.
Then he plants other cherry tomatoes in a pot. 
I guess he's comparing which plant will produce better.

Last year we grew this beauty of a plant.
But it only produced one measly cherry tomato.  One.
We were told you need to clip its leaves....
Click here for the story behind it. 

This year we have tons of blossoms and quite a few little green tomatoes....
But nothing is ripening.
So my question to you, fellow gardeners.... how long does it take a tomato to ripen???? 
These have been "in process" for about 30 days now.

My peas are finally coming on strong.

My three year old grandson  has been waiting not-so-patiently for them. 

Every night, as he heads home, he runs outside, around the car, bends and peers, anxiously waiting for the first peas to arrive.

Now he's quick enough to yank a few off the vines and heads home with a whole hand full! 

This is why I grow peas.

My strawberries are trying hard to produce.

But the birds are beating me to them.
I might get some netting and drape them next year.
I snatched this one up last night even though it was only half reddish, but it was still so yummy.   

 

I bought this basil on June 8.  It's maybe doubled in size.... 
I know basil likes warmer temperatures, but, still.... come on.... 

GROW! 

Gardening is certainly a challenge in SE Alaska. 
Our temps can be cold and weather wet.
Our dirt is poor
and we live in many microclimates.

Yet we keep trying.  And trying.  And trying. 
Trying to find the answer to growing tomatoes without a green house.
Trying to become a little more self-sufficient.
One lettuce leaf at a time. 

Later!  Nancy

The Garden of Life

Why is it I have way more to talk about and share than there are days in the week?
I could combine them all into a Week in Review collage and still not be able to cover it all.
It's not that my life is full of exciting adventures and stories to tell.
I'm not even one of those people who lives life to its fullest.
I just live a full life.

I live a quiet life.

A life centered around family and a few good friends.

Each week a rerun of the previous week.

I garden.

I babysit grandkids.

Then I garden some more.

We go for rides, getting a glimpse of our neighbor's lives through the gardens they tend.

Then I babysit some more.

We have family dinners.

Then I garden some more.

Occasionally we travel South to visit family.

Or head to exotic places and dream the life we wish we had.

Many of our travels are just across the street, visiting good friends and drinking wine on their porch. 

We pick berries along the side of the road and weathered glass on the beach.

We read.  Watch tv.  Play games.

I bake.  And eat.... Then bake some more...

Then we visit with the kids and laugh with the grandkids.

No, I certainly do not live an exciting life. 

I live a full life, a life I'm content with most of the time.

 My cousin's wife passed away a year ago.  She wasn't very old. 

He posted the following on his Facebook wall:

"Her message to you would be - if you have always wanted to do something and you’ve been waiting for the right time. It’s now."

Every time I read that passage, it brings tears to my eyes. 

Here's a woman who lived life, she just didn't have enough life to live.

That statement hits home because, you see, I'm still waiting for the "right time...."

I'm not certain what I'm waiting for, but I'm waiting....  

It seems I've been waiting most all my life for something.

To move south to live near family.

To travel across the U.S.

To live in a little cottage on the water. 

To learn to play the piano.

To travel to Maine to eat lobster.

Yes, that's me.... always waiting to experience life.

For the freedom and gumption to go, do, and be. 

I know my day will come to go, do, and be.

And I also know I'm supposed to be right here, right now.

Living in the present. 

But still, that statement makes me uneasy because it's so true.

We don't know what tomorrow will bring.

Or if there will BE a tomorrow.

Many people feel that since we're retired, we should be traveling the world.

Doing exciting things!  Being exciting people!

Or at least not being so tired from babysitting. 

And I have to agree that babysitting grandbabies was not on my list of things to do when retired. 

But I also believe this is where we're supposed to be at this time in our life.

This is who we are.

This is our chosen life. 

Family.

For now anyway.

Before we know it we'll have the freedom to pursue our dreams.

We can be those people others think we should be. 

More importantly, we can be the people WE think we should be....

It'll be interesting to see how our life will change....

I know one thing. 
In my next chapter, I do plan on seeing if the grass really IS greener somewhere else.
And I do plan on traveling the world, or at least the United States.
And I do plan on living a fuller life, living life, experiencing life, learning about life. 

My life will always be my children and my family but it's time to start checking things off my Life List.
I don't want any regrets.

gnome sweet gnome

Have you ever told a little white lie?
To your three year old granddaughter?

Meet my resident garden gnome. 
He  lives in this stump.
Behind this door.

He comes out occasionally to enjoy the weather. 

My granddaughter asks, "does he move?"  Of course he does!

"Can I open his door?"  No... no you can't. 

For you see, this little gnome (like all gnomes) will play possum when a human approaches.

They'll look just like a statue....

Then we leave them alone.

That's what I tell her.

And she believes me. 

But you can see her cautiously peaking around the astilbe that protects his little home in hopes of getting a glimpse of my garden gnome. 

When she's not looking, I'll gingerly move him a little, much to her dismay that she missed him in motion again! 

This is Henry.

Or maybe it's Harvey.

I don't know.... it could be Frank. 

My grandson will walk around the circle garden asking, "what's his name?"  "What's his name?"

He never catches on that they have different names every time he asks. 

This could be Jeremy.

Or Justin.

I'm pretty sure this is Frank, though.

I love my garden gnomes and in case you think I'm a non-believer....
I believe in gnomes!  And garden fairies!
And as far as telling a little white lie to my granddaughter, it's not really a lie as long as you Believe.... Is it...? 

Yes.... I love my garden gnomes. 
There's no place like gnome home. 

Later!  Nancy

Ordinary Yard Art

I love yard art! 
And anything will do.
It can be an old tin bowl collecting water for the dog....

Or a rusty wood stove insert used as a planter box.

This old bucket is waiting for its next tenant. 

An old watering can just sitting there collecting rain water. 

Stepping stones to nowhere and back. 

They give the allusion of good things to come.

And barrels strategically placed to gather rain water.

And to offer a hiding place for the peanuts the mice hide underneath....

Even a bird bath can be yard art when it's dry. 

One of my favorite pieces is this old garden plow that was my husband's great uncle.

And the old, rusty bucket looks perfect perched on a stump. 

Bird houses are a must in any garden.

Especially those perched on a mossy stump.

They're just decorative; birds don't nest in them.

Even a large basket can be used as yard art when flipped on its side and filled with sedums.

That's just some of my yard art.  More later.  Nancy