Dead Peony

If this is what a dead peony looks like I want one all the time!

Will's Rose

Pictures I took today in the garden.

Fuschia. Aren't they unbelievable? But how does one grow them up to be tall?

When these were dormant, I called this plant "hideous". When I removed the weeds that overwhelmed it, I began to appreciate it's cool green color. Once I realized they were yarrow and have since started yellowing, it made me very happy. Whenever I see these yarrow, I think of Oscar Wilde and all the Victorian writers who wrote about it.

Will has convinced me not to pick these, but I'm dying to anyway! I grew these from seed, so you can imagine how proud I must feel. These, coupled with the burgeoning radishes, make me want to eat them even if I'm not hungry!

The first of so many iris bulbs to emerge. I stupidly killed some of Will's bearded iris, so I hope this, plus the other 20, make up for it.

Again, the incredible iceburg roses out front.

We leave you off with this second Fuschia picture. With so many beautiful flowers in the world, it is quite difficult to not indulge in just one. Someday I would like hanging baskets of these, all different varieties. For Fuschias alone, there are hundreds. Aren't they beautiful?

Vegetable Garden

Neither Will or I had planned on putting a vegetable garden together, but with Will's incredible energy, a lot was accomplished. What was once a sad plot with some radishes and peas is a full-fledge vegetable garden today!

It began with this system Will built for the peas to climb up. If you thought that was impressive, behold what Will built to surround our small plot.

Currently there stands a nice threshold and the finished product of organized markers and troughs. It was tiring to spade-out the rows and plant seeds but we did it.

Our selection of vegetables was things that we love. We planted bell peppers, onions, green onions, fennel, heirloom tomatoes, butternut squash, carrots, more radishes, tri-color carrots, BEETS, and more cantaloupe. And we still have another plot to design!

To commemorate the moment, we ate the first product of our harvest: a radish!

Let me tell you, it was delicious. I always thought radishes were old-people food. The complexity of spiciness combined with earthiness is so uncannily delicious!

We really cannot wait to have a garden we can eat!

Foxglove

You're going to see us posting A LOT about Foxglove, one of my favorite flowers. I honestly cannot get enough of this flower, which not only never fails in strength, multiplication, and beauty, but is so incredibly easy to grow.

These are our oldest Foxglove. They started as two, and have multiplied to 12! The tallest here is over five feet. Considering their recent attack of aphids, it's incredible how resilient they are.

I read that Foxglove were discovered growing wildly in stretches of coal.  I'm curious about using this as feed for our foxglove.

June

It is May, but it is June-month, that is, our friend June--for making our month so beautiful! Our good friend June shares something very special in common with us: a passion for flowers and gardening. Just the other week we went to Regan's together, an incredible Nursery in Fremont at the height of Rose-season. All of our hearts were pounding so hard.

The incredible bouquet  you see above is from June. I think this is one of the most beautiful bouquets I've ever had, or ever seen for that matter. As you can see from the photo, her arrangement is flawless. Pale purple Delphinium with light green Snow Balls and a shot of Pink Peony. It really makes us happy.

The Ranunculus below are a gift from her garden.Wow!

On our trip to Regan's, June gave us this incredible basket of Petunias. It ties the whole patio together. We feel like Martha Stewart!

Don't you wish you knew June?

Maintenance

Nasty bucket of gross snail carcasses.

We've arrived at the unglamorous reality of home-garden care. This includes the killing of snails, which feels more like genocide. I am not fond of crushing snails, so I imagined that putting them into a bucket of soapy water, as Martha Stewart suggested, would limit my sense of guilt. Turns out their death is prolonged. I found myself pushing back snails into the water as they desperately attempted to escape! Not fun.

I learned tonight about Agapanthus Hotel, which is what I call the squatting spot of so many snails. They are certainly uninvited guests. They don't even taste that great. French people are weird.

I have educated myself about Bermuda Grass, crab grass, and worst of all, Oxalis.  I feel like I'm pulling some girl's pony tail as I visciously yank these from the ground.

I found myself uttering obscenities at snails as I found so many feasting on the crumbs of what used to be leaves on our Stock. There I was in my sweats with a flash light at 11pm and a bucket of snails swearing outloud.

The Orchard after weeding.

But the yard is looking better. We are weeding everything. I have planted lawn seeds in tufts that were dead from oxalis.

The Orchard before weeding.

I noticed our neighbor has 8 million bright pink geranium blossoms. We had about five. I consulted a friend online. She suggested high-magnesium plant food. I sprinkled our geranium like a flavorless platter.

Unfortunately, I think we'll have to skip on the planting of the rest of the vegetable seeds. The earth needs compost, tilling, sand, and all sorts of maintenance. We are in dire need of mulch too. Wish us luck!