Thu 3 May 2007
We have a snake living in one of our birdhouses. Kind of cute, I guess.
I’ve been busy planting as much as I can, ignoring that in 2005 we had temps in the 20 & 30’s. It’s easy to get ahead of myself with the warm temps we’ve had.
I bought a few plants at the Rock Island Horticulture plant sale last weekend. It was one of those times when I went in thinking that I really didn’t need anything, but left needing a uhaul. Ugh, my family’s packrat tendencies are not in my home, but they sure show up in the garden. Now I’m lugging pots of stuff in and out the garage until I find space.
I’m hardening off the flats of flowers I started from seed and digging up volunteer plants that have self seed. I can’t kill them knowing somebody out there is actually buying the same thing. I’m going to give them to a plant sale or send them off in ginny’s package. Yeah, I haven’t done that yet. {{{blush}}}
I was notified by a nursery that they are sending the lilacs I ordered last fall. huh? Must have been a full moon. Otherwise I have been very good with the online spending. After the rest of the local plant sales are over I won’t be purchasing anything more for the garden. Now trading is another story.
Snake House
You can call him Harry
Wed 25 Apr 2007
So my little squirrel loves to pose, right? While gardening, I’ll often look over to see him in the most adorable spot. Sitting on a rock, peaking out of some flowers or begging with those cute brown eyes. I thought I would take advantage of his adorable self & shoot a few pics.
It turns out he is also one of the most uncooperative animals I have ever photographed.
But he is magical. Not only can he levitate his body, but he can also make a 2lb bag of peanuts disappear. I’ve changed his name to Houdini.
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Weather here is wonderful. :) Yeah, it’s raining and it’s awesome. I was afraid I would have to gripe about a drought since we were 2 inches short for rainfall, but it’s been raining buckets. This is exactly what all my plants need. I bet the hostas will really start to come up once they get this needed drink.
Mating or Murder
Sat 24 Mar 2007
For the last couple nights I have been awaken by horrible animal shrieks that I think are coming from raccoons. It’s the kind of noise that sets your hair on end and makes the dog goes berserk. I don’t know if a predator has moved into the neighborhood, a neighbor is being a jerk, or this is the spring sounds of love.
In other news my seedlings are growing like gangbusters. I have two more trays to start and then I will be done for the season. There was a lot more I wanted to add but at this point I really don’t know where I’ll end up planting half the seedlings I have. A 5′ x 5′ section of the new dry creek bed is going to be turned into a boulder fountain. We got the idea from the QCCA Flower & Garden Show to have a water feature that recycles the water over & over, rather than a pond. I would love to have a pond someday but I can’t see keeping curious paws out of it. This way we’ll have a nice sound of a fall without the pond to take care of.
Ok imagine sunken into the ground & without the sneeze shield. I’ll have more pictures from the show as soon as I have the time.
It’s all in the presentation
Tue 7 Nov 2006
Presentation is everything. Some enjoy their peanut butter sandwiches with the crust cut off…
…and some enjoy their pb crammed in a knothole.
Has the world gone ducking mad?
Tue 3 Oct 2006
Last weekend there was the cutest picture in the Moline Dispatch of a little blonde girl enjoying the beautiful weather at Ben Butterworth Parkway. Did anyone happen to notice what she was clutching in her tiny fist? A Wonder Bread sack of bread! I’m guessing that this was not a lunch, but a {{gasp}} treat for the ducks. Those ‘No Feeding The WaterFowl’ signs must have been lost on her.
When I read about the new signs going up it saddened me because feeding the ducks on Ben Butterworth Parkway was something we always enjoyed as kids. I read all the reasons why this needed to be done and frankly I think it’s a load of crap. The mess on the bike path is an understandable gripe, but there are plenty of other places that could be designated as feeding areas.
“It is a tough issue for the city which realizes people have been coming to the parkway for years to feed the ducks. “But it is not right. What is right is to stop feeding them. It is best for those who use the parkway and the bike path, and best for the waterfowl, as well,” he said.”
There needs to be study on the affects on wildlife when their river banks are now miles of manicured lawn & paved bike paths, but I guess that’s not the point.