haller lake

These are such beauties.

Tonight some much needed time just hanging in the garden. Things are coming up so quickly.

I got this bright idea to have a potted kitchen herb garden this year.

I say bright as the galvanized containers have been sitting as above for a few weeks and the lovely plants are still in their plastic start pots.

Both sides just staring at me everytime I go out onto the deck.

Let’s see if we can make this thing come to fruition.

I’m participating in Seattle Tilth’s FB How Does Your Garden Grow? photo documentary project.

Apparently I am currently the only participant, which means I’ll get a lot of air time I guess.

I’ve chosen the Green Arrow Peas, which are still unplanted.

I love the concept of stop motion plant progress but have yet to figure it out for myself.

A few years ago I tried to do this with another plant, a hydrangea, a silly project I called Hydrangea Sunday.

In the end seemed like a weekly curse as the thing has never grown right, never quite gets its sea legs and promptly  dies.

Then it has the audacity to come back every year just to irritate me. I’ve moved it, trimmed it, fed it and everything else calculated to give it a new life and forget it.

So peas, don’t do me wrong.

Today at 10:00 it’s chilly but sunny and there is no excuse to stay inside.

That damn bird that sits on the metal supports of our chimney cap was at it again. Occasionally it gets the loud impulse to sharpen his beak up there, which sounds like a woodpecker taking down the roof. The first few times it happened I almost had a nervous breakdown. Now I just throw on a coat, go outside and laugh- there he is.

Of course today I tried to take his photo and he disappeared.

This year I want red. Lots of it.

For the past few years I repeatedly think it’s a brilliant idea to plant a garden filled with green flowers.

I love the color chartreuse and green zinnias etc seem like a great idea upfront.

Then summer drolls along and there is nothing out there.

I’ve also attempted the chocolate garden idea, which was also better on paper.

So this year, starting off with the garden accessories, we are going in the opposite direction.

Red, and lots of it.

Red garden clogs to boot.

Post Tilth and we certainly have our work cut out for us.

Here’s a list of the booty (still yet to be planted). Yeah, and Sunday was a total loss for many reasons, so gardening got put on hold.

PS Chickens continue to be sexy. On Sunday, two blocks away from our home I noticed a newly installed chicken hatch in someone’s front yard, and yep, a chicken inside. Tonight when Pickles and I went for a walk, no chicken, must literally be cooped up.

Heavy Petal, one of my favorite blogs of the north is in the first blush of planting a square foot garden box. I love her list of cool crop plantings, lots of lettuce, radish, spinach.

Apparently she is in the midst of writing a book too, which is great for us fellow Pacific Northwest gardeners, Urban Edibles: How to grow organic vegetables, herbs, fruit, mushrooms and grains in small spaces. Coming next year from Timber Press.

Is is a red letter day! Mr. UPS just stopped by and delivered the two books I ordered last week from Brooklyn Botanic Gardens. I love these little books, and when I saw they had a Kitchen Garden edition I found that the best deal was to buy them right from BBG at $3.99 each. So best get reading quick, I’ve got a plant sale to go to tonight with Ms. Chris!

I almost forgot, the excitement of the weekend was finding a contorted filbert for $14.99 at Loews.

Now where to plant it.

This is the first year ever where I am feeling so far behind in gardening duties  I’m not sad it will be a few more weeks until everything is in bloom.

At the moment the lilacs are leafing out, the star magnolia and daffodils are in bloom. I literally spent the entire weekend weeding, feeding and cleaning up in anticipation of every thing else. There is still so much more to do!

I am obsessively reading about vegetable gardening (inspired by Ms. Chris) and still can’t make a decision about what I want to grow this year. Chris and I are going to the Tilth Sale on Friday, so I better think fast.

Ben and I bought the wood this weekend for raised beds and the plan is in motion. The first frame is resting in the yard.

I’ve been fixated on a potager garden I saw last year in Organic Gardening and Ben is attempting to appease the dream. Except now we know squeezing that little sawed off frame edge into reality is a total bitch. Too late to go back to a simple 4×4 bed. In the fantasy potager, an entire foot path around the bed is paved in bricks, everything is level, and the plants are lush.

Currently as you can see my raised bed is housing those personal favorites: dandelions.

Today while furiously ripping out (and cursing a mother f-er) the resurfaced grass root, I noticed my robin couple had returned. Against any good intentions, I am such a poor bird hostess (empty bird feeders anyone?) -  I was thrilled my visitors came back for another season. The plan was to make a beautiful dreamy habitat for my bird folk, but we are still working on that.

Here is that dang article that imprinted its self on my skull. April 2009 issue.

Incidentally we find out that hard way that potager has nothing to do with Harry Potter and in fact in French it would be pronounced  “pot-ah-jay” (long o).  Thankfully in English it is often heard as “paht-ah-jer”, and I read either pronunciation is  correct.

At any rate I am lusting over those bricks and wondering how I could take early retirement to spend an entire year laying intricate foot paths.