My little macrame shop is a passion project for me and mixed media textiles are a kind of therapy when life gets stressful; but, gardening is also great therapy and I’m so excited to have a garden of my own that I can putter around in when I’m not at work or in the studio. So here’s a quick update on what’s blooming in the garden — what did well, and what didn’t.
If you’ve been following along with our home and garden adventures you already know we built a new house on Vancouver Island. It completed with a move-in for the beginning of April and that’s when we (me n’ hubby) planted flowers and veggies from seed; but, by the time we got to planting the seeds it was a late start in May. Now, during the first week of July, Hooray! we’ve started getting blooms in the garden after 8 weeks of sun, water, plant food and TLC.
Zinnias From Buds to Blooms
In my photo gallery below you’ll see photos from 1 week to a few days apart, how the Zinnias transformed from buds to blooms seemingly overnight.
Cosmos & Gypsophila Flourished
In the gallery below, you won’t see any Dianthus or any China Asters. These didn’t grow at all; however, we did have a problem with pigweed that must have arrived into the container gardens with the garden soil delivery. For a while, it took over the entire container and may have choked them out; but, with the help of a the “Garden Answers” app I was able to identify the pigweed before it completely took over everything.
Also below, you’ll see how the Cosmos seeds (these are annuals) grew into huge bushes of feathery fronds and stems. At first, I couldn’t see any buds and I thought I had failed to feed them enough to bloom. BUT, overnight I woke up to vivid fuschia coloured daisies and tons of new buds coming in. The packet said there would be meadow-like pinks and whites; but, so far I only see pinks (Revised: Some White Daisies popped up a day later). Since I’m still waiting for more of the cosmos daisies to pop open, I’m taking only small cuts of the feathery fronds for my little crystal vase (a wedding gift years ago). Then, I’ve supplemented with the Gypsophila (these are annuals). The Gypsophila (aka Baby’s Breath) was a beautifully big surprise. Check out the gallery below and decide for yourself.
Veggies
My hubby planted a variety of tomato plants and lettuce. We learned that lettuce really likes our garden and it was over planted. Lesson learned for next year; but, the neighbours got a windfall of fresh organic lettuce this year. The tomatoes are doing extremely well and I can hardly wait to taste them. Depending on the timing of when they finally ripen, some of our summer guests may get to taste them in a fresh salad during their visit.
In the Garden Beds
Some of the plants for the garden beds were suggested by the builder’s landscapers (with the exception of the ‘Annabelle’ Hydrangeas; a personal favourite I requested). These include: ‘Hino White’ Azaleas, ‘Green Gem’ Boxwood, ‘Blue Cushion’ Lavender, ‘Vernique White’ Veronica, ‘Platinum Blue’ Echinops Ritro (these are the blue/purple thistle flowers), ‘Star of Billion’, Anemone Sylvestris, and Morning Light Grass. The grass is still in it’s infancy and will become much grander as it establishes itself.
There are quite a few small lavender plantings so I plan to harvest the lavender and make some little sachets. In fact, I’ve read that regularly harvesting lavender buds encourages the plants to bloom even more. Stay tuned in a future blog for that adventure….
Window Boxes and Hanging Baskets
This year, we didn’t have a lot of time left after the move to get the gardens and grass in shape so we did only a few window boxes and one hanging basket. The one hanging basket we have is from the Farmer’s Market for $40. I can’t believe how stunningly big and beautiful it is! I don’t even think you could find a hanging basket this size at a nursery for under $100.
As you can see, since the move in April, there’s been a lot going on in the garden and we’ve got some interesting plans for next year. I hope you’re enjoying my home and garden blog. Comment below with your own garden tips or just to say hello. Now I’m off to have a lovely scoop of Chai ice cream from @bluespruceicecream. If you’ve got the time, stop by my macrame shop to see what’s new! #supportlocal
Until next time…
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