Smartie's Bar & Grill #74

Happy Moanday, barflies. Rainy morning, good day to telework. Announced this morn there was another case of COVID in my bldg downtown. That makes 5. None among my employer, but then again, we're still working from home. No end in sight

Fact or fiction? Anybody's guess.

 

Chicago.

 

Miami.

 

Windows still open and now the heat index is 98. *sweat*

AC time.

 

Still need more plants.

 

Who's up... need coffee

 

I was at my Ex-sister-in-Laws on Saturday for a Family affair.
I guess because there was leftover eats from last Monday's Funeral.
As we sat around the Dinner table the words Wally World
came up.I thought it meant like the movie - Vacation - as
that silly Amusement Park.
Then it was explained.I had forgotten.It meant Wal*Mart.
Does anyone else come across Wal*Mart being called
Wally World
I mean besides the Hostest with the Mostest ... Ladybird Smartie.

 

I try to teach you to be kewl, Foolie, but you don't listen.

 

I'll assume perennials? They usually take care of themselves. Do you prefer spring-early summer blooming, or Summer-fall Blooming? Color preference?

 

I stumbled across the cutest channel on YouTube.
It's an old timer { guessin' he lives alone }
His channel is { - James Blackwood - Raccoon Whisperer }
He shows off his ability to feed his raccoon.As he sits on his easy
bench with a bucket of hot dogs as anywhere from a half dozen to a
dozen or more raccoon cozy up to him for feeding time.
He talks to them while handing out to each critter as if an old
army buddy.It's what God Intended.I think.
I may be wrong.But it don't git much sweeter.
I think I may want to be Reincarnated as a Raccoon with nice
neighbors.

 

I'm going to put two more shrubs in the Camelia bed (the left one). A "Green Spire" Euonymus will go in the corner. Some yet unknown lower shrub will go somewhere in the remaining space.

Yes, all of the flowers will be perennials. I have some picked out.

 

You take the fun out of everything. I was gonna go internet hunting....

 

I planted 3 small Shumard Oak trees around my front yard last fall. They've all done great... until a strong wind broke off one at the ground. Waiting til fall to replace it, but hoping there was enough root system that it will recover. We'll see.

 

There are other ways to help!
How does this arrangement?

 

Well, starting from the left, the white looks to be a late winter early spring bloomer. Hard to tell from this distance, perhaps Candytuft? Mounds nicely, should do nicely with mixed sun/shade under the shrub.

Next, is Coreopsis, Early Sunrise. A personal favorite, a happy dash of color. Make sure you plant the crown just a small bit above the soil, so it drains well. It doesn't like soggy feet. If that spot gets a fair amount of sun, it should do well. It will eventually spread a little bit, so it will fill in nicely.

Is that next one Galliardia? Perhaps one of the 'Arizona' series. It almost looks like a dwarf variety, which may be too small for it's companions.

Oh, I almost missed the pink one near the Coreopsis. Have no idea what that is, but for color balance, I would switch up the galliarda and the pink one...but that's just my preference.

I would almost suggest something taller over on the left, to off set the tall (Jabob's Ladder?) on the left. Have you considered a climber, like clematis on a trellis? Height should be considered for balance.

Thanks for letting me have a go, disregard at will.

 

Do you know how big those suckers get? Of course, we will all be dust in the dirt when they reach full size at 80 feet or so. Oo

 

Good job!

The pinkish thing is called: Dianthus.

The little, splayed shrub is: Ceanothus "Blue Jeans". It's expected to grow 5-8 feet tall and wide. I'm hoping that it will take to shaping.

I can't use Clematis. I have to have plants that don't need much water. I've already flooded the neighbor's yard twice.

 

Yep, they'll outlive me, that's for sure. The City started it by offering a free tree to homeowners. We got 1, then went back at closing and they gave us another one. The 3rd one came from Home Depot via delivery. Who knew they package & ship live trees! I had 3 large maple trees at one time, because my street name has maple in it. They're not native trees and kicked the bucket, one after the other, of old age. Now they're replaced with something that can stand our summers. My footprint on earth is back to where it started. Lol

 

We got some of them outside the goat fence. The goats eat all the acorns. Oak is a good tree.... solid.

 

And remember you will never "set a scene". So when you ask how it looks.... well great for now. But we may consider different bloom times and a centerpiece. And the flooding? You need a soil that soaks like a sponge that is clay based. You could dig the current soil and incorporate manure or rotten sawdust or rotten hay. I dig a hole twice the size of my flower pot and mix the soil to fill the hole. Kinda like making a pot out of soil to plant. It should soak up and hold some water. Then mulch, mulch, mulch. Organic decomposing mulch. Coneflowers are kinda neat. I got some purple ones blooming.

 

I was going to mix peat moss in with the dirt, but learned that it only works for a year or two. I dug out the 10 x 3ft area down about a foot and mixed about 15% as much compost into the dirt. Beyod that, I worry about making the dirt too hot.

 

Be careful with the raccoons.

 

We have a huge oak tree it is growing near the house. I measured it one day and it was 15 feet around it is huge. The people we bought the house from say it is about 70 years old and that was a guess.

 

Rudbeckia and echinacea are both great to have in a bed, very colorful. They do have a tendency to come back strong and aren't too particular where they start growing. I like that because it was the way my grandmother let her flowers spread in the flower beds.

 

Good morning, 'flies. Happy Humper.