A Little of This, A Little of That

I'm on break at work, so I thought I'd take this opportunity to play catch-up with my blog. Since I grow such a wide variety of plants, I thought it would be fun to write about some of my favorites.

'Limelight' hydrangea is a true marvel. I planted a rather puny start last year in the late spring, hoping that it would thrive despite my poor clay soil. The bush has far exceeded my expectations, blooming in a rather show-offish manner and putting my 'Endless Summer' to shame.

I used the blooms of 'Limelight' in three different centerpieces in the height of growing season. In late fall I cut quite a few of the blooms to use as dried flowers. I have four glorious clumps of blooms as the focal point (along with a huge maroon bow) in my antique wicker planter box that resides on the front porch. Frasier fir boughs and cedar form the backdrop and twigs cut from my red stemmed dogwood add height and interest.

I have many hydrangea....'Lady in Red', 'Endless Summer', and a few others that shall remain nameless (in other words, I have forgotten the names....but I'll remember them tonight as I'm trying to sleep!) None have performed as well as my 'Limelight'. It's a definite must-have for long-lasting beautiful blooms and vibrant green leaves.

When I have some free time at home, I will try to download a picture of my beautiful 'Limelight' shrub.

In the meantime, it's back to work. I hope you all have a chance to grow this proficient plant.

shel

Give the RIGHT Way

I work at Community Action, a not-for-profit organization that helps those less fortunate. Services offered include gas cards, car repair, rent assistance, commodities from the state (monthly), LIHEAP energy assistance, Angel Tree, and food pantry, among others. Certain criteria must be met before receiving any of these services (income guidelines, unemployment, etc.)

During this season of love and sharing, many businesses and organizations are hosting food drives, which is a wonderful thing. Our food pantry items go out almost as quickly as I can stock them, so we truly do appreciate the drives that are held. People are extremely generous.

Last week we had a donation of approximately $500 worth of groceries from a local business. It is my job to organize the donations and restock the shelves. While doing so I check the packages carefully to make sure that none are rusted, opened, or damaged beyond use. I also check the expiration date of the product.

I had to throw away dozens of cans and boxes of food that were more than a year past their expiration date. If something has expired less than a year ago, I give the product to DOVE. (Per regulations through the State of Illinois, they are able to give away food that is dated up to a year past expiration.) Food dated prior to that must be resigned to the garbage.

Our last donation held cans that were dated 1988 and Jell-o packages that didn't even have a UPC and had the blue cost stamped on it! I could almost hear the bacteria through the cans.

My point is that giving is a wonderful thing. Helping those in need is the greatest gift of all. Please remember, however, that no one wants to get sick from eating grossly expired foods, so please check expiration dates.

Your generosity is very much appreciated. Give not only at Christmas, but throughout the year. You're not only helping your neighbors, you'll get a warm feeling that money can't buy.

Hope all is well in your world,
shel

Medical Madness

Do you ever feel that when one thing goes wrong, EVERYTHING goes wrong? It seems to be happening in our family right now. Quite frankly, it sucks.

Dad will be having surgery on his heart. Actually they are replacing the aortic valve. Without the surgery he would have two years at most to live, and would be in extreme pain. There are risks with him having the surgery as well. He chose to have the surgery, and Shannon, mom and I talked with him about it and we all came to the same conclusion. It's worth the risk of surgery to have him with us, and to not be in pain.

Mom has surgery next Wednesday. They are going to make small incisions near her fractured vertebra, insert a balloon, pump it up so that it lifts, and inject cement into the space that is created. I can't remember the name of the surgery, but it is used for lumbar purposes. She thinks she will be able to go home the same day, but I'm going to ask the doc to keep her in at least overnight, if not longer. That means spending Thanksgiving in the hospital, but if it takes care of the constant pain that she is in, then it is worth it.

Little Bryan has been diagnosed with osteopenia. He is in the very early stages of osteoporosis (the precursor) at the tender age of four years old. Already he is suffering bone loss. The doctors are talking growth hormone shots for him which would mean one shot a day every day for I believe two months. The sad part is that insurance will probably NOT cover the cost ($2,000 per month) for the shots. You can't keep Bryan down, though. He is curious about everything, and "I got it" is one of his favorite sayings. Nothing holds him back. I love, love, love that boy and hate to think that anything could be wrong with him.

My father-in-law Bill had prostate cancer two years ago, (or was it three?) colon cancer last December, and now has stomach cancer. He is malnourished because he hasn't felt up to eating since Phyllis, my mother-in-law, passed away in July. He was down to 129 lbs.a few weeks ago when he was hospitalized for pneumonia. He is gaining weight slowly. We don't know yet what course of action will be taken for the cancer.

On the up side, Alana's sonogram revealed that the developing bundle of joy is touting a penis, so little Gabriel will be welcoming a little brother at the end of April. I'm thrilled with the thought of another boy!

It's quiet in the house right now. Bryan likes to wake up bright and early, so I should hit the bed and get some sleep. It's going to be a busy week this week with the upcoming surgery and holiday, so I need my sleep!

Hoping you all have good health,
shel

oops....I Hit a Parked Car!

Well, the last few days have been kind of crappy (pardon my vulgarity.) I had a big meeting to go to on Wednesday, and as I pulled into the parking spot with my big old 8 passenger van, I scraped the Hyundai Santa Fe in the spot next to me. I'm almost 49 years old, so I suppose I was due. I've never been responsible for damage before. Luckily the cop and the owner of the other car were nice folks.

On the same day my daughter told me that the Honda broke down in the IGA parking lot. I was very fortunate that it was just out of gas.

Tonight I found out that a Master Gardener friend (and the one that figures my taxes) passed away suddenly. Also heard that my pen pal of nearly 35 years is requesting prayers for her pregnant niece that was bitten by a copperhead snake. How tragic. Sometimes I whine around about my life, but when I compare it to others I realize that my life is full of lumpy potatoes...in other words, it's full of stuff that is really nothing compared to the tragic lives of others.

Today I took dad to the doctor's office to get his heart monitor removed. I hated hurting him as I pulled the tape off, but I had to do it. Poor pop.

Wal-Mart is down to two jars of Vlasic Baby Kosher Dill pickles. If I had any money, I'd buy them both. DARN the luck!

Ady & Jaden were here for a few hours tonight. We had hamburgers, cottage cheese, and chips. Not the most nutritious of meals, but the kids loved it. They were both very good and had lots of fun playing.

Last night little Bryan and Jessie came over. Jessie typed up her resume' while Bryan and I had a good time. He's definitely Gramma's Boy. I hope he can come over this weekend.

I got to see little Gabe for a while on Wednesday. He, too, is Gramma's Boy (although he does love his Papa and will jump out of my arms to go to him.)

Leaves are all over the place here. I hate autumn...it's so depressing. Most of my trees are naked, with the exception of some stubborn oaks that drop their leaves in spring. Tomorrow is a FREE DAY!!!! I plan on coming home right after work so I can mow. I'm SO excited! In the next few days I'll have to get wood for the frame of the koi holding tank. It's going to warm up enough that I'll be able to work outside.

OH, I'm excited about Saturday. I'm going to meet Shirl in Decatur at Cracker Barrel for breakfast. We'll go Xmas shopping after that. I can't wait!

Enjoy your evenings,
shel

Garden Gab and Pickles

I have a two-headed chicken planter that I absolutely love. I'm the ONLY one that loves it...everyone else thinks it's pretty awful. This year I planted impatiens in it, and stuck it in the Weeping Cherry garden out front. The impatiens were wonderful and grew into a mound of bright color. A few trailing plants would have been a good compliment to the impatiens, but I just didn't think about it at the time. Anyway, when I came home today I noticed that the chicken was naked. Either a deer or a rabbit ate all of my impatiens, almost to the soil line! I don't cuss very often, but I did have a few choice words for the wildlife today.

The okra plants have withered into pathetic little leafless stems but the tomatoes are still hanging in there. I pulled a few more green tomatoes from the plants today. They sure taste good when fried.

Chickweed has once again invaded my gardens. It appears in the early spring, dies off during the heat of summer, and is reinstated again in the cool fall weather. I absolutely hate it. One day soon, before it flowers and sends out seed, I'll have to get out there and start pulling the hated weed. I can't remember what the chemical cure is...either 2-4D or Dicamba (spelling?) perhaps. It's been too long since I've used a chemical on it. I've been trying to control it by good old fashioned hand pulling. The problem with that is that chickweed has a very tough, fibrous root system and I have to get it ALL out. The chemical way sounds kind of appealing right now.

Speaking of appealing, I have had horrible cravings for Vlasic Sweet Baby Kosher Dill pickles. I can't get enough of them. Today I bought three jars, and while in the Wal-Mart parking lot, I did the unthinkable...I opened a jar and pulled out pickles WITH MY BARE HANDS! You know how I hate germs, and the thought of contaminating pickle juice makes me shudder, but I just couldn't wait until I got home to get a fork. I HAD to have a pickle. I ended up eating about a third of a jar. Just to prove to myself that I have SOME self-control, I refused to give in to temptation and eat another one for almost three miles. Luckily, you get one and a quarter pickles for only FIVE calories. Sadly, the sodium content is enough to send my blood pressure soaring. I just can't stop eating them. It's like my summer cravings for cucumbers and onions in vinegar....mmmmm. If I hadn't have had a hysterectomy almost 20 years ago, I would wonder if I were pregnant! (There's probably all sorts of grammatical errors in that sentence!)

Sleep well, everyone. Just talking about the pickles has made my mouth water.
shel

Rain, Rain, Go Away AGAIN

Seems like we've had an awful lot of rain this year. I'm quite tired of it, and am ready for some sunshine and mild autumn weather.

The green tomatoes that I've brought into the house are slowly ripening, but they just don't have any flavor. Okra plants are dead, as are the zucchini, so there will be no more harvest from them.

I plan on piling lots of shredded leaves onto the garden this year (if it dries up) and adding bags of cow manure, if I can still get it. Down by the end of the driveway I have a pile of chipped wood that the power company gave me a few years back. Deep in the pile the wood has decomposed, creating a nice rich compost. On the next good day, if I don't have little Gabriel, I will wheel the compost to the garden and spread it evenly around. It should break down more over the winter and add lots of richness to my otherwise crappy garden soil. I sure wish I had a wagon to pull behind my lawnmower, as it would make the job much easier.

Max mowed the lawn last week but it sure needs it again. I look forward to a dry day because I really enjoy mowing. (I also think that I do a better job than he does because he races around like Speedy Gonzales...he's a crazy mower!)

Last year I just couldn't get in the mood to bake. I was pretty depressed for most of fall and all of winter. Now I'm ready to start baking, but I don't have the extra freezer downstairs to put the goodies into. I miss having the refrigerator/freezer set. We still have the deep freeze that came from Max's grandmother, but it is nearly full. Unfortunately it is also an energy hog. The thing must be nearly as old as I am.

I went into the koi pond the other day to try to catch the two remaining koi and I nearly froze to death. The water was so cold that my legs burned. I have to ask myself...is it worth getting pneumonia (or worse) just to save two koi that aren't even show quality? The practical side of me says to leave them out there and let nature take it's course, but the koi lover in me says 'GET IN THERE AND SAVE THEM!!!!!' I still need to get to Menard's or Lowe's and buy boards so that I can insulate and enclose the horse trough that the other two (yellow) koi are in. I am determined to keep them over the winter. I will transfer my big air stone from the pond (which has about 6" of water in it) to the tank to keep a hole open in the ice so that my koi will survive. I may even build a temporary greenhouse over the top of the tank.

I hope you all stay dry and happy. If anyone is in the mood, come on over and go fishing for koi! I'll even give you a cup of hot chocolate to warm you up after you climb out.

shel

Just To Catch You Up....

Well, it's been a busy few weeks. I have started my new job at Community Action (my official title is Community Worker....not very impressive, but a title nonetheless) and I am still in the training mode. Until I am fully trained, I will work mornings. After I work I either pick up Gabe, like I did today, or go to mom & dad's house or Erin's house. What I SHOULD do is stay home and work in my house. I can't believe it's gotten so messy.

Today I went to mom & dad's house and onto dad's dr. appointment with them. Gabe kept everyone in the waiting room entertained as dad had his eye check-up. Later in the evening I went to Bloomington with Alana. It's been so long since I've been at the mall I couldn't even remember where to park! I did purchase two blouses for work (from the clearance rack, of course.) Gabe was a good boy as usual.

I'm still waiting for the test results from my whooping cough adventure. Tomorrow after work I will go to Dr. Rauch's office for my whooping booster, tetanus, flu and pneumonia shots. After that I go to Erin's house to decorate the gingerbread haunted house with Ady and Jaden.

Garden-wise, well, everything sucks outside. It hasn't frosted here yet so many of my annuals are trying to make a comeback. The mums are in full bloom as are the pansies, which got a bit leggy over the summer. I hope that it dries up enough in the next few days so that I can mow again and cut off all of the seed heads from the coneflowers and black eyed Susans. I have WAY too many volunteers of both. I know that the birds enjoy the seeds during the winter but they'll just have to find some other garden for them.

The tomatoes are goners. I still have some green ones out there that I should bring in. I love fried green tomatoes! Zucchini plants have died off sadly enough. This fall will be a good time to add lots of compost to the garden, so that it will be well incorporated into the rather poor soil that is there now. Fingers are crossed for a better garden next year.

It's been raining so much that the sunroom is leaking again. It's so discouraging to think that we reroofed HALF of the sunroom two years ago (Max, as usual, wouldn't listen when I said we should do it all at the same time.) The carpet is now ruined because of the leaks. Hard telling what the wood under the shingles looks like. When we reroofed we found that when it was put on, the contractors didn't use tar paper; just shingles over plywood.

Time for bed.

Sweet dreams, my family.

shel

Whoops! Whooping Cough

The tests from the state have come back positive for Whooping cough for little Gabe. Yesterday I had to go to the hospital to have my nasal cavities raped, as well. I suppose I'll hear next week if I too have the whoop. I have felt crappy enough during the last three weeks, that's for sure!

When I have recovered, I have to go to the doctor's and get another booster for whooping cough. Alana will after she has the baby, and Will has to get one as well. Little Gabe is feeling better now, and only coughs occasionally.

I have started my new job at Community Action. It's a bit on the slow side right now, as I am working 8 a.m. to noon, and most of the activity takes place in the afternoon. Anita is trying to get my hours changed so that I can learn the paperwork as needed.

I hope that I will be able to get into the koi pond tomorrow afternoon to pull out the two big boys that will die this winter if I can't get them out. I had really hoped that the koi pond would get rebuilt this summer. Maybe now that I have a job I can get caught up on some bills, then get the pond fixed. *sigh*.

Autumn is definitely here. It was 54 degrees outside this evening. BRRRR. I'm ready for spring.

hugs to all,
shel

p.s. Before much longer I'll need to get the tomato plants pulled from the garden and spread bales of hay over it. I want the hay (and leaves, grass clipping, and whatever else I can find) to be able to decompose over the winter so that the soil will be richer next year. If anyone has bags of grass clippings I'll take them! People think I'm weird when I drive around town and pick up the bags from the curb. It's rather sad that I get so excited about landscape waste....

I'm Still Kicking

Well, it's been a while since I've felt up to blogging. I've THOUGHT of blogs to write (full of wit and wisdom in my codeine-induced mind) as I shiver and sweat on the couch. As I sit here tapping away, however, I find my mind a complete blank. Guess it's time for some more of the cough syrup that has kept me going.

I have had two full prescriptions of antibiotics (Levaquin and Azithromicin; please forgive the spelling) and am now on steroids. I absolutely hate to take them as I can't sleep for the first few days, but I hate even more that I cough like a sickly seal with nearly every breath.

Wouldn't it be ironic if they discovered I have lung cancer? Think about it. I've spent most of my adult life lecturing people I love, as well as total strangers, about the deadly side-effects of stinky, expensive, disgusting cigarettes. I've been married to two smokers and both of my children have smoked (I don't know if Alana is or not since she's pregnant...that would REALLY burn my butt). Get the whole irony thing?

I snuck outside to the garden while Gabe was taking a catnap today and got a small zucchini, eight tomatoes, two green peppers and a handful of banana peppers. I noticed that some ballsy insect is munching on three of the heads of cabbage but there were none of the culprits in sight, and I didn't want to spend any time looking. It will have to wait until it's either warm and dry outside, or my bronchitis is gone, whichever comes first.

Monday I start my new job. I'm a little nervous as it takes me a while to catch on to new stuff. Once I am comfortable in the job, however, I'll be a kick-ass worker.

Boy, do I miss little Bryan. I haven't seen him in forever. I hope to see him for a short time on Monday, depending on what time I get off of work. I'd stick around for dinner but I have to be back in Clinton by 7:00 p.m. There's a meeting for the social committee of Beta Sigma Phi and I can't miss it since I'm the chair. I bet Bryan has really changed since I've last seen him. Children seem to grow so quickly!

For the second time this week I've lost the t.v. remote. Luckily there were good chick-flicks on all day. Suckily this channel has started showing a reality show now, and I would much rather watch Family Guy or some other mindless show that will make me smile.

The leaves have started falling in a major way. It's time to get out the rake and clean up leaf carcasses. Out of all of the seasons, autumn is my least favorite.

I hope all of you are still kicking, too.
shel

Rainy Day

Once again it's a wet, miserable day fit only for snuggling up under a fuzzy blanket with a cup of hot tea and a good book.....and that's exactly what I've done today. I sat out in the sun room, listening to the rain gently hitting the roof (and dripping into the bowl....never install a skylight in your sun room) and watching the birds while between pages. This would not normally be my routine. Yesterday Dr. Rauch told me I have bronchitis, prescribed an antibiotic Z medication and cough syrup with codeine, and told me to REST and drink lots of fluids. I'm glad it's raining because it would be hard for me to stay down otherwise. Tomorrow I'll be back to my routine, whether I'm ready or not.

I hope that you are all able to do something comforting today.

shel

p.s. Our lawn was dried and cracked, so I can't really complain about the rain. I planted grass seed in the back a few days ago so this will really help it take off. The tomatoes are ready to be picked again, but I don't want to go out in the damp air. I hope they don't start to crack due to the excess moisture.

Busy Times, Sleepy Times

Oh, how I wanted that ADM job. Guess it wasn't meant to be, as I received a "Dear John" e-mail from them last Friday. Man, how I wanted that job. I had already ruled out the Community Action job as it was past the deadline for receiving their call.

I was really bummed for a few days, feeling totally worthless and loser-like. Max was definitely NOT supportive. He headed downstairs as soon as I teared up (as in my voice went up an octave and my eyes started watering.) A few days later I got a call from Community Action...I got the job! I will start on Monday, October 5. I'm kind of nervous, but I plan on giving this job 100%. (Happy Dance is inserted here!)

Right now I'm coughing like a hyena on pepper. I can't stop. I've been coughing so hard that my jaw pops out (I have TMJ) and my head hurts. I made a Dr. appointment for tomorrow afternoon. I am guessing Bronchitis (is that spelled correctly?) or pneumonia. Today was the first day I ran a temperature. I haven't changed any plans thus far, but I'm worried that I won't feel well enough to go on Jaden's field trip to Weldon Springs tomorrow. I took Ady when she was in preschool, so I was hoping to continue the tradition with Jaden. It would be a blast.

When I haven't had Gabe, I've been asleep. Usually sleep is the only way that I can heal. It doesn't seem to be working this time as I am still coughing constantly. I haven't even been able to do the work-out video CD thing.

The Sears repairman came to the house on Monday. He wasn't able to fix the lawnmower completely, however. I didn't go outside (Max was on vacation again, so he went out) but from what I understand he didn't order enough parts. We're another $80 in the hole for the repairs, and I still can't mow. It's frustrating. He ordered the part and told Max how to install it. That REALLY worries me!!! What can I say...he's not the most mechanically-inclined man by far.

The Sears representative read my blog and called to talk to me last week about my disappointment in the design of the Craftsman Anniversary Edition mower. It felt good to air my grievances, even thought it probably won't make a difference in future mower designs. He did offer to send me a Sears gift card. In that aspect, they are trying to make things better.

There have been so many things happening this week that I just can't remember them. (Well, that and the fact that I'm doped up on NyQuil and ready to nod off.

It's my parent's anniversary today. I need to hang up here and give them a call. Having dial-up sucks....having only one phone line sucks, too.

Happy autumn (I hate autumn)
shel

Today's Interview

Well, today was the big day...I had my interview at ADM. It was quite interesting, and somewhat fattening. We taste-tested everything from chocolate chip cookies to peanut butter, smelled cotton balls, and drank questionable liquids. I don't consider myself a picky eater, but I'm really not crazy about chocolate milk or Cheese Nips. That's right...we tasted and compared different brands of both items. Ugh.

The best part was a sample test. I guessed correctly that the last cup of dark m&m's matched the first cup. The word "dark" printed under the 'm' was a clear giveaway.

The HR people will call Friday afternoon if they are interested in me. If not, I will get an e-mail Monday afternoon with the usual Dear John letter. Sixty-seven people applied for 12 positions (plus two more for another department). Keep your fingers crossed that I'll be chosen, okay? I would really like this job.

Hoping you're all enjoying your jobs to the fullest extent of the law!!
shel

Garden Gab

Today I picked fifteen of the most beautiful tomatoes I've ever seen. Unfortunately, like with so many humans, their beauty was only skin deep. I've eaten four tomatoes, and every one has been bland and tastes like a January grocery store version. I know that tomatoes like hot summer days and warm summer nights, so basically we're all screwed in central Illinois. On the bright side, my electric bill has been low!

I also picked four sweet banana peppers and two 'Chocolate Soldiers', which are black peppers (like green bell peppers, but black...they taste marvelous.) A few weeks ago I lost my favorite sunglasses, and today I found them among the tomatoes. I guess the fates were smiling on me today.

My asters are budding nicely, and some of the early mums are really showing off their colors. Everything else is just sort of limping along. I did get weed & feed put on the front lawn today, but ran out before I could get to the sides. Next week I am going to seed the back, where the dogs run wild.

Little Gabe just went to sleep, so I am going to brush my teeth and climb in bed with a good book. It's hard telling how long he'll be down.

Tomorrow I have my ADM interview. I'm very excited about the prospect of working as a taster.

Life is good.

shel

A Weekend Gone Wrong

Darn the luck!! I had SUCH an exciting weekend planned, but a bug hit, and with a vengeance. I spent Friday night at my sister Shannon' s house while they had a romantic evening away. Unfortunately, I was on the bathroom floor most of the time.

I haven't thrown up since about 6:30 p.m., so it's apparent I'm on the road to recovery. For now I'd rather go to bed and just dream about the blogs I'm going to type.

I hope no one catches my cooties.

shel

Computer Blues & General Update

Well, I've done it again. I tried to hook up Xanado to my computer (oh, how I long to be off of dial-up) and messed up my computer. After many hours of cursing, I was able to do a system restore to go back to the day before I hooked up Xanado. I am finally able to get online. Yippee!

The Sears repair man had bad news. My lawnmower is in bad shape. The last time Max put new blades on it, he didn't put them on correctly, so the star-shaped bumpy things that rotate the blades got worn off. The shafts need to be replaced. I had to pay over $200 up front, and will have to shell out another hundred when the repair man works his magic. I really miss having a lawnmower, and am regretting purchasing this Craftsman.

The same day the Sears repair man was here, the Dick Van Dyke guy came. My extra fridge in the garage is kaput. It would cost $150 to replace the two pieces that are burnt out, but in all likelihood they would burn out again because the compressor is probably shot. A new compressor would cost $500. It's just not worth it. I'm going to try to give it away on Freecycle if Chuck doesn't want it.

On the GOOD news side........
Shannon and Rick are going to a Winery for the night and asked me to babysit Phoebe. I'm so excited I'm giggly. Their place is like a spa...I can go there, sit in the sun room and read my book, take Phoebe for a walk, and drink hot tea all night while I soak in the tub. I love going there.

Bryan has been ill but is now feeling better. Darn cold! Little Gabe is sleeping on Max's chest right now. I don't' know which one is snoring louder.

The garden is actually starting to put out. I got ONE zucchini yesterday, and picked four tomatoes the day before. If I got out later on today I will probably get a dozen more tomatoes. They are finally starting to turn. They look beautiful, but still have that grocery-store taste. I never thought that I would wish for hot weather, but the tomatoes just aren't the same without it.

Last night I repotted Erin's peace lily (the poor thing will probably die as it was rather abused when I got it) and two of my three Christmas Cactus. I set the CC's outside so that they will bloom during the holidays. By putting them outside, they are subjected to the shorter days and cool night temperatures, which is required for bud formation.

Dad had surgery for his cataract. He's doing well. I will go over there Saturday to pick up their lawn mower. My grass is long and is in dire need of a haircut.

Oops, the cell phone just made the 'you have a message' noise, so I'd better sign off. Someone may be trying to call me on my home phone, and I have only one line.

Hope you are all enjoying yourselves.

shel

Stoneless Soup

There's a children's storybook entitled 'Stone Soup'. It is about a wandering man with a sharp brain and an empty stomach. He tricks the villagers into making soup for him...his addition to the pot is a stone, and everyone else brings veggies or broth.

I recently attended a meeting with Dean Adams. He is always full of interesting stories. This time he told about his grandmother's soup which, in his opinion, was the best soup ever created. The secret? His grandmother always put ALL leftovers into a huge container in the freezer. When the container was full, she would empty the container into a stock pot and add a can or two of diced tomatoes and throw in a fistful of spices.

I decided that, in these hard economic times, I should give it a try.

My most recent pot of soup contained leftover pork chops that were fixed on the fire pit (I diced the meat finely), about a half cup of shredded beef, quite a bit of leftover roast chicken, part of a can of corn, two whole potatoes that were roasted with the chicken, some green beans, part of a package of Healthy Choice veggies (I think it was white beans and yellow carrots), a cup or so of pork fried rice, and some Mongolian beef. In my opinion a meal isn't a meal unless onion is on the menu, so I chopped up a small yellow onion to add to the broth. I also added the leftover chili and about two cups of tomato juice (leftover from making chili the day before.) To add even more flavor, I added sweet basil, fresh and dried garlic (no wonder no one ever wants to kiss me with all of the garlic & onion that I eat!) and some freshly ground black pepper.

I let the soup simmer on low heat for an entire day. When it was dinner time, I ladled soup into my Campbell's mug (I still think of Phyllis when I use it) and added freshly chopped onion for a little crunch. Instead of crackers, I like to tear up a piece of bread in my soup. MMMMMMMM. The soup was delicious, even without a stone!

I've had many meals off of it including breakfast!

Thanks to Dean for giving me the idea for this soup. It uses up leftovers (Max hates to eat leftovers) and is relatively good for me.

In the meantime, I have started another big Rubbermaid container. There's a few pieces of leftover steak from the fire pit and a bit of corn and green beans. By the time it's full it will be chilly outside and the stoneless soup will be a welcome treat.

Happy eating to all of my family & friends.

shel

Plight of the Bumblebee continued

I forgot to add that another reason for bee decline could be the excessive use of pesticides. I try to keep Round-Up usage to a minimum, but I tended to use more this year because of the rapid weed growth. I would never, ever spray if there is an insect present, but farmers don't have that option. Whether death by pesticide is the cause of the shortage of bees or not is hard to tell.

I avoid using insecticides outside as well. If there's a spider around an area where he shouldn't be I either move him with a stick or, if he's particularly evil looking, squish him. Otherwise I don't want to kill outdoor insects. (If I were to find termites, however, all bets are off...spray those bast#$&!!!)

shel

Plight of the Bumble Bee

My zucchini crop is nonexistent. The plants bloom beautifully, but that's about all happens. My hypothesis is that the blooms are not getting pollinated, therefore fruit does not develop.

I decided to do a little investigative work, so camera in hand, I toured the yard. After nearly 15 minutes I had discovered only one bumble bee and one honey bee. Usually the sedum are covered. Here is a picture of the bee on a morning glory.

In the spring the power plant had an infestation of wild honey bees that had swarmed on a portion of fencing. It was not in a location where people would be bothered by the bees, but the poor things were sprayed and killed anyway. How foolish the men were to have killed such helpful creatures! I have learned that it was not illegal for them to do so. Their reasoning was that it was better to loose the life of a colony of bees than for one bee to terminate the life of one allergic human. (Depends on the human!!!!)

Our wild colonies that were in the woods behind us are gone. I don't know if they succumbed to the virus that is destroying many of the colonies that beekeepers own, or if it was the extremely wet spring & summer that caused a fungus. There's no aardvarks or bears (supposedly) in the area so I have to rule out the natural predator thought. Birds just wouldn't be able to wipe out so many colonies.

I hope that I just picked a bad bee observing day. Since I will be outside painting the yucky fence in back...I hate that fence...I will keep my eyes and ears open for my buzzy friends.

Happy gardening,

shel

Christmas Cactus

Now is the time to move your Christmas Cactus outside if you have not already done so. Be aware that naughty rabbits will nibble on the poor cactus if you have it on the ground. A macrame holder or table top is the best location.

Cool nights and short days will help bring the beautiful blooms during the holidays. Make sure that you continue to water your plant, and bring it in before the first frost. I've had great luck with this technique (as opposed to the closet or paper bag technique) for years.

Oh, and it's almost September, so be sure to start singing carols and decorating outside so you can keep up with the retail businesses! I actually DO put out Xmas lights early because no one can see that they're up from the road unless I turn the lights on (that comes after Thanksgiving) and I don't have to be outside freezing my buns and fingers off when the inclimate weather arrives.

Merry Christmas,
shel

An Odd Thought...

Before I climb into the bathtub (or shower, depending on my mood and the condition of my wild hair) I always go to the bathroom. (At 48, almost 49, peeing seems to be an hourly event.) Here's the "odd thought" part...I wash my hands before climbing into the tub.

Really, I'm asknig you, is that odd???

I'm not a germaphobe, contrary to popular belief. My family is laughing at that part. Just because I carry around a few bottles of antibacterial stuff with me, use paper towels to open restroom doors when I use a public restroom, and pull my sleeve down over my hand to open other doors does NOT a germaphobe make! If I were, I'd have a sterile house.

My house is far from spotless. It's basically clean, but MAN do I have clutter. One of my favorite fantasies (I won't go into the other fantasies...trust me, it's better that way!) is that the HGTV people from Cash in the Attic would come here and take all of my "stuff" away, and give me an organized, beautiful home. Then the HGTV gardeners can come and redo my yard and gardens, and the good ol' folks on the Today show (oh, how I love the Today show!) would give me a head-to-toe makeover! Yes, late at night I live in my own little fantasy world. It's about the only time that I have free.

I went to the doctor the other day and he said that I have stress-induced depression. TRD was one term given (sounds an awful lot like something to be flushed, but it stands for Treatment Resistant Depression) but he used a different word that, for the life of me, I can't remember.
He has prescribed a combination of two pills that, when taken together, are the equivalent of Symbyax. I go back in two weeks for a follow-up. "Get rid of the stress in your life" just isn't going to cut it, so I have my fingers crossed that the prescriptions will do the trick.

I think I'll go wash my hands........sweet dreams, dear readers.

shel

No Surgery for Gabe!

Today I took Gabriel, Alana and Will to Peoria 9oh, how I HATE driving in Peoria!) to see a specialist. Gabe has had an elongated bump in his stomach for quite some time and Dr. Clay thought it should be looked at. Luckily, it turns out that his muscles just aren't developed yet. He will follow up with the surgeon in six months and again in a year.

I hope Max gets the lawnmower fixed tomorrow as my yard is getting very tropical and overgrown looking. The mower deck is hanging down on one side so that a trench is cut into the earth when the blade goes around. This does NOT make a pretty picture in my yard!

It's just about time for us to use a weed & feed product on the lawn for Central Illinois. I hope to get that done next Tuesday.

I also need to climb into the koi pond and fish out the last two koi. They won't be able to overwinter in the puddle that is left, and I sure don't want to go fishing for them when temperatures are low. I have plans to build an enclosure for the horse tank that holds the koi on the driveway...It will be a 2 x 4 frame with plywood attached, and stuffed with fiberglass insulation in preparation for the cold winter months. They'll be here before we know it.

I am taking new medication now that helps me sleep and I find myself nodding off at the keyboard. I guess it's off to bed for this little Chicky.

Sweet dreams, my friends.
shel

Sister Olympics for Beta Sigma Phi

I am the social chair for our local Beta Sigma Phi. As such, it is my responsibility to organize events for six of our meetings. Monday night was the first meeting of the season, so I wanted it to be extra special.

Everyone that attended was given a country to represent. I printed off name tag sized flags from around the world and wrote the name of the country on the back. Each flag was pinned to the shirt of the gal representing the country.

Dinner consisted of food from around the world...a yam and squash dish made with coconut milk from Africa, Swedish Klimp, Jajek from Armenia, and more. I made little tents with the name of the food and country of origin for each dish. The ladies ate up, but there was lots of food left over.

During the meal sisters tried to figure out who was representing which country. It was quite a challenge...everyone knew USA and Canada, but it was pretty much a guessing game for most people after that. Becky and Melissa each answered nine flags correctly.

When everyone's stomach had settled, we started the games. The balance beam was actually a 2x4 board set up on bricks, just a few inches from the ground. It started out easy enough; walk from one end to the other without falling off. Each time the competitors crossed the beam, the challenge was slightly harder. For example, they had to cross keeping their hands behind their back, then hands behind back with eyes closed. The hardest part was going backward with their hands behind them. We had an awards ceremony with handmade gold, silver and bronze medals.

The next game was a HOOT. We did a plunger relay. I divided the group into half, and then into half again. Twelve ladies in all played this game. They had to put the plunger between their legs with the handle sticking out the front. I placed a roll of toilet paper over two of the handles and the ladies had to run across the yard (hard to do with a plunger between your legs!) and put the toilet paper roll onto the opposite side's plunger without using their hands. A lot of wiggling was involved! The athletes then had to repeat the process, taking the t.p. to the teammate on the opposite side. I was able to catch the action on a video camera so I hope I can download it to the computer. I think you will like watching the antics as much as the women liked participating in the relay.

Our last competition was called Hillybilly Golf. There was a plastic frame set up at one end of the yard, and 20' away was the throw line. The ladies had to throw a rope with a ball one each end of it so that the rope wound around the plastic frame. Their warm-ups were hysterical.

The evening ended with Happy Bucks and Whiny Bucks.

Last night one of the sisters called to thank me for such a wonderful party. The funny part is that I had dreams that no one would show up for the event! It's been a while since I have felt good about myself and the things that I do. Thanks, sisters, for making me feel like I am worthy!

Hope you can all laugh today. Look on Utube for the original plunger relay game.

shel

Yesterday's Big Storm

I guess the title says it all....

Yesterday Central Illinois got bit** slapped by Mother Nature. Williamsville was badly slammed (I hope that my relatives that live there are okay; I haven't heard otherwise), as were a few other towns. During the brunt of the storm I was in town helping to prepare for a birthday party.

After the festivities I climbed into the van and headed home. The turn that I normally take was blocked by four or five trucks with flashing lights...the brave men and women of Corn Belt were working on the poles, lines, and transformers that were hit. I had to go around the country block and creep along the back roads in order to get home.

There was a pretty good size branch in the driveway, so I had to climb out of the van and pull it out of the way. My headlights illuminated more branches and tons of leaf debris, but I was able to drive the rest of the way up our long driveway.

After rounding up a flashlight, four candles, and my tap-on light, I settled on the couch with my new garden catalog. I can't believe how quiet it is without electricity! The normal white noise of a running refrigerator, the hum of the air conditioner, and even the steady buzz of the computer were sorely missed...I'm much too used to background noises.

I also noticed how much darker it was without electricity. Sounds silly, doesn't it? I went around the room today and found all of the lights that remain on even after I turn off the overhead and lamps.
1. phone has a light
2. answering machine light
3. power strip light
4. 2 lights on the VCR/DVD combo
5. 3 lights on the computer tower
6. one light on the monitor
7. another power strip with a light
8. speaker light
No wonder it looks really spooky when the electricity is off! What did we do BEFORE electricity?

I walked around in the daylight hours and found that the wind had been very mischievous indeed. It blew the bench and pouty doll (Bryan calls it his "Bryan's Bad Guy") from the front porch, the kid's swing got blown over, and my tomato plants in their cages were all blown over. I found one garbage can at the edge of the woods on the east side of the yard and another in the front near the neighbor's house. Before I mowed tonight I picked up armloads of branches wrist-size and smaller (enough to have another cookout!) The biggest surprise concerned the double gate in the back. Somehow the wind picked the gate up off of the hinges and, while the gate was still locked in the center, placed it down in one piece. Max was able to fix it before the dogs got out.

I hope that everyone else survived the storms with a minimum amount of damage.

shel

At Last! Veggie Garden Bliss

Today Bryan and I walked around the yard, taking pictures of everything that was slower than us. (I took about 60 pictures.)

We got to the veggie garden and took pictures of my beautiful green tomatoes, just hanging out on the vines, waiting for hot days and nights in order to ripen. Oh, how I wished they were ready.

When we got to the greenhouse garden, Bryan said "Wow!" and pointed to two red tomatoes. I was so excited to see them that I almost peed my pants! I picked them from the plant and Bryan immediately said 'I got it". He wanted to carry the tomatoes to the house.

Now, those of you that know me know how very, very, very much I love Bryan. I absolutely adore him and admit to spoiling him just a little bit. However, the mean old gramma in me said "No, I got it!" and gave him the digital camera to carry instead. Cameras are a dime a dozen (well, this one was close to $200 a few years ago) but garden tomatoes are hard to come by this year!

I had to take pictures of my first two ripe garden tomatoes of the season. Oh, and in case you were wondering, Bryan was perfectly happy carrying the camera. I can't wait to have a BLT for breakfast!

May all of your tomatoes be wormless,
shel

p.s. Where would I be without my digital camera? I have hundreds...probably close to a thousand...pictures of the kids, the gardens, and everything in between. I rate the creation of digital cameras right up there with the invention of underwire bras!

p.s.s. I've tried three times to download the pics of my beautiful tomatoes, and it just won't work tonight. grrrrrr

All Around the $^*%!#!! Mulberry Bush

Have you ever tried to grow a Japanese Maple or Weeping Larch? You can pamper them with regular waterings, just the right amount of high nitrogen and potash fertilizer, and even winter protection, but if you look at them cross-wise the things will die.

I am certain that Mulberries, however, are the devil's spawn. My beloved birds eat the ripe berries and then poop out the seeds (giving the tree/bush a healthy dose of fertilizer so that it gets off to a good start) all over the gardens. I have used my Fiskars loppers and cut then down to the ground, only to have them shoot up again within weeks. I've used a shovel and sliced through them at the base and have gotten the same effect. I have even cut the mulberry tree with loppers, poured Round-up on the fresh wound, and drove my lawnmower over it repeatedly, crushing it under the tire.........and yes, it came back with a vengeance. Any day now I'm expecting to look up and find one of the cursed trees in my house, seeking revenge by holding a knife to my throat. You just can't kill the darn things.

A few days ago, after I had thoroughly watered the garden, I decided to try to pull up a 1 1/2' mulberry tree. My feet were firmly planted on each side of the offending stem, I grabbed hold near the ground, and pulled with all of my might. Imagine my surprise when I was able to pull the darn thing out! There were two taproots on the mulberry. I brought it in the house, put it on the island along with my broken-off yardstick, and started snapping pictures. (See? I TOLD you I was a garden geek. How many other people would do such a thing?)

I think that the mulberries have actually been mutated by the nearby nuclear power plant. Soon they will take over the world, choking out all of the maples, oaks, hickories, pines, and so on. It's a plot hatched up by the ever-hungry birds!

Happy gardening,

shel

p.s. Of course I'm only kidding about the power plant mutating the trees........!

Attack of the Robins

I'm not feeling well again today (it started yesterday afternoon) so I haven't worked outside this morning. Instead, I was sitting on the couch giving Gabe his juice bottle when I heard a loud THUNK. As soon as Gabe was in a sound sleep I put him down and went to the dining room window to access the damage. Luckily there was not a bird carcass below the window, as I feared. Then I looked up. WOW.

There are hundreds of robins in my yard! It's an amazing sight, reminiscent of the Hitchcock thriller "The Birds", but not nearly as intimidating. Robins are on the tree branches, hopping around in the soft, green grass, and even perching on the front porch. I wonder if they are here because I left the sprinkler running on the garden/grassy areas. Everywhere else the land is as hard as a rock, cracked and dry because of the lack of rain. My soil is still moist from the thorough watering that it got day before yesterday, making it, I presume, easier for the early birds to catch a worm.

I was very disappointed about missing the Ketcham-Crosier reunion today, but seeing the robins hopping around in their clownish manner has brought a smile to my face.

Hope you have something exciting outside of your window!
shel

Do As I Say, Not As I Do OR Iris Borer Blues

I've heard that saying SO many times and have rolled my eyes on each occurrence. Luckily they haven't frozen at the back of my head, like my mother warned me! Now I'm afraid that I am the say-ee. For the past few days I've done everything wrong, but on purpose. Go ahead and roll your eyes. I have to take the opportunity to do my gardening when the opportunity presents itself.

I've been outside working quite a bit in the early morning before the arrival of little Gabriel, and again in the early evening, after his mommy takes him home. For the most part, I have been watering and then weeding (I STILL need to get more mulch spread!).

Last night I planted about 150 Narcissus bulbs and a few surprise lily bulbs (both of which should be planted in the autumn) and three peonies (which should be planted in September). I also dug up and transplanted a clump of iris (July was the time for that.)

My iris had been invaded by the dreaded IRIS BORER (said in a spooky voice). It is a pinkish grub-like creature with a darker head and nubby legs that run nearly the length of the body. If your iris have dark spots on the spear-like leaves, with many of the leaves in sad shape, you quite likely have the same uninvited guest. Dig up the iris and check for a big hole. Take a sharp knife and cut away any stinky rotted parts. (Honestly, a rotted iris smells worse than Gabe's and Bryan's diapers put together!) KILL the borer, which can be found deep in the iris, happily munching away. In my case, I drop the little buggers into the water garden and let the koi feast. Otherwise, I squish them underfoot. They give a disgusting but somehow satisfying POP when you destroy them. I (usually) cut off the top of the leaves at an angle, forming a fan, leaving only about 4" of green. The plant can then expend energy growing roots rather than trying to feed the leaves.

At the top of the page you'll see an iris borer enjoying the last minutes of its life on top of my purple paint can. YUCK, borer...cool paint.

A quick dip in a 10% bleach solution makes sure that the plant won't harbor disease, and will kill anything bug-wise that you missed while cleaning. Let the iris dry before replanting it. Remember, iris like to have their toes "sunburned", so just plant the root part and leave the rhizome slightly above the soil. Here's an important message...do NOT mulch iris. Keep mulch, dried leaves or grass, weeds, and all other debris from the plant. That way the iris borer won't be able to overwinter, which makes it harder for them to invade in the spring.

Tomorrow is the much anticipated Ketcham-Crosier family reunion so I will not be out in the garden until late evening. My plan is to spread more mulch on the vegetable garden and in the Weeping Cherry Garden, where most of the bulbs were planted.

Happy gardening,

shel

Job Interview for ADM?

I have been sending out resumes and completing applications for the past two months or so with not so much as a phone call for an interview. With the economy the way it is, I knew that the job market would be rather limited and prospective employers could be extremely picky about getting the best applicants. My last "real" job was with the U of I extension office in Macon County where I was the Master Gardener Coordinator. I was with the extension for four happy years. Since then, I have held a few part-time jobs including two that were part of my schooling; an internship with Grimsley's Flowers and a work practicum with Richland Community College (both were in the floral design field and both were very enjoyable). the other job was a temporary one; I was a specimen collector for POST during the outage at the power plant.

When the ADM job for a Sensory Panelist came up, I was thrilled. I knew that it would be perfect for me. Basically, it's up to 12 hours per week from 9 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday with no holidays or weekends ever. If hired, my duty would be to taste new products that ADM will be introducing. I'm not picky at all (I love the food most people hate...brussels sprouts, liver & onions, and so forth) and am relatively literate (necessary to describe the tastes, smells, etc.) The big kicker for this job is that the applicants had to be non-smokers. That's me!

I will not find out if I will be hired until after my interview which will be sometime in September. In the meantime, please keep your fingers crossed for me. With a job like this I can continue to care for my parents and grandchildren, and bring in the MUCH needed extra money so that we can pay off a few of the bills that are killing us.

Yea! I'm donig the happy dance with my fingers crossed!
shel
p.s. I'm running the hoses today as we haven't had rain for quite a while. My poor plants were begging for a deep, deep drink. If you water at home, please be sure to water deeply. Don't stand in the middle of the yard with a watering can and think that your oak will be happy.

A Day in the Garden

Today was a rare day...I was able to stay home alone (no grandchildren or, more importantly, no husband) and work outside. Heaven!

Mowing the lawn was first on my to-do list. After filling the flat front tire with air, I started mowing the front yard. The east side was finished without a hitch, but when I went to the west side I, for reasons unknown, mowed in a different pattern than usual. I shouldn't have messed with my routine because I got stuck in our gully, to the point of almost tipping over! I'm lucky the mower didn't tip and crush me. The lawn will have to wait until Max gets off work and is able to get the mower free. In this picture, the gully doesn't look deep and the lawnmower doesn't look like it's stuck and ready to tip, but trust me, it is.

I moved onto the next chore on my list...pruning. There are mulberry, hickory, oak, elm, chokecherry, Russian olive, Osage orange, Japanese honeysuckle and dogwood trees that are planted oh so generously by the birds. These junk trees pop up everywhere! It's a full-time job just keeping the Japanese honeysuckle in check. I got the majority of the junk trees cut out of most of the gardens (I still need to do the greenhouse garden.) The weeping lilac (a Miss Kim splice, I believe) had started to revert to the original base, so I cut all of the offensive branches out. This should have been done as soon as the tree had finished blooming, but time just got away from me. It probably won't rebloom this year, but I hope that I will still get a good show on it next spring. If you have the chance to buy a weeping lilac, do so. It is just gorgeous when it's blooming!

The garden on the front west side of the driveway got a quick once-over today. I had to come into the house twice and scrub with Zanfel because I got into doggone poison ivy. I'm hoping that I got the oils washed off in time.

After three hours of working outside, I cam into the house and took my shower, then made a BLT. YUM. My tomatoes are still as green as can be. I stole a tomato from mom's raised bed...shhh, don't tell!

This afternoon I have to run into town to get my RX and some more weed killer for the offensive poison ivy that I've discovered, then it will be back outside to spread mulch and pull weeds.

It's been a wonderful day. I hope to have more like them.

shel

Garden talk

The heat has finally hit central Illinois and my gardens are feeling it. The container plants are looking rather wilted, even with deep waterings every single day. My banana tree and elephant ear are actually thriving at this point. I'll have a nice tropical feel in the sunroom when I bring them into the house in a few short months.

'Alaska Nasturtium' is one of my favorite annuals. Earlier in the spring I soaked the hard, large seeds in warm water for two days. Then I stuck my finger into the soil in my planters, dropped in the seed, and pushed the soil back over it. Easy as pie. I am now rewarded with jewel like blooms in vibrant red, yellow and orange. The real star of this annual, however, is the leaves of the plant. The 3" round leaves are splashed and segmented with creamy white on the yellow green. Planted in a hanging basket with bright pink Wave petunias and 'Diamond Frost' euphorbia (trust me...you must plant this next year), my nasturtiums are a sight to behold. I'll try to download a pic of one of the baskets.

I've stopped pruning back the mums and asters. Quite a few years ago I learned from a pro that the best way to prune them is to use your hedge shears and just whack the tops off about four times in the season, with the last time being the first part of August. This will give you a spectacular professional show in October.

The black-eyed susans and echinacea are blooming like crazy. I love the "messy" comfortable look that they give the gardens. I do need to deadhead them because they will completely take over the world...okay, the garden...if I let them all go to seed. The goldfinch love to eat the seeds, but so many get away that I end up pulling out starts each year.

Have you seen the commercial elderberry 'Black Lace'? It's an interesting plant. I don't have one, however...instead, I have a love-hate relationship with the elderberries that are so generously planted by the birds. I love the elderberry jelly my mom makes, but I hate the mess that they make in the gardens. I consider elderberries a noxious weed. Same with poke weed. Be careful that you don't mix up the two plants. Elderberries are clusters of berries that are pointed UP, and each berry has its own stem. Poke berries are extremely poisonous. The hang down in clusters like grapes do. Avoid them at all costs.

I need to mow the lawn again. The mower blade is set at the highest setting. I keep the grass higher so that it can shade the roots and retain moisture. It also keeps weeds choked out. Well, most weeds, anyway. Creeping Charlie is pretty hard to discourage.

The good thing about the heat is that it will help the tomatoes ripen. It will also give them that great home-grown flavor that we have all been missing.

I can't wait to have a BLT.

Happy Gardening,

shel

Gutter Getters OR The Case of the Mysteriously Clean Gutters

This morning I heard a weird scratching, tapping noise that sounded like it was coming from the roof. "Squirrels again," I thought to myself.

I went outside and looked down...my clean porch and steps were covered in decaying leaves and other debris! I had been after my husband for nearly a YEAR to clean out the gutters.

As I walked out I looked up. All of the sudden, with scratching and flapping, a flock of juvenile robins few away from the roof. My only guess is that the leaves had decomposed enough that red worms and insects were living in the debris, and the robins that that they found a smorgasbord.

Thank you, kind robins. You did something for me that my husband refused to do. Now if I can just find a gorilla to build the hand railings in front and step in back, a beaver to cut wood for the firepit, and some other animal to clean up the mess that he left in the garden from re-roofing the sunroom! Who needs a man????

shel

Surprise Lilies, Resurrection Lilies, Naked Ladies

If you look out the big bay window in the livingroom, you look down at an unfinished watergarden (sigh...I won't whine about that today) and across the driveway, and you'll see clusters of pale pink trumpets, on long, long naked stems, nodding gently in the breeze.
Surprise lilies, aka naked lilies or resurrection lilies, are one of those plants that you either love or hate. I happen to love them. About this time every year the hollow bright green stem pops out of the ground, leafless and lonely. Lonely unless, of course, they are planted in a clump as they should be. There are usually five flowers topping each stem, accessorizing the stem like the cherry accessorizes a banana split. The stall stems seem to lean on each other as friends should. The clumps are a welcome sight in the garden as the daylilies have just about finished for the season and asters and mums won't appear for a while yet.

The bulbs for these perennials are quite expensive, up to $10 each via mailorder. Instead of shelling out a bunch of money for five bulbs (there really shouldn't be any less than that planted together, but more is fine) drive around the area and look for abandoned farms and homes with the lilies. Mark the bulb area and remember where it's at...in a few months, go back and dig up the bulb, which is probably planted very deeply.

Monday night I threw a baby shower for a sorority sister. I cut eight of the surprise lilies so that they were exactly the same length and dropped them into a plain, tall crystal vase with just a few inches of water. The simple arrangement looked very elegant on the cake and punch table.

I hope that you have all survived Tuesday's bad weather. It was pretty hard on my poor surprise lilies.

shel

Mowing Mullings

Unlike most Americans, I do my best thinking while on the lawn mower. After Alana picked up Gabriel tonight I filled up the mower and started on the yard.

Now that I'm sitting here typing about my thoughts, I can't remember any that I had! LOL It's hell getting old.

The lawn is still green and lush, which is very rare for this time of year. Usually only the Creeping Charlie is happy. The cool temps along with the generous amounts of rainfall that we've had here in central Illinois have made for a good lawn. Unfortunately it has also made the weeds happy! Now is not the time for me to use Weed & Feed, though. I will wait to do so during the first week or so of September. In the meantime, I use Round-Up in spots where the Creeping Charlie is really bothersome. My mower blade is set as high as it can go. I won't lower it again until fall, when the grass is actively growing.

I wish I could have a lawn mower designed especially for me. I love the Sears Craftsman special anniversary edition that we have....for the most part. I would be happier if it had arms so that I don't slide around on the seat when I'm trying to mow on a slight slope. I'd also like the blade mechanism to work easier, and to be closer. Each time I turn the blade on I am almost off of the seat, and the lawnmower stalls. This thing wasn't built for a 5' tall woman. (Oh, it wouldn't hurt if the mower were pink instead of shiny gold.)

The darn poison ivy is popping up all over the place. Oh, how I wish I could clone a Japanese Beetle that would dine exclusively on poison ivy and Japanese honeysuckle! All of the other Japanese beetles would breed with them, and the normal beetles would become obsolete. My roses would be safe forever! (Yes, I think crazy thoughts while I'm mowing!)

I couldn't finish the back yard as I found a baby Downy or Hairy woodpecker. I'm not sure which it is. The poor thing was on the ground with his head twisted oddly to the right. I thought perhaps it was dead, but the loud mower scared it. The fledgling tried to fly but couldn't do so. I didn't know whether I should put the bird over the fence and into the woods in back so that Sioux and Lakota, the dogs from hell, couldn't get him or if I should let Mother Nature decide the bird's fate. I finished mowing around the dog kennel on the east side of the back yard and, when I got back over to the bird area, the thing was gone. I hope it found safety somewhere.

There have been two or three sick raccoons in the area. The conservation folks said that distemper was the culprit. While I was mowing near the woods I got the strangest feeling of being watched....I started thinking "What if it's a sick raccoon watching me, and it decides to try to attack me?" Silly, I know. Just to be on the safe side I went to another part of the yard.

People in Alabama tend to name their homes. I decided that this place should be called Hickory Hills. I can just see a big sign hanging above the driveway....

I know there were at least a hundred other random (and some pretty weird) thoughts that went through my mind, but I just can't remember them. Maybe next time I mow I'll take along a little hand-held tape recorder. With my luck, I'll probably run over it!

Happy mowing,
shel

This, That and The Other

The last few days have been relatively busy for me so I haven't done much online. Here's a few highlights of my days:

I shook things up a little bit by going to the 9:30 p.m. showing of "The Ugly Truth" with some gal friends. It was a blast! The movie is FULL of foul language (thus the rating) and I could have done without most of it. However, I enjoyed the plot and the skill of the actors/acresses.

I painted the front door deep purple. Yep. I still need to put on another coat, and paint the Adirondack chairs to match, but I think it's going to look perfect. I don't know if the purple was an act of defiance against my husband (he hates change) or in honor of my deceased mother-in-law, or just a touch of HGTV getting to me.

Today I went to my parent's house and trimmed the holly, yews, and spirea. I brought back many boxes of landscape waste to add to my compost pile (the big stuff went in the burn pile, though.)

The daylilies are starting to peter out, unfortunately. Luckily the rains have kept the other perennials and annuals looking healthy so the gardens, although they are weedy, look great. My hosta is really filling out nicely, and the fallopia japonica is stunning. My roses are showing off, too. Part of my success with them this year is due to the lack of Japanese beetles. I've been very fortunate.

I am going to take my hedge trimmers and give all of my mums and asters one more good trim. The blooms will be great toward the end of October, when I want them to really shine. This will be the third or fourth time that I've trimmed them back so they should be nice and bushy.

The vegetable garden is, well, just sitting there. This fall I'll have to till in a lot of the compost. I hope to actually do a raised bed next year. Either way, the surrounding trees are going to have to have a good haircut. There's too much shade in my yard!

I hope you're all enjoying your gardens during this mild July.

shel

Morrisonville Picnic/Frog Jump

On Thursday, Max and I took Bryan and Gabe to the Morrisonville Picnic. There was an hour long parade (I was impressed!), a carnival, and the much-anticipated frog jump.

Bryan loved the tractors and fire trucks that went past. He didn't care much about the candy, but he came home with a bag full nonetheless. During the parade, little Gabriel sat on Aunt Kara's or Aunt Kayla's lap. Bryan latched onto Holly and stayed at the side of the road.

We let Bryan go on the airplane ride and the car ride, but he was just as happy running around. Gabe watched all of the people passing by and slobbered.

shel

I tried to download a picture, but once again my computer wouldn't cooperate. Darn the luck!

"Are You Grumpy?" YES!!!

Little Bryan loves to ask the question out of the blue..."Are you grumpy?" in his cute little sing-song voice. Normally he asks because I tell him "no" about something. (I know that my family members are saying "You NEVER tell Bryan no!" but I do...really I do!) My answer is usually no, Bryan, Gramma isn't grumpy... but if I were to be asked tonight, I would give a resounding YES.

The day started out well enough. Gabe spent the night and slept like an angel. Alana got here early to pick him up and invited me to go to Bloomington with her. We had a good time shopping for bargains and I was able to control my urge to splurge.

Things went downhill when I got home.

I went down to the freezer to get a roast to thaw, and the floor of the garage was slick with chicken juice, blood, and other gross freezer-type liquids. Everything inside the freezer was thawed, including the peach sherbet. The freezer was running and everything was slightly cool, but I didn't trust any of the food to be safe to eat. Everything went into the garbage can. I had three big beef roasts, a few t.v. dinners for hubby, four Cornish hens, a bag of chicken breasts, a bag of french fries, three bags of frozen mixed veggies with asparagus (yummy), the sherbet, a half of a box of frozen biscuits from Market Day, and so much more that I'm starting to get depressed all over again. It's hard telling how long things were thawed out.

We have a $500 deductible for homeowner's insurance, so we're out of luck with making a claim. I have a few ideas of what could have happened...I think Max was browsing and didn't make sure the door was closed. It's happened before on the upstairs freezer and on the 'fridge, so I wouldn't be surprised. That, or the evil garage gnome decided to play a trick on us!

I spent the better part of an hour cleaning freezer juices. It was disgusting. Thank heavens I had two rolls of paper towels handy! Everything had to be disinfected, and then put back together. Then I had to mop the garage floor because the meat in the garbage can leaked out through the split in the bottom, and the can was drug outside leaving a slimy trail, almost like we were visited by a gargantuan snail.

I turned the freezer back on and am hoping that I will go down in the morning to a frigid area. The side-by-side set is in good shape, and I just LOVE having the extra room for storing the pop, water, platters for parties, hundreds of cookies and hordes of meat. I'm sure that it was human failure instead of mechanical failure.

There's been a few other incidences tonight that have made my grind my teeth, but I won't bore you with all of the details. I'm not grumpy often, but tonight I definitely am. Guess I'll go suck on a few peanut M & M s and work on a crossword puzzle before I go to bed. I'm glad my grumpy day is almost over.

shel

daylily pics?

Here's another try...

YES! It worked!

Okay, I give up for tonight. I tried to download another but it wouldn't work. I hope you enjoy the pictures of my 'pretties'.

shel

daylily pictures

I am having luck with downloading tonight, so I'll put in a few pics of the daylilies that are blooming.

This first daylily is an unnamed variety that is up by my mailbox. It has lots of buds and the flowers are huge. They are a soft peachy orange with yellow toward the eye.

Let's try to insert another picture...oops, that's a picture of Gabriel!

LOL, that's ANOTHER pic of Gabe! I can't see which pictures I'm getting when I download. I look at the number, and remember which ones I needed.

I'm going to publish this and try another one. Really, my daylily shots are beautiful!

shel

I Cleaned the Front Porch!

I was outside working by 6:30 a.m. this morning. The first thing that I did was start the burn pile going in the gully. Boy, did I regret that later on. I have asthma and by late morning I couldn't catch my breath. I had to use the nebulizer and the inhaler.

Before the lack of oxygen to my lungs hit, I was able to get the front porch cleaned off. Somehow it accumulates all sorts of junk up there. We're far enough back from the road that people driving by can't see anything, but when folks come to visit it's an embarrassment. So today I took everything off of the porch, swept well, threw out a bunch of junk, brought the Adirondack chairs up, and finished planting impatiens in all of the planters so that it looked nice.

Hey, look, I was able to download a picture! Cool!!!

I didn't do too much after the asthma attack today. I did, however, take care of the world's best little baby boy. Gabriel is SUCH an angel. He made new noises today, kind of like a motor boat. Since his teeth are trying to come in, he is a real slobber box. Poor kid!

Tomorrow Brandon, Jessie, and Bryan are coming over for a nice lunch. They are bringing steaks to put on the fire pit. I'm going to ask Brandon to cook them because I want to be able to do stuff tomorrow and not be connected to my inhaler or nebulizer. I plan on making a homemade chocolate cake for dessert, potatoes, corn, and a salad. In the early morning I'll start a loaf of bread in the bread machine. I look forward to visiting with the kids.

shel

Poison Ivy!!! Zanfel, Save Me!

Since we live in the country, I have an overabundance of poison ivy that pops up just about everywhere, included in my planters! I am one of the unfortunate people that gets poison ivy VERY badly. At least twice a year I have to go in for a steroid shot in the butt and a Z pack (prescription steroids).

Last year I picked up a tube of Zanfel at the mom and pop drugstore in Decatur. It cost an arm and a leg...over $36 for a little tube...but man, is it worth it! Zanfel reminds me of the old Lava soap because of the coarse texture. As soon as I discover that I've been into poison ivy, I run into the house, start the water, squirt on an 1 1/2" length of Zanfel and start scrubbing. So far (knock on wood) I haven't gotten 'the itch'. Supposedly, if you DO have poison ivy already, you can use Zanfel and the itching will ease and you will dry up quicker.

Today I have little Gabriel. The weather is absolutely spectacular, so I hope to get outside and plant a few hanging baskets before he wakes up.

Erin gave me a few Japanese eggplants, and I cut them into chunks last night. I also cut up zucchini, summer squash, green pepper, an onion, and some garlic and threw a marinade over the veggies. I am going to roast them and have a sandwich with Swiss (I'd prefer Provolone, but am out) for lunch. mmmmmmmm, I love veggies! I have a jar of roasted red peppers so I'll use a few of them as well.

Tonight, after Alana picks up Gabe, I'll spread more mulch and put Preen on top. Using Preen discourages the seeds from poison ivy, dropped by birds in their poo, from germinating. If I can stay on top of that this year I hope to have a smaller ivy batch next year!

shel

Daylilies Part II

I walked around the front yard tonight and picked out a few more of my favorite daylilies.

'Burgandy Babe' is a heavy producer. The dark Burgandy blooms with the even darker eyes are about the size of a half-dollar. They really show off early in the lily season. I have crossed them with 'Little Sioux' with good results.

'Little Sioux' is another mini lily. It, too, has a heavy bloom. The flowers are slightly smaller than 'Burgandy Babe' and they are a dark peachy color. The petals are more rounded and chunky looking than most daylilies. I love them!

'Texas Sunlight' is one of my other minis. It is a sunny yellow, proficient bloomer.

There's another daylily in the same bed as the 'Texas' lilies. When I purchased it, the handwritten tag had rubbed off part way. Therefore I'm not sure what the name is, but it is two words with the first letter being C and the first letter of the second word being J. It has HUGE dazzling yellow-orange flowers that seem to be covered in diamond dust. I can't bring myself to divide them yet since they are so beautiful.

I have a 'Gordon Briggs' in the garden by the greenhouse. I've always loved the color of this dark flower.

Once again, I am not having luck downloading my pictures. When Steve comes over (he is an absolute genius with the computer...I'm envious) I will ask him to help me share my pictures.

shel

Daylily List and Descriptions

I think that it was 18 years ago or so that my sister Shannon purchased a group of mail-order daylilies and planted them in front of her cottage-like house with the white picket fence. At the time I (foolishly) wasn't impressed with them, simply because I didn't have enough experience with the flowers.

Now I can't get enough daylilies.

A friend of a friend crossed daylilies and sold the undesirable (to her, anyway) offspring for a mere $5 a clump. Hornbaker Gardens in Princeton, IL had a $10 a clump sale a few weeks later. After visiting both of these places, I was officially hooked on daylilies.

Somehow the tags on my named lilies in the back yard are AWOL. I suspect that the two huskies, in one of their many Wild Dog moments, have kicked them up. Either the lawn mower has eaten them or the mysterious canna stealing critter walked off with them. Hard telling.

Here's a list of some of the daylilies that jump out at me:

I have a sunny yellow, rather tall lily with an extraordinary amount of buds that I thought was 'Karen Sue' but is not (according to the google image search that I just did.) This is one of the daylilies with the tags missing The show this daylily puts on lasts for at least two weeks. I have tried my hand at making my own daylily crosses (which is discouraged by the professionals...sorry, I can't help myself) and have found that this daylily is a good parent. I'll see if I can find the original sale tag to find out her true name.

'Fuzz Bunny' is a medium-sized double yellow daylily. There are only two to four buds per stem, but the unique bloom makes this variety a must-have. I haven't had any luck with crosses.

I believe the daylily on the other side of the deck is 'Little Grapette'. I LOVE the dusky purple-brown bloom with the darker eye. It is a small flower, and cute as can be. When I crossed (both ways) with what I thought was 'Karen Sue' I got muddy, disappointing blooms. I think 'Little Grapette' should be left as it is...just perfect.

'Ice Carnival' is a REAL work-horse. It is a tall, proud daylily that produces bloom after bloom after bloom. The flowers are large, pale yellow (almost white) beauties that are easily crossed. I have divided and shared this daylily many times, and it still gives me a full bushy plant each season. If you have a large area to fill in and want a mass of solid color, try 'Ice Carnival'.

'Winnie-The-Pooh' was purchased in honor of my niece Erin. She loved the fuzzy little bear. Too bad the lily isn't nearly as cute. It is a medium-sized plant with a orange-tan color. Personally, I don't think it's the same color as the Pooh bear, but maybe I'm just color blind. This plant hasn't multiplied much, and I've never tried to cross it.

'Strawberry Candy' packs a punch. The smaller plant has a medium-size flower that is a bright strawberry ice cream pink with a darker center. It has three to four buds per stem, so the show doesn't last long. It is a desirable plant simply because it's so darn cute.

'Exotic Love' is a WOW for sure. I have a great close-up picture of it that I will post if I can. (Darn it, the computer won't let me attach the pic. It says 'error' across the top in a big red band. Perhaps you can do a Google image search for it. I'll try to do another post with that picture, and pics of other daylilies as well.)

'South Seas' is a very tropical looking lily. It produces only a few buds and I haven't tried to cross it, but I do enjoy the flower when it is in bloom.

I have an unnamed cross from Hornbaker's that I like to unofficially call my 'Shelly Lily'. It is a bright pink with a bright yellow throat. I have shared this lily with many, many friends.

I haven't had the chance to write down the daylilies from the front or east yard. I will do so, and blog about them, at a later date.

Daylilies start blooming around the last week of June and put on a show for about a month in my yard. They are easily maintained, grow well in my clay soil, and demand little attention once established. If you haven't given daylilies a chance in your gardens, you should really do so.

shel

p.s. I still can't add an image. Curses!!! I did a Google image search and got pictures of all of the above-mentioned daylilies except 'Winnie-the-Pooh'. Notice how the 'Ice Carnival' blooms looks different in each picutre...sometimes a camera just isn't able to capture the true color. 'Little Grapette' is the same way.

If you get the chance, go to Hornbaker's in rural Princeton in the next week. The fields of daylilies will be in full bloom...it's a glorious sight! Get information by visiting www.hornbakergardens.com

Iris Borer Blues

Now is the perfect time to thin and transplant your crowded or diseased iris. If your iris have failed to bloom well, it is possible that they are overcrowded.

Dig up the rhizomes, cut off any diseased parts, cut the green leaf spears off at an angle so that the foliage forms a fan shape about 4" in height, and replant the rhizomes. It is said that iris prefer to be sunburned, which means that you shouldn't actually dig in the soil. Instead, use a trowel to dig a shallow trench and place the iris parallel to the surface of the soil. Cover the roots with soil but leave the top part of the fleshy rhizome above ground (if it were skin, it would sunburn.) Water well to get rid of air pockets, and wait patiently for next year's show.

Do NOT put mulch on or near iris!!

I have noticed that my iris foliage is in sad shape. There are dark brown oval spots over most of the foliage. That's a sure sign of the dreaded iris borer. If you look closely at the picture above, you can see the borer.

I will dig up my iris rhizome and carefully inspect it for signs of damage (a hole, rotten spots, or a tunnel like area). The iris borer is a ugly, naked pinkish-brown fat worm-like borer that has one goal in mind...eat every bit of the rhizome that it can before it must pupate then turn into a month. Rotten parts can be cut away with a clean, sharp knife that I dip in a water/bleach solution between each cut. If I do cut into an iris, I leave the rhizome unplanted for a few days so the wound can heal over. When I find a borer, I dig it out of the iris and destroy it immediately. Any damaged parts are cut away. Some people dip their iris into bleach water, but I have never done so.

Mulching iris is a no-no because the mulch overwinters the borer. I have been lax in keeping the oak and hickory leaves off of my iris in the fall and winter, so I am guilty of providing the perfect habitat for the dreaded killer borer.

Did you know that the original big portion of the iris will never bloom again? You can cut off the "fingers" of new plants that grow out the sides of t original and replant them. Put the original potato-looking piece into your compost.

I love iris, and have at least 30 varieties that I need to dig up and divide in the next few days. Luckily iris multiply well so I will be able to share the beauties with friends and family.

For more information on the iris borer and for great gardening education, go to the Master Gardener's web site at http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/state/hort.html You'll love it!

Happy gardening,

shel

Is Anyone Out There?

Is there anyone out there that reads my blogs? I know my niece Erin does, as well as my Aunt Sue (big hugs to both of you) but I really want to know...are you interested in what I have to say?

I blog because
1.) I enjoy writing.
2.) I talk too much, and my husband and daughter ignore me so I have stopped unnecessary conversation with them. I need to tell SOMEONE what's going on in my brain before I explode from too much pent-up jibber-jabber.
4.) I have discovered that I'm lonely. I shouldn't be, but I am.
3.) It's cheaper than therapy.

Please give a shout-out if I'm not alone here.

While mowing tonight, I thought of many subjects that I need to write about. Tomorrow I'll work on the iris borer problem that I'm having. The next blog will be a list (with pictures) of some of my daylilies (favorites, most productive for crossing, prettiest, etc.) I think that I'll also do a garden chore list, and then blog about what I have crossed off of the list for the day. It's a BIG list, believe me. Here's an interesting one...a list of 100 wishes that I would like to have come true. I'm not talking about the obvious (world peace, end of hunger, etc.) but of trivial wishes that would mean SO much to me!

What are yo ur wishes?

shel