Mulching this garden is a big job. The mulch pile is smaller, but the job isn't yet complete. It's wonderful when the June Gloom hangs on all day. I can work much longer in the cool grey.
Fresh mulch enables each plant to stand out and be clearly seen.
The slopes are the hardest. Climbing up and down carrying buckets of heavy mulch. After a while I needed a rest and shot some pictures of--what else--flowers.
'Bolero':
I was so tired I sat down on the concrete and looked around. One of the 'Fred Ives' flower stalks has a plantlet at the tip.
Another day, another 'Brass Band'
Oh! Oh! The new 'Venosa Violacea' Clematis has its first flowers!
Nice to have 'Venosa Violacea' back in the garden. The drought got the first one a couple of years ago. I am so tired.
Lately when doing something physically difficult, I distract myself by thinking about the color of things, in my efforts to bring better color combinations to the garden. You can't create good combinations of color without knowing what colors the plant presents. What color is this newly opened 'Cinco de Mayo' rose? Rust? A shade of orange?
Does the color of the rose match the "eye" of the daylily? Almost. The rose darkens as it matures and exactly matches the daylily, which fades as it matures. The 'Darcy Bussell' rose petal sitting on the day lily flower is magenta, or the red side of purple--or the blue side of pink? It clashes horribly with the daylily's rusty eye. The Salvia is real purple. It looks good with the gold of the daylily, but not so much with the rust of it. I am so tired.
But...what color are the bracts of this Salvia 'Waverly'? Dusty plum?
Screeches beyond 'Waverly', near Grevillea 'Superb'. I see a hummingbird perched, hidden, waiting for other hummingbirds to come investigate 'Superb'. The hidden bird wanted to attack the investigators.
Three different Hummingbirds arrived, and then an orange-crowned warbler. The hidden bird didn't know who to attack first. He didn't attack the warbler, which was bigger than he was.
Boy, am I tired. June Gloom has enabled the Sweet Peas to linger. I lingered, too, sitting on the concrete with the scent of Eucalyptus mulch everywhere, and the cool grey above us all.
Pretty! What kind of mulch do you use? Any tips, especially around more the agaves, etc?
ReplyDeleteThe local mulch company calls it "forest floor". It is the finest grind version. It has the most uniform texture, and if you happen to dig a bit into the soil when you plant something, it's like an amendment. The larger grinds last longer--so there's a trade off, of durability vs. appearance. For the flat areas I am starting to like the fir bark that comes from NorCal. It lasts even longer, but still has a uniform texture. The trade off there is that it is more than three times the cost.
DeleteThe big thing is to keep the mulch out of the Agave leaves, and not pile it up around the base of any plant. One time I got my mow-blow guy to do it, and I had to go back and get the mulch volcanoes off from around every single plant. Never again.
Spreading mulch never gets any easier, does it? But I've no doubt that the June Gloom and your various and sundry distractions help a lot. Are Boris and Natasha pulling their weight in providing distractions? I was surprised to see you still have sweet peas - I pulled all mine out a few weeks ago when the wind left them looking sad (and because I wanted to plant sunflower and zinnia seeds in their spot).
ReplyDeleteOh, Kris, it's getting harder and harder. :( I too am surprised that Sweet Pea is still going and going. It is the fancy-pants one from Rogers, so I guess it was worth the $5. Or perhaps it is the location--it happens to get morning sun then shade in the hottest part of the day then sun again in the late afternoon.
DeleteI want to plant some Zinnia seeds too, for the butterflies. I have some somewhere.
B&N are a constant joy, like Pipig is for you. ( Just larger, hairier and noisier.)
You are doing it right to mulch your whole garden! I never get my entire garden mulched, but I see such a difference in the areas where I have done it each year.
ReplyDeleteThe blue agave looks totally stunning against the new brown mulch.
Love the salvia 'Waverly'. Dusty plum is such a nice color description for that one! I would like to grow this salvia in my own garden, too. May I ask how big does it get in your garden?
Warm regards,
Christina
'Waverly' gets big, big--4' tall and wider than that. I have been cutting it back to keep it from swallowing the roses around it. On the other hand, the hummers adore it, and it never stops flowering.
DeleteGood morning Hoover Boo,
ReplyDeleteI love to see what is blooming and growing in your garden. I can imagine how tired you are.
But your garden is very thankfull for the work you are doing.
Have a wonderful day.
I am very thankful to be gardening. It is a privilege to be out amidst the plants, in fresh air. Thank you for visiting my blog. I hope your day is beautiful, with time for gardening.
DeleteSo, I'm hearing you say that you're tired? Don't Boris and Natasha do all of the work in your garden? So nice to have such beauty to admire as you rest.
ReplyDeleteB&N supervise. It's tough being in charge! Especially when you are napping.
DeleteAre they conifer bark? If so it must have a nice scent too. Looks so neat!
ReplyDeleteEucalyptus, or mostly so, which has that distinctive Euc-y scent. Mulch is local, and what we got are a whole lot of Eucs.
Delete"Mulch on
ReplyDeleteThrough the gloom
Mulch on
Throughout June
Though the pile seems almost to have grown
Mulch on, mulch on
With hope in your heart
'Cause you'll always mulch aloooooone."
What can I say, but LOL? :)
DeleteAll by myself,
Don't wanna mulch
All by myself...
Remember how good plants look when arranged on a slope (see photo no. 1). And the wonderful design opportunities you wouldn't get otherwise. Does that help? Me neither. Well, it does after a day or two when my knees and back have recovered a bit.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to do it no matter how much it hurts, because the results are so satisfactory. But it would be nice if it didn't hurt.
DeleteCan't complain. Worst day gardening is better than the best day of--just about anything esle.
Painful as it may be, the mulching still gives me significant satisfaction. If only I could deadhead the roses enough to keep petals from dropping all over it !
ReplyDeleteWell, there's your problem right there--why let your roses bloom in the first place? ;^)
DeleteSeriously, yes, significant satisfaction. The mulch "finishes" the garden for a time, its the period at the end of the sentence. Now the gardener and the garden are both ready to endure Summer.
Oh, those dark Sweet Peas... scrumptious!
ReplyDeleteI'm enjoying them! Isn't that a wonderful color?
Delete