I always thought that growing carrots took deep, fluffy soil, and frankly I didn’t want to go to all that work.

 

Last year I discovered several varieties of carrots that will grow in “heavy soil.”  I wouldn’t call our soil “heavy,” but I figured what it means is that the soil doesn’t have to be fluffy and deep.  So I tried them and they grew!!!

 

We have carrots without all the work.  Yoo-hoo!!!

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

We saw this milkweed plant in the park the other day, and I took its picture.  When I looked at the picture later I noticed that one is in bud, and the other is in bloom.  

 

I remember seeing them all along the Blue Ridge Parkway, when we lived in Virginia.  

 

We love milkweed, and so do the Monarchs.  The butterflies lay their eggs in the milkweed, and when the caterpillars emerge they eat the leaves.  I wish this variety grew in our neighborhood, but I haven’t seen any in years.  

 

Be on the lookout for milkweed; you may see some in your travels, and you can be thankful that the Monarchs have food for their next generations.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Another lovely smell this time of year is honeysuckle.  And it is everywhere!!!  We even have some growing up the compost bins.  I should probably weed it out, but I love putting the flowers in my water bottles for the day.  They add a sweetness that only comes in summer.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

It’s Ligustrum!!!  THE smell of summer.  The ligustrum are blooming all over the neighborhood and all over town.  Any trip to town will bring the smell of ligustrum directly to you.

 

Not everybody loves it, but I do.  So I just drink it in on every walk, every trip.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Remember the cherry tree that I showed you a couple weeks ago?  Well, look!!!  The cherries are ready to pick.  

 

We went down there today and picked about 50 cherries.  There are still some more, not quite ripe.

 

I looked in my garden bucket of stuff, and found the tag that came on the tree;  it was dated April 26, 2012.  It only took 12 years for it to produce cherries.  Don’t care:  they are ours, and they were delicious.  

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

I noticed this when we went to the mailbox the other day.  Virginia creeper toward the back, but Poison ivy in the front, right near the parcel box.  I would pull it out if I could, but I can’t, so just be careful when you are checking your mail.

 

It won’t jump out and grab you (like it does me) but if you brush against it you may have an allergic reaction.  

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Here is my flat of sweet potato slips.  Every single potato sprouted (eventually.) 

 

And now I have to find a place to put them.  I’m thinking about the arugula bed.  Hmmm.  Then what will we do for arugula?  Well, I’m still thinking about it.  

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Here is our special red mountain laurel just starting to bloom in the park.  

 

It is the only one I’ve ever seen, and I love checking in with it every year.  It’s not a big bush like some others in the park, but it catches my eye, especially when it blooms.  The buds are bright red, and they open to a soft pink.  

 

Very special.  

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

Yes, it’s true!!!  The Laurels are blooming all over town and beyond.  They are blooming in the Park, in the neighborhood, and all along Mocassin Church Road.  Next time you drive to Blairsville, take the back road and you will see the Mountain Laurels in all their glory.  They are everywhere.

 

I really miss the ones in our backyard in Yorktown;  they were gorgeous.  But everywhere you look now, you can see them in bloom.  They always make me smile.

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

These are the Oxeye Daisies growing in our upper garden, just below the wisteria.  This is just a small chunk of them.  They are filling that whole area where I threw out the wildflower seeds.  They make me so happy every year.

 

The flowers stand on stems about 12 inches high, and they move in the breeze.  They are growing all over our hillsides too, and I guess the deer don’t care for them, because they are still there.

 

Whenever I see them, I think:  I could never work on a grounds maintenance crew, because first of all I am highly susceptible to poison ivy, and secondly I couldn’t bear to cut down all the wildflowers growing on the hillsides.  Just couldn’t do it.  I would get fired for not doing my job.   

 

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!