ready to plant veggies!

watering the lawn















getting ready to plant. We planted our baby tomatoes, okra, zucchini, and cucumbers today. I'll post photos tomorrow.



































I still don't know what this flower is.

butterfly and herbs

I caught this butterfly (not literally) just after it emerged from it's cocoon.














Chives. Am I supposed to cut the flowers off?















Oregano is really coming along. Maybe I need to join the pizza oven making trend.



















iris, again.















Cherry tomatoes weren't so happy about the cold temperatures the past few nights. They are starting to get some brown spots, but I hope they pull through now that spring has returned.

osteospermum transformation

So I had these osteospermum from the mystery flower shop and two of them turned out to be this weird pinched petal type that I wasn't so fond of, but I couldn't bring myself to murder them, so I moved one to a shady out of the way corner (first photo) and was thinking of what to do with the other one. The next day, the one I DIDN'T touch (it wasn't even near the one that was moved) went all limp and I thought it was going to die and save me the trauma, but then it revived and....

Its petals turned almost normal! Isn't that strange? It's like the flower knew it had to shape up or else!

flowers

purple iris. I was hoping for the really slender deep purple ones like in father-in-law's garden, but this wasn't it. I will have to remember to ask him for bulbs this fall.













M really wanted this sweet pea last fall (I think just because it is pink).
correction: It is a snap dragon. Thank you, Vicky!














Babiana (?) blooming




















yard from above




and ground level

wild life

My husband found this little bat hanging out by the air conditioner on the foundation of my classroom this morning. It is alive, but must not be feeling well to be hanging out in broad daylight.














Aphids are terrible this year! These are the weeds by the garden next door. I sweep the walks of dead aphids daily. Yucko!

veggies

Okra, the aphids love it!















Howden and Cinderella pumpkins.















zucchini




















tomatoes. I have to plant these soon, but it is SO WINDY today. It will have to wait until the holidays.














Big Rainbow 20cm.




















Pump J. Seeds from the better tasting kabocha we ate over the winter. Sprouting. Also one Pump L, a hardy kabocha from my husband's friend, Lさん.













Sweet Orange II cherry tomato















lettuce. The red salad bowl doesn't like the heat. I have lost 2 already and the remaining 2 don't look very happy. Our sunny lettuce (not in this photo) is starting to bolt.


















cucumbers




















carrots

flowers

This flower from the "blue flower mix" seeds I sowed (sew? what is the past tense of sow?) a year and a half ago is finally blooming. It's really quite pretty, but I have no idea what it is.












I saw nadeshiko (pinks?) for sale at the garden store the other day for 298 yen. These I got for free last year at the park. I was watching L playing on the swings and suddenly noticed all the older folk swarming over to the flower section with boxes and plastic bags, so of course, I went to check it out. The park was giving away nadeshikos. M was in the nadeshiko class at preschool so I brought some home and planted them. I cut off the dead bits and they looked rather pathetic all winter, but are doing well now.







This pink clover amongst the strawberries is quite pretty. We have tons of clover and I haven't learned to tell which are the kinds with pretty flowers and which to pull as weeds.












Orange osteos transplanted a week or two ago doing well.















The pink ones have survived and are flowering again after a fairly drastic late winter pruning fit.














These ones from the mystery flower shop I didn't like so much, so I transplanted them to a shady out of the way corner. I wonder if they will survive. I figure at least they are more attractive than the pipe, so I can't lose.












Dh mowed the embankment on Sunday, thank goodness, because the weeds were starting to go to seed. It's easier, anyway, if he does it before they are over his head. The neighbors have lovely cornflowers along the embankment that seem to self-propogate, but I am having trouble getting ours started. I finally started some seedlings and transplanted them. I hope they don't get washed away in the rain today.














Last year I pilfered seed heads from the neighbors down the way and spread them over our embankment every day on way back from the dog's walk, but only two actually grew, and in rather odd spots.

veggies

After much agonizing, I finally ended up planting the cherry tomatoes on Saturday, though the plants are still quite small. They seem to be doing well so far.


















A group photo!




















Some peppers from the garden shop, and the "spare" cherry tomatoes.




















The peas seem to be on the verge of plumping up, but the girls keep picking and eating them before they can get big and juicy.

bugs

I have heard about the bee shortage and was getting a bit worried about our strawberries, but have started seeing these tiny bees around in the past two weeks













And our strawberries are finally starting to strawberry!














The aphids are TERRIBLE this year. But they do seem to have attracted many ladybugs. I hope the ladybugs win!














A bit fuzzy, but the lady bug shedding its skin was kind of cool.

tomato buds

Yesterday I went to the garden center and had a major shock because their tomatoes were flowering. But when I looked more carefully at my cherry tomatoes this afternoon I noticed they have a few buds!
This is Golden Currant

















a close up
















and Sweet Orange II

flowers 4/16/09

I decided to try out a delphinium this year to see how it does.




















I think these are called babiana. I was beginning to think they were going to produce nothing but foliage, as all the others in the neighborhood started blooming almost 2 months ago, but finally they are producing buds.

















irises















magnolia















Sunflowers coming up (elves blend)















These were part of a "blue flower mix" seed packet I planted last year. They have resown themselves. Lots of little blue flowers until they get done in by aphids.