Where the Garden Gets Going. . .

 

Jasper loves all of the views from his level. Preferably laying down. These ears and eyes keep watch whenever we're in the house. I am embarrassed by how much I love them. Smile.

But we're spending less and less time inside. Between hiking, fishing, biking and outdoor homeowner projects, we're outside a lot. 

Oh. And the garden. Or maybe I should say "The Grounds". I planted my seedling vegetables this week, as well as the whole herb garden. I realized belatedly that I had forgotten the Parsley, but we'll find a place to seed them.There is still room in the spaces around the new concrete patio, so that may work.

Our fledgling and very small vegetable garden is planted in these boxes. The two together are about the same size as we had in our last house. You can hardly see the tomatoes right now, but that should change considerably in a couple of weeks. 

We had a 93F day today! Very high by Maine standards. The humidity isn't too bad, but it still feels hot, and I keep sprinkling the seedlings to reduce their stress.

Our two peach trees are in full bloom. I have to confess great skepticism at peaches in USDA zone 5a. It's a cold climate for this species. Still, there was a load of peaches hanging on one of these trees when we first saw the house last July. 

It could happen!

And the asparagus have just made an entrance. We were concerned about them. The rhubarb was up and running, and the asparagus were still nowhere. Once they start, though, they really run with it.

And finally, I've uploaded two halves of a video of our new back patio area. This program thought the combined one was too large, so I hope you won't have too wait too long for them to load.

Turn the sound on, by the way. The "Mint-gone-wild" will be a lifelong challenge. I think the owners threw mulch over the mint, and the roots have spread throughout the garden, protected by the mulch. Oy.

 

 Finally, speaking of challenges, we are indeed getting black flies, as predicted. We also have a small wetland in part of our 5 acre forest, so mosquitos will also be an issue. No surprise there, but the screened pop-up is definitely a life saver. We're contemplating a screened porch in the future, but the current roof lines won't allow it over the patio. Sooo. . . . we'll keep calm and carry on!