Garden Update Spring 2014

More garden goodness

Artichokes-they are perennial here in Zone 10 but the Santa Ana winds have been pushing them over, so I have plates under the plants kind of propping them up. I think I'll add rocks and gravel around their base to help anchor them from the wind

Annie over the Dragonfly built me these two potted arrangements a few years ago and they are still going strong.  I give the pot a haircut every 8 weeks or so in the spring / summer and less frequently in winter but it's always trying to escape the pot :)

Dusty Miller, Pink Polka Dot Plant, Chocolate Mint, Rosemary all getting lush and full

Late Winter Cabbage, definitely had a few cabbage worms that I had to hunt down and squish!

But we still ate a lot of coleslaw, next year Saurkraut

Kale has gone gangbusters this year!

Our sod is recovered from the horrors of chemicals

And my best friend in the garden :) MooPooTea from Annie Haven

Flowers from the Garden

On Saturday mornings, it is my little ones 'chore' to deadhead the flowers in the garden and collect bouquets to bring inside the house.  Each week I see her improving on her arrangement skills, and she is starting to look forward to this part of the week.  I usually don't have to remind her as the previous weeks arrangements start to look time-worm, she'll remind me that she is going to slip out into the garden on Saturday morning to make new arrangements.  Currently blooming is a ton of Shasta Daisies and Carnations, but the roses are starting to open along with the occasional camelia, gardenia and hydrangea...

  Here are this weekend's flowers from the garden...

My father-in-laws old tool box filled with tin cans of Shasta Daisies and a flag to celebrate his memory and service to our country in WWII

Shasta Daisies and she added a bright red ribbon for Memorial Day

On the left are celery blossoms and on the right are hydrangeas

Hydrangeas

Celery Blossoms

For the kids table at the Memorial Day BBQ she used Dusty Miller Seed Pods and Shasta Daisies.

What is blooming in your garden?