For the Love of Succulents
The longer I garden, the more appreciate hard, working easy care succulents. If you were reading the blog two years ago, you’ll remember that I have a window shelf on the garage window that I line with pots.
Usually I purchase begonias at the local greenhouse and they do well. Since we had a few trees taken down, this area now gets more sun. Begonias weren’t really an option, I need something that can take the heat and won’t need watered twice a day. Naturally, I chose a few succulents. When I was at Buchwalter Greenhouse with my mom, I spotted their collection and picked three of my favorites.
I potted them up in my collection of silver pots and they look AMAZING!
I wanted to remember the names of them, so I used some thin copper strips to label them.
I have a few other succulents in the house that I plan on repotting to complete the window. The window has actually been replaced and has new trim that also needs painted white. I’ll make sure I post a photo when it’s all buttoned up, which should be later this week.
Window boxes have always been something I have loved and I always wanted to have them on my home. This isn’t a proper window box, but it looks just as good.
Is there a garden feature you’ve always wanted to have?
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Quote of the Day: Alexander Pope
“All Nature’s difference keeps all Nature’s peace.”
I was thinking about this quote the other day when someone asked me about my pest control in the garden. Here at Chiot’s Run I just let nature run it’s course. Occasionally I’ll lose a crop to a pest, but I like to observe to see how nature works and what will happen. We must remember that the “pest” insects feed the benficial insects and the birds. If we meticulously get rid of all “bad” insects in the garden we’ll be inadvertently getting rid of beneficial things as well.
What’s your favorite beneficial insect and which is your more loathed pest insect?
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Rolling out the Welcome Mat
Ever since we moved in here at Chiot’s Run, there has been an expanse of lawn with no path that leads up to our front porch steps. I’ve been wanting to put in a path, but couldn’t decide what kind of material to use.
We have crushed gravel in the back but really dislike that it’s always getting tracked into the house. Concrete wasn’t an option because we wanted to use something native and natural. I finally decided to simply use some of the rocks I dig up all the time and inset them into the grass. (I have a few large piles of rocks in various places to harvest stones from when I need them).
I laid each stone on the sod then cut out the grass in the shape of the rock. I removed the sod and used it to fill a raised bed in the back and then laid the stone.
They’re set just at the soil level so that they can be mowed over easily. The grass should grow in around them and make them look like they’ve been there for a long time.
I plan on using my old Craftsman push mower to mow the path shorter than the surrounding lawn to emphasize it. It’s quite welcoming and definitely something I should have done a long time ago.
What’s your favorite kind of garden path?
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Friday Favorite: Diablo III
I mentioned a while ago that Mr Chiots and I enjoyed playing computer games together. We’ve been playing both Diablo and Diablo 2 for a LONG time. Not many people know this about me and they’re surprised when they find out.
We’ve been waiting for Diablo III to come out for so long. We preordered our copies last fall and were hoping they’d come out for Christmas. The game didn’t come out for Christmas, but Mr Chiots got me this mousepad instead.
This past Tuesday the game officially launched and our pre-ordered copies arrived via UPS. Sadly, I have had too much going on to play. Mr Chiots has played for an hour or so.
It’s too bad the game arrived during our super busy season. Not only are we trying to get everything ready for selling and moving, the gardening season is in full swing and our business really picks up in the summer. Looks like I won’t be playing much until this coming winter. I also like playing board games, Scrabble being my all-time favorite.
What’s your favorite game, either computer or other board games?
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Distractions
Every now and them I’m doing something and then I get distracted by something interesting. Usually it’s something I want to get a photo of at that exact moment because the light is just perfect. Yesterday I walked by a window and saw the sun lighting up this little spiderweb on the front porch. I dropped whatever it was I was doing, grabbed my camera.
I proceeded to walk around the gardens to get a few more photos since everything is lush and beautiful and I want to document this year in my garden well. When I came back inside I couldn’t remember what it was I was doing, so I moved on to something else on my to-do list. This happens to me all the time, I find myself often stopping in mid track, dropping whatever it is I’m carrying, and either grabbing my camera or just looking closely at something I see or listening keenly to something I hear. I’m definitely easily distracted!
Do you find it easy to stay on task or do you get easily distracted?
