Creeping Thyme
I have a few large rocks that create a patio of sorts by the front door. The area between the rocks was pretty much grown up in weeds, since the rocks aren’t level, it was extremely difficult to manage the growth of the weeds growing there. Last year I dug out a portion and planted creeping thyme, wooly thyme, and scotch moss. It thrived and expanded to take over a fairly decent portion of one of the cracks.
Now that I know it will thrive in that location, I will propagate a few more and fill in the rest of the cracks between the rocks. I like the creeping thyme a lot because it’s so short, growth densely enough to smother most weeds, and it blooms beautifully attracting tiny pollinators. I’m looking forward to have the weeds gone and something beautiful and useful in its place.
What plant are you particularly loving this week?
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Broody Dex
On Sunday I went into the kitchen and there was Dexter camped out on over a dozen eggs. No doubt he had gone broody, hoping to hatch himself out a batch of snacks.
He jumped on the raise your own bandwagon before he realized how much work it takes to raise a clutch of chicks. This is not the first time Dexter has decided that a carton full of eggs would be the perfect place for a nap, I can’t make this stuff up.
Any animals doing crazy things at your place?
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Creating Habitats
There are many ways we can create small habitats in our garden, this is especially important if we have a problem with a particular pest. If we are overrun by aphids, creating habitats for ladybugs and other predatory insects that eat aphids is important. If we have tons of slugs, putting in a pond to create a habitat for toads is the ideal way to deal with that problem (a pair of ducks is also a great way).
One of the things I do in the garden to create small habitats is laying down boards and sheets of cardboard. I use cardboard as a smothering mulch, anywhere I want to kill weeds or grass. One of the main reasons I use cardboard is because it creates a habitat for snakes and salamanders. Every time I lift up a piece I find tiny snakes, earthworm eggs, salamanders, slugs, and a wide variety of other insects.
I much prefer using cardboard to using chemicals and other weed killing methods. It takes more patience, as most of the time you’ll need to have the cardboard in place for a season or two to fully kill the weeds, especially tenacious perennial weeds. I’m happy to wait patiently and let nature utilize this small habitat to improve the diversity in my garden.
What small habitats have you created in your garden?
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I Can SEE
The window screens on this house are all fairly old and many of them have had a rough life. There is paint on them, their original paint has worn off, overall they’re looking pretty rough. This means that they inhibit the view to the garden, which is not OK!
Enter matte charcoal gray spray paint. I few quick sprays and voila, the screens are once again dark and seeing outside is once again an option (and a pleasure).
It’s amazing how something that seems so insignificant can make such a big impact. I’m in the process of painting most of the screens in the house and I’m really looking forward to the new and improved view to the garden outside! Quick DIY projects are the best, especially those that help me see my hard work in the garden in a better light.
Did you do any DIY projects around the house or garden this week?
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Ear Protection
I’m serious about ear protection and I have very sensitive hearing. I’ve never listening to loud music and never liked loud noises of any kind, especially a lawn mower. I used to have a pair of custom fit musicians ear plugs that I wore at wedding receptions and when I used power tools and loud machinery. They finally wore out and I decided to buy a box of these foamy soft 3M ones. I use them a few times before tossing them and grabbing a new pair. While I love the previous custom earplugs I had, I didn’t want to spend the money for a new pair, I find these are super comfortable and I can wear them all day. I’m not usually one to use disposable products, but I do love these babies!!!
I highly recommend using ear plugs if you are using a mower or other loud equipment. If you don’t like things in your ears and haven’t liked other earplugs I think you’ll like these. I’m so glad a friend gave me a pair last year because I was able to see how comfortable they were compared to other brands. Now, I carry a pack of them in my purse and in the glove box of each car. I’ll never be caught in a loud situation without earplugs again!
Do you wear hearing protection?
