Flowers and Wildflowers in the Yard

I am really excited about some of the flowers that we have planted in our yard.

This clematis was planted next to our front gate and trellis. We've started to train the plant to climb up the gate, and hopefully it will have grown up and over the trellis by the end of the summer. I bought this variety because it is named Rubens, and I figured every art historian should have a plant named after the 17th century Flemish master.

• Rubens (Clematis montana 'Rubens'): Features 2-3" clear pink flowers with golden stamens bloom freely in the spring. Bronze tinted new leaves mature deep green. Blooms in May and June. Prefers sun to shade with roots in cool shade. Likes cool, moist, well-drained soil. Grows 20-30' tall. Moderate growth rate. Remove damaged or yellowing branches. Frequent, light doses of fertilizer are better than heavy doses. Apply fertilizer around the "drip line" of the plant (the drip line is under outermost branch tips and contains feeder roots). Use clematis pruning method A.

On the south side of the house we planted a Bowles Mauve Wallflower (with purple blooms in front) and a Misaka (Beautiful Blossom) Itoh Peony (in background). The peony already has large buds, so I hope that it will open into gorgeous blossoms in the next few weeks. We got the mauve wallflower for only a dollar at a nursery sale, so my frugal side will be very pleased if it flourishes in our yard!

• Bowles Mauve Wallflower: Large clusters of mauve flowers which have a long blooming season. Blooms from winter to summer. Needs full sun. Grows at a fast rate; will grow about 12" high and 12-15" wide. Remove spent flowers. 
• Misaka (Beautiful Blossom) Itoh Peony: Large flowers (up to eight inches across) appear orange when first opening, then fade to a beautiful peachy-yellow. Large contrasting dark-red central flares are extremely prominent. Needs full sun exposure. Reaches 20 to 30" tall and wide. Needs regular watering - weekly, or more often in extreme heat. Follow regular watering schedule during the first growth season to establish a deep, extensive root system. Prune foliage in the fall. Performs best in slightly acidic soil.

Several weeks ago I scattered a few packets full of wildflower seeds along the southern side of our house (just further east of the peony plant, on the other side of the drain pipe). A lot of seedlings have popped up, so I'm hopeful that my idea of a wildflower garden will pan out. Although I don't have any blooms yet (and some might not even appear this season), I thought I'd include some images of the flowers (do you can see what I'm hoping for).

Poppy Iceland Mixed Colors

Needs partial sun. Germination in 7-14 days. Takes 180-300 days to bloom. Thin when plants are a few inches tall.

Oriental Orange Scarlet Poppy

Needs full sun. Takes 12 days to germinate. 365+ days to bloom

Black-Eyed Susan

(Wouldn't it be awesome if my whole flower bed looked like this?)

Needs full sun. 60-90 days to bloom. Grows 2-3' high

Sunny Meadow Mixture

Needs full sun. Takes 7-21 days to germinate. Takes 42-56 days to bloom. Contents: White Yarrow, Poor Man's Weather Glass, Calendula's Pacific Beauty Mix, Cornflower, Dwarf Mix, Primrose Clarkia Confetti Mix, Lance-leaved Coreopsis, Plains Coreopsis, Rocket Larkspur, California Poppy, Blanketflower, Indian Blanket, Spurred Snapdragon Mix, Sweet Alyssum, Arroyo Lupine, Virginia Stock, Four O'Clock Mix, Evening Primrose, Showy Evening Primrose, Shirley Poppy Mix, Catchfly.

Nature's Rainbow Mixture

Needs full sun. Takes 7-21 days to germinate. Takes 42-56 days to bloom. Contents: Prairie Aster, Bachelor Button, Farewell-to-spring/godetia, Mountain Garland, Lance Leaved Coreopsis, Plains Coreopsis, Cosmos, Purple Coneflower, California Poppy, Blanketflower, Indian Blanket, Globa Gilia, Spurred Snapdragon, Blue Flax, Perennial Lupine,  Arroyo Lupine, Missouri Primrose, Corn Poppy, California Blue Bell, Annual Phlox, Gloriosa Daisy, Scarlet Sage, Catchfly, Nodding Catchfly.

It will be fun to see what grows and flourishes in our yard this summer! We are planning on planting some more flowers (and perhaps a tree or two?) this season. I'm planning on posting more updates here.

Flowering Bushes in the Yard

The past few Saturdays have been really nice, and we have been feverishly working in our yard. We're a little bit at a loss for what to do with so much yard space, but I'm sure we'll figure things out eventually. There are a lot of flowers, trees, and bushes that we like, and it's nice to know that we have enough room to add lots of different things.

Lately we have filled up a few garden beds with some flowering bushes. I want to keep track of the plants that we plant (and their bloom seasons), so I'm afraid that my gardening post might not be very interesting to everyone. But I'm excited about creating my own garden (hopefully one that will continually have different blooms in the summer!), and I want to keep track of what I am doing. I just took all of these pictures this evening, so hopefully I'll be able to gauge what plants will be in bloom at the end of next April.

These are on the north side of our porch: Rosebud (Evergreen Azalea) in upper left, Girard's Purple (Evergreen Azalea)  in lower left, and Spring Bouquet Viburnum on right. I just took these pictures this evening. The purple blooms have been open for about a week or two, and the pink ones have just started to open a few days ago.

•  Rosebud (Evergreen Azalea): A slow, compact, spreading growth habit. 4' high x 4' wide. Needs part-sun exposure. Hardiness = 5
• Girard's Purple (Evergreen Azalea): Prolific bloomer that grows dense and compact. 2-3' high x 2-3' wide. Needs part-sun exposure. Hardiness = 5
• Spring Bouquet Viburnum: Needs full-sun exposure (6+ hours of direct sun). Blooms in the winter and spring. Grows at a medium rate, and will reach 5-6' high x 5-6' wide. Keep soil semi-moist. Fertilize in the early spring and prune to remove damaged limbs. (I'll be quite pleased if this grows into a large plant, especially since we got this starter for only a dollar!)

We planted this rhododendron on the south side of our front porch. It is supposed to have wine or burgundy colored flowers, and I'm hoping that these buds open around the time that the purple azaleas are finishing up.

• Olin O. Dobbs Rhododendron: Will grow to about 4' high in about ten years.

This hydrangea is around the corner from front porch, along the north side of the porch (pay no attention to those other weeds and plants!). It's had a hard life so far, but I hope it will pull through. Hydrangeas usually don't bloom until August, and I think that this plant is in a little bit of shock since it left the nursery a few weeks ago.

• White hydrangea (right now I think it might be a Blushing Bride variety, but please correct me if I'm wrong!): Requires minimal pruning; pruning should be to remove dead flower heads. Prune to just above the nearest facing outward bud. Pruning should take place in March (not in autumn). Blooms in summer and early fall. Will grow 3-6' high.

We placed this itty-bitty forsythia plant in the back corner of our yard. Unfortunately we missed the yellow spring blossoms on this plant, but we look forward to seeing them next year.

• Lynwood Gold Forsythia: Blooms in spring. Keep water semi-moist. Average size is 10-12' high x 10-12' wide. Fast growth rate. Needs full sun (6+ hours of direct sun). Prune after flowering if desired.

Sam's First Representational Art

Up until now, Sam hasn't been too interested in drawing or coloring. And if we do try to paint, he usually just wants to find out what happens when different colors are mixed together. He does like looking at art though, so I'm taking that as a good sign.

I've tried to not pressure him too much to make art, even though I am very interested in seeing what he might create. When he has painted anything or drawn little lines, I've tried to praise whatever he has created without asking him to tell me what the art "means" or what a stroke represents. I'd like to see if he decides to create representational or non-representational art on his own. Only once in a while will he tell tell me that a line is a "tree" or some other object.

However, this past Sunday, Sam was in an artsy mood. We sat down and he drew several pictures of me and him, without any prodding from me. I've never seen him draw anything with this much detail before (or take so much time to draw something), so I feel like I can truly call these Sam's first drawings. He drew six pictures altogether, but these two are my favorites:

This drawing is of me and Sam in a park. (Note the single arc that constitutes my hair. Love it!) The line which separates our bodies and curves around my head is a path. We're walking on the path together.

Ode to Team Shirt #4

I've known that this post was going to be written for a long time. About four years ago I noticed that my "Team Shirt" was getting worn thin. It was probably about that time I decided that I better not wear it in public anymore - so it became one of my faithful pajama shirts. And then about two years ago, when holes started to form, I knew that I would have to pay homage to this shirt when I laid it to rest. And now, after two gaping holes in this shirt and one on the way (not to mention a black paint stain), I think it's time to retire my #4. [Sigh.]

J is going to be so pleased when he hears what I've decided. He's pleaded with me to get rid of this shirt for years. But I have so many great memories with this shirt, that it's been hard to let go. And then in December I read, The Story of Stuff: How Our Obsession with Stuff is Trashing the Planet, Our Communities, and our Health - and a Vision for Change. The author, Annie Leonard, discusses how people need to be more prudent and economical with the clothing and objects that they own, instead of simply buying new stuff all of the time. That book gave me the impetus to keep my holey shirt for several more months. I would think to myself, "I'm saving the planet!" whenever I put this shirt on. But really, I just wanted a reason to prolong the inevitable. I can't wear this shirt anymore. Maybe I can turn it into a rag (if J will let me), so I'll still feel like I'm saving the planet.

When I was a sophomore in college, my roommates bought matching "Special Olympics" shirts for all of us at a thrift store. We used to wear the Team Shirts while we studied at the library or walked around campus together. (Fer cute!) This shirt also went with me throughout Europe and to the tops of many mountain peaks. And we've been sleeping together for years. It's just hard to move on, with so many memories. And so, before I finally say goodbye to Team Shirt #4, I'll share some highlights of our relationship:

In Fall 2001, soon after my roommates bought the Team Shirts for us. We're standing around the old fire hydrant that we brought into our Miller apartment (photo removed).

I wore this shirt throughout the summer of 2002, when I was a camp counselor.

Fall of 2002, with my roommates at the Brick Haus. Phin didn't have a Team Shirt, but we quickly transformed her Dodgers shirt into a Team Shirt (photo removed).

In summer of 2003, my shirt and I went on a study abroad in Europe together. Here we at the acropolis in Athens!

Here we are in early fall of 2003. Llama Fest!

Now there is a gap of a few years in the chronology of pictures. I ended up leaving my Team Shirt at home while I was in Brazil on a mission, so as to preserve my shirt. (I ended up taking another blue shirt to Brazil instead, which enigmatically said, "Support the Group that Supports You." That shirt got totally hashed while I was in Brazil, so I'm glad I left #4 at home.) After wearing the Team Shirt for a while after my mission and marriage, I realized that the shirt was too worn for public wear. But then I consistently wore it as pajamas!

Hike to Willow Lake with Joanna (and the extended L family) on Memorial Day of 2007

This is early in the morning on Sam's second birthday (2010), right after we woke up in our cruise ship cabin. I'm glad that my shirt got go on a cruise to Alaska, even if it had to stay in the cabin!

I know that some of my roommates' Team Shirts traveled around the world as well. Ixoj wore her shirt when she taught English in Guatamala:

Every Team Shirt has a story. And I'm glad for the story that I created with mine.

Deception Pass and Goose Rock

We have enjoyed some nice weather lately, even though the spurts of sunshine usually don't last for the whole day. When it is sunny, though, we still try to make the most of it! Not too long ago we took a ferry to Whidbey Island, enjoyed lunch in Coupeville, and then drove to Deception Pass.

Enjoying the short ferry ride to Whidbey Island

Although we didn't plan on hiking when we got to Deception Pass, the weather was so lovely that we couldn't resist. We first hiked down to the beach (about half a mile from the parking area by the main bridge) and spend some time on the shore.

Sam on the trail that leads to the beach

The blue water and rolling waves looked so beautiful

After hiking back up to the bridge, we decided to follow the trail in the opposite direction toward Goose Rock. Sam was a great sport and was able to do both short hikes by himself. I'd recommend either of these hikes to anyone who with small children. The trails weren't too steep or too long for Sam. And, it was fun to climb to Goose Rock and get a panoramic view of the water and land in the area.

The boys on the final stretch of the trail, leading up to the rocky summit

It started pouring heavy rain on our drive back home from Deception Pass. We were glad to enjoy the sunshine and blue skies while they lasted!