July 21, 2013

Holy garden shears, it's hot out there!

Yes, I know everyone's hot on the East Coast!  We had a real gully-washer of a thunderstorm last night and the heat has eased a bit, though it's super-humid.  Water out of my garden hose is shower-hot.  Yuck!

We left for a short vacation and went to St. Michaels, Maryland.  It appears to be lily and hydrangea heaven there!  The gardens along the Chesapeake Bay were a delight to see, and there were several that had me in outright envy.  Everywhere I went, I saw Tiger Swallowtail butterflies, which I'm sure helps with proliferating all those huge blooms!

They didn't seem to mind a bit if I walked right up to them and took pictures, so I really took advantage.    The place we were staying had lots of butterfly bush, and sometimes I saw as many as half a dozen feeding on them together.  

I also noticed a LOT of deer.  My family and I made counting them a game one evening, on a slow drive to Tilghman Island.  We lost count around 50 in a 15 mile drive.  I saw more bucks than I've ever seen in one place before, as well - anywhere from 2 to 6 points!  I wish I'd gotten better photos of them.  Being in a townhouse development, deer aren't a big problem for me.  My Mom, more in the country, has a huge deer problem.  She sprays, but with all the rain we've been having, it hasn't done her as much good as it might otherwise.

Before I left, I de-budded most of my roses.  I had seen a tip on Garden Web that suggested this is a good idea for avoiding Japanese Beetles (GRRRR!  BOOOO!  HISS!)  I just came in from the garden, where I found four of the little buggers, all of whom are now six feet under.  Fortunately, they only managed to ruin one bud, since I'd taken them off.  My George Burns responded by popping out half a dozen new buds, and I'm looking forward to seeing them open in a couple days.  Pictures to come!  I had let the first bloom stay a few days before we left:

Pretty, eh?

My Oranges and Lemons had set up a bunch of blooms before I headed out, which I let stay.  I cut a few today.  They faded out to an interesting melon and cream coloration in the hot sun.  I snipped a spray of six or so, added a few more single blooms, one Mardi Gras, three pink knockouts, and a couple of JFK buds.  They're on my table now and looking pretty.

I also added some of my favorite crushed eggshell to as many of my roses as I could, before I ran out.  I'll let you know if I see a resulting boost in blooms.

If you've got good ways to keep the deer away from Mom's roses, please share them here.  Until next time!