White Christmas

So c'mon, chant with me! WHITE CHRISTMAS! WHITE CHRISTMAS! WHITE CHRISTMAS!
Several weather channels are prediction the snow level to drop to 1000' ft. I'm at 1100' ft.
Since I will be home, Blessed Home for the Holidays, I want snow.

C'mon Santa Baby! Slip some snow beneath me tree.

>^,,^<

Before Pictures

These are two pictures showing my "before" Perennial Garden
called "The Winged Garden" because almost everything I planted I planted with an eye towards feeding or attracting winged wildlife such as bees, butterflies, hummers & other birds. I should have labeled the pots! BUT I saved the pot stickers and they are next to the plants. I have planted gobs of different lavenders, butterfly bushes, crocosmia, California & Oriental poppies, Rosemary, Salvias, Monardo, Creeping Thyme, Phormiums, Sedges, (orange, evergold, cappacino, among others) & two Rose Mallows. OH! & mustn't forget the hardy geraniums & huecheras!

I also accidentally planted oats, & didn't get all the crack grass out so this year will be the Great Struggle Against The Naughty Grasses.

Off to work, Merry Christmas if I don't get back here!

>^,,^<

Fa La La La La, Glucosamine Blues!

So my baby boy scared the snot out of me last Wed. His arthritis is now "officially" bad, he wouldn't get up, and laid and shivered. So now he is relearning his house manners. He has a comfy sleeping bag, and gets to come inside at night, along with Spirit. It is rather daunting! He's as big as a small lion, I kid you not. This boy is basically massive. Since I don't trust Harley the kitty to behave with anything vaguely resembling respect for Teeghkii's sensibilities, all the kitties are banished to the bedroom while Teeghkii is in the house. I slept with him for the first four nights, to make sure he didn't get nervous, and of course, because I was REALLY worried that it was some horrible terrible no-good rotten Emergency Vet-time sickness!! I'm actually relieved that it's "just" arthritis. Glucosamine/Chondroitan/MSM combo can definitely help, especially since he's still relatively young. It's nice having him in. It's nice that he has decided inside is nice!

So far, seems as if my prognostication about a colder Winter for PNW is fairly accurate. The rest of the country will wind up with a warmer than normal Winter, but we'll get it cold. C'Mon let's see a White Christmas! The plants at the Garden Center are all sorts of confused.. We've had to fire up the greenhouse heaters a few times, and the silly Peonies think they might want to push bud. Great Googlie Mooglies! Feels like a balancing act in the greenhouses, keeping it warm enough not to lose the tenders, but keep it cool enough so that the plants don't wake up and think it might be a good idea to put out some new growth. GO BACK TO SLEEP, YOU PLANTS!!

I have a ton of work to do on my perennial garden this Spring... I have to pull all the crack grass out. I have to get some wee garden fencing (I'm think a miniature white picket fence!) because the ducks think I planted all that succulent ornamental grass for them to 1) lie on or 2) eat.
*bah* But the trade-off is, I haven't seen a slug in months. I bought some block to line the bottom of the garden, that will look nice when I get it installed. I pulled out all the bronze Fennel that I (mistakenly) planted.. As much as I love the plant, it's WAAAY too big and WAAAAY too happy in the perennial garden. I am hoping it'll take off around the pond. It will provide a nice food source for the finches & chickadees. AH well, ya live, ya learn... It's not the worst mistake I could have made.

I discovered a few other garden blogs that I am quite enjoying:

http://www.gardenrant.com/my_weblog/
http://coldcalculation.blogspot.com/
http://www.gardenpunks.com/
http://heavypetal.ca/
http://yougrowgirl.com/
http://www.coldclimategardening.com/
http://www.thisgardenisillegal.com/

What a delight to discover like-minded souls!

Over and out till next time.

>^,,^<