Earth Week: maintaining order

Last year on this date I had knee surgery. Eventually, the knee improved, but for the rest of the season, I struggled, trying to figure out how much work outside is too much for my new knee. Flower field maintenance had to be sporadic and superficial. 

I suppose my approach to flower field maintenance is always sporadic and verging on superficial, but this year, I'm devoting more time to it and the results should be good, if still very far from perfect. I trim bushes I haven't trimmed well for a long time. I dig out some of that scoundrel weed -- the creeping bellflower.

Let me sound off for a bit about the creepong bellflower. If you have been gardening for a while here is the northern Midwest, you have probably had to fight with it constantly. I have had it in all my gardens my entire gardening life and I can truthfully say it is the worst! It's indestructible! It's drought tolerant and will survive when all else fails! It can put out rhizomes deep into the ground and suddenly you have the plant appearing in a new place and there's precious little you can do to eradicate it. Sure, dig deep and poison the roots, but in an established bed that's pretty draconian. I'm not going to go the Glyphosate route. No way! But yes, I do try hard to dig it up or at least tug at it -- all millions of new plants -- so as to not let it go to seed, because that damn plant, after flowering, can produce 10 000 new seeds (one plant, 10 000 babies!) and before you know it everyone up and down the neighborhood will hate you for it.  So, I pull, I dig and I dont even make a dent, I'm sure, but at least I will not, let me repeat -- will not! -- let that pest get the upper hand!

All this counts as flower field maintenance. It doesn't have the glamour and glory of planting and so it may seem a little weird to count it as part of my celebration of Earth Week, but in fact, it may well be the most important thing that I do out there on farmette lands. I help some grow, I eradicate invasives, I plant, divide, transplant and (so important!) I dig out weeds. (You know who you are you creeping creep!!)

This is the first half of my day.

Of course, I had started with a walk to the barn to feed all six chickens.

And shortly after, Ed and I eat our breakfast.

And then he and I do our gardening tasks and there are many and they are never ending and they are important. 

In the early afternoon I pick up the kids. The rain comes, the kids run from the car to the house, I scramble behind with the various paraphernalia that accumulates on a school day, especially a day followed by music and dance lessons. Typical Friday stuff. But before scooting off for they lessons, the kids need to eat up and unwind. Each has her or his way of doing this.

And now it seems to be my habit that after drop offs, and after chats with my daughter, I go grocery shopping. Week's worth of food. Somehow Friday evening seems right for this. A bit odd, a bit normal. As I fill the cart, I turn toward today's supper. Here's a brilliant idea -- something I haven't done for years -- I buy prepared foods. I'm that tired.

Home again. Feet up, TV on, prepared foods, heated in the microwave, before us. Rain outside. Just what the flowers need. A perfect cap to a somewhat manic planting period!

with love...