Spending More Time in the Garden

Now that the days are getting longer and warmer, I find myself spending more time in them getting things done that have been put off for too long.  I finally decided to start the entryway to the east side yard where most of the veggie beds are and so on Wednesday I built two planters to frame it. I used pine 2" x 4" and redwood fence boards, then lined the planters with weed blocker fabric to hold the soil in place and keep weeds to a minimum.  I couldn't fill and plant them until Thursday as WalMart was out of the brand of topsoil I prefer, both for price and the fact that it's produced locally.  I got the planters sited and levelled, then filled each with 3 cubic feet of topsoil and planted a Climbing Don Juan and a Climbing Pink Peace then placed on top of the soil for them to climb.  As the roses grow, I'll tie them to the trellis so that they circle around it, which should maximize coverage and blooms.

The planters frame the entry way.

Close up of one of the planters.

The tomatoes I planted are finally up and starting to get to the point where they'll need to be thinned to just 3-4 vines of each and the habanero is starting to send out new greenery after the hit it took during the freeze.  The asparagus beans are sprouting, as is the garlic.

Asparagus (Chinese yard-long) bean sprout.

Garlic greens coming up

Aunt Ruby's German Green, Black Krim, Mortgage Lifter, Sweet 100 and Roma  tomato seedlings.

The habaneros with an unknown tomato behind them.

I saw a couple of critters in the gardens that were kind enough to pose for me, a Two-spotted Ladybug and a Western Fence Lizard.

Two-spotted Ladybug, Adalia bipunctata.

Male Western Fence Lizard, Sceloporus occidentalis.

Threat display warning me to leave him be.

I also thought that since it's been just over a year since I planted the wheelbarrow succulent garden that it was time for an update on it's progress.  Several plants were killed by the big freeze we had in January, despite the fact that the planter was covered and so replacements had to be made.  Some of them came out unscathed or only partially damaged and are now recovering or thriving.  You also might notice that I added gravel mulch to give it a tidier look and help keep down the weeds, although that doesn't work 100% of the time.

The garden as it is today.

The poor aloe vera I bought at last spring's sale on the distreesed plant table is doing rather well despite some frost burn, as it even has a new pup.

Aloe vera showing damage and a new pup.

Another aloe with frost burn and a pup.

Graptopetalum paraguayense - Ghost Plant, in bloom.