BLOOM THYME FRIDAY: Warp Speed

Spring is full-on around here and things are moving at warp speed. We went from winter to having some very warm days … so there’s been rapid growth on many of the roses and most of the perennials. It’s not just the weather that has me moving so fast, it’s the grandbaby coming and an upcoming trip. As I write those words…. upcoming trip … I can’t believe it’s true. Like so many of you, the separation from our family and all the uncertainty has been one of life’s most painful curveballs. But the flight is booked and soon we will be covered up in grands! 💙💙💙

GARDEN CENTERS

We have visited a few garden centers and I cannot believe how well-stocked they are and how early! They have surely heard all the statistics and trends that gardening is on the rise. I keep hearing that in 2020 there were anywhere from 16,000  – 20,000 people saying they are first-time gardeners. So 2020 was NOT just the year of the pandemic, it was also the YEAR OF THE GARDENER. A silver lining for sure!

I read another article on garden trends from the Farmers’ Almanac:

  1. Balcony Gardens Will Be Big
  2. Houseplants, Indoor Gardens and Windowsill Gardens
  3. Bringing the Inside Outside (I love this one!)
  4. Tiny Gardens Galore
  5. Permaculture Practices
  6. The “Cottage Core” Aesthetic (Curious and want to know more… read on here.) 
  7. Online Gardening
  8. Gardening by the Moon

Read more here on the Farmer’ Almanac website. They have so many great articles! 

Cottage Core

BROOD X 

Have you heard about Brood X …. I recently read a headline that BILLIONS OF BROOD X CICADAS ARE SET TO EMERGE IN SPRING 2021. Guess what? Indiana is a hot spot for them. Oh Joy! 😳 When I hear this my mind immediately goes to Biblical Plagues but I guess they aren’t THAT bad. BUT, they are kinda creepy looking (especially in mass) and loud. I think we are to start seeing them in mid May… so much for quiet happy hours in the garden. Groups can be up to 100 decibels. 📢 Seriously, I can do without those. If they had come in 2020, they would have fit right in. 

NEED TO KNOW MORE? There’s actually a website called Cicadamania. Everything you could ever want to know and more, including where they are expected to be and when!  Link here.  

NEW SHRUBS FOR THE GARDEN

ICEBERG ALLEY SAGELEAF WILLOW

When I saw a picture of this shrub, I thought it would be so so so good in my garden with the silver foliage!


Once I saw this VIDEO (link) from First Editions, I knew I had to have it. So I now have two.

SPICE BABY VIBURNUM


This Proven Winners plant tag caught my eye with the pretty blooms and the words petite and fragrant. We have many many viburnums of all types and we love them (so do the birds), however, they are NOT petite! This one is said to reach 3.5 – 5′ high and 3.5 – 6′ wide. Not tiny but will work very nicely. Looking forward to watching them grow! More info here.

UPDATE ON MILK JUG WINTER SOWING

Three of the five containers did VERY well. Ammi (I’ll have to keep my eye on her), Sweet William, and French Alouette Larkspur. So far nothing from Magic Fountain Delphinium and Munstead Lavender.

I will totally do more of this next year. For a simple, inexpensive pack of seeds, SO MANY PLANTS and it was so easy. (See the beginning of the project here.)  

POTTING SHED PUTTERINGS

My baby Peggy Martins are recovering from an attack from spider mites. TIme will tell how they continue to do.😞


I potted up the baby Formosa lilies from seeds given to me from my good friend David. This was the first time to use my new transplant tools (Amazon). All I’ve had in the past were my handy dandy 20 something-year-old tiny trowels from Smith and Hawkins. They are great for most small work, but I was going for something even smaller and sharper. I found this set and compared to the heavy-duty S&H tool, they seemed very flimsy to me at first. But they were perfect for this delicate work. 

Munstead Lavender is doing great! Munstead is the only lavender I have tried (and I’ve tried sooooooo many) that comes back reliably. (I’m in 5b.)

My topiaries and geraniums are coming in and out as they get used to living outdoors!

BLOOM THYME THIS WEEK

BACK TO WORK

Time to get back to work. That mountain of mulch won’t move itself. Yes, time to get back to WARP SPEED SPRING GARDENING. Babies don’t wait. 🇬🇧 Halleluia! 💙 💙 💙 💙 ✈️

Thanks for stopping by. Enjoy your time in the garden — and if you are on the BroodX map, enjoy the peace and quiet while you can! 

A Time to Plant: Sweet Peas

imagesI love sweet peas for several reasons…

  • They can be planted early when you are just itching to do some real “gardening.”
  • They are beautiful.
  • They climb and vine on your fence or trellis adding vertical interest.
  • Most varieties have a sweet fragrance.
  • They look great in early summer bokays!

Sweet pea seeds have a hard shell, so I am soaking them over night and will plant them tomorrow.

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Varieties I am planting this year are all from Burpee

  • Moody Blue Mix: Extra large, fragrant blooms in rich shads of navy, ocean blue and rose-pink.
  • Cottage Mix: Mix of shades of white, cream , pink, rose, scarlet and purple.
  • Summer Wine: Rich wine-colored blooms on full, medium-height vines.
  • Eckford’s Mix: Very fragrant, large blooms in a wide color range.

Word of caution…

Even though they are called a “pea,” they are NOT edible.

Denise Schreiber in her book Eat Your Roses shares about herbs and flowers that are edible and those that are NOT edible. If you haven’t seen Denise’s delightful book, take a look HERE.

Denise was our guest on Rose Chat Radio a few weeks ago and you can listen to the archived broad cast HERE.

So, tomorrow I will do some of that “real gardening” I have been itching to do and plant my sweet peas … just before our next snow storm. 🙂

If you grow sweet peas, do you have a variety you particularly enjoy?

Other seeds….

Here are a few of my seedlings that are coming along nicely in the potting shed window…

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Happy Spring!