Tuesday Garden Post -

Happy July! Here's a smattering of what's blooming now -

 The borage is tall and lush and breaking out all over in blue stars (the bees are very happy about this)

 The ornamental mullien is towering with spires of tiny blooms (which I must cut down before they go to seed - else there will be gazillions of babies everywhere).

 The beebalm looks like shaggy red star-bursts.

 The rue is fading, and the feverfew is coming on strong -

 - coming on strong, and blooming *everywhere!*

 The dainty fairy-rose is covered with pink clusters.

 The full-size roses are winding down (David Austen cabbage roses) -

 These are sterling-lavender - heavily-scented blooms.

 Some of the early veggies are bolting and blooming (some of which I allow - since their flowers are sweet and delicious. These are radish - which will turn into succulent, crunchy seedpods. Delicious in salads!)

 Calendula is opening everywhere.

 Volunteer foxglove comes up all over the yard.

 As do poppies. Hot pink or lavender or some cross of the two.

 We are picking fruit daily - strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, gooseberries... The figs and arguta kiwis are growing quickly - SO many clusters. It will be a good crop this fall.

For all its neglect, the garden is doing remarkably well. :-)

In other news, the studio chicks are also growing like weeds. I've had to move them into a larger box. We'll see how long I can bear to keep them indoors. (The larger they get, the safer they'll be from raccoons and other dangers when they get moved outdoors).

Happy summer - happy July!

Music Monday - Down by the Sally Gardens (and mine)

It was a gardening kind of day. Here is a lovely, traditional Irish ballad that takes place in one:  

(maybe not so cheery, but love the atmosphere...)

Well, in my garden today, we discovered this tiny junco's nest in the strawberry bed. The eggs are teensy - like the size of a dime...

I'm afraid the babies are likely doomed - there are a number of cats that frequent my back yard, and while the nest is somewhat hidden, cheepy babies will attract them....

The bees are finally making an appearance a little more in force - 

-the ladybugs too.... So many things growing, flowering, flourishing....

Toby-the-terror puppy is as well... 

He is quickly getting taller and lankier by the minute...

...as well as goofier... :-) 

And when he's not frantically chewing things to pieces, he is quite adorable.

Music Monday - Desert Rose

We're having one of our few hot-Seattle-summer weeks where everything must be heavily watered, so I thought sharing Sting singing of heat and rain was more than appropriate! 

(But Sting! It's all hot and deserty! Please, please, please take off your leather jacket. I'm over-heating just looking at you).

The heat is finally making the plants take off - the Jerusalem artichokes along the  fence to the left, hops on the left of the gate, Magnolia vine on the right...

The bush beans are growing. This year I'm growing a couple of purple varieties. :-)

And here is one of the strawberry-eating evil hens.... Stalking the strawberry bed yet again...

Music Monday - plus small garden/chicken update

Behold, Patriotism - muppet-style:

And here are some of the blooming things in the back yard in July...

Lots of volunteer poppies this year. Plus Bee Balm, and blooming catamint...

Beautiful blue borage stars.... Lots of raspberries in the patch....

One of the fancy, 'double' poppies (which almost look like peonies :-)...

And here are the babies - who are now gangly teenaged pullets (who will not stand still for the camera... I let them out of their hutch by day to scratch about the coop -

- while I let the evil big hens out to free-range in the yard and gardens. To their credit, they are *both* laying again, so I can't be entirely disgusted with them. :-)