Squirrels = Destruction

Of the plants I noted in the last post, #7 and #14 are close to their demise. The silly squirrels have decided that their dust-bathing activities must be right next to my new plants. And many of the stems have been broken. Other plants have lost their topsoil as the squirrels dig it up and start rolling around in the ground. GGGGRRRRRRR! Hubbie thinks I need a light-weight pellet gun to deter the little devils. I, I, I, I, don't know. Not in my nature to harm any little critter over a $10.00 plant. But he promises me that it will only startle them and not cause any real harm.

All opinions, comments, criticisms, outrages welcome.

And another darling showed up today -- Da Mole! I think I'll throw bunches of grubs into my neighbors' yards and encourage them to move west. Please don't repeat this to anyone!

Lots of rain lately and the tomato plants are doubling over. I swear if we had to stake them up, it would take an eight foot stake. That's what we plan to do this weekend. Three foot cages are virtually useless, obviously.

Pick Me! Pick Me!

I wish it were that easy! Last weekend I went through my catalog of Grow Native plants and finally selected those for the shady areas, which would be most of the area I am now landscaping. Very difficult as there are very few shade loving plants to begin with, then add in the wildlife attracting attribute. Overall, I think I have a decent selection given the limitations.

ID #	Common Name	Scientific Name
1	Maidenhair Fern	Adiantum pedatum
2	Lady Fern	Athyrium filix-femina
3	Christmas Fern	Polystichum acrostichoides
4	Goat's Beard	Aruncus dioicus
5	Celandine Poppy	Stylophorum diphyllum
6	Ohio Spiderwort	Tradescantia ohiensis
7	Jacob's Ladder	Polemonium reptans
8	Wild Hydrangea	Hydrangea arborescens
9	Strawberry Bush	Euonymus americanus
10	Virginia Bluebells	Mertensia virginica
11	Wild Geranium	Geranium maculatum
12	Solomon's Seal	Polygonatum biflorum
13	Wild Sweet William	Phlox divaricata
14	Cardinal Flower	Lobelia cardinalis
15	Crested Iris	Iris cristata
16	Columbine	Aquilegia canadensis

In the list above, I have already planted #4, 7, 12, 14 & 16. After the deluge Saturday morning/early afternoon, I happily set out to purchase all the plants on my list. But these were the only ones I could procure. Seems like the yellow pages is not a good resource for locating nurseries. My next plan of action is to email the local nurseries found on the Grow Native website and ask if they have my desired plants in stock. I will never again go on a wild goose chase. Gas at $3.00 or more a gallon on any given day, of course not!

Here is my updated landscape plan, effective as of this minute and subject to change at a moment's notice. Crude as it may be, I am patting myself on the back for at least getting this far! I can only hope for positive results next Spring.

Catching Up

I still haven't planted a thing but I have been busy the past couple of weeks. A lot of grass, clover and other green things sprouted in the bird garden and I spent nearly an entire weekend clearing it out. Right now I have black plastic covering the grass just outside of the garden to kill the grass and maintain a buffer zone between the two areas.









The bird feeders create a huge mess with seed littering the ground below and creating baby sunflower plants when the seeds germinate. Underneath each double shepherd's hook, I dug a two inch pit, each about 4' x 5', and filled it with pea gravel and then larger landscaping rock. Hopefully this will keep the fallen seed drier and easier to "vacuum" up.

The vegetable garden is doing great. I am predicting ripe tomatoes by the Fourth of July.

And lots of baby birds begging to be fed and awkwardly stumbling through the trees as they learn the ins and outs of flight.

Last weekend Ed & I had a wonderful visit with his folks in Knoxville. Here they are enjoying a warm and sunny day in the Smokies.