Drying the Rosemary

6/16/2009 Rosemary drying outI’ve determined that the rosemary bush on my patio is getting way too much water, thus it has been slowly browning from bottom, working its way up. I’ve decided to hard prune the plant and remove it away from the sprinkler heads that water the rest of the patio garden. I’ve also removed the surviving lavender plants as well, to keep the rosemary company. They all still get morning sun, but hopefully they won’t have to suffer root rot due to over watering. I’m contemplating moving the rosemary to a larger pot and changing the soil medium into something that won’t retain moisture…perhaps some gravel and sand.

Not so merry, not so golden

Ah, my precious marigolds…they are a-browning in this heat. Some of the yellows are still pushing out some blooms, but the bicolored ones have failed to make a showing lately. I thought that the irregular watering provided by the sprinklers over the patio would be enough to sustain them, but it seems these petite little annuals need to have their feet constantly wet. I will need to be more industrious about keeping them watered on a daily basis. The temperatures are starting to rise to uncomfortable levels–I’ve noticed that we’ve already experienced a few ozone alerts in the area.

Daylily dreamin’

Dearest Spot,

Thank you for the lilies, my dearest. You do not know how glad I am to see such beauty. This past Sunday I paid a visit to ChopperJim‘s house and he showed me a side yard which lay barren. He once told me I could plant anything I wanted in that garden when he first installed sprinklers. It was a tempting offer at the time, but I knew it would not truly be my own. I await the day when we will find that little patch of heaven-on-earth we call home and plant/grow our own garden. When I first gazed upon the photos you sent me, I grew nostalgic for my own lilies that grew tall and bloomed brilliantly about this time of year. The daylilies would follow suit immediately after and bloom nearly all summer long. I think I favor the red lilies best of all…they drew the bees, birds and butterflies from all over with their bright colors, so I am quite fond of the short red border lilies you have pictured.

We must visit the Arboretum again…you made sure to capture very pleasant memories of our trip there, and of course, I got my lily fix as well. Very soon, my love, this distance will not be such an obstacle to our plans for happy gardening and fantastic dining adventures.

I love you.

5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (1) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (2) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (3) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (4) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (5) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (6) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (7) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (8) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (9) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (10) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (11) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (12) 5/23/2009 Arboretum Flowers (13)