It looks like we're going to have a rainy day around here, and frankly, I'm glad. The garden can always use it, I'll have an excuse to stay in and read, and the dog won't be pestering us to go anywhere. (Though she did wake me up at 4:30 a.m. with her flapping tail, as usual.)
Here's more of what's going on in the garden at the moment:
The Peruvian lily, or alstroemeria, is blooming...
...as is the phlomis, or Jerusalem sage, for the first time ever.
This is a mixed hanging basket that I bought last summer. At the end of the season we hung it in one of the trees and left it there over winter. Some of the plants died -- notably the petunias -- but others have come back again this year, looking great!
The sweet peas are blooming away. We have purple, pink and red ones, all grown from seeds left from last year's plants.
Finally, remember Martin, the mouse on the bird feeder? We were wondering how he got up there. Well, here's the answer -- he scales the pole, better than any firefighter. He's not always successful -- on the evening I took this photo, he got nearly to the top and then slid all the way down again. But sometimes he makes it. The dedication!
If Olga had her own blog "Bones and Squirrels", she might have written this this morning..."At first light, I went into their bedroom. Master Steve was snoring away like an old hog as usual so I used my tail to whack him awake. Strangely, he seemed quite disgruntled to be woken up. He's such a lazy ass. It was as if he didn't realise that the sun had already risen and it was time to get out there on Squirrel Patrol. It is also vitally important to sniff out who has been around and to mark one's territory with urine. Funny how Steve rarely does that - unless he spots a suitable bush on Hampstead Heath."
ReplyDeleteThere are youtube videos of squirrels and other critters trying to climb poles to bird feeders that some cruel humans covered in grease. Just an idea . . .
ReplyDeleteMartin the mouse. That made me laugh, he sounds like a character from a Beatrix Potter book...
ReplyDeleteAnd after all that fretting and anguish about seedlings that failed or were eaten by slugs or squirrels, just look at your garden now!
It looks fabulous.
Alphie
Gorgeous, and I love that Olga looks so comfortable...Rained here too. My furry friend got me up at six, late for him. Have a good day.
ReplyDeleteProof that Britain is really just one big lush greenhouse.
ReplyDeleteYour garden is stunning.
Your garden is looking so lush and Olga looks like she is the master of it all. Beautiful shots of the flowers.
ReplyDeleteall your work is paying off with lots of blooms.
ReplyDeleteFirst off, I love YP's comment! "Bones and Squirrels" !!!
ReplyDeleteNow, the image of Martin Mouse sliiiiding back down the pole after almost making it to the top made me smile. Poor little guy! Such determination! I guess the occasional payoff is worth it.
Your flowers are beautiful. I sighed over your roses, in particular. And Olga looks like a Queen, lying in state in front of them. :)
Steve your garden is simply stunning. How special it must be to be able to walk out your back door into that eden. Although I could do without the mouse. I am seriously rodent phobic. but for the beauty of that garden i'd chase him away.
ReplyDeleteYour garden is looking lush and beautiful. That mouse is so determined. I do appreciate their efforts, even it is not always successful. When we lived up in the Sierra foothills, we had to build a baffle around the birdfeeder to keep the squirrels from eating everything. Of course, it did nothing to deter the bears!
ReplyDeleteyour garden is so wonderful, so many unusual plants. and I love sweet peas and while I always remember to buy seeds I never remember to get them planted since they have to be planted in November here.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful garden and a great shot of Martin.
ReplyDeletePoor Martin! I thought he might have climbed the pole when you mentioned him in the feeder before, but now you have proof. Mice are seriously adept at such things.
ReplyDeleteImagine what it would be like to have a tail and not be able to stop wagging it . . . this is the kind of thing that could keep a person awake half the night :)
Your flowers are doing so well. It's been too cold here for plants, and the beautiful geranium hanging basket my mother gave us a few weeks ago is now turning yellow from being stuck in the garage most of the time. Ack!
Martin the mouse is so cute! We greased the pole one of our bird feeders is on & it was indeed hilarious, but it didn't last very long. Seems like a lot of work to grease a pole every day. Ha!
ReplyDeleteOf course the mouse!! What a little cutie. The flowers are nice too, but the mouse!! He wins!
ReplyDeleteYour blossoms are just beautiful! Cute little Martin needs some help I believe. Maybe you could space rubber bands up the pole so he could have something easy to hold onto? It would be like a little ladder for him!
ReplyDeleteYP: I should write a blog for Olga. Or I could hire you to do it!
ReplyDeleteSabine: I'm not sure I want to make it easier for Martin, but I don't want to make it harder, either. The poor guy! The way I see it, if he can get himself up that pole, he's entitled to the food.
Alphie: It's true -- I sometimes get tied up in the fate of one plant and fail to see the bigger picture.
E: I guess Lucas was having a lie-in, as the British say!
Marty: This really is an ideal gardening country.
Sharon: She IS the master of it all.
Red: It's always good to see results!
Jennifer: Don't they say that the strongest behavior reinforcement in psychology comes from intermittent reward? Not reward every time, but just sometimes. That's what Martin is experiencing!
37P: Ha! Fortunately we rarely see Martin -- only on the bird feeder. As long as he doesn't come in the house, I'm fine with him.
Robin: Thank goodness we don't have THAT problem to deal with. Foxes, yes, but not bears!
Ellen: The ones blooming now are self-seeded from last fall. So they probably fell around November. I planted more this spring, but the plants are still too small to bloom. I'm hoping later this summer. (I didn't know they're supposed to go in the ground in the fall!)
Catalyst: Thanks!
Jenny-O: Could you move the geranium outside during the day, and then back in at night? If it gets just the midday daylight that should sustain it until things warm up a little more.
Bug: Yeah, I don't really want to start down that road. That's just too much work for me. LOL!
Linda Sue: Isn't he cute?
Sue: Well, I don't want to make it TOO easy or he'll be eating all the peanuts, as he (and his family members) were doing a few years ago when the feeder was on the fence. We put it on the pole to make it harder for the mice to reach. As I said above, I think he's entitled to the food if he manages to climb the pole -- but otherwise, it's for the birds. :)