Sometimes the Best Solutions are the Redneck Ones - Fixing the Strawberries

I purchased some bird netting from Amazon for around $11, and I was in a hurry to get it up as more and more strawberries were starting to turn. Last year the birds feasted and I starved, so this year I was determined it was going to be different.

The first step was to move the strawberries from the ground to containers. They've been on the move since that, bugging out whenever the front lines shifted (read: blue jays started hanging around).

Next step was to get them covered. I figured I could drape the netting over them, but I still didn't want the birds getting under the netting or being able to reach the fruit through it. It took a few days to come up with a solution. Wire coat hangars. I'm telling you - those things are useful for just about everything.

Strawberry plants covered with bird netting. You can see the wire coat hangars in between the plants. I alternated the direction they were hung so that they would keep the netting off the leaves.

Ripening strawberries

The Mystery Lily Blooms

So at last, at last. The mystery lily has bloomed, and it's very pretty! Mom had the idea to use a stick from the yard to hold up the stem, since it was leaning pretty far over. And just in time - it bloomed the day after she staked it up. No fragrance, unfortunately, but very lovely and a wonderful surprise that morning - 5/28/13

Setting out the Final Additions to the Garden

I set out the last tomato on Sunday, May 26th; I also set out my bell pepper plant. The bell pepper is close to 2 months old right now (and very small still... ) and the tomato is a perfect 6-7 weeks old.

Purple Cherokee Tomato

Bell Pepper

Comparison between the new Cherokee Purple and its older counterparts. Look how tiny!

That Purple Thing, II

So, I wrote about the Purple Thing a while back, here. I speculated that what I had on my hands was an Aster. However... I think I need to reevaluate my diagnosis.

After stumbling across a link, here, the phrase, "It's an osteo that doesn't close; its double blooms stay open all day and night.." really stuck out to me. I was never totally satisfied with labeling the purple thing as an Aster, as the bloom times were all off and the link didn't mention anything about the flowers closing like they do. 

So. There we go. I think I have an African Trailing Daisy, which is surprising because it's out of its hardiness zone. It only blooms in winter for me, but what a show! 

Flowers and Blooms

Just a quick update on the flowers and roses!

Look how big the oriental lilies have gotten! Most have 2-3 buds on them.

The mystery lily has gotten so big. The bud has pointed downwards and seems to be turning yellow. Perhaps I will have yellow flowers?

Finally! This is the last blooming rose in my garden. The Grandma Nacogdoches rose.

Garden Update for the last part of May

One of those quick summer showers just passed through, so I went out to snap some pics of the garden. Things are slow; we're in the wait-and-watch phase. The only work left to do at this point is to set out my Cherokee Purple and my bell pepper plant, which I am to do this weekend.

The squash are taking over my garden. Both of my hands are smaller than some of those leaves.

After a rough start, my peas have jumped! I keep expecting to see vines any day now...

The carrots, several weeks after their final thinning. There are 7. ... yes. 7.

Look! Tomatoes!

Tons of blooms on the Roma tomato.

Snapshot of the whole garden in all it's ramshackle glory.

Remember the onion bottoms? They're sprouting! And pecan tassels. They're everywhere.

Strawberry blooms!

The strawberries in their new home hanging from the banister on the back deck.

I don't mind picking strawberries one at a time. They're delicious!

New Rooting Project(s)

Propagating Rosemary via Cuttings

So after the rose cutting flopped, I ended up doing some cutting on my rosemary bush. I cut a whole chunk out, trying to reshape it, and realized I had some good pieces that would probably make good cuttings. So why not try?

Rooting Rosemary:

1. Cut some rosemary! Take plenty of time to enjoy the wonderful fragrance. 

2. Select semi wooden branches (too green and it might be too weak) that are 4-6 inches in length. 

3. Strip the leaves from the lower half-ish of the branch. 

4. Prepare your pots with soil, and water the soil well. 

5. Gently push the cutting into the soil. 

6. Press the soil into place around the new cutting. 

Rosemary cuttings made May 12th.

The soil should stay moist, but I'm trying not to have to cover these. The humidity is soaring, and I don't want to invite mold. They get shade but bright light during the day and morning sun.

Aloe Vera

So I have a pot of aloe vera that's doing very well (the same ones I sunburned), and sister wanted a piece of it. I had some new plantlets in the pot that grew over the winter, so I fished them out for her. She picked three, and I fixed a small pot with damp soil. Have a look:

So far so good. I hope they have a long life. My other plants are glad not to be so crowded.