T G I F and Farewell to Summer 2012!

Today marks the end of meteorological summer.  Coincidentally tonight is also the start of Labor Day weekend which many people associate with the end of summer.  If you happen to be a seasonal purist, summer doesn't end for another three weeks but no matter how you slice it, the hazy days and sultry nights most of us associate with summer in New England are in the rear view.

Call it summer, call it fall, it doesn't much matter to me.  Some of the best weather we get in New England is in September.  Already I've been enjoying the cooler sleeping nights and crisp mornings that turn into deliciously warm afternoons.  And despite a drought and the ninth hottest July on record in CT, my garden appears to be relatively lush. 

But where did summer go?  More so than usual it seems like everyone I know is asking the same question this year.  Even I have to admit I feel slightly cheated.  So tonight please join me as I attempt to relive the glory days by retracing my steps down that lazy, hazy memory lane called Summer 2012. 




Nursery Crawling



Nursery Sales







Graduations

Birthday celebrations

And milestone birthday celebrations



Garden parties



Lots of this

And this



AND this



And not enough of this



Never enough of this





Nursery crawling in Oregon

Garden touring in Oregon

Touring fellow bloggers gardens in Oregon



Nursery Crawling in Washington

Garden Touring in Washington

My first trip to Seattle

Toasting a fabulous PNW IU9

Dondero Farm dinners





Farmer's markets

Vacationing at home





And at the beach

Moon rising over Stonington and Fisher's Island Sound

It doesn't get much better than this!

No wonder summer is fleeting-time flies when you're having fun!.  As soon as I hit the "publish" button on this post, I just know I'm going to wish I'd included more pictures.  But hey, with any luck there's always tomorrow so make every day count! 

TGIF!













If It's Not Mulched It's Not Finished

Freshly edged and mulched garden beds-what a beautiful sight!  One of my favorite aspects of gardening is the sense of accomplishment you get when a project you've been working on is finally finished.  Last night I finally finished edging, planting and mulching my first garden area.  If you're wondering what took me so long you're not alone.  On a recent visit to my house a friend commented on how relieved I must be that nobody had been stealing any mulch out of the pile in my driveway.

Given how much I love progress, one would think I would make more of it.  It's not like I don't try, and don't get me wrong, a good portion of my garden is close to being done.  But it's not mulched and if it's not mulched it's not finished.  I have a thing about leaving the mulch til last because I usually move and plant through June and I can't stand moving and planting in newly mulched beds.  Consequently I end up spreading mulch in much hotter weather than I would prefer. 

So it should come as no surprise that on the weekend I am finally ready to start spreading some serious mulch we are about to enter an official heat wave (three consecutive days of temperatures above 90 degrees F).  Let the good times and the wheelbarrows roll!

TGIF!

T G I F (for me)!

Tomorrow is a vacation day.  Once again I have a full weekend planned and need to get some extra time in the garden.  I love taking Fridays off and often do in April, May and June just to catch up on the home front.  For some reason I am so much more productive on days like this-or at least I feel more productive and that's good enough for me.

Workouts made a comeback this week-at least as far as lifting goes.  Still no yoga or cardio but I'm OK with that for the time being.  As long as I eat relatively clean and lift heavy and often I should be be able to stay in a healthy lean holding pattern through the summer.

After a few local nursery runs at lunchtime this week, the plant inventory is piling up.  Saturday is the the big trip to my favorite tender plant nursery in Rhode Island so I need to make some room.  Often I get asked why I travel out of state to buy plants when there are so many great local nurseries.  Although I do frequent the local joints on a regular basis I find them lacking when it comes to the unusual annuals and tropicals that have pretty much become the backbone of my garden.

Aside from a little puttering no garden work was on the agenda tonight.  A little wine, a nice dinner...life is pretty damn good!  I'll hit the ground running in the AM.

T G I F!

Company has arrived for the weekend.  Tonight we feasted on fresh pan fried grey sole filets, a medley of roasted eggplant, red pepper, yellow cherry tomatoes, and capers, and a salad with ginger lime dressing.  I'm lucky to live near an excellent local fish market which I frequent on a regular basis.

Viburnum 'Summer Snowflake' is in full, glorious bloom in my front garden.  I'm surprised at how well this performs given that it's planted at the shady base of a Sycamore in a dry garden that gets little to no supplemental water.  Somehow it managed to emerge unscathed from the late October 2011 snow storm.  Many of it's companion plants were not as fortunate and got crushed under falling Sycamore limbs.

Nick is tucked in for the night.  Our company has a two year old Wire Fox Terrier who hasn't learned to respect his elders.  On Sunday morning Nick will be waving goodbye while muttering "Don't let the door hit you on the ass on the way out." under his breath. 

Friday night holds all the promise for the weekend ahead.  It's my favorite night of the week.  Whatever the weekend holds for you be sure to enjoy!

T G I F!

Here are a few of the activities I have to look forward to this weekend...

One of my favorite garden smells is fresh bark mulch.  I've already spread about three yards from the pile leftover from last season.  Today I had six additional yards delivered.  My garden will easily suck this up.  I used to order ten yards at a time but found the size of the pile overwhelming.  As much as I hate to admit it, I'm not as young as I used to be.  Plus, our first specialty annual buying trip is scheduled for next Sunday (Walker Farm Gardens in Brattleboro, VT) so my attention will have to be quickly refocused to moving, cleaning and designing the containers.  Phew!  I'm tired just thinking about it.

It's time to fire up the fountain in the screen porch garden.  Fountains can be a pain in the royal patootie because they require cleaning every couple of weeks but I could never be without the sound of water in the garden-especially off the screen porch where I often enjoy my morning coffee or evening glass of wine.

As you can see, the front de-gardening project still has a way to go.  Another garden friend is coming tomorrow to take the large Viburnum sargentii 'Onondaga' and the Fothergilla.  We will need to cut them back, dig them up and stuff them into the back of my SUV.  Fortunately she only lives a few miles across town.  The majority of what you see in these pictures will be returned to lawn.  Believe it or not but I'm actually looking forward to that day.

Add plant shuffling, mowing, working out, and other general household management tasks to the list and my weekend will be toast or I'll be toasted whatever comes first.  But as far as I'm concerned it can all wait.  Right now it's time for the important stuff.

It's Friday night.  Cheers!