Sunday, February 25, 2018

Growth and Decay

Look what I discovered on the edge of my potting bench. A mushroom growing on the wood. This even faces South and still the mushroom is growing. It's so lovely I don't have the heart to remove it; I'll see how it progresses.

A small batch of mushrooms have popped up near the peach tree but not actually at it's base. The silver item you see is what's left of an aluminum ladder Gary found when fighting a forest fire in California. When you see what remains after a fire, it's quite soberting. The ladder melted down to a small puddle.
Meanwhile I fertilized and put shredded bark in my raised bed plantings. The vegetables have already grown. A squirrel keeps digging in the bin; they can smell acorns buried last year. Today I'm building a removable plastic covering to put over the bin in case of a frost.
Here's the first daffodil bloom this year. The red leaf plant plant behind it is nandina nana. The plant is evergreen but in winter the leaves turn a beautiful peach and red. Nandina makes a compact ball and needs no pruning and is quite hardy. This variety is sterile so will not become invasive in the wild. I take great pleasure in observing, planting, and harvesting. I find nature to be the best remedy for what ails me in life. Thanks for reading and for all your comments.

12 comments:

  1. And all we have Linda is rain. And a storm last night. Happy gardening to you.

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    1. Hi Joanne, thanks, we are now getting that rain and lots of it but it is filling up the lakes.

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  2. So lovely! You are my gardener friend for sure, both thumbs green!

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    1. Hi Barbara, thanks, it's so satisfying to grow stuff even in raised beds or pots.

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  3. Looks like spring is around the corner. Enjoy!

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    1. Hi Gigi, thanks, I hope the weather holds, because stuff is starting to bloom out.

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  4. Wow, Linda, I haven't seen any daffodils yet. I'll have to keep an eye out. As for Nandina, we have a lot of it around here. We like it, but ours can take over if not careful.

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    1. Hi Rian, thanks, I was reading about the nandina being invasive and never realized that. I have the tall variety that blooms but has never set berries so ok here.

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  5. I really like the picture of that mushroom growing on the side of your "potting bench" that's really beautiful!

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    1. Hi Lon, thanks, if you like mushroom photos, here is a link to a post I did when I lived in Florida that has lots of neat mushroom photos. http://bluestarrgallery.blogspot.com/2011/07/multitude-of-mushrooms.html

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  6. those Nandina's are great - they survive our summer heat and also make lovely colours through winter

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  7. Be very careful ... don't just eat any old mushroom that pops up in the garden, or it could take you on a trip more colourful than Dorothy's in "The Wizard of Oz"!! :)

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