Sunday Bits #38 (feeding roses, watering in the rain, all about mulch, peach cobblers)

What a great week I have had. The weather has been cooler with a quick rain shower pretty much daily. The rains do not last long, no more than 10 minutes and then the sun is shining again. This has been wonderful for my trees, shrubs, and perennial beds, as you know I never water those, hahaha. They have to be tough to live at my house ; )

As the weather has been so lovely, I got so much done during the week! Several baking days in a row, painting, cleaning, crafting, and some gardening in there, too. Totally thrilled with everything I got done so far, and hoping to do more yet. Of course, I have over done it this week, forgot that my body was broken... but, I would still do it all over again ; )

Gardening Bits

Today marks exactly one year since we moved to this new home and boy, have there been changes! Both inside and out. I am so happy to be able to putter at my own pace with no worries about who is showing up to work on something each day. Just me and my brand new kitchen, bath, and landscaping.

To see the outdoor renovation - what the yard looked like then and what all we did, with the how's and the why's, see that post here.

This is the AFTER, the NOW... Psst, see the background? Is smoky again today.

BEFORE - While we absolutely loved the cosiness of old patio, and the privacy, sadly many things were scary rotten.

There are lots of great reads in this week's Bits, so much I want to share...

I will start with this one... Stems Flower Farms has all their seeds on sale this month. I just got the newsletter (sob!) so this is a bit late, but still lots of great sales to be had. Stems is the Canadian version of Floret Flower Farm, so many great seeds. They also carry dahlias and soon to come are the German Irises! Btw, Floret will have seeds available in August this year as their seed gal is having a baby and will soon be going on mat leave. Mark you calendars, if you're like me... gotta try new things. I love their apricot cosmos!

The morning after the rain... Our paving stones just end in the garden, making it less formal, a bit more casual to create a bit of fun in my otherwise more formal landscape. Although we have added more soil and lots of compost to this bed, it is going to take a few years before it is happy and teeming with soil life (giving us happy, healthy plants).

Check out this lovely yard renovation. They make a wildlife friendly yard but it looks tidy, organised, a bit like a formal cottage garden, with different garden rooms, a water feature, seating. Is a haven for wildlife with a tamed look. I love how they blended their patio stones into the garden... kind of like we have done (picture above) but love how their rectangular pavers work with the landscape - so lovely!

This rose article is really good. Rose disease identification and treatment.

I love tip #5, so important - Don’t over-fertilize. Only fertilize shrubs, landscape, and species roses once in the spring with an organic fertilizers such as compost or an all-purpose 10-10-10 fertilizer. Hybrid teas should be fertilized three times a year: in early spring after pruning, during the first bloom, and in mid-July. Do not fertilize after late July.

Here is a very comprehensive read about mulch and whether to use bagged or bulk. I LOVE mulch everywhere.... for keeping weeds down, making the beds look super tidy, and retaining moisture. I only water my perennial beds once a month (yes, even on the island during the droughty summers) so a good thick 3" layer layer of mulch is important to save on water.

I see some folks putting down mulch but continuing to water as per usual. Yikes! Watering too often creates problems like fungal leaf spots, mildew, yellowing foliage, or even root rot. You want to water a whole lot less as the ground is staying damp for much longer under that straw or bark (which was your intent to begin with, right?). If you usually water once a week, spread it out to every 2nd week. Or longer. Your plants will thank you for it : )

Yes, you have to top up mulch every 3rd year or so as it decomposes, but that is the intent. Is great, it feeds the soil life. Perfect! That is, it is perfect as long as you did not make the mistake of putting landscape fabric under it. Eek! Mulch will break down into compost on top of your fabric, creating a great place for weed seeds to germinate.

In the potager, the day after a quick rain... everything still needs a good soak as the foliage is so thick in the beds and the pots. The open beds are fine.

Okay, enough about mulch, lol. Regarding watering... just a reminder to check for moisture when you get rain. Sometimes it is hard to know whether to water or leave it for another day. You can often find me out there watering in the rain, or right afterwards. Sticking to my watering schedule of every 3rd day with tomatoes and such.

Pots and baskets will always need water, there is no way that rain is penetrating through all those plants to wet your soil unless it is a day of a good soaking rain. Those quick showers though? Not watering the beds that look like the one you see in the picture above. If you have open soil in your beds, you are probably/possibly just fine. I do not water my shrubs, roses, perennial beds, they are grateful for the moisture, but I check my veggie beds. Not sure? Stick your finger in the soil. If it is dry, you need to water.

Do you have lots of grass clippings? On the island, the lawns have likely all gone golden brown some time ago but here on the prairies, we have had some rain, so the grass is still looking green and lush (for those who have nice lawns, lol. We do not.). Here are three tips for what to do with those clippings.

Following up with that is this article about how to make fertiliser teas for your garden. If you attended my workshops in the past, you will remember manure tea and alfalfa tea, both are really great for feeding your roses and veggies.

Are you a TikToker? Check out @simonakeroydgardener. He is so good. Short little videos(?) reels(?) whatever they are called, lol, with really smart money-saving gardening tips, or just fun things to try.

Decor Bits...

Check out these pics for great cottagey inspiration, or maybe like me, just to ooh and ah over.

Are you all Sarah Richardson fans? Did you know that her sweet summer cottage is available to rent! Remember when she showed up the reno? and Tommy's guest room?

https://www.instagram.com/themarigoldpotager/

Recipes That Are Perfect For July

Is almost peach time! Check out this Peach Cobbler recipe and tips for the best, ripest, yummiest peaches.

Here is another peach cobbler recipe made with brown sugar.

And these raspberry recipes. Is raspberry season! My favourite berry of them all. Here are a bunch of recipes, including a peach and raspberry pan dowdy, and a mojito recipe, too.

Or perhaps you prefer these blueberry recipes? Or this lovely strawberry pound cake. I love pound cakes, they remind me of both my mom and my grandma. Both always had a poundcake on the counter, ready for guests or just to go with your cuppa. My dad loved his tea and cake in the afternoon.

Okay, you all check out this summer entertaining recipe idea and tell me what you think. Please! I mean, I think it sounds delish... but how do you feel about the hands and the sharing part? Is it just me? Let me know!

I love summer salads. In fact, now that I am back on my healthy eating thing, whew, a salad a day is making me feel so much better. Always on the look out for easy, yummy ideas. So, check out these ideas... and for all my TikTok friends, @fayette_nyehn has a ton of great recipes. She makes them for work lunches, in jars, but I just toss it all in a big bowl. She is my latest fave, as is Auri for her cleaning. If you know, you know ; )

Remember that small 10" calibrachoa hanging basket I got as a house warming gift? Check it out now...

I transplanted it into a big galvanised pail (with holes for drainage) added a bit of fresh potting soil around it, and it has not stopped flowering and growing ever since.

I saw fresh new cali baskets at No Frills (the small town version of Superstore) yesterday, in yellow and a tri-colour of yellow, white, and pink for just $16. If you need a fresh pop of colour for your yard, pick up a basket or two, pop into big pots or baskets, and BOOM, blooms to take you till the end of summer.

Happy Sunday, my friends ~ Tanja