carpentry – Five for Friday

A Taste of Spring 8 April 2022

We are having a couple of blustery days but warming temperatures are coming next week. Good Friday is the day for setting out tender plants so next week the tomatoes will be planted.

The Birmingham Botanical Gardens had the Spring Plant Sale this week. Beautiful plants were available. I volunteered in the trees and shrubs section. There were beautiful native azaleas, hydrangeas, an ample variety of ferns and many others. This spring there seems to be a sense of expectancy.

Here is my picutres for the week.

First is this beautiful red azalea. This is the Indica type. I do not know the cultivar.

Number 2 are these beautiful bluebells. I like the way they clump.

Found another project that will need attention. This shed has some weather damaged wood that will need replacing.

This Creeping Jenny is alive and well. It is also called moneywort because of the small coin like leaves. It makes an excellent shade area ground cover. Soon, it will be spilling over the edge of the container.

Next is this striking Heucherella. It is related to the Tiarellas also known as foamflower. This is a favorite shade plant.

Finally, we are making progress on our paver project. The base is ready and we will be laying the bricks tomorrow.

Happy Gardening!!

Don’t forget the Propagator

Daffodils and Winter Projects

Five for Friday

Feb 18, 2022

We have had some fine weather last week but as is typical winter reared its head again. Yesterday, it was blustery, thunderstorms and some heavy rain. This unsettled air will persist into next week but its time to look at the beautiful growth in the garden and finish up some winter projects.

The daffodils are pushing up and blooming this past week. It has turned colder these next few days after the rain and blustery weather yesterday.

From left to right, these are Orange Sunset, Barrett Browning and KIng Alfred.

These majestic pansies have struggled some this winter in the cold spells. When it turned fair last week, they were truly “majestic”.

This Autumn Fern remains evergreen. It shows some signs of winter damage but it will soon be glorious again. It tolerates enough sun that it is a wonderful garden companion.

This tea olive also known as Sweet Osmanthus is well established in my garden now. It is evergreen and delightful with the fragrance that comes from these tiny blooms. It is reliable to smell the new blooms after every measurable rainfall.

The compost bin has been very productive this year. We spread almost a yard of it around the shrubs and perennials this past few weeks. Added more leaves and fern prunings this week. Should be some grass cuttings before long. Don’t bag up and discard your grass clippings and fall leaves! There is garden gold in those bags.

Last week, saw the male bluebird bring his intended to this house. She did enter it and look around. Hope she liked it. Last year, it was used at least twice for fledglings.

This camellia is Sea Foam. It has such a beautiful and delicate shape. It is just a few years old, but it has been prolific since December.

Don’t forget to check out the Propagator tomorrow.

You might also like Globetrotting Grandpa.

In the meantime, enjoy the post and Happy Gardening.

New Blooms Five on Friday. Friday 2022 Feb 11

New Blooms and A Successful Carpentry Project

This hellebore has been magnificent for several weeks now. I don’t know its name but I do appreciate its persistence. It was a donation of a few years ago from the yard of a Master Gardener in the area. His widow allowed us to take a dozen transplants from their yard. It is a fitting memorial to him.

This is Kerria japonica sometimes known as Japanese rose. I have had it now for 3 or 4 years. It is deciduous but solitary blooms can be seen throughout the winter. It is a slow spreading shrub with long arching stems similar to forsythia.

This is Croton alabamensis or Alabama croton. It is a low shrub endemic to Alabama. It can be called semi-evergreen. I like to bronze leaves that linger in the winter. In summer the foliage has a silvery backing which flashes when blown by the wind.

The daffodils are really beginning to emerge this week. These are two varieties in the Mens Garden that stand out.

Here is a beautiful red camellia. This double red bloom is so elegant. I think it may be Professor Sargent.

This is a carpentry project that I participated in at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens. The area you see is a brick patio, surrounded on 3 sides by a 4×4 fence, and which overlooks the Bruno vegetable garden. We took down one side which was leaning badly and salvaged the lumber to add a second railing to the fence portion that you see. We replaced the fence by placing 4×4 posts and stringing steel cable through them and attaching the ends to the other 2 sections that you see.

I am mentioning a blog that I follow Globetrotting Grandpa. He is featuring all 50 states as part of his travels and he posted one on Alabama today.

https://globetrottinggrandpa.com/2022/02/11/50-states-countdown-day-17-alabama/

Follow the Propagator https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2022/02/12/six-on-saturday-12-02-2022/#comments

Hope you enjoy.