WHERE DID SPRING GO?

Here it is May 7 and I've competely ignored my blog.  I had a terrible January through March with H1N1 flu (both kinds), pneumonia, etc.  But finally during April I began to break through the fog and have been able get my gardening activities going on a regular  basis.

My biggest chore has been getting my second pond and tne stream between the two ponds set up and going.  And from day to day, I'm still not sure I have it right.  What a challenge!!  I'll chronicle the process on that page a little later, bur for now I want to post a few photos and bring you up to date on what I've been doing in my gardens this spring.

I started my waterscaping last year with a small pond in the center of what I call  my traffic circle--the circular path that leads from my back steps and parking area to my back yard, my storage shed, my greenhouse, my hydrangea beds, and down the side of my house where my azalea garden is.  The little pond (at right) was okay but I kept thinking all winter how much nicer a bigger pond would be.

Bear in mind this pond--which I referred to as a puddle--was about 4 feet by 5 feet and was about 10 inches deep.  I couldn't make the pond any deeper by digging it out because it was built on top of what had been a part of the parking area--5-6 feet of hard packed gravel.  So I built up.

Sometimes this spring or late winter with the help of a friend we dug out the pond and expanded it to about 12 feet round.  Still not much deeper--12 to 15" deep--but much roomier.

Much better!!!  But when is good enough good enough.  I decided that I needed a little 'babbling brook' to run from the pond down through my yard, but to where?  Another pond, but one just big enough to hold a pump to send the water back up to the beginning.  So here's the little lower pond:

Isn't it neat that you can't even see the pump or the sump pump float that kicks the pump off when the water gets too low--for whatever reason?

As a matter of fact I like the little pond so much I've been thinking of putting a Beta (fish) in it.

The stream that connects the two ponds has not worked out the way I hoped.  I just don't have enough drop in the land between the two ponds.  So for right now until I get the exchange of water between the 2 ponds just he way I want them, I have what might better be called a trench: 

I do get the sound of trickling water and Patches, mother's cat, has a place to drink good fresh, although sometimes fishy water.  The birds--the robins especially--also enjoy it because it's a good shallow place to take a bath.

A Thought Worth Sharing

Happy New Year!!!

Here in this part of Tennessee we only got a dusting of show over the holidays.  That was good as far as getting around, but visually it was blah! 

My greenhouse was my lifeline--I have petunias, geraniums, and impatiens blooming, left over from fall, and they're in bloom.  My oleanders are about to bloom, and my one camellia in the greenhouse is in full bloom.

   

Another lifesaver has been the second blooming of my holiday cacti--the yellow is my favorite.  I was sure they had all done their do for the year when they bloomed in November and December, but several of them are blooming again. The fact that they are all over my living room means I can enjoy my fireplace and one of my favorite flowers at the same time.  Where's that cup of orange spice tea??