May the Fourth

 Or "may the Force". It's Star Wars Day and I am needing the force to be with me. 

May has been a beautiful month so far. We've got lots done, and I am wearing out. Of course it doesn't take much to wear me out these days. 

On Friday, May Day, Jill brought me lilacs.

After breakfast and grocery shopping, we took the afternoon off and went plant shopping. 

We started at Starbucks, of course. 

We had a list and we found everything and more at Vassey's Nursery in Puyallup. 

We went to Watson's anyway and found a bit more. 

Of course that meant on Saturday we had to plant our new plants, which we did in between watching a Sounders Soccer match and some of the Kentucky Derby. Then we worked the new pots into the "Danger Garden" display on the patio.

I guess it was Thursday that I refreshed all of the echeveria pots and we arranged the display. 

The green and white spikey plant in the green and black pot is a new Agave. It wasn't on the list. :-)

The new Black-eyed Susan vine is in place and ready to climb the trellis. It was on the list. 

It got warm on Saturday and Tom put up the umbrella. 

Tom finally got to rest. 

Sunday Tom got all of the watering systems set up and checked out. It was 81 here on Sunday. I started putting out all of the glass flowers. Walking all over the yard carrying heavy glass flowers, two at a time in a basket, so I could have my walking stick in the other hand, wore me out and I haven't quite finished. I was going to finish them today but after laundry and mopping and dusting, I was worn out, so maybe later, maybe tomorrow. 

I am trying to learn that not everything has to be finished right now. I'm not good at that. 

Thanks for the rest. I hope your May is going OK, maybe even Merry!

May Day

 Today is May Day, the first day in the merry month of May. I can't help but think that "May Day" is also a call for HELP! Many in our country and our world are crying for help, but the outlook isn't promising. And today I promised you flowers. 

The last part of April had been so beautiful here and as we roll into May the sunshine continues and the sequence of blooming keeps on surprising. 

We still have tulips.

We have the usual one glorious bloom on our tree peony.

Columbine are just starting to bloom.

It's Rhododendron time and the few we have are beginning their show. 

R. Cynthia is an old rhodie that hasn't bloomed much lately, but this year she is looking lovely. Our extended family just recently lost a wonderful woman named Cynthia. Maybe she's saying "Remember me". We will.

R. King George is magnificent. It is also fragrant. 

I don't remember this purple one's name. 

The beds once bare in winter are now bursting with new growth. The first Welsh Poppies are blooming. 

A few Arisaema's are hiding here and there. Common name - Jack-in-pulpit, but these are not the native ones. 

On the front porch the Lewisia's are blooming. 

And there are still apple blossoms.

Happy May Day. Happy Spring!

Work

 It's the last day of April and we have been busy. Once the cold rain stopped we have spent much of each day outside working or plant shopping.

We lost most of this big old Aucuba in the earlier snow storm and discovered that the trunk was mostly rotten. Tom removed it and we bought a replacement. It will take a while for the new shrub to fill in any space, and we may never see that, but there are plenty of ground covers ready to grab the light and take over for now. 

Tom also removed a heavily pruned fir tree that was too tired to continue. The euonymus should put on some size an a few years.

The Secret Garden is a little less hidden, but cleaned up and ready for chairs. 

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The brush pile in the driveway is growing. Tom's geraniums are moving outside.

Cleaning up in mostly what I do. Today I cleaned up the back wall of the house, the patio side, removing all of the plaques and nozzles in our collections, removing spiders and webs and dust and pollen, and putting them back in their places.

The patio has been cleaned up and impatiens and plectranthus are planted along the edge. The big pots have been cleaned up. Hands and knees work is hard for me, but I manage, with plenty of grunts and groans.

The blue pots on the front porch are planted with impatiens too.

The bonsai have been moved out of their winter cover and are back on display.

And inside, work is finally continuing on the water damage of the snow storm of weeks ago. Today the ceiling drywall was patched. The popcorn has been scraped off the whole ceiling. Work will continue through mudding and texturing and painting, and them tacking the carpet back down where it was lifted to dry out. It's a process. PEMCO insurance has already reimbursed us so now we just need the contractor to get it done. 

We'll be doing more work, but maybe at a slower pace. And with May Day on Friday I promise you a few pretty flowers.

Earth Day 2026

Earth Day was wet. It rained a lot. But a few of us intrepid members of our garden club braved the chilly rain to tour a special place we only learned about recently from an article in the Sunday  Magazine section of the Seattle Times.

Shadow Lake Bog, part of Shadow Lake Preserve, is an area of about 22 acres salvaged from construction and years of dumping to reveal an 8 to 10 thousand year old  sphagnum moss-hemlock peat bog hidden in a semi-rural neighborhood east of Renton, WA. 

The small lake and area were renamed Shadow to stand for Save Habitat And Diversity Of Wetlands. Our guide was a young woman Environmental Scientist. The area is privately owned by a benefactor with support from King County.  

While moss on the ground formed the peat bog, moss is everywhere. Decaying trees and plant life will continue the process of bog building. 

Salmon berry is blooming.

Bracket fungus

Skunk cabbage

Now entering the peat bog itself.

Moss of various kinds cover the forest floor

Formed over thousands of years, originally in a bowl shaped depression, the peat here is about 80 feet deep. 

Mounds of moss

It was a wonderful experience to be able to see and learn about this treasure of nature being conserved for all to enjoy and learn about.

We did a little more trail walking in the preserve before we succumbed to the rain and met up for lunch and conversation at a local restaurant.

It was a memorable Earth Day.