garden update
2 weeks ago I planted a bunch of seeds -- purple queen zinnias, cilantro, 4 o clocks, and little tri-color violas (which I should have planted in fall I think, oh well). As I worked through the flower bed I smelled something funky but didn't think much of it. Then I got to the spot behind the little trellis where the sweet-peas grow (or, more accurately, where they try to grow and get munched by rabbits and/or deer) where I had been planning to plant my 4 o clocks, and discovered that the dog had dug a big hole and partially buried a baby bunny in it (his ADD did not let him finish the task, evidently).
So I got my shovel and threw the baby bunny over the fence into the neighbor's yard (which is my family's way of dealing with most revolting things; also, one year we set his tree on fire shooting off fireworks; fortunately, he doesn't go out in his yard much, but he'd probably not be too fond of us if he did)(I had debated burying the bunny, but didn't want to encourage the dog to continue digging in the flower bed -- although he enjoys doing so, since we are so nice and loosen up the dirt for him; I also debated directing the dog to grab the bunny and take it AWAY, but there was once a traumatizing episode where he brought a decaying chipmunk into the house -- my dad slammed the door before the dog could get in but he spit the chipmunk out and all the cats pounced on it, so my dad wrestled it away from them and threw it away -- probably over the fence -- and then the dog came in and was really upset because he couldn't find his chipmunk and he looked all around for it and accused the cats, and pouted).
Anyway, today I went outside to play with the dog, and he clearly wanted to play with me, he did the thing where he jumps around in a way that means "PLAY WITH ME!!!! playplayplay mememe PLAY with ME!" but he didn't want to play fetch the tennis ball, he wanted to play, lets run around the yard and smell chipmunk holes and dig, which I wasn't too into. And then he ate some grass and threw up.
So then I went to look at the garden, and all the seeds are coming up, along with some cosmos from last year, and some nigella that I planted last year and then never watered, so I'm amazed they're still alive. And the rose campion and irises are blooming, the bronze fennel recovered well from being eaten by caterpillars and looks gorgeous (and has a lot of babies too)(and has an allelopathic effect, so it grows in the only weed-free spot of the garden, which is very obliging of it). The gardenia is whiney and leggy because it wants more sun, to which I say "suck it up gardenia, you're too big to transplant." Last year I had a very similar conversation with some sage, and the sage responded by up and dying. There is something mysterious sprouting, that I have no idea what it is, but I am HOPING that it is the butterfly weed coming back to life, because it kicked the bucket at the same time as the sage. However, the four o clocks are NOT sprouting, because the dog re-dug his hole, presumably looking for his baby bunny. I also saw a rabbit there yesterday morning -- I like to think (because I am grim) that she was looking for her bunny, but probably she was just eating the sweet peas. There are also a lot of little green strawberries (it is a very random garden), but the dog always gets the ripe ones before I do.
So I got my shovel and threw the baby bunny over the fence into the neighbor's yard (which is my family's way of dealing with most revolting things; also, one year we set his tree on fire shooting off fireworks; fortunately, he doesn't go out in his yard much, but he'd probably not be too fond of us if he did)(I had debated burying the bunny, but didn't want to encourage the dog to continue digging in the flower bed -- although he enjoys doing so, since we are so nice and loosen up the dirt for him; I also debated directing the dog to grab the bunny and take it AWAY, but there was once a traumatizing episode where he brought a decaying chipmunk into the house -- my dad slammed the door before the dog could get in but he spit the chipmunk out and all the cats pounced on it, so my dad wrestled it away from them and threw it away -- probably over the fence -- and then the dog came in and was really upset because he couldn't find his chipmunk and he looked all around for it and accused the cats, and pouted).
Anyway, today I went outside to play with the dog, and he clearly wanted to play with me, he did the thing where he jumps around in a way that means "PLAY WITH ME!!!! playplayplay mememe PLAY with ME!" but he didn't want to play fetch the tennis ball, he wanted to play, lets run around the yard and smell chipmunk holes and dig, which I wasn't too into. And then he ate some grass and threw up.
So then I went to look at the garden, and all the seeds are coming up, along with some cosmos from last year, and some nigella that I planted last year and then never watered, so I'm amazed they're still alive. And the rose campion and irises are blooming, the bronze fennel recovered well from being eaten by caterpillars and looks gorgeous (and has a lot of babies too)(and has an allelopathic effect, so it grows in the only weed-free spot of the garden, which is very obliging of it). The gardenia is whiney and leggy because it wants more sun, to which I say "suck it up gardenia, you're too big to transplant." Last year I had a very similar conversation with some sage, and the sage responded by up and dying. There is something mysterious sprouting, that I have no idea what it is, but I am HOPING that it is the butterfly weed coming back to life, because it kicked the bucket at the same time as the sage. However, the four o clocks are NOT sprouting, because the dog re-dug his hole, presumably looking for his baby bunny. I also saw a rabbit there yesterday morning -- I like to think (because I am grim) that she was looking for her bunny, but probably she was just eating the sweet peas. There are also a lot of little green strawberries (it is a very random garden), but the dog always gets the ripe ones before I do.