Now that we're officially into summer, I've finally caught the bug to get my yard whipped into shape. Here's some of the progress... click photos for larger view:
Steph did wonders with a bunch of rocks that our neighbor was giving away.
This year's garden... it didn't care for our cool June temps.
Steph's Day Lillies in full bloom.
The roses didn't seem to mind the cool weather at all.
This past Saturday brought with it a ray of sunshine...
After a winter full of wind, rain, cold, and snow, it was nice to feel the sun on my back and temperatures up in the mid 50's again. It was so nice, in fact, that I simply couldn't stand spending the day inside with the kids (as much as I love doing that), I just had to get out.
I was able to spray the invading onslaught weeds and [attempt] to kill the moss growing on our driveway. Time will tell how effective the moss treatment was, but hopefully it will at least make things a little easier for my annual Spring pressure-washing. Don't tell Steph, but I also did a little Round-Up edging... she hates it, but things are just too muddy right now to do any real edging, so Round-Up it is. I'm sure Grandpa Dougie would agree with me on this one. :-)
We've had some crazy weather this winter, which is great for a weather geek like myself, but I'm ready for a few more days like Saturday...
Memorial Day Weekend '07 was about grilling and gardening for us.
Friday night started off with one of my favorite barbequed chicken recipes from Cooking for the Rushed. Then Noah and I put together some new raised beds to go on either side of the whiskey barrels.
Saturday morning was spent rounding up soil and plants for the garden, as well as a new shephards hook and hanging basket. We had a BBQ in Harrisburg to attend, so the planting of the garden would have to wait...
Sunday was cool and cloudy, but no rain. So I gave the front and back lawns a good watering.
Things finally warmed up enough today that we could have a little fun outside. We washed both vehicles and then planted the garden... and then it was time for some juicy grilled hamburgers...
It has been a beautiful week so far (79 degrees the last two days, 68 today), so I've been trying to get a little yard work done around the box factory (and at home, too).
Yesterday I mowed the grass, and today I got some tree trimming done. I was going to post pictures of Camp Custom Box's freshly trimmed trees, but I can't figure out how to get the pictures off this stupid cell phone!
Here's the rest of my To Do List for this spring / early summer:
-Finish trimming trees
-Clean out garden shed
-Hack back berry vines
-Burn trimmed branches (need to do this soon)
-Pressure wash buildings and concrete areas
If the weather stays like it was today, I'm going to want to be outside; so hopefully I will be able to get them all done.
Woo-Hoo! Spring is here! d:-)
Edit: Yay, I figured it out...
What an arachnophobic really doesn't want to find in his garden... Argiope aurantia
Steph picked a Zuchini the other day and found one of these gals sitting on top of it. The black and yellow body seemed too large for those spindly black legs, but it had no problem moving, I can assure you of that. Supposedly they are harmless to humans, but I didn't take any chances -- it was still a spider, after all... and with spiders, I start swinging and take names later.
At the time, it looked like some horribly mutated Black Widow cousin... and my baby girl was sitting on the lawn about 10 feet away. Now I realize it probably actually helped keep other pests out of the garden... but still, that was one creepy spider!
OK, so I haven't kept up my weblog very well. So what have we been up to? Well, all of the nice days in the last few weeks have been spent outdoors. Some would refer to outdoor work as gardening, but I prefer to call it yardwork, because that's what it is! Anyway, here are a few photos (the first one is a special request from Grandpa Dougie)...
We had a grub problem in the backyard, which caused Barney to dig up most of the yard. The grub problem has been taken care of, but there are still some bare spots (as seen in the photo). Now I need to find time to plant new seed in those bare patches and still weed & feed the rest of the lawn... I hope we get some decent weather again, soon!
