Well, my normally neighborhood award winning rhodies got really beaten this winter. The one on the right should make it because the majority of buds are green. The other one is in worse shape and most of the buds have stayed brown. There are some blooms on the lower branches that were protected from the wind by snow This one should recover As you can see, the one on the left was ravaged by the wind more than the one on the right Buds are all brown. Still hopeful though Makes my appreciate my normally underperforming red rhodie, which is having a stellar year for it.
Well, I have little patience for the lupine to sprout. One more pass through the local nurseries today, and none in stock. I ended up buying some foxglove and columbine which is deer resistant. The foxglove was a little leggy, but it was nearly root bound and really needed to stretch it's legs out. I got a good deal on a 3 fer... I spaced them out a bit and we had a nice rainstorm roll through to give them a good soaking. I'm cutting this area wider for more area and we will see what happens. There are a lot of small butterflies that hide in the tall grass, so it seems to be attracting some insects. Here is the columbine. Sorry for the lousy pic, but I took it during the rain shower.
I figure I'll let this go all summer and mow it down in the fall. I hope the tall grass stays upright through the summer. We should have some great cricket sounds in there late summer. When the lawns are cut around here it smells more like a hay field and not a grass lawn. Maybe a different grass variety? I think the fields right up the street will be cut not too far out.
My first Martagon Lily in forever. The Asiatic Lily beetles always munch up the leaves. They weren't so bad this year, for some reason.
That is a pretty lily. The lily beetles are a scourge though - what the Japanese Beetles don't eat, the LB's do
I've used neem oil in a pump sprayer for treating foliage against various bugs. It worked great for aphids on roses. It is organic and can be used on vegetables too. My patch of tall grass is going well. I walked around it after lawn cutting and there were all sorts of small butterflies, spiders and other bugs in there. Amazing amount of activity for such a small area. Sorry for the bad pic. Foxglove and columbine is just in there and upright. I found a bunch of blackberries along the swamp line. These are further long than the raspberries at the wasteland area.
Mine are just having a few pedals opening.....do you have natural acidic soil or do you add some acidifier?
Maybe check this out...... https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...Vaw3paTev376CITXh4A5nyLoH&cshid=1559902118596
That was a good article. I kept saying Nope, Nope, Nope and then I got to the end where they said if none of them apply, then it must be phosphorus is needed.
