When You Look...

You Find

This is a plant I find rather boring and cumbersome...a yellow-flowering Lonicera- Honeysuckle vine. I took a closer look to see if it has any hidden beauty.

And this is one of those boring old burgundy-leaf maples...maybe "Royal Red" or some other.

This is his shining moment...take a good look.

My Ratty Plants...or...Save The Rats...or...Who Gives a Rat's Ass

I tell my daughter that when she's digging in the garden there are many things you'll find under the soil. There are earthworms, beetles, ants, millipedes, and many other surprises. My next advice will be to always wear your gloves.

The other day, I was working on a job, planting several large planter pots for a business. I was removing old plant material from the pots, and one pot had more twigs and leaves and fluff than the other pots. I was reaching in (with gloves on) and something moved under my hand.

I pulled up some of the dried grass and leaves and uncovered 3 baby Rats, curled up in a hole in the potting soil inside the pot. They were fairly large, but still seemed blind, and were rooting around but stayed curled up together in a ball. They were not pink like baby mice I've seen, they were grey.



I just stood there looking at them, and looked around to see if anyone noticed my discovery. All I could think about was the movie, Ratatouille, and Ron Weasley in Harry Potter, and the cute rats I've seen in pet stores. I know Rats are generally hated in the world, and they can spread disease and all that...(But humans probably spread just as much disease).
I felt like I was put in an awkward position, having accidentally unearthed this little nest.
After a couple minutes of pondering...I covered the little creatures up again with the bedding material, sprinkled some fresh compost on the soil, and threw some flower seeds in the pot.
Life is life.
By the time the flowers grow, the Rats will be out.

MayDay Parade Photos, Minneapolis

Swimming With The Bees ...(Bees Rock!)

Finally, bees have arrived to beekeepers in Minnesota. If you read my blog last month, you'll remember that an entire truckload of bees coming from CA was lost when the trailer crashed in a North Dakota snowstorm. (California drivers should NEVER attempt North Dakota in the winter season).

Now, a new load of bees have arrived and beekeepers spent the weekend picking up their ordered packages of bees to take home to hives around Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Iowa.

This beekeeper is using a flashlight to check the Queen in each package. He has apparently lost his bee suit...or just doesn't care anymore.

This is the distributor's building holding all the boxes of bees until beekeepers come to pick up their orders. They were shipped from California to Minnesota, and about 200 beekeepers will come to pick up their bees within 48 hours.

Extra Queen Bees are individually packed in small wood boxes. There are many other bees crawling around on the Queen boxes.

Personally, I love honey bees and I was not afraid to photograph them. I work around bees all the time in the garden, and don't remember the last time I was stung. It annoys me frequently when I am working on a gardening project for a client, and they tell me they want me to try to plant things that "don't attract too many bees"!! ....I think we need to do exactly the opposite...What is the paranoia about bees? I think it's just mis-information. When bees are collecting pollen, they are very "busy" and do not bother people. The creature that invades picnics and gets in your pop (soda) can is a wasp- not a honey bee. Very few people are really allergic to bee stings. (Sorry if you're one of them) But honey bees are usually not the problem.

Because of the recent problems affecting bee colonies, people are starting to notice their importance, and bees are becoming "fashionable".

Bee Aware of issues affecting honey bees. And if you want to be hip in your community, plant flowers that attract bees and provide pollen. The best choices are often plants that are native to your area. Here are a few ideas:

Asters, Basil, Bee Balm (Monarda), Black-eyed-Susans, Clover, Cosmos, Fruit Trees, Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium), Marigold, Mint, Purple Coneflower, Rosemary, Salvia, Sedum, Sunflower, Zinnia.

Magnolia, Take Your Time

2008 R-n-R Gardener's Annual Guitar "Picks"

(For Containers and Hanging Baskets)

My colors this year for annual flowers are: Burgundy, Orange, Wine Red, Hot Pink and "Deep Purple".

I'm declaring out of style: Sweet Potato Vine (Ipomoea) ...barf.
...it's so... 'last 2 years'.

And along those lines...Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia) has been used a lot, so plant sparingly.
F.Y.I. : Dracena Spikes have been out of style for a while now if you weren't paying attention!...If you're still using spikes, turn off your computer right now...you need to get out more. And any silver plant...BBFN (bye bye for now).
Also out of style, although I love it still: Portulaca (Moss Rose).

And one color that's not cool: Pepto Bismol pink...It's abysmal. In Minnesota, we don't have much time for annuals...so make it fabulous, go big, Rock it out!

Here are some hot plants I will be using in containers this year:

Grasses...Any clump-forming grass is awesome- (Purple Fountain Grass is still in).

Coleus...Very Hot- There are many new varieties...it's very fun and totally in my colors!

Chenille Plant...It's back, it's hot, it's fun and funky.


New Petunia varieties...I love one called Tie Dye- it changes colors.

Torenia is a pretty alternative to trailing petunias...I like "Pink Moon"

Canna w/dark colorful leaves...like 'Tropicana' ....(The white variegated canna seem to scorch in full sun).

Heuchera (Coral Bells)..OK, it's a perennial, but awesome anywhere in part sun.

"That's Hot".

Earth Day

I got myself some beautiful compost today.

And I had my little helper with me. We checked on the worms to see if they wanted to come out and play.