Category: Gardening

And I am not ready for it! As I look out my back door, watching the cardinals, (three or four pairs at last count), and the other little birds at our feeder, I groan. My daffodils, tulips and crocus are all coming up, and even my rose bushes are putting on leaves. The magnolia in the backyard is ready to burst with flowers…and I sigh.

Yes, I do love this time of year and I LOVE watching all of the above take place. It is life renewing, and all is fresh and young. It is an exciting time of year…but I am NOT ready for it! The weather here in Kansas has been gorgeous the past week or so and it is holding. Every day in the 70’s, bright sunshine and birds singing.

Usually this time of year, you can’t stop me from being outside and working in the yard. I couldn’t wait to get my hands into the cool soil and start planting. I usually had orders lined up with shrubs and roses waiting to be put into the earth. I purposely planted the hedge of Siberian elm because I wanted a sanctuary for cardinals…and it worked. First there was a very faithful pair and now there are several. They arrive each spring and take up residence in the elm hedge…and I am thrilled. I have planted many things in the yard for certain reasons, to attract little creatures and grandchildren. The grapes on the arbor outside the garden are a popular spot in late summer when the grapes are ripe. Grandma’s yard is snack time…and I love it! I don’t know how well my rhubarb and horseradish will do this year…but that is another post!

Spring has come upon us in a hurry this March. And I am not ready for it! The yard beckons to be raked…again. Roses need to be trimmed, shrubs cut back, and new green sprouts uncovered from their blanket of dead leaves. My little pond needs a good cleaning so that it will be ready for another summer home for lucky goldfish. Usually spring comes with a burst of energy for me…and this year I am not feeling it. Maybe it’s because it IS early…I am a little afraid of some really cold weather still in our future that will do some damage to the excited sprouts of green in our yard.

So, I will be praying for excitement and energy to complete the tasks at hand. Say hello to the little guy in the picture at the top. This is from 2009, one of the baby cardinals of three that year. He was just learning to fly and he spent the day on our trailer in the backyard. It might be just hoping on my part…I don’t know how long cardinals live. But I like to think he is one of the beautiful, plump ones at our feeder everyday, watching from the Siberian elm hedge. His little body a bright splash of red against the bare branches of the olive hedge. Happy spring to all!

I wanted to talk a little bit about the header, (I think that’s what it is called), I put on here the other day. First of all, my eyes track to the cranky kitty each time I look at this photo. No, this is not our cat but a friend of our cat. They sit, a careful distance from one another and visit each day. I think the cat is a stray and our cat, Cassie, seems to attract many of them. It’s that or the bird feeder in our yard with 100 birds surrounding it each morning!

Our son took this picture of our side yard. This is part of our view out our back door. Those are olive bushes I planted a few years ago to block the view of the neighbors. I have a small pond I built out of limestone to the left of the picture. I usually have a trickle of water and goldfish in it, but not this summer. This summer it’s doing a great job of growing moss and holding wet leaves.

To the right of this picture is a fireplace I built out of the bricks that were part of the two chimneys in our attic. When we replaced our roof a couple summers ago, we took out the chimneys before they fell through the ceiling. I thought the fireplace was a great reminder of their use at one time. We haven’t used the fireplace very much. Just a few times to roast hot dogs and s’mores. Usually it’s too hot out to enjoy the fire and then too cold. It’s hard to sit outside in the snow when your back door beckons just a few feet away.

I also have a climbing rose on an arbor in this same area. Roses border the sidewalk. I love roses, the sweetest smelling ones. There is just something old-fashioned and pleasant that assails your senses as you pass by.

None of this may seem very amazing to all of you. But it is to me. When we moved into this house almost 11 years ago, that entire area was a driveway. With the help of my son, we transformed it into a pleasant place to relax, and someday, I WILL sit at the bistro table and sip my coffee, listening to the birds and the trickle of the pond as a flash of orange passes in the dark water. These are the moments that make life something to look forward to and relish in. The times when your thoughts are at peace and your body rests. I wish these for you too.