dandelion tactics

So many dandelions on my lawn and flower beds.  Where do they all come from?
The yellow flowers contain nectar and pollen that feed bees and other insects, so I let them shine.  But when the flowers turn to balls of fluff, my attitude changes.

Each seed head contains about 150 seeds ready to germinate and crowd out even more of my grass and other plants.

Dandelions are so successful because they have brilliant strategies for procreating and continuing the species.  The plants are perennials that live for many years.  The roots will re-grow if a bit is left in the ground when they are pulled out.  Moreover, the flowers can be pollinated by insects, but if that does not happen, they pollinate themselves.

Most form seed heads that break apart and float a great distance to pastures new.  But some seed heads do not develop parachutes.  Those seeds fall close to the parent plant.  So they seem to have all their bases covered!

My strategy for getting rid of dandelions:  I let the yellow flowers do their thing.  When they turn to seed, I walk around with a big plastic bag, pop off the heads, and stick them in the bag.  When the bag is full, I seal it tight and put it in the garbage.  This exercise takes a long time, my back kills me, and new fluff balls pop up within an hour, but it makes me feel like I have done something rather than nothing.

A bag of dandelion heads ready for disposal.  

egg shells

Calcium is really good for plants.  And egg shells are a great source of calcium.  I save the egg shells, crush them down, and then when I have lots, I haul out a small food processor and turn the pieces into crumbs.

I put a handful into the bottom of each hole when planting tomatoes.  Enough calcium plus enough water prevents blossom end rot.
I scatter the rest of the egg shells all over my vegetable and flower beds.  The sharp edges damage the bodies of any slug or bug that dares get too close to my precious plants.  I'm hoping this will scare away the cutworms that usually shear off many of my newly emerging beans every year.

My beans have been planted and are waiting to emerge.  The green sprouts in this bed are dill volunteers.  I hope they will all get along and grow well together!

cold effects

The east coast of Canada has suffered such a cold June.  A period of warm weather encouraged strawberries, blueberries and grapes to flower, only to be damaged by frost.  These strawberry flowers should be greenish yellow in the centre, but most are blackened.  Those flowers will never produce fruit.  

Because of the cold, I was afraid to plant out my tomato and pepper seedlings.  But most were over two feet tall, and I was tired of taking them inside and outside every day.  So I made a decision on a beautiful day on June 12.  The weather had finally warmed up, but it was really windy, and my little plants were really beaten up as I set them in the ground.

After putting cages around each plant, I wrapped the entire plot with row cover, secured the cloth with clothes pins, and packed seaweed around the bottom to keep out the wind and the cold.

I ran out of row cover, and patched up the holes with plastic bags.

The next day I checked on the plants, and they seem really cosy.  They are standing up straight, and have no damage.  It has been really cold overnight - 5 degrees C - but the row cover tent has done the trick, and I will leave it in place for the foreseeable future.

a walk down fern gully

We have started to walk for exercise.  Hoofing it around the block, which is exactly one kilometer, is great for measuring distance, but supremely boring.  So now we often walk the Confederation trail from Highway 25 (York) east.  It's a lovely walk, and so much is happening with wildlife right now. On one section of the trail, we see up to 7 snowshoe hares in their summer brown coats.  And it's high time for the ferns.

bunchberry is a member of the dogwood family.  It will produce red berries in fall.

A close up of an exquisite azalea flower

this wild azalea is snuggled up against a protective white pine

Old Man's Beard is a lichen, a symbiotic relationship between algae and fungus. 
It drapes itself on branches, and does not do the trees any harm.

Pussytoes is a short wild flower with grey-green leaves.  It will form a white cluster of flowers later in the season.

This tiny red cone the female flower of  the white spruce. 
The male flower is yellow and produced a cloud of spores, some of which fertilzed this female flower,
which will eventually produce a brown cone filled with seeds.

The most common fern on the trail is the Sensitive Fern.
It has wide bright green leaves, and the spore fronds from last year are still there.
Look closely at the pic below:  the spore cases are in the shape of little balls.
A great way to identify this species.

sensitive fern spore fronds are like little balls

ghostly cinnamon fern

Interruped fern has a section in the middle of the frond with spore capsules on the underside of the leaves

Old apple trees line the trail.  The story is that when the trail was a rail line, train passengers would throw their apple cores out the windows after munching the fruit.  In time, many of those seeds in the cores germinated.

indoor garden

Potted succulent gardens seem to be all the rage at the moment. 
I became quite enthused as well, but the ones available for sale were kinda small, so I decided to build my own.

Now I know why the ones for sale are small. With the weight of the terracotta bowl and saucer, this one I made is really heavy. 
But I don't plan to move it anytime soon, just turn it occasionaly so that the plants don't lean towards the window.

In Charlottetown, I find the best plants at Kent Building Supplies (go figure!)
The plants are well cared for, and the selection is great. 
I chose two types of cactus and two succulents.  I used cactus soil, not regular potting soil.

The creation came together really quickly, but I did end up with some cactus prickles in my fingertips.  I added a few sea shells.

The container and saucer were the  most expensive part of this project, and with the plants and soil, it cost about $50.  Steep, but quite lovely.

Terracotta is porous and does not hold moisture like plastic does.  So I water it twice a week.

A few weeks after planting, the  Echeveria rewarded me with a lovely flowering spike of delicate yellow flowers.  Really pretty!