life with a chronic disease and a really big yarn stash
Return to the Garden: Hello Slugs, I’m Back!!
Summer heat has arrived, I’m feeling better, and it is definitely past time to attend to the needs of the garden. Yesterday I weeded out front in the shade of the morning and then mowed that lawn in the evening (well, I actually mowed only half of the lawn. A neighbor then arrived and took the mower away from me to finish things up. I love my neighbors!!) Look at what has been happening out front while I was engaged in an indoor scleroderma-induced slug-fest.
My new roses (Hot Cocoa) that I planted a couple of months ago burst into bloom!This is what the blooms look like as they open. I bought these roses as they are recommended for my location (Colorado, USA) even though I wasn’t completely sure about the color. I’m really pleased with the dusty orange color now.. Look how healthy those leaves look! Let’s hope the grasshoppers don’t notice…The ice plant that I planted along the front walk has also gone into overdrive. The color made me so happy I didn’t even mind pulling the weeds!
This morning I moved into the back yard with the cats to see what I could accomplish in a couple hours of coolness and shade before the afternoon heats up. Oh dear, it is somewhat of a jungle, and the cats have been running wild.
Guess I need to mow this lawn too. See how intently MacKenzie is looking upward? He’s watching the squirrel the cats had treed earlier this morning after chasing it all over the yard.Yellow Boy has been busy building nests in several locations in the yard and the garden.The yarrow he’s nesting in is all over the garden and I need to rip most of it out. He was so cute I just let him have it today. Wait a minute… I think yarrow can be used to dye wool. Maybe I shouldn’t rip this out yet…My pincushion plants have spread like crazy and the blooms are looking good! Please ignore the grass in the photo. That’s what I did and I feel much better for it. 🙂MacKenzie has also staked out a nice shady location to nap in near the cat mint. He is my good boy: he’s sleeping on dirt and not in the middle of a plant. 🙂
Things are looking much better than I thought they would. I weeded like crazy, filled up two garbage sacks, and then planted some new flower seeds in one garden where a rose died over the winter. By then the day was heating up and I was starting to feel a little dizzy again. Time to head back into the house to rest up for afternoon knitting and lawn mowing later.
The best part of the morning? I didn’t see a single slug!!
I weave, knit and read in Aurora, Colorado where my garden lives. I have 2 sons, a knitting daughter-in-law, a grandson and two exceptionally spoiled kittens. In 2014 I was diagnosed with a serious rare autoimmune disease called systemic sclerosis along with Sjogren's Disease and fibromyalgia.
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8 thoughts on “Return to the Garden: Hello Slugs, I’m Back!!”
I love how the garden surprises us when we’re not looking! The kitties are absolutely precious!
I do! I put up an invisible fence around the back and trained them to not jump out of the yard. They run in and out all day just like dogs do though a “cat door” and have a great time chasing bugs, climbing trees and hanging out. My plants attract butterflies and other things to entertain them.
Thanks for the positive feedback on the rose. I’m so glad they are turning out nice.
So glad you are feeling better. the flowers are lovely, the pincushion flower is really unusual and pretty. What a kind neighbour! The cats look so cute, especially yellow boy nesting in the yarrow! Have a lovely weekend. x
Yarn, Books & Roses 
I love how the garden surprises us when we’re not looking! The kitties are absolutely precious!
We had a lot of rain here which helped out with happy surprises. 🙂
The orange roses are gorgeous! And it looks you have a wonderful yard for cats 🙂
I do! I put up an invisible fence around the back and trained them to not jump out of the yard. They run in and out all day just like dogs do though a “cat door” and have a great time chasing bugs, climbing trees and hanging out. My plants attract butterflies and other things to entertain them.
Thanks for the positive feedback on the rose. I’m so glad they are turning out nice.
So happy you’re feeling better! Beautiful plants and cats.
So glad you are feeling better. the flowers are lovely, the pincushion flower is really unusual and pretty. What a kind neighbour! The cats look so cute, especially yellow boy nesting in the yarrow! Have a lovely weekend. x
I like the pics and the writing
Thanks!