Springtime at the Golla Retreat

Originally, I intended to post a smoothie recipe today.

But that's not happening.

Why?

Because it looked like day old guacamole and tasted like crap. Sorry, but I won't do that to y'all. The picture looked pretty, which was why I made it to begin with. But they lied . . . and used a decoy picture. Not nice, people, not nice!

So here a few pictures from my late-blooming garden. We're about 4-6 weeks behind from where we were in the blooming process last year.

I just hope the intense heat keeps away this summer. Here's a picture of my yard when I look out my writing window. Sorry, it's so gloomy, but we had just been rained on and it was cloudy when I took these pictures yesterday morning. As you can see, my roses (along the fence to the right) aren't anywhere close to blooming. I cut them way back this year, so it took them longer to set their buds.

 

 

These are a few of my mini roses that have started blooming. They are alongside the pool deck. I don't remember all the names of my roses, but I think they are. . .

 

Lemon Drop

 Little Sizzler

 Dancing Flame

My clematis

Batik iris (Moonlight Scentsation rose is budded out next to it)

Some cool looking evergreen ground cover that blooms blue flowers. ;-) (next to mini Alberta pine by fireplace)

And various columbines. Alas I don't know the names of these either. The pale lavender and purple ones self-sow, so they are in a different location every year. The pink/maroon one seemed to come back from its rootstock. An astilbe is the purply plant in front and the plague from hell--cinnamon fern--is behind it.

And that's about all that's growing in my yard . . . oh, there is a hosta--Guacamole--in this bottom picture. And if you think I don't have garden pests . . . I do. I just didn't take a picture of my poor Rose of Sharon bush. It had aphids last year, but I found some ladybugs to nosh on them. This year it's been so cool, I haven't seen any ladybugs to collect!

Plus we have gophers and moles we're trying to encourage to visit our neighbor's yards instead of ours. I did plant some garlic chives in the side yard, and I think the gopher didn't like the smell of them. If they stop tunneling there, then I might have to break up the clump and plant it in various locations in the yard!

I hope you have a good weekend, Peeps! It's Mother's Day so do something nice for the woman who incubated you for 9 months before she took care of you for the subsequent 18+ years.

I know what I'm going to do--I have numerous annuals to plant in my bare places and in six pots that decorate my deck.

Later, Peeps!