It was raining when I got home, but I still did my tour. Blazing star and tall phlox were about to drown, so I had to dig an emergency trench or three. I know now why that part of the yard has shitty crap-grass; it doesn’t drain. Guess who’s going to have to install a catchbasin and pipe (hint: me). Just what I want–more digging. Anyway…

In good news, I see stirrings of red monarda! I bought some live plants on eBay this morning; I decided some needed to go around the pipevine, and it’s too late for seeds now. Not too late for the ones I started from seeds two months ago; the red is juuuuust starting to show.

Tickseed.

All of the bachelor’s button I bought was supposed to be blue, but I guess this one didn’t get the memo.

The yellow dwarf cosmos is starting to bloom. I wasn’t overly impressed at the germination rate, but some is better than none!

Lazy bachelor’s button finally opened all the way.

EDIT AGAIN: Oh, and we IDed C’s “yellow flowers” yesterday; they’re Heliopsis helianthoides “Summer Sun”. They’re going to be pretty!

Writing this on Tuesday for Monday. My agastache ‘Tango’ finally arrived,  but it was *not* happy about having spent the weekend in the post office. It was basically dead. The roots are probably fine, so I put it in the ground anyway, even if it looks like hell. I contacted the seller, sent pictures, and they gave me a refund for the plants and shipping.

The blazing star was a bit crooked, but fine otherwise. I staked it; it’ll probably straighten up. Even if it doesn’t,  as long as it blooms, butterflies don’t give a shit.

Found a little friend in the jewelweed. I forget the name offhand,  but I think it’s an “often heard, seldom seen” on my Flickr. EDIT: Common True Katydid, Pterophylla camellifolia.

Tomato getting bigger.

Finally, a bachelor’s button! Jesus, they’re taking their sweet time.

Found these while I was weeding, so I moved them where they’ll get some real sun. There are like five of them in this tiny clump. Cute!

Deer ate all the leaves off one of my “ninebark”. Not that I care; maple is tough. That motherfucker still hasn’t responded and it’s too late to open a case. Lesson learned; I hope everything in his fucking garden dies, choked out my maple seedlings.

When I got up this morning, I planted the Rudbeckia that had arrived yesterday. It looks pretty droopy, even after a good watering and a few hours of waiting. It’s pretty tough stuff, so hopefully it’ll make it.

I put in a few “found” boneset (at least I’m pretty sure it’s boneset!) It drooped at first, but perked up after a few hours (and water).

I moved the living yellow honeysuckle over with the probably dead one.

Planted “found” morning glory from the topsoil we had delivered. I looked at bindweed seedlings, and they’re different, so theoretically, this is morning glory. It’s potted, sitting below the lilac, which looks boring now that the flowers are gone, so it’s a living trellis. EDIT: 2014-06-10: Some have a second set of leaves, so I was able to ID as Ivy-leaved Morning Glory, Ipomoea hederacea. A weed, but butterflies and bees do use it, and it’s not like it’s going to escape from the pot into a flower bed, so meh. If it seeds itself, it’ll just get mowed anyway.

I cleaned up and propped the tansy Onje is trying to kill as best I could, then filled in bare spots with marigold, coneflower and “yellow flowers” from the rectangular bed. They’ll be happier in full sun anyway,  once they recover from being moved.

Moved the little petunia that was growing in an expansion gap on the patio to the Honeysuckle Horseshoe.  It deserved to live.

Saw an Ebony Jewelwing male this morning, but he wouldn’t pose, so here’s a pretty Hackberry emp.

Scudderia love those lilies! Three.

Tomato!

Bishops flower.

Milkweed is doing well so far.

Butterfly bush (light purple) has buds.

I don’t remember planting these, but apparently,  I did.

Saw my first tortoise beetle! Actually two, since they eat sweet potato and related plants…like morning glory.

Also, fuck grass. I finally got the grass cleared to plant perennials. I started before 0630h this morning, and finished the goddamned grass…I dunno…lunchtime-ish. That crap-grass has roots in fucking china, and I also wounded myself. I felt something biting me, and thinking it was a fly, I started to shoo it away. When I looked, though, it was a Scudderia nymph, and I turned the hoe/fork tool at the last minute (didn’t want to hurt him), and hit the side of my foot. Hurts like hell, it’s swollen, and gets stiff when I don’t move for a while. I didn’t even know they’d bite; they’re herbivorous!

Anyway, I finished the grass.

Found a couple of Japanese beetles before they had a chance to eat my plants. One was really close to adulthood. Killed the little fuckers. Haha!

I planted about half of the perennials and got rained out, so I had a shower and a nap, then came out to finish. I had just enough time to plant the rest of the potted stuff and both tall phlox (came in today’s mail), and weed-whack what really needed it, then the rain started in earnest. I’ll plant the Rudbeckia tomorrow, the rest once they arrive, and then mulch, and my last big landscaping project of 2014 will be done. Well, I hope it’ll be the last! 😉

I thought about digging up the rest of that goddamned crap-grass so I could plant perennials, but I was just too tired, so instead, I planted the rosemallow in its own, private mini-swamp.

Doesn’t look like much, but if it grows in that soggy, rich soil and full sun, it’ll be beautiful!

Oh…the picture I posted for Thursday of my baby tiger was actually from Friday (writing this Saturday). Less than three hours later, he was gone; victim of a paper wasp. I came along just as the wasp was finishing. Fuck. I was going to bring him inside once he’d pupated. Hopefully, another tiger girl will see the Miracle Tuliptree and deposit an egg or two. Poor little paterkiller. 🙁 The next Polistes I see is dead. I normally don’t kill them, but they owe me an insect life, and I’m going to collect!

Perennial Wave #1 arrived. Coreopsis, Gaillardia, veronica, and blue agastache.

Also, rosemallow arrived, but kinda dry. I put it in a bucket of water and sent the seller a message. (S)he said give them a couple of weeks and if there’s no sign of growth, they’ll send me another lot.

Scudderia nymphs like those orange lilies.

Lots of pokeweed since I cleared away so much honeysuckle menace. Big leaves, and I’ll leave them because birds like the berries.

Not very “smoke” if you ask me. Probably just not enough sun for it to really look good. Should have the poor thing moved.

My baby tiger.

First, the present Skanny left on the roof of HK this morning. A lovely dead mole.

It was raining when I left, and I figured the mole would roll/blow/rinse off when I got out on the one-way in the rain (which turned heavy). This was on the back window when I got home.

P. laughed. I still didn’t remove it; I’m not touching a wet mole corpse.

My little tiger baby is still alive, and a whole new colour. I hope he makes it to adulthood!

In non-dead news, my second persimmon is still alive! Tiny growth, but growth!

The other is doing well so far.

Nobody has to train cardinal climber to climb!

It’s humid as hell and raining again; a good day to be a seedling.  I also brought that poor palm outside; the air conditioning is drying it out worse than the heat did. I expect it to die, but it’ll be happier on the patio, I think. Might bring my… (forget the name EDIT: Ardisia) tree out, too, though it seems very happy in the south window. Dunno.

I reseeded the catnip on the south side of the house; the evening primrose did fine, but catnip–Miffy’s catnip–only sprouted a few. No picture; it looks like dirt.

They sent some freebie summer savoury with the catnip, so I threw that in with my three whole rosemary plants. I moved the one that was off to the side, and I hope I didn’t kill it because there are just three!

In far more exciting news, I happened to look at the right angle as I passed the Miracle Tuliptree, and found…a baby tiger! He still looks like bird poop, and he’s starting to tie the leaf with silk to make himself a little tent. I hope the birds (spiders, beetles, etc.) don’t find him; I’d love to raise him into a beautiful flutter-guy!

I did MLB feeders after work today, and they needed bleaching, which took longer. Otherwise, I turned the compost pile and added some stuff, and found a couple of little friends.

Cabbage White ‘pillar, with potential predator in the form of a larval ladybird (though the ‘pillar might be too big to eat now).

Sharpshooter, I think, but not as colourful as usual. Might be a related species. Dunno, and head keeps trying for a migraine, so I need to get to bed!

EDIT: Yes, Speckled Sharpshooter, Paraulacizes irrorata.

I worked on it for a few hours, but it was so fucking hot in the sun, and the humidity meant sweating did more to blind me than it did to cool me, and I was bent over, chopping roots, using muscles that haven’t been used much in years. That said, I did make progress!

I like this angle better;  looks like there’s less left to do.

I bought a bunch of perennials, and I think I’ll get a few more from a different seller. Hopefully, they won’t arrive until the weekend…assuming I’m not still crippled by then. Aleve on the menu tomorrow, I’ll bet!

EDIT: Went to “fluff up” phlox soil in hopes of seeing some sprouts…but I was too late. Not many, but enough that I didnt want to disturb the soil and kill those brave little seedlings!