Why I Oughta...

The last time we saw blooms on our front yard Saucer Magnolia tree was back in Spring of 2018 .  Last year, we saw no flowers at all on our Saucer Magnolia.  In fact, we didn't get any flowers on any of our delicate flowering trees like the Japanese Flowering Cherry, either.  But, right now we're seeing some pink flowers begin to emerge from the fuzzy pods on the tips of the limbs. We had a particularly difficult winter in 2018/2019 that I'm pretty sure killed all the buds.  This Winter we had an easy Winter and (thankfully) that means we're getting Spring flowers. I last visited this tree when I wired up one of the errand limbs earlier this year . Last September, I documented the buds that were being set that have paid off this Spring. The other thing that I did yesterday was to try to edge the bed that this tree sits.  I used a flat shovel and went around the ring and removed some of the sod that had begun to inch up to the trunk(s).  You can see some of t

Just a few days ago, I posted some details that I've found in terms of the timing of when to sow flower seeds indoors in Northern Illinois (the answer....4-5 weeks before the last frost which usually takes place at the latest on April 30th. So...Right around April 1st). Today, we already have some Zinnias that have germinated.  Be still, my socially-distant heart. The kids took wooden plant markers and decorated their own little sections.  Here's one of them showing seven of eight cells have germinated:   Each of the kids planted at least eight (and up to 16) cells of two zinnia seeds each.  You can see that in many of the cells, both seedlings have emerged.  I'll thin them after the first true leaves appear. Here's another container showing six of eight cells germinated and a couple of cells to the left - still under the 'propped up' dome that have germinated, too. These are Zinnia "Cut and Come Again" mixed color flowers.    With

I planted a pair of common lilac shrubs in our yard back in Spring of 2018 on the fence line of the southside of our property.  Back when we lived in Elmhurst, our neighbor Greg had a hedge of lilac that bordered our property that produced some big, fragrant flowers.  Nat always liked them and said that we should be growing some lilac.  Although they weren't called for in our plan, I found a couple of small lilacs at Home Depot and stuck them in the ground.   They were small, but I planted them fairly close together.  And didn't really think much about them since then. You can see where these are planted in this look at priority area #1 . Last year, they didn't do much. This year, they're set to be in year three of their cycle:  sleep, creep and leap.  This year could be the leap. The tips of the very ends of the tallest limbs are in the photo at the top of this post.  They're beautifully tight, two-toned buds of green and purple. Below, you'll see

A couple of weeks ago, I spread 5 gallons of biosolids on a rectangle of turf in our backyard.  Here's that post .  Today if you look out there, the grass is, ummm, different.  It is different than any of the reset of the grass in our yard.  It is deeper green and has taller growth than any other section of grass in our entire backyard.  If you look at the photo at the top, you can see the arker area that runs from top to bottom, right?  A couple of weeks in and you can still see the material that is in large chunks, but some of it has made its way into the thatch.  I was out there on a day that it had rained and it seemed that the original smell from the biosolids was invigorated a bit. That's a downside of topdressing with biosolids.  But, the upside?  It is visible in this photo - clear as day.  With that smell and our kids being heavy users of our yard during the Spring and Summer, I'm wondering if Fall is the best time to consider topdressing with biosolids.  It

Social Distancing means that we can't go to the store for anything other than groceries, but it doesn't mean that I can't putter around in the garden.  For me, that means that this year, I'm going to try something new:  growing some annual flowers from seeds.  Normally, we buy a set of annuals - like Zinnias - for our front beds and plant them out front of the boxwoods.  This year - I came across a seed set online and grabbed it.  But, when to plant?  It seems that Menards always puts out their seeds right after Christmas.  But, that's too early for us. This piece from Gardener's Supply Company talks about when to start your seeds : they recommend different times for different varieties.  This piece from the Bump talks about sowing seeds indoors 4-5 weeks before the last frost in your zone .  For gardeners like me in the Western Suburbs of Chicago...when is that? According to MorningChores.com, our last frost is April 7th to 30th .  Let's use that date o

In March, I shared the bag of Halts (no lawn food) that I had secured before Amazon started to slow down their shipping during the pandemic and referenced the Michigan State University Growing Degree Days tracker .  Welp...today is the day:  we're right in the middle of the "Optimum" range so it is time to put down that pre-emergent.  You can see where April 2nd lines up in the screenshot above. My bag of grassy weed pre-emergent that I have from Scott's covers just 5k square feet.  I have about 15K square feet of turf, so this covers just part of my lawn - and I've been focused on the very far back 5k square feet.  That's where I applied this year's batch .  I'm trying to set a reminder for myself that I should throw down another round of this stuff in the Fall to take on the Poa that I think is taking over parts of my lawn.  I went back to my ratty Scott's Edgeguard spreader for this job of what reminds me of cracked corn: I'll be

Well, that escalated quickly.  A little more than a week ago, I posted a photo showing the result of a five gallon bucket full of free wood chips/mulch from the Village of Downers Grove. Today, I've made 15 trips to what we're calling the 'mulch pit'.  I've gone all-in on the free wood chips/mulch for the very far back of our yard.  This is an area that I've done absolutely nothing to over the past few years and just let go natural. I've cobbled together a series of buckets, trugs and one garbage can that I believe - when filled - total about 9 cubic feet of mulch.  That's about 1/3rd of a yard each trip.  15 trips = 5 yards.  I'm not quite 50% of the way done across the back of the yard, but with the social distancing being extended for another 30 days, that means that I might be able to get the far backyard covered in this weed barrier before I end up getting back to the office.   I figure that I'll need about 20 more trips to get all the