Today's Tour of my Veggie Garden Across the Street

What a difference almost 3 weeks makes! The photos from my last update from Jeff's yard were from May 5th. (They enlarge when clicked on.) Here is the view from today, walking over from our house.

I planted a row of large sized marigolds and 4 small tomato plants, I think, Celebrity Hybrids, I had started inside. Between the little fences are a Fourth of July tomato plant, and a lilac, and a blush pepper plant. Closer to the tree, are a couple bronze fennel plants.

The Mexican sunflower and cactus zinnias are coming up in the area between the sprinkler and fence, but I'm not seeing the fennel in the weeds I'm trying to keep from getting any larger.

These tomatoes have grown since the last post, and I did plant more lettuce that is coming up well, and is about ready to be thinned.

Another view of the lettuce and kale:

The potatoes have taken off! Some took much longer to come up. Larry helped me take leaves from our compost pile that didn't get composted yet to put around the potatoes, and we added bags of top soil and composted cow manure. Most of it had gotten wet, so we just left it in clumps for now.

A view from the other direction, showing the onions, which are smaller than mine at home, but seem to be growing: (I have a friend who wants me to let some of the lambs quarters grow so she can come harvest them. I need to get her over, because Jeff's 6 year old grandson, who lives in the house with his mom and brother, helped me pull some the other day, and knows they are weeds. I eat a few, but will not let them get big.)

This shows the romaine lettuce growing on the other side of the onions:

Next to the romaine is a row of Flash sunflowers, then a section with several pepper and tomato plants, some, my babies, others from various places. One of the tomatoes is one I moved from my garden, I assume, a cherry, pear, or grape of some kind. Those self sow, and I get a harvest from them.

There is a row of Russian sunflowers next to the tomatoes in the previous photo, but I can't remember which these are. I need to thin them. I think I'll try moving some. I did that successfully last year.

This shows the little patch of mesclun next to the recently planted fennel, and flat and curly leafed parsley to share with caterpillars. You can see the romaine, onions, and potatoes at the top of the photo.

Birds and Blooms

The irises in the row next to the street don't all bloom at the same time, but the day lilies don't either.  I still enjoy them.  Here's the straggler that just opened yesterday:

Shell leaf penstemon:

One of the Dutch Iris turned out to be yellow.  Behind it are statice plants I had started inside.  They are growing!

I don't remember where I got this iris.  I need to deadhead the day lily.

One of the 3 different kinds of spiderworts is blooming.  I didn't realize when I first planted them, that they like lots of water.  They are with plants that don't need it, but I just try to give them drinks when I water the pots or newly planted flowers.

I brought these irises with us when we moved from our other house 11 years ago.

The birds are less flighty this year.  The dove pair let me take lots of photos of them as they walked down the street.  It was fun watching them.

I got this columbine from a neighbor when we first moved here, and it was the only one I could grow until recently.

I can't remember the name of this clematis, but it needs to be tied up to its support each year.  The lovely blue blooms are worth it.

Some kind of dianthus:

Another not remembered clematis on the veggie garden fence:

The iris in front of the bed started last June may be one I got from a pile my neighbor was getting rid of:

The robins have been getting close, too, but this one, I took from a distance, using my zoom.

I didn't include all the photos of the path the bird took as I snapped.  Digital photography is fun!

I thought I'd missed getting one of it on the path, but I got one!

I included this one of the robin in the grass to show off the flower beds.

As I was watching my grandson blowing bubbles, he pointed, like he does a lot, and said, "Bird!"  The photo I took of him pointing and saying that did not turn out well, but here's what he was pointing at:

He also saw this one playing "peek" with us:

Knautia macedonia/Crimson Scabious

Catherine, at A Gardener in Progress asked me what kind of knautia I have, and I told her I wasn't sure, but I seem to have 2 kinds.

The bed on the left was put in when our neighbor had to have her water main replaced.  The next year, we added the bed to the right of the sidewalk.  Some of the plants are the same as the other side, but some, I just put in something similar.  I added knautia from a friend's garden across from the other.  They've been in several years now, and are a bit different from each other.

This is the one on the right, that I think looks like Catherine's:

This is the one on the left, more compact, and not blooming yet:

Do you think they look like different kinds?  I'll post a photo of the smaller one when it blooms.  I don't remember if there is a difference in the flowers.