My poor tree

I have a crape myrtle tree. Whatever the weather did the other day, made it sad.

 

It's almost like there was a down pour in the center of it!!

 

Cleaning out the weeds and possessed plants

Yes, the crazy pile of dead bush and trees is GONE. Along with the spiders, webs and all kinds of bugs and OMFG you should have seen the huge ass worms. It was freaky!

Ahem.

Notice the lack of massive amounts of weeds?? Heehee, it looks soooo much better now!

Oh and this? This is where that freaky possessed plant with all the roots WAS. Let me know tell you, I have never whacked at something, cut 80% of it out and have it BLOOM like it was nothing. I mean, seriously, it was creepy!

See, creepy! It belonged in a horror movie of some kind

What it was, was a bush/tree possessed thing that grew between another tree and split it. And they both kept growing. Ugh, but at least it's now gone :) This part was the very center of it, the heart of it. Put all the other roots and whatnot in the yard waste bags, this piece will get its own spot on the side walk for trash pick up :)

Flowers and Trees and bugs and yeah

Don't ask me what happened to this Sun Flower...it's divided on what to do ?? It's not growing anymore though...so weird...

Sun Flowers!!

These are the 3 Sun Flowers planted at my boyfriends house!! I hope mine bloom like this :)

See the stalks on these?? They are a lot stronger than the ones at my place (so far at least).

So Beautiful!! Love it :D

Gardening

Just an idea about things I seem to think of...a lot!

Also, I had already bought some Organic top soil and Organic Vegetable Soil at Lowe's last week. Ahem. I saw organic compost and I almost bought that, but had to stop myself. Next year...just so excited to see that available!!

I probably should have gotten my soil tested early on in the season. I plan on doing that ...just to see what it says. Especially since I want to turn half my back yard into a full vegetable garden.

In the meantime, I bought some stuff off of Amazon :) Shocking, I know!!




Amazon shows it as say "Sea-90 100% Organic Fertilizer -- Reconditions soil by replacing the essential minerals ; trace elements gardens, flowers, orchids, and citrus plants need. Water Soluble. Sea 90 is great for Hydroponics;  is the perfect container plant food. Money Back Guarantee. "

And:

 

---ODOR FREE---You can use SEA-90 indoors without any fear of awful and offensive smells that can be associated with other organic and chemically produced fertilizers. SEA-90 is completely odor free.

--WATER-SOLUBLE---SEA-90 is water soluble and works great in a sprayer or spray bottles, and is excellent in providing nutrients in hydroponic applications.

---MULTI PURPOSE---SEA-90 improves the health, growth, and fruit of any plants or trees. You do not have to buy multiple fertilizers and combinations to try and make it work. Sea-90 is a complete good-for-everything organic fertilizer.

---TRULY GREEN---Whether you are growing vegetables for your family, raising citrus trees or flower gardens, or even a farmer growing row crops, you need to know SEA-90. This 100% Organic Fertilizer is collected from the marine mineral solids found in the beautiful Sea of Cortez. This all-natural soil conditioner contains 85 essential elements and is collected and processed using only "green" methods in a pollution free environment. With each order, we will email you information on how to mix and apply Sea-90 to fit your needs. And if you have a question, ask us! We will be glad to assist you in your particular situation.

---ORGANIC---SEA-90 is certified by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI product number saa-0132 and saa-2951) with no restrictions as both a fertilizer and livestock feed additive. It is 100% All Natural and safe for you, your pets, and your family. So you don't have to worry about spray applications or have any special storing location. Let's face it. Whether you are an organic fanatic or just someone who would like to take better care of themselves and their families by growing organically, it is hard to argue that what you eat affects your health. So when you get a choice to use a 100% organic fertilizer like Sea-90 that produces strong, healthy, hearty vegetables and plants and benefits the ground you are growing in, it just makes sense to use it.

I am hoping that it will help out what few things I've got AND perhaps set up my soil for next years plantings :)

If you've looked at those pictures, you saw a lot of weeds...I already have a small bottle of organic weed killer, but I decided I really need to get this shit under control. So...

Avenger® Weed Killer - The First EPA Registered & Approved Herbicide for Organic Gardening.

It is non-toxic and can be used in areas near to people, pets and wildlife.

Works in cool & cloudy conditions (as low as 40º F), Does not stain brick, concrete or pavement.

Approved for Use in Organic Gardening by the U.S. Deptartment of Agriculture's (USDA) National Organic Program (NOP) Rule.

EPA registered & approved, Fast acting - visible results in less than 2 hours Made from oranges, lemons and other citrus fruits - pleasant citrus aroma.

This are some awesome little clips. I am using them with my sun flowers (and bamboo that are along my side fence. It seems that they probably don't get ENOUGH sun light. Because the sunflowers I planted in the back = much stronger stalks. So these poor guys are a tad bit weaker. Ever since I got the clips (instead of using the ties I had) they seem to be doing better :) I will definitely use them again and highly recommend them!!



Here's what the bamboo stakes look like: Mine are 4' I think. Some of the flowers are starting to really out grow that size :)

Back & Front Yards version 2.0

So, I was doing a lot of yard work today and decided to take a few pictures of what's going on in the front and back yards :)

This picture and the few that are following are of the front yard. As you can see, I've pulled out/dug up more of it.

There was a bush about 2.5 feet high, that the kid trimmed down the bark basically. I was planning on taking it out, but not right at that moment. Suffice it to say, I dug it out today.

Tip: Whack at the tree/bush hard a couple times and then step away. You will see a slew of bugs scatter when they realize their home is on the way out.

Oh and another thing I found, this WHOLE area, with the dirt?? Yeah, it's covering the old side walk. My living room and 2nd bathroom and laundry were an addition to the house. Awesome addition, but I guess the previous owners just decided to cover up the side walk (probably cheaper). So, I am uncovering it and will figure out something creative to do with the look :)

This whole area was plants and flowers and vines. And spiders.

The kid wanted to plant some new flowers (you know me, I keep ripping them out) so we've got these 2 so far!

 Updated picture of the sun flowers growing on the side of the house :)

These are the potatoes :)

You can see, I've been adding more and more dirt, therefore my back yard is losing more and more grass! LOL. It's a learning process, but fun :)

More sun flowers, in the back yard

This was the vegetable box that was moved over from the very back patio. Ahem. It is now full of grass/weeds. Yes, I know. It's on my list.

Some of the flowers blooming right now :)

I now have a lounge chair, which I need to clean and then use :) Also, there are some sun flowers starting to grow back in the far back patio. Oh and I moved the rosemary back there too, hoping it does better.

I've added a Bell Pepper plant and a Tomato plant :) Both are doing good :)

See the pepper??

I've got a few tomatoes already growing :)