THE RETURN

After an absence of nearly a month of travel I got back to gardening in ernest today. It was a chilly start to the day which kept me indoors for the earlier part of the day. I ventured into the greenhouse where I potted an amaryllis bulb which I rescued from the sale table at Home Depot, for $2:50. I doubt it will come to much but at least I am giving it a chance. I also purchased two clematis corms which I also potted. In the afternoon, the sun now having reached the front of the house, I took my fork and continued working on the bed at the back of the raised bed. Last November David removed the two crape myrtle which had become rather overgrown, and had not performed well for a couple for years. There was little left in the beds save the American beautyberry, which I left. I disentangled a day lily from a Texas sage. I am sure it will do better with less competition. There were three Texas sage plants growing in the bed. I removed them, added some amendments to the soil and replanted one. I also added two other Texas sage which had been left by the folks at Gardeners' Supply, after the filming in the fall. I can take as much pleasure in an afternoon of this kind of work as from planting pretty flowers. I plan to add some columbine, poppies and larkspur along the back of the wall. In front some artemisia and other low growing perennials. I will replace the irrigation line with drips and mulch the area. This should make maintenance easier.