It’s difficult to keep up. The garden is loaded. Every plant is budding or blooming and it’s all a matter of cutting back now. Trying to keep it in it’s place. It’s magical out there. When I’m in the studio it’s hard to focus on anything but the profusion of blooms outside the doors. It’s a good thing the weather keeps changing from winter like to summer like otherwise I’d be out there all the time.

I keep watching that giant pine tree up on the hill on Jim’s side. It’s huge and it’s dead and it threatens my little sanctuary. It needs to go.

I’ve got two window boxes of rapini going, one doing much better than the other. A clear lesson in using fresh soil. I just dumped the seeds into the soil that was already in one and filled the other with fresh soil before sowing.

There are volunteers everywhere. Cerinthe is blooming in almost every bed, little johnny jump-ups jumping up between the bricks and geraniums by the Buddha’s garden in the deep shade. Not to mention all the daises!

I’ve planted the rooted cuttings from the abutilon alongside the back fence. It will fill in and make beautiful shadows. My other cuttings are coming along nicely. The princess flower, new guinea impatiens, fuchsia, sage and camellia all rooted! I’m determined not to buy any plants this season. We’ll see how that goes.