'100 Days of Hell' in the gardens

This is what I call an "orderly" garden, in front of our house.
 Plants (soon to be many more!), mulch, and cobblestone borders.

         A garden expert published a statement on Sunday that caught my eye: Many gardeners call this time of year '100 days of hell,' she wrote.

    Well! I can certainly understand that thinking.

    When you combine a gardening enthusiast with an admitted "Clean Freak," you get me. (See related blog https://bakersheartbeat.blogspot.com/2021/02/confessions-of-clean-freak.html). I recently finished Spring Cleaning inside the house. 

    But '100 Days of Hell?' It's all perspective.

    We have almost an acre of land in rural Scott County, Iowa. That includes more than a dozen gardens. All are mulched, surrounded by cobblestones and with what I call a "gutter" between the garden and yard.

    Tending this is a labor of love, for sure. Luckily, that's how much I enjoy gardening.

    The "joy" part comes after what is happening these days. In April and early May I weed the gardens, and the gutters, pulling out errant grass and debris.

    The weeding on Sunday focused on "Creeping Charlie," which has creeped all over the lower part of our yard. I pulled hundreds, maybe thousands of these annoying little weeds, using a hand cultivator and sharp weeder. The debris was tossed in one of my Tubtrugs and eventually, will be disposed of appropriately.

    I then cultivated the mulch remaining so it looks nice, and eventually I'll trim the grass with my snazzy battery-powered trimmer.

    There are thousands more Creeping Charlie weeds on the sandy beach we maintain. That's a task as the weather improves and time allows.

    Back to "100 Days of Hell: It's a busy time of year. Most gardeners want their yards to look nice. In addition, in normal, non-COVID-19 years there are outdoor events like graduations, weddings and the like. 

    Iowa's typical frost date is May 10 so most planting goes on after that time.

    I like having a tidy yard and garden. "Better Homes & Gardens" glossy magazine photos dance in my head. I'm not the only person who does Spring Cleaning, of course. If I get frustrated by all the weeds I think of times when the yard was really on display, with wedding receptions, corporate and neighborhood parties and family photos. 

    Some change is afoot. This year one of the ditches we maintain will be seeded with native Iowa plants so my husband no longer will mow that area of the yard. This is a service provided by Scott County and I'll report on it later this season after it actually happens.

    Native plants are better for the environment, of course, and I'm trying hard to incorporate such plantings in my orderly gardens. It is an evolution in more ways than one!

    

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