August coming to an end

The weather here in Oregon has turned to the cool and damp side once again. We have just not had much of a summer this year. But this weather makes working in the gardens a bit more comfortable. Been working on the August to do list.

Did a second light pruning on the large Magnolia in the front drive

Edged the Cotoneaster ground cover that surrounds the front gardens.

Put the last bit of fertilizer on the rose garden and dead headed all my roses as well as the neighbors fifty roses.

Picked the last of the Gravensein apples and tidied the rest of the Espaliered fruit trees.

Cut out all old canes in the Raspberries.

Tidied up in the greenhouse and sprayed for spider mite control.

Took cuttings of pink Camellia (original plant on property) for fall plant trade.

Divided and cut back Bearded Iris (next month do the same with Siberian and Japanese Iris).

Here are some of the roses in bloom

'Queen of Sweden"

"Home Run"

"Betty Boop"

"Disneyland"

Third Annual Corgi Walk

Doc, Mema and Her Majesty Miss Betty

Sorry I have not posted this before but it took me a while to retrieve the pictures from Memas camera, I much prefer my ancient one over her new fancy one. Anyway, last Saturday was the third Annual Corgi Walk which is a fund raiser for both Corgi Rescue and Dove Lewis Veterinary Hospital which is our Local Emergency Animal Hospital open all hours and staffed by the most wonderful group of veterinarians.

There were Corgi's and their humans of every sort ......

 

 

 

 

 

Miss Betty shows us how she deals with this unruly lot

 

 

Couple of pups   

Brindle Cardigan Corgi   

Cardigan Fluffy

Always one trouble maker in every crowd

The Pembroke crowd were pretty well behaved

Let the walk begin!!

"Outside Facilities" were provided

Excitement built as the end was in sight

The route was quite simple but the Fluffy crowd managed some confusion

The end of the walk was very refreshing

Who says Corgis aren't water dogs

After a good splash the tired little Corgis head home

Some rode in style

Some too tired to move

others chose to mingle a little longer

Anemone in bloom signals first sign of fall

Anemone tomentosa 'Robustissima"

Back in the summer of 1973 we were in Clatskanie visiting my then future in-laws for the weekend. I dug up these two Anemone's from the neighbors garden. When they bloom it is always the first sign that summer is slowing down and fall is catching up. They are real troopers in the Manors gardens as they have been transplanted and abused more then any plant on the grounds. They make great picked flowers as well.

Anemone 'Honorine jobert'

Good-bye Beaver Baseball

I didn't have my camera so the pictures were taken with my cellular phone. This will be the last season for the Portland Beavers Baseball Team. They have been sold and will leave our State to become someone else's favorite team. Portland is going with Soccer. So the stadium will be made into a soccer stadium and the interior has already been changed a bit as far as "Timber" Logos everywhere. It was a lovely night for a game unfortunately the Beavers lost by one point :o( Our seats were four rows back behind home plate.

I can and I did

You ever have a day when you get up fully intending to carry on with a normal day, coffee breakfast and off to the office. On our street there are three families that are on vacation and have asked that I water their yards while they are gone. They have normal sized lots and all are those boring, common type of yards that have mostly lawn with planting boarders of what ever was on sale at the local nursery......not an ounce of imagination or desire. Regardless I spend time to make sure everything gets watered on my watch, I would hate for something to shrivel and die in the much needed hot spell we have been having. So....my alarm went off at its normal 05:00 and I showered and put on my gardening clothes and headed up the street to the first yard, I was on my third yard when Mema came looking for me to say goodbye before heading off to work. She said "you look relaxed there farm boy, too bad you can't just stay home". I looked at her and replied, "I can", and I did. I am a list maker, and keep several lists. The first is a list for the week, all those little jobs I know I can get done through the work week. The second is a list of things that will involve time and trips to the hardware store and the like. And a third which takes precedence over my other lists and this is the one that has all the things that my lovely wife tells me she would like done. Watering done I looked over my lists and picked a few things from all three. I pulled out the row of Sweet Peas because they had all gone to seed and the few flowers left would not fill a vase(weekly list). Harvested my rows of Danvers Half Long Carrots and planted a single row for a fall crop(weekly list). Then it was off to the fuel company for two bags of sawdust for the chicken yard. I dug the yard and spread the sawdust to help combat the flies and dust(Memas list). Then a trip to the Miller for chicken feed and scratch (Memas list). Dead headed all fifty some roses (Memas list). Picked a basket of Gravenstein apples, I smell a pie in the works! That was on none of the list, but pie sounds good. Then off to the greenhouse to spray a preventative for spider mite(second list) and found this Phalaenopsis Orchid in bloom 'Rung Gung Ames'. A dainty little Orchid to surprise Mema.

While I ate some lunch my eldest son called and asked that I babysit "The Little Terrorist #2", so the rest of the day was spent reading Thomas The Train and making adventures. And all three lists were put on hold.