|
LOVELY GREENS….. by Tanya from The Isle of Man
20 Saturday May 2023
20 Saturday May 2023
|
20 Saturday May 2023
|
|
14 Sunday May 2023
A perfectly beautiful day to go picking out plants. And we found a beautiful new bright Peach Rose bush for our Valley Drive client. We delivered it on the way back home and have planned the install with our homeowner for early Tuesday morning.
Our other mission was “wave” or “trailing” Petunias for a metal basket, which fits at the top of a garden Etagere. We purchased two (2) “wave” White, and two (2) “wave” pink. And one (1) Pink verbena for the center of the dish. It has lots of buds. And in a previous post we mentioned over-wintering a third season pink Geranium, so we’ll be taking it from our location early tomorrow morning, to the site of our Beverley Drive clients house, and finally planting everything up. It’s always kind of exciting to pull a project together. And
this client also needed four pretty Begonias for her planters on the shelves of her very cute Etagere. We selected four (4), one each in pink/white/peach and yellow.
It was a super busy day at the nursery with it being Mother’s Day. Many children picking things out for Mother’s and Grandmother’s. Lots of Dads and Dogs joining in on family fun outings. Wagons and garden carts everywhere and as soon as plant racks were emptied, new ones were rolled in with yet more plants. It’s worth standing back and just watching the huge assortment of plants being added every hour. We had small purchases today but what’s great is that the commercial checkout line is so manageable because it’s inside the nurseries “red barn” so we don’t have to stand in long lines. We buy items for clients, we do charge them a moderate site visit fee, but in return they receive our “biz discount” on all their plants. This is a “nice win” for them and brings new installation work for us. And the beauty of seeing so much plant life to choose from is dazzling. We always enjoy our trips to the nursery. It just fills you up to see the variety and the amazing colors and displays. This nursery has many talented designers and employees with a ton of knowledge and we love the idea of a family owned and operated nursery. So important to support “home grown” businesses. We contributed a small part in that ethic today.
“Contessa” says… it is a site visit to behold!
11 Thursday May 2023
BEFORE
We are here today to complete our clients spring tidy. The Pansies made it through the winter and most everything came back except one (1) Salvia. The Shasta Daisy looks small but we are pretty certain it will fill in. Our last fall tidy took a lot of weeds out so her beds are fairly clean of weeds. She does have some left over spring blooming daffodils and we planted tulips last fall, so we need to do some cleaning up of the beds of those two early spring bloomers. And it’s time to remove all the Pansies. They served her well from late October until now. A good run forPansies, and she loves them
So Yesterday she and I shopped for plants. This year she wanted to add all “annuals.” So we found some pretty ones. The main thing is she likes color and instant gratification and she made all the pics herself. Waiting for blooms is not particularly her ”thang.”
Here is part of her area from last year, as a comparison after we added about 8 new perennials and finished her spring work
Sooo…. Please check back this evening to get a “birds eye view” of our progress.
IN PROGRESS
We are still planting and moving plants around. Tidying up early spring bloomers and cleaning the patio furniture and cleaning the sand from the newly created stone patio. We will be back tomorrow to first off plant the two new yellow Rose bushes, finish planting the four new Canna Lily’s and four other annuals in the larger bed. Then we will mulch everything and take a final video.
We completed four hours today and estimate another four or five to finish. We can always move a few hours into Monday morning. Let’s see how it takes shape. One thing is for sure, the beds were full of weeds and creeping vines when we took on this project and we have come a long way. It is looking full and will definitely be pretty for our summer season.
“Contessa”
(REVISED) Friday – 5/12/23 – 5:30 pm
Four (4) Hours today. New yellow Rose bushes planted in the sloping bed. Tricky digging holes on an incline. But we think we have them positioned quite well. Both a little higher on the slope than the one in the middle at our clients request. Everything in the main bed is planted and the entire bed is cleaned up of debris. All four Canna Lily’s in pots are yet to be planted. We need one more larger pot as Canna grow rather large and we don’t want them to tip over. We will check our own supply to see if we might have one in storage, but the owner is willing to purchase a fourth if need be.
We need potting soil and we will pick it up Monday morning on our way to the site. But they were thoroughly watered and with 90% chance of rain tomorrow, Saturday, they will be fine until Monday when we return. Finally to finish this project we will spread the mulch.
We had told our client we would clean up all the patio furniture and so our “wonder cleaner” baking soda did the trick. Not only does it clean grime, but it whitens and brightens. Can’t beat it for .80 cents per box. All her chairs had mildew and the baking soda eats away at it; just a little water and soda and a soft brush really cleaned them up. A wonder cleaner. Late fall we had gathered and placed all the furniture off to side of the yard so that when the patio folks arrived last week they had clearance to complete their job. And it’s looking really very nice. Great stone and great pattern the way they laid it. Still a good amount of sand is lingering on the surface, but when we finally wrap up the gardening project, we are going to clean it up well. No additional photos this week because we prefer to give you a “final video” upon completion. But it’s looking really great already.
”Contessa” says….. a big project…. but a fun one as well!
•••••••
(REVISED) – 5/16/23 – Tuesday- 5:00 pm
This client had no garden when we met her. Nothing but invasive creeping vines. So this is year three and we have lots of flowers now and today we finished up all the finishing touches. Planted four Canna Lily’s and a very pretty ornamental Azalea for the center of her garden table.
We are home now….. and will be invoicing her for eleven (11) hours. Five bags of mulch, two bags of potting soil, and two (2) yellow rose bushes.
FINAL VIDEO
”Contessa” says….so lovely to work in and complete this pretty little garden!
02 Tuesday May 2023
Can you believe it… 6 hours. Why such a long time?
First off…. the bed is only about 24 inches wide. Over to the left of the sidewalk is a humongous tree with far reaching roots underneath the earth. Upon digging down even six inches we ran in to thick roots and tangled feelers about 30 inches long. There was no way the six Azalea bushes that had been planted there three years ago, could ever survive. No soil, no depth in the bed and no girth to allow for growth spurts once planted. These were planted by a nursery. The root balls were larger than basketballs. We had to totally soak them and used three different shovels to dig them out. This left huge holes to fill, and the bed had to be leveled properly. Our planting technique is to build beds up towards the middle. Less dirt on the edges near the way to close brick borders. In our opinion those six bushes never stood a chance. No sun there and no depth of soil.
So, very wisely our homeowner decided for us to dig them up today and just plant some pretty annuals for this summers growing season.
Today was cold. It was a very muddy job due to our recent rain and the fact that we had to soak them even more to be able to dig them up.
All the root balls and root feelers were set aside but to wet to bag. So tomorrow we will return to take everything and tidy up any muddy spots left on the sidewalk.
Today we were to have completed the back yard spring tidy as well. Time just did not permit. So we are working to schedule time with the homeowner into next week or tge following week
A NOTE: Folks always ask how long is the project going to take. It’s a normal question, but until we dive into a job it’s very hard to be sure. This job was one of those hard ones. Today’s work was living proof that until you start digging and get into the “nitty gritty” of a project, it’s really hard to give exact times. Once our homeowner saw the mess outside they had a very good idea that our proposed four (4) hours was in the end, not going to be enough time. But the good news is this bed is in much better shape than it’s ever been and together we will try to come up with a more permanent and longer term plan. We’ve recommended removing the brick borders as they really limit the capacity to plant. And a tidy flowering ground cover that is continuously maintained by us may just be the answer. Anyway we will work together to come up with a more permanent solution. In the meantime these very colorful and very pretty Begonias will look nice this summer. They were reasonably priced and certainly brighten up this very shady spot, as they are shade to part shade annuals. For now it’s looking fresh and attractive.
“CONTESSA” says….it’s all very nice!
29 Saturday Apr 2023
|
|
21 Friday Apr 2023
Posted Blooms, Gardening, Professional Services, Sharing, Today's Update
inWe completed a three hour buying trip today for four (4) of our clients. At this stage in our business relationship with them, they trust us to make selections for them. It was very busy at the center today so it took longer than usual. We then headed back to our community and made deliveries to each house. As temps were in the very high 80’s today, we did water the plants at each location and watered their gardens as well. Our monthly maintenance contracts do not begin until June 1st, because we are hopeful to complete all our larger jobs before we begin the tender loving care of our “Summer Maintenance” customers. So from now until then we are charging a fee each time we complete a watering visit, upon their request. It was so warm here in Virginia we just had to water, because our plant install jobs are not commencing until next week.
We did purchase some very lovely plants today. Almost $500 in blooming perennials. So we will be busy.
Tomorrow, Sat we have one client install. And Sunday we have an Open House to attend. The owner of the property has asked us to attend this event so he could introduce our services to the visitors. A very nice gesture. And of course he is hoping his next tenant might continue to use our service for continuous upkeep.
It has been a very busy week and tonight it’s now 9:30 pm and we are just finishing our day. Good production this week. Each day full. And for the next two weeks we are booked.
Ah…spring!
“Contessa” says….. it’s all very good!
18 Tuesday Apr 2023
We we usually take a BEFORE video, but this year we are here earlier than normal. Our huge trees in the community are in high frequency with pollen emission and “wings.” Wings are pieces of nature that fall from the spring trees. To put it mildly they are everywhere right now. So as a result it’s too early to clean this properties bed just yet.
So we used out appt time to complete tidying the lawn in front, cutting back dead growth from winter and trimming any dead branches from all the bushes and extensive watering just because the Azaleas and all the plants were thirsting badly. We have had no rain to clear out the flying dirt, pollen and pre-leaf material that falls from the trees.
When we left the property certainly looked better but we need about until the 15th of May to schedule a proper tidy. In the meantime we trimmed back the Boxwoods on the porch under the portico and raked the lawn. Everything is blooming except the daffodils which have finished their blooming cycle. When we return to complete the bed clean up we will need to knot the daffodils and lay them on the ground and cover with mulch. Our client said she thought they bloomed this year more than ever.
Still the property looks good. But our homeowner and great client had us come because she is anxious. But it really is too soon to do very much today. The air is dirty, the soil is very hard and dry and so much “ spring” is flying around it’s just not productive to clean it up yet. Frankly “spring” this year is having serious growing pains. It is still doing it’s thing.
May is our busiest time for this reason. Typically we are still having very cool early mornings, but our daytime temps fluctuate between 60 to almost 80. It’s a “messy” time of spring. But….flowering trees and shrubs are plentiful and superbly beautiful. Spring in Virginia is amazingly gorgeous. How blessed we are…even in the messy.
We completed 2.5 hours today on this project.
REVISED 4/24
Video and Photos Feed is now restored! Yeah!
“CONTESSA”
••••••••••
(REVISED) 5/17/23 – Wednesday – 11:30 am
We came early in the spring and did a quick tidy. But all the daffodils were still bright green, starting to lay themselves down now, but with so many in the bed we decided a later complete cleanup would be needed. She agreed. At that time we cleaned up the beds some, cut back anything dead in the beds, applied Neem Oil to the Rose bushes, and the Butterfly bushes. Raked the dead grass from the yard and pulled a few weeds. Our project that day is seen above in this post.
So today we were invited by our homeowner to complete a proper spring cleanup which should get her to about mid summer. The reason is, she likes everything looking good and prefers not to wait until fall for her beds to receive continual upkeep and attention. So here is our video this morning as we arrive. As you can see it’s time to take the Pansies out and really do our magic……and we begin!
It’s now 5:11 pm. We are finished for today. Returning tomorrow to plant fresh “angel wing” Begonias in peach and yellow. We cleaned all the beds today of debris, pulled out all the very spent Pansies, applied Neem Oil to the Roses and Butterfly bushes. Aphids are messing with both. When you see tiny holes in the leaves that’s them. They are “buggars” for sure, but the Neem Oil spray which is a gardeners answer to Tylenol for plants, is ready to rescue. No real gardener is any good without Neem Oil. We encourage all our client to purchase two spray bottles of it each year.
Tomorrow we will plant the Begonia plants and mulch everything. We will present a Final Video tomorrow afternoon. Please check back in with us. Four (4) hours dedicated to this project today.
“Contessa”
••••••••••••••••
(REVISED) 5/19/23 – Friday – 8:30 am
Yesterday we completed our property on Mt Eagle Place fir our Doctor resident. Her double unit we must say is the nicest property on her whole lengthy and winding cul-de-sac. And she is religious about keep it looking good with our contributions. Everything has been de-bugged, deadheaded, trimmed as needed, beds are cleaned if all debris, and we planted new “angel-wing” Beginia’s in peachy/pink and bright yellow. Just enough color until her Peony pops and her Butterfly bush dies it’s thing. We’ve a light floating of mulch this year as nature provided tons of tiny dropping from their leaf creation so it acted like a sort of grinder mulch and once it dies away it will provide added protection for all her plants. The Azaleas are past bloom and still drying on her bushes and the lilac and daffodils are past bloom as well.
And so we present you with our completion. A total of seven (7) hours for this handsome project.
FINAL VIDEO
15 Saturday Apr 2023
Our Yellow Jasmine is singing today. So bright and pretty. And many blossoms yet to come…..
•••••••••••••••••••
One thing we have learned is that many blooming plants can be grown in containers. So if your little plot of beds outdoors your home is smallish, you can have two or three very lovely flowering plants in good sized decorative planters and locate them strategically into your garden beds. This way you can move them around without the need to dig them up for a relocation. And you can still plant around them if you’ve the garden bed space. We find that planters are non-restrictive and in fact, one year we had a beautiful Palm that grew pretty large, and we even relocated it into the house for the winter for several seasons. It made a lovely backdrop to divide our living and dining area. It fit in just like it was supposed to be there. And then in the spring we would move it back outdoors as a focal point for our outdoor chair and side table vignette. We have done this also with Hydrangeas and an Azalea Dwarf Tree. So don’t limit yourself in terms of bloomers that you think must only grow in the ground. Your only challenge might be asking a neighbor to lend a helping hand with the moving each season.
We purchased Saucers on Castors and used them to protect floors and rugs and it helps to make your plant so much easier to move around, and it raises it up some from the floor giving a little more height. It’s wonderful. We love large plants indoors so think about trying this. Indoor/Outdoor plants are wonderful.
“Contessa” says….. just go for it!
15 Saturday Apr 2023
Posted Art, Blooms, Gardening, Helpful Tips, Museum News, Sharing, Special Events, Today's Update
in
|
|