March 3, 2014
The temperature dipped down to 28 degrees on one night. This did a lot of damage to my new spring plants, especially the tomatoes.March 6, 2014
The coral honeysuckle was growing slowy against the west fence.
The lantana was forming new leaves.
Henbit grew above the level of the grass in the front yard.
Bur clover was growing well in the front yard.
Lawnflower was spreading in the front yard.
Henbit grew above the level of the grass in the front yard.
Bur clover was growing well in the front yard.
Lawnflower was spreading in the front yard.
March 7, 2014
I noticed young ferns unfurling among the old dying fern stems along the back of my garage.The white autumn sage (Salvia greggii) was flowering. There was still some star jasmine between it and the shrimp plant to the west along the back fence.
New hackberry leaves were emerging.
Violet wood-sorrel leaves and flowers were against the east fence.
Prickly sow-thistle was growing by the back yard fence near the gate.
Tenpetal anemone was starting to flower.
Annual bluegrass was flowering.
Common chickweed was just starting to flower.
Azalea flowers were forming; some were fully bloomed but others were not open yet.
March 8, 2014
I decided it was best to replace the tomatoes and peppers that had been affected by the recent freeze. I bought the following seedlings at Buchanan’s and planted them:- Serrano ‘Del Sol’
- Tomato ‘Black Krim’
- Tomato ‘Black Cherry’
- Tomato ‘Bloody Butcher’
- Tomato ‘Yellow Pear’
- Pepper ‘Hot Banana’
- Bell pepper ‘California Wonder’
- Eggplant ‘Pot Black’
- Eggplant ‘Black Beauty’
- String beans ‘Kentucky Wonder’
- Cucumber ‘Homemade Pickles’ (replacing the seedlings that died in the freeze)
- Cucumber ‘Spacemaster’ (ditto)
March 11, 2014
Leaf buds appeared on the crape myrtles.I discovered a plant on the west side yard that might be a Clematis.
Discovered dichondra on the west side yard.
Cleavers were flowering.
I got a picture of ten-petal anemone while its flower was open. Another's cone had grown and the petals had fallen off.
Crane flies became abundant, and several entered my house at night when I had the back door open.
Dayflower was flowering.
I took a photo of false garlic flowers. It was near the end of the flowering period.
March 12, 2014
I learned that the chickweed in my yard was mouse-eared chickweed because it had hairs uniformly over its stems, whereas common chickweed has one row of hairs in a line up its stems.Cleavers were flowering.
I found a A crane fly drowned in some standing water.
At least one of my pepper plants had a flower and flower buds.
March 16 – 21, 2014
I spent a work week in Chicago for work.March 22, 2014
Alexandra came over, and we built my hügelkultur mound.March 23, 2014
Alexandra and Chris came over.Chris and I completed the hügelkultur mound by adding a mix of dirt and compost over it on all sides.
Alex snipped the old star jasmine vines into small pieces, weeded some, and watered everything.
We planted these seeds:
- Lakota Squash on the left front of the mound
- Pink Banana squash on the right front of the mound
- Clemson Spineless okra on both short ends of the mound
- California Blackeye #5 black-eyed peas on the back side of the mound
- Monstrueux de Viroflay spinach on the top ridge of the mound
- Roquette wild arugula in the empty space in the original keyhole bed
- Hale’s Best Jumbo cantaloupe at the big trellis.
I discovered that my existing butterfly bush, which I thought was dead, had grown a cluster of small leaves close to the ground. I thought to check for that when the tag on the one I bought said the plant could be cut to its base in winter.
Carolina geranium was flowering, and some seed pods were forming.
The kales, collards, and mustards in the C bed were fairly large.
On of the toscano kales had bolted and was about to flower.
I photographed a yellow woodsorrel flower.
Some tomatoes were deep green on their vine.
Canteloupe and cucumber seedlings had emerged on the mounds in front of the trellises I had put in front of the star jasmine near the eastern end of the back fence. The mounds also had goldenrain tree seedlings in them.
I had pulled up most of the star jasmine agains the east fence, and much of that area was lightly covered with sticks and dead star jasmine vines.
The white autumn sage by the back fence was flowering a little. There was still some star jasmine close by to the west of it.
Shrimp plant was flowering on the other side of the star jasmine from tthe white autumn sage.
The lantana was scrawny and bereft of flowers.
The coral honeysuckle had some downy mildew on it.
March 24, 2014
Picked up two bags of grass clippings in the neighborhood on the way home from work.Added all the grass clippings, along with all the Whole Foods juice pulp and coffee grounds I had accumulated over the last few days, which was a lot, to my new compost pile.
Mixed in the new compost components by shoveling the pile over to a new spot right next to where it was.
I transplanted catnip in a shady area of the herb garden.
The bean seedlings at the ends of the arbor were gettting eaten my insects.
The prickly sow thistle had some achenes.
March 25, 2014
Cleared out some star jasmine by the back fence to make room for…Put my new Butterfly Bush ‘Black Knight’ in the ground by the back fence, next to the white autumn sage.
Added more juice pulp and coffee grounds to the compost pile.
March 26, 2014
Scarab beetles and mosquitoes started showing up in the house when I kept the door open.I saw the puff of ten-petal anemone seeds.
The bolted tuscano kale's flowers had bloomed.
One of the cucumber seedlings started forming a true leaf.
I found a silverfish in the kitchen.
March 28, 2014
It was wet outside.The American beautyberry is creating new leaves but isn't flowering yet.
I found five scarab beetles on their backs on the kitchen floor.
The geraniums all have seeds now and few flowers.
The smaller Toscano kale has been flowering for about a week.
Each of the cucumber seedlings has its first true leaf.
One of the Loropetalum plants has no more flowers. The other still has flowers and seeds.
The Persian silk tree in the east yard has started to leaf.
In the east yard, I discovered what might be a bottom land post oak (Quercus similis).
I found a horseweed by the driveway.
I found Venus Looking Glass (Triodonis) and flat-top mille graines in a driveway crack.
Another driveway crack has horseweed, yellow woodsorrel, and American black nightshade.
There is a small tomato plant with one small green tomato and a few flowers.
A kale has created a lot of seed pods.
A Culex pipiens mosquito was on one of my kitchen cabinets.
Chinese tallow was rising up from underground sticks.
Lawnflower was flowering.
I took several pictures of one of the scarab beetles that ended up in my kitchen. This one shows its hairy chest.
March 29, 2014
I steamed a big mat of cleavers (Galium aparine) to eat, but they were not as edible once they went to seed. I ended up putting them in the compost.A Parasola plicatilis mushroom was growing out of the dirt in the keyhole bed.
Common chickweed was flowering.
American black nightshade is about six inches tall.
Oriental false hawksbeard (Youngia japonica) has many flowers and cypselas (the fruit with hairs that help with dispersal).
Some bean seedlings are emerging in a original dirt backyard bed.
The driveway has some leaves and oak catkins on it, but not much.
The false garlic has seed pods, and the flowering period is mostly or completely over.
The temperature of my compost pile maxed out my thermometer at 140 degrees.
March 30, 2014
I found the potter wasp Euodynerus bidens on the "arbor" (the old bench swing frame).I took a picture of a tiny braconid wasp on my hand.
I found common woodland sedge with its fat fruits in dense clusters.
