Heat + Rain = Fungus

This is what it looks like to a bug. The last few nights have been really warm and rainy. Each morning I wake to a forest of mushrooms. They only come up in the south facing bed and by the time I get home from work they are gone. It makes me wonder what else goes on in my garden at night when I sleep. This looks like a mushroom village to me and I imagine that the fairies would love it.


This is very cool too. It's much taller than the other little ones.

See how glossy the top looks?

As cool as I think the mushroom village is, I know that this is a fungus and I imagine the spores under the woodchips infesting the roots of my beloved plants. Where does this stuff come from? I never had this pre woodchips. I wonder if I imported it in with the chips.

I love the rain because it keeps me from needing to water, but I'm over it. Bring on the sunshine! I've got planter boxes to make on Saturday!

Tending Roses: How I spent my Sunday

Since I had a seemingly unlimited supply of free woodchips I thought I'd be crazy not to mulch the Hedge Roses, too. They were a weedy mess!

Ever tried pulling up weeds through straw? It sucks! So, I raked off the straw. Action Hoe to the rescue!!
After removing as many weeds as I could, I loaded the rose beds up with the woodchips. I think it looks much better.

Another post mulch picture

I gotta say, I'm sooooooooooooooooo glad I am done with those damn woodchips!! I made a total of 9 trips!! That's 27 raggedy metal trash cans, 18 recycle bins and 18 storage containers full of this stuff. I wonder how many yards that was?

Below: Foundation bed

Below: Garage bed

I didn't post a picture of the south fence bed as I'm scared that Carol and Carolyn will yell at me when they find out that I cut the Spirea down to the ground.

Devine Garden Intervention

I've been complaining for 2 months about how much I need mulch for my low-budget garden. First I thought I'll just leave it mulchless until next year but the dirt just looked awful so I decided to try straw. At 5.99 per bale It was very affordable but it wasn't nearly enough and it really brought out the brown in my dead grass. Then I found dark brown mulch on sale for 1.99 per 2 cubic foot bag. I bought 10 bags and that was barely enough to cover the garage bed. I can't win!

Well, today I found free wood chips on Craiglist and the best part is they were right by my house!! Thank you Craigslist Woodchip Couple!! I loaded up my car with 4 trash cans and 2 storage bins and headed over. I could not believe that pile of wood chips - IT WAS HUGE! Mr. Woodchip pointed out that it was starting to compost and I could actually see the steam coming off the pile. I made a second trip over to their house to reload. I really wish I'd had on my heart rate monitor so I could have seen how many calories I burned. I was a shoveling fool! For one thing I wanted to get the hell out of the heat but Mr. and Mrs. Woodchip were also trying to enjoy their Sunday outside and I felt like I was being very intrusive.

So after I refilled and loaded all my cans and storage bins I climbed in my car, hands shaking, face red as my Sweet 100s and I was thinking I THINK I MIGHT FAINT! I pulled out of their alley and at the very first stop sign this lady comes running toward my car screaming and waving something. I'm thinking WTH, I don't need this right now! "FREE WATER, FREE BOTTLED WATER, WOULD YOU LIKE A BOTTLE OF COLD WATER???!!!". I am not making this up! She gave me a bottle of water and God Blessed Me. That lady may have saved my life! And Mr. and Mrs. Woodchip probably saved my garden. Here are a couple of shots of the foundation and fence bed after woodchips.

The garden Gods were good to me on Sunday.