for our guests

Really, I think we need to plant these much-much-much-much earlier next year. What's the deal with Not Blooming until (almost) July?? Hopefully our summer guests will get to enjoy lots of bright flowers because of these slow-pokes.

the surprise (ie, not basil)

May picture

and now (see how they're wilting? the heat started two days ago). I'm wondering if I've been watering them too much -- well, not too much for them, but too much for the cilantro. Do you see it to the right? It's yellow. Also (and you can't see this in the picture), all the cilantro plants are starting to seed. I suppose I should look up what that means.

all done

the anemones, yesterday. I'm going to pull them up and use the pot for our one hardy geranium.

End of May

Behold the anemones (a month ago).

aha! I suspected this! there are actually TWO sprouts that come out of one cilantro seed. maybe, maybe this is why my first batch of cilantro all died - - I thinned them out (uh . . . just like the directions said!) pulled up one of the two (how did I get two seeds in almost every hole? I wondered . . ) that were stuck up next to each other. WELL this time around I actually did some research and found someplace that confirmed my suspicions that there were supposed to be two plants next to one another (you would think that that fact would be more clearly documented)
I'm very, very pleased that my cilantro has grown at least three times as much as my last batch (before they died)

the news on my basil - - uhhhhh . . . it's not basil. they are jonny jump ups - - apparently seeded from the ones I planted (on the other side of the porch) when I was pregnant with Selma. blast! that means the basil (that I planted TWO times!) never came up.

there's no stopping the parsley.

First bloom!

either yesterday or today, and we're so proud (and there are more to come...). I think we need to plant these earlier next time around. Maybe in the fall, instead of the spring?

Again.

they're amazing! I just wanna.....hug them, 'cause they're such nice grow-ers.

Color!

Pretty, huh! I found these two days ago while I was walking to Pamplona. We'll see how long they last. I have my doubts about the blue one -- which is my favorite, of course -- looks kind of delicate, even though suppossedly it's a perennial. I was told I could plant them together in the pot.

And in for a closer look...

These are some of the leftovers from last year. They look surprisingly good! but Naomi found some little bugs on them yesterday, so she's looking into some sort of bug poison. sorry guys.

there's that parsley. it's gleefully growing in its own little corner (can a circular pot have a corner? hmmm . . . . ) of the fresh herbs pot. I don't even really like parsley. dern. All but one little measly little cilantro plant is officially gone. still don't know what the problem was. I recently noticed a bunch of little black bugs crawling around in the dirt where the cilantro plants used to be. maybe they caused the wipe-out?
the basil keeps growing, though. (but slowly . . . ever so sloooowly . . . . )
and check out the lavender ant the mystery plant. tons o' new growth; they are even in a spot that really doesn't get that much sun. nice.
these nasturtiums have got to be the fastest growing of everything we have planted from seed yet. they are amazing. that's all I'm planting next year.

the big pot

well, my cilantro was growing so, so nicely. in the past week or so, however, my little plants (maybe an inch tall by now) have started to turn yellow (see above) and keel over - - drying up at the base of the plant and then just falling (see below). wierd. maybe I over-watered? they were just so nice . . . it pleased me so much to water such happy little plants . . . maybe I went overboard.
this weekend I planted about twenty more cilantro seeds.

the (what I assume is) basil seems to be coming along well. there are probably three or four little plants now.

and look (above) what mysteriously sprouted up this week . . . . right where that parsely plant used to be (I tore it up before replanting the pot)

Dreaming of pasta

The thyme and oregano are now officially in the same pot.

Soaking...

Today I planted the olive tree that I bought....a month ago? But first I soaked the tree-and-dirt in water for 10 minutes. Also, I planted nasturtiums (because they'll be bright, and they remind me of Mom). Seeds, that is. So, no pictures 'till they poke their little heads up.

our oregano - - bought at a local flower shop. it's a happy, healthy plant (probably because Rachel spoils it - - does things like takes it into her room when it's freezing outside) . we have a little thyme plant that we intend to plant along side of it . . . being that they are both woody herbs

Rosemary, Lavender and some plant that produces little blue flowers (it survived outside living on the porch all through the winter months - - even made it through being put into a trash bag for a month or two while we used its pot for our Christmas tree)

this is the huge pot that I used for our tomato plants last summer. not doing it again this year. fun enough while it lasted, but not worth repeating - - not for me. hoping to get a more satisfying crop with herbs. planted cilantro (on the left) and basil (on the right) in March. so far the cilantro has come up dandily, but the basil is slow in coming. I THINK that there are two teeny tiny non-cilantro sprouts along with the cilantro, and I think it may be basil, but I'm not sure.


back two and front right have anemones in them. planted in March

planted with llllllllll I these are supposed to be thinned out - - like ten cm apart (which will leave like, uhhhh, three) . I need to do this when Josu isn't looking.

morning glories in the back, square planter. planted in March
the coffee pots were the most recent planting (first week of April) - - planted with