BAD GARDENER CONFESSIONS: WONKY WATERING

It is stacking up to be one of those summers where it feels like the hose is another bodily appendage. Already we've had periods of heavy rain followed but long stretches of windy, hot weather that dries out the ground quickly. It's been years since we've had a summer where I never wanted to see the hose again and it's amazing how quickly I forgot about proper watering.

Plants are starting to show signs of stress and that's no good when it's just officially become summer. Just last night I looked at the deck planters that I just planted (the ones that I'm not at all happy with), and the creeping Jenny looked like it had one root in the grave.

Fortunately, plants are more forgiving than not, and I gave the planter a proper watering this morning and I'm sure all will be well by the end of the day. Most plants are like that. The impatiens I planted in various places looked fully dead the other day but all perked up nicely.

Of course I can't continue this horrible gardener behavior. Plants can only take so much stress before they completely give up the ghost. I'm just at a horrible place in the garden right now where I feel like nothing is done to my satisfaction. I really need to take two or three days off of work to just pound it out. I bet I said that last year too. Also, that's not at all in the cards at this time.

So I have been making the best of it, and fine-tuning my one-handed watering (while the other hand holds a glass of wine, of course). I think I'll revisit some of my favorite watering tools on the blog soon because I have a feeling it's going to be that kind of year. But tell me, do you have any great watering tool finds for me? I'm always looking for the next new great thing.

Don't forget: Tomorrow is the last day to enter to win the super cool Sneeboer Royal Dutch Hand Hoe from Garden Tool Company.

FRIDAY FINDS

So, it's April 1, aka April Fool's Day. Be warned, folks, the Internet is full of bad jokes that people are falling for left and right.

But I hereby proclaim this space to be April Fool's joke free. Read with confidence.

In all seriousness, I'm really excited that we've made it to April. Gardening gets real in April.

So let's get into a few garden-related Friday Finds (plus a couple non-garden-related items).

Affiliate links may be used

I've written before about my quest for decent watering tools here and here, and for the most part, I've been happy with my Dramm waterbreaker (the all-metal one) on a longer extension. There are still the occasional dribbles, but it's not horrible, but sometimes the water comes out a little more aggressively than I would like, and turning down the water pressure just makes it come out in a stream, not a shower. This Haws brass watering wand caught my attention though. Not only is it beautiful, but I have a Haws watering can with that same end on it and it provides a nice, soft shower. It's pricey, that's for sure, but the thing is solid brass and from a brand name I admire so I feel like it's an investment that's worth making.

Gardenista did an article on watering wands this week as well.

I am always looking for new and interesting options for cabinet hardware and there were some great sources in this article.

This brass folding chalkboard is so. damn. good. I don't know what I'd do with it or where I'd put it, but I know the world is a better place because that's in it.

My friend Eric at GardenFork did a nice video on how to prune an apple tree. As with all his videos there are excellent video bombs by cute Labradors.

I faithfully voted in Shrub Madness every day, and as is the case every year, I did a horrible job picking winners in this bracket-based competition. I did have 'At Last' rose, which won handily, getting to the floral four, but I had picked 'Gatsby Pink' hydrangea to win it all. I'm happy that something other than a hydrangea won this year, and I'm intrigued by this rose, which is disease resistant and low maintenance like the Oso Easy roses that I'm very fond of, but it has fragrance, which is the bit that's missing from those other varieties. It's only available through White Flower Farm this year, but if it's all it's cracked up to be, this one could be a game changer.

I broke down and ordered Patina Farm by Brooke and Steve Giannetti last night. I love their landscape so much and even though there are a lot of photos floating around online, I thought having that book around would be a great inspiration. I love Brooke's blog Velvet and Linen. You can see a little preview of the book over on Loi's blog.

Speaking of ordering things, I saw a story about how online shopping goes through the roof on Friday nights (Saturday mornings) after 2 a.m. The theory is that people are "sipping and clicking." In other words, they get a little buzzed up and start shopping with reckless abandon. I can't say I've online shopped while drunk, but I have absolutely bought things at 2 a.m. that I had no business buying, and I think I was half asleep. I've done the same thing first thing in the morning. I now try not to shop online between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., although I broke that rule with the book last night.

That's it for this Friday. Have a great weekend, everyone. What are you up to this first April weekend?

4 THINGS TO DO NOW FOR A GREAT GARDEN NEXT YEAR

The garden is looking remarkably good for this time of year, but things will change quickly, so now is the time to take care of a few jobs to prepare for next year. Here are four things you can do right now to have a great garden next year.

I cleared out the half of the patio garden that I will be redoing. I incorporated a good amount of compost and raked it out and now the area is ready for planting either this fall or, more likely, next spring. Photos of the area from a variety of angles will help me plan this winter. 

1. TAKE PICTURES
They don't have to be pretty, but if you haven't been taking photos of your garden all summer, now is the time to whip out your camera or your phone and take a lot of pictures from different angles. Trust me. You think you're going remember what your garden looks like, but come February you'll be wondering what plants are lurking out there. And knowing what's out there will make it that much easier and that much more fun to do a little mid-winter garden planning.

2. TAKE NOTES
If you have a memory better than mine, mental notes should do just fine, but otherwise write down a few notes about what you want to change or reassess next year. I've printed out pictures in the past and written right on them, but even a list in the "Notes" app on my phone has come through in a pinch.

3. KEEP UP ON THE WATERING
Personal experience (and common sense) has taught me that plants that go into their winter hibernation happy instead of stressed fair much better through whatever winter can throw at them. The only thing that's less fun than dragging a hose around the garden is dragging a hose around the garden while you're wearing a parka, but it will be so worth it come spring.

4. PLANT A FEW BULBS
Even if you don't go hog wild on the bulbs, at least plant a few. The joy they bring after a long, gray winter is immeasurable. I've gone years without planting any new bulbs and have regretted it every time. 

GARDEN TRIAGE

If it ever seems like your garden changes very slowly, just leave it for a couple weeks in the middle of summer and see what it looks like when you get back.

Although I do this (rarely for this long, however) every year, it never ceases to amaze me how much the garden changes in what seems like a short period of time. Of course the average temperature increased by about 15 degrees and we had several good rainfalls while I was gone, so it was optimal growing conditions.

That means that I came home to a pretty overgrown situation. Fortunately I got home with a couple hours of gardening time left in the day (laundry can wait), so I was able to deal with the most dire situations. It was garden triage time.

Weeds have grown amazingly well and lots of plants need deadheading, but that is part of more finely tuned gardening. What I needed to do was quickly assess the areas that were most in need of assistance.

The cardoon was badly in need of water but it will perk up.

The first task was watering. Because of the rain, most of the garden was well hydrated, but the beds alongside the house and the containers were in desperate need of a drink. We have great dogsitters who do their best when it comes to the garden but I want them to focus on the dogs. And Mr. Much More Patient, who made a brief stop home last week, apparently does not follow the head gardener's very explicit watering instructions.

The cardoon was a droopy mess, as were the verbena in the large container by the front door. The cardoon will be fine, but I may have to prune out the floppy verbena. No worries, it will send up new flowers in no time.

The dahlias alongside the house were very unhappy. I gave them all big drinks and they perked up but I hate to stress a plant that should be focusing on flowering.

The dahlia in back was droopy and unhappy and the nasturtiums are attempting to take over the world.

In other areas of the garden, the immediate danger to some plants was not related to hydration, rather smothering from other runaway growers. Garden triage is no time for delicate pruning. I just went in there and hacked away the offending parts of plants. I will go back later to neaten that up, but for now a hack will do.

How did a weed get that big, that quickly?

More nasturtiums staging a garden coup, but the castor bean plants are doing really well and I love them.

The window box, which was dry as a bone, is a total mess. After it gets rehydrated I'll have to do some reassessing.

There's nothing neat about this kind of gardening. There's no time to grab the wheelbarrow to collect prunings and pullings. I just made piles around the garden and I'll go back later to clean up.

Speaking of coups, the goji berry plants are completely out of control. And there's  poppy. There are so many random poppies around!

Anyone need some parsley?

Official pea tester.

In the vegetable garden, which is not receiving the bulk of my attention this year and is worse for it, it's a little wild. I enjoyed eating the first peas (yes, I'm just now getting peas) as did my canine assistant, Rita. The parsley is insane and I hacked at that without even trying to save any of it. There was just no time for that. There's plenty for me and the rest of the town to eat.

The tomatoes have serious issues. I have a single cordon system going, but most of the tomatoes grew 18 inches or more while I was gone, so the system has gone to pieces. Not sure what I'm going to do to straighten that situation out but it definitely requires some attention.

There are a lot of good things happening in the garden as well. The chive hedge, which I cut back right before I left, is already regrown and looking great.

The sweet peas are starting to bloom and they are so lovely!

'Niobe' clematis looks great.

The circle garden is pretty nutty, but I think this picture shows that sometimes a riot of color can work out just fine.

The garden will require many hours of work over the next week or so and that's OK, I missed my time there. Being away from the garden is a good way to realize just how important those mini gardening sessions that occur when you're drinking your coffee or a cocktail really are.


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See more of what's happening in gardens online here.

MY FAVORITE TOOLS (PART 3: WEEDING, EDGING, WATERING, WHEELBARROWS)

We started with my four most used tools and yesterday I covered pruning and raking tools. Today I'm going to hit you with all the rest, so hang onto your hats.

Just to review, these are my favorite tools that I use for specific jobs in the garden. My entire tool collection numbers far more than the tools I actually use frequently, though. 

First up, my favorite weeding tools. In case you missed it, here are the main ways I deal with weeds (without chemicals) and all of these tools were mentioned in that garden.

1. HOE

I don't know what you call this kind of hoe, but generally speaking, it's a push hoe with sharp corners that work to sort of pluck out deeply rooted weeds. I think I'd prefer a hoe that works on both the push and the pull stroke though.

2. A.M. LEONARD DELUXE SOIL KNIFE

Are you noticing a pattern? I obviously use this thing for everything. Read more about it in Part 1.

3. WEED DRAGON PROPANE TORCH

Read the weed article for more about this dangerous, but super fun, tool. I also have a small hand truck to pull the propane tank around and I would really miss that bit. Garden Tool Co. has the torch bits on sale for under $55 right now.

EDGING TOOLS

I don't particularly love the process of edging but I love neatly edged beds and I can pretty much do anything I need to with an edge with these three tools. I should add that for awhile I used a half-moon edger, but that is now lost in the depths of the garage since I narrowed in on these tools.

1. A.M. LEONARD COMPOSITE HANDLE SPADE

I didn't buy this spade specifically for edging, but when I got it, I realized it was WAY too heavy for efficient digging, but its flat, heavy blade works really well for hand edging. I use this for small edging jobs or to do the heavy lifting when creating a new bed.

2. BAHCO LONG-HANDLED EDGING SHEARS WITH VERTICAL BLADE

These "shears on a stick" are new to me this year, but I am really loving them. They are long enough that you can stand up straight to use them. You set one blade against an existing garden edge and then move your right hand to slice through any grass that has sprung up. It has the most lovely slicing noise, too. This is great for a quick touch up and I've found by hitting my edges with this every couple of weeks, my initial edging at the beginning of the season will probably last all summer without having to bring out any other tools. If you're sort of nutty about your edges, this is a good tool to look into, and far preferable and safer for your plants than the weed eater.

3. BLACK AND DECKER 2-in-1 LANDSCAPER EDGER

First off, I have no idea what the 2-in-1 portion of this machine is because I only use it for one thing: cut edges. What I really wanted when I started looking for a power edger was a big gas edger. And then I discovered that those are really really expensive, so unless you run a botanical garden, you probably don't need one (or don't want to spend the money on one). I think I picked this up for about $100 and I'm OK with that price considering how much I like it.

It's electrical, so you do have to drag out the extension cords to use it and that's the main reason why I don't use it more often than I do. But it cuts a nice sharp line in the soil in seconds. I do go back and clean up the edges, usually on my hands and knees with my soil knife, just pulling away all the excess material on the bed-side of the line, but all of that still takes far less time than doing the whole thing by hand with a half-moon edger or spade. 

WATERING

Back in the early years of this blog, I lamented the lack of quality watering tools available for home gardeners. I was so sick of leaky everything, constantly wet sleeves and hoses that didn't last a year. Well I am very happy to report that manufacturers have really stepped up and improved the quality of watering tools.

1. DRAMM COLORSTORM TURRET SPRINKLER

Dramm, which is manufactured just up the road from me so I admit some local bias, has professional and consumer lines. The professional products are harder to find and you usually have to go to a nursery-supply company to buy them, but in some cases they are worth seeking out. Their Colorstorm line is by far their biggest consumer line and for a lot of products, the quality is similar to the professional lines. I have a love-hate relationship with sprinklers. For the most part, I don't like to use them but at the same time, sometimes you just don't have time to hand water everything. I like this sprinkler because you can pick the water pattern. I usually use the half rectangle or semicircle patterns so I can set the sprinkler on the edge of a bed and it will just water the plants in the bed, not anything behind it.

2. TUFF-GUARD PERFECT GARDEN HOSE

I've written about this hose before, and the fact that I still love it is actually the best testament a person like me, who used to replace hoses annually, can give a product. Here's what I like about it: 

• It's light but still big enough for a large volume of water to flow through it (other light hoses I've tried were light because they were small and the water just trickled out).
• You can't kink it. Ever. I actually put valve fittings on the end to stop the water for when I need to swap out end fittings because you can't just pinch the hose to stop the water. I can't tell you how nice it is to not have to worry about kinks.
• It has solid brass fittings that don't wear out.

It has one negative to it and I'll be honest, Mr. Much More Patient crabs about it somewhat regularly. It's a bit springy, so you pretty much have to use something to store it, rather than just coiling it up in a corner. I use a hose container and it is perfectly well behaved there (and comes out easily, again without kinking). Plus, I think it looks a heck of a lot better in a container than just coiled up on the patio. 

I have two 50-foot lengths connected and have used them for at least three years with no complaints. I have never had a hose last so long. In fact, we still have a traditional hose connected on the back of the hose that I use pretty rarely and I've gone through two hoses in that time and the stupid things kink all the time. 

3. DRAMM WATERING WAND AND WATERBREAKER

I have a couple of these and sort of mix and match the parts as needed. The one I use most is the 30-inch wand with a pull handle on it that I got at the hardware store. It's part of their Colorstorm line. But it came with a plastic nozzle that I don't care for, so instead I use an aluminum waterbreaker from their professional line. I've had all of these for several years and as long as I occasionally put in a new rubber washer, leaks are not an issue.

4. WATERING CAN

This is not exactly exciting stuff. I'm sad to see that Gardener's Supply seems to have discontinued this watering can because I really like it. The best thing about it is that it has a 3-gallon capacity. I hate lugging water around in cans, but what I hate even more is having to make a bunch trips for more water. There is a nozzle for it, but it seems to get clogged easily so I rarely use it. I've found that if I carry it backwards when it's full, it doesn't slosh out. I have no idea why, but it works! After about five years of use, it is starting to crack a little on the top, but I don't think you can complain about that.

WHEELBARROW

How could I not include my trusty wheelbarrow in my round-up of my favorite tools? This is only the second wheelbarrow I've had and it serves me well. It's got a large capacity bucket (I do not understand the point of a small wheelbarrow) and I quite like the double front wheels. I can't take it directly into beds because of the wide wheels, but I don't find that to be a big problem. 

I would say that wheelbarrows are one of those things that it pays to just buy a really good one from the beginning. Cheap, wobbly wheelbarrows are awful.

Well, all but one of them are. My first wheelbarrow was a cheap, wobbly one and it was great and I'll tell you why. Mr. Much More Patient proposed to me with it. 

We had purchased the house six months earlier, so we needed homeowner stuff and had pretty much no money. Our Christmas gifts to each other had to be practical. I got him a chainsaw and he got me a cheap, wobbly wheelbarrow. But in that wheelbarrow was an engagement ring. Did he have me pegged or what?

Even though I stopped using it a few years ago, I hung onto that wheelbarrow for ages. Finally Mr. Much More Patient asked me this spring if he could take it to the dump. I'm not a super sentimental person and I hate clutter so I reluctantly agreed. I can't tell you how much I regret that decision. 

Oh well, I still have the ring (even if I don't wear it during gardening season) and, more importantly, the husband. And he even pushes the new wheelbarrow for me sometimes.

So those are my favorite tools. Please keep telling me about yours. I want to look in to some of them. Next week I'll tell you about a few things that I don't have that I think I probably should (spoiler alert: I may have already picked up a few at the Garden Tool Co. sale).