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Sunday, February 13, 2011

The Gardening Bug Has Bitten, and a Kitten Update

It happens around this time every year.  The sun is shining, but it's cool enough to garden in comfort.  That rare season when I can plant and dig without breaking a sweat in Houston!



I have plans for preparing the border along the back wall for some seasonal color. Since that's the bed I expanded last year by laying down landscape fabric and covering with mulch to kill off the grass underneath, that will probably be quite a lengthy process of digging and adding some compost.  


So yesterday, I just did some more weeding, and also planted a clematis.




I planted it in front of the small trellis I put in to hide the utility boxes. I had already amended the soil in that bed, so I hope it does well there.

While I was pottering around weeding, my husband, enticed by the opportunity to employ power tools, was using a drill and auger to deep root fertilize the trees.  He followed up by mulching over the holes he had drilled. 

So now the garden looks like it has been invaded by gophers...

 
But that's okay, a few rains and once the grass starts growing, we won't even see that, and hopefully the tree will show it's appreciation by not dying. 

Someone had asked for an update on the mother cat and her kittens that we took in last summer.  Well, they're still with us and doing well.  They are such a joy, and so entertaining we don't regret taking them in for a single moment.


They all get on well together and our other cats tolerate them pretty well.

We're particularly happy that Cali, the mother cat, has bonded so well with Merlin, a stray I took in when I moved from my previous home.  My other cats didn't take to him so well, so I was really pleased that Cali and Merlin are now the best of friends.


Last summer I was concerned for the safety of the birds in the garden, since Cali and the kittens had strong hunting instincts.  Well, I'm happy to the report that the birds are now thriving in the garden unmolested by felines.





Words and photographs by Jayne Wilson, Green and Serene, Jayne's Country Garden.

4 comments:

Jeff Branch said...

We like birds too. Keep an eye on them. I once saw our cat leap at least 5 feet to grab a bird on our feeder. Needless to say we raised it higher.

Catherine@AGardenerinProgress said...

How fun that you've gotten out and started some gardening already. That is a really pretty Clematis, love the purple.
Your cats are all so cute, how great that Merlin has such a great friend now.

Jayne said...

Hi Jeff, I saw the mother cat jump up to the feeder and drop back to earth with a mouthful of feathers, and her babies were watching and learning. That's why I'm glad they are all indoor cats now -- the local birds are safe :-)

Jayne said...

Thanks Catherine. I can't wait for the clematis to grow -- I think that color will look really nice on the trellis.