Tasks:
- Test and reposition the soaker hose system, as necessary.
- Stake weak hydrangea branches heavy with flower.
- Lightly shape and prune flowering shrubs once blooming is complete.
- Whack back the dogwoods, salmonberry, and other native shrubs on the driveway.
- Don’t let up on the weeds.
Notes:
With the Spring planting rush over, it’s down to the more mundane task of testing the soaker hose system throughout the garden. There’s about 1,200 linear feet of hose snaking it’s way around trees and shrubs. Some of it’s buried under compost but most runs on the surface, pinned into position with landscape fabric pins, or bits of metal clothes hanger bent into a an elongated U shape. Each year, I reposition a few of the hoses to accommodate a new plant or three. I’m sure the day will come when I have to start replacing the recycled rubber hoses. For now though, many are going into their 4th year; fingers crossed they’ll last a few more.
The hydrangeas are usually ladened down with blooms by early June. Many of the plants are strong enough now (Annabelles excepted) to hold the blooms aloft without any additional support. The younger, more dwarf varieties, or more shaded plants often need some staking to keep the blooms from trailing on the ground. I use whatever I can get my hands on to lift the blooms; my only criteria is that the support must not detract from the bloom it supports. That means I try to find creative ways to hide it’s existence.
Our 100-foot winding driveway is lined with a wide variety of native shrubs and trees ready, willing, and able to encroach on the drive, at the earliest opportunity. That’s usually in early June when Spring growth weighed down from a thundershower falls onto the driveway and passing vehicles. It’s time to take out the loppers and garden pruners and start whacking back. A productive alternative to a punchbag when you’re a little “hot under the collar”!
