Can you see the buckeye blossoms?
Here's a closer image.
Don't they just look like they were designed for hummingbirds?
I have three little buckeye saplings that have sprung up. I need to find new homes for those.
I didn't do much today. It was, shall we say, a leisurely day. I did a bit of leisurely work in the bed I want to plant herbs in. I used the big loppers to trim the damn sago that lives there and then I used them to prune the roses. I think there's probably a law against that. But it had already put out new stems, and the thorns on that plant are wicked sharp and unusually large so I had no desire to get up close and personal with my small hand pruner. I did what I did and you can bet the ranch I have not killed that rose. It will grow back with mighty power and meaty branches. Trust me. And it will probably bloom just as much as it usually does which is to say- not a whole lot. As to the sago- well, you know how I feel about those. Too bad the comet that killed the dinosaurs didn't destroy all of the sagos too which actually predated the dinosaurs. I imagine dinosaurs hated those things as much as I do, always cutting their tender dinosaur flesh, refusing to be a part of their diet, their frond needles getting stuck between their toes.
Clearing that area in order to put in herbs is a task. The border grass, chenille plant, Virginia creeper and other ground-hugging species are almost impossible to tear out. I don't really care how far out the border grass and chenille plant grow. That battle is well and truly lost and Mr. Moon just mows it but they also grow into the gardening space itself which of course decreases the amount of growable area every year. I fear this is a fool's errand.
Oh well. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
But the fact is, I did not plant even one sprig of rosemary. I did discover that the oregano I planted some years ago has made a comeback which is nice.
La-di-da. La-di-da.
I gently cut back the dead parts of the limequat tree and watered it. I was afraid it had been freeze-bit to the point of all-encompassing death but it appears to have new growth coming along. Bless its little baby heart!
It was quite beautiful today, once again, although working outside was a sweaty proposition. Mr. Moon who was clearing vines and branches suffered far more than I did with my little bit of effort. It's supposed to rain tonight but not much. And as I said a few days ago, there is actually the possibility of a freeze early Wednesday morning. I am simply not going to worry about it. Right now the sky is darkening and the birds are quiet. We do very much need rain so I will welcome it if it comes.
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I have been having a lot of thoughts today about things concerning the Epstein files and the horrors being brought into the light. I've written about this before but it occurs to me that for those of us (and our numbers are legion) who were sexually abused as children, these reports are a constant trigger. So. Should we simply not read any of what's being discovered? Or refuse to watch survivors' videos?
Is that even possible?
And has there ever been a time in history where the actions of one group of men (and some women) have caused so much emotional turmoil and pain to one specific group of people in this way?
What would happen if all of us banded together and sued Donald Trump and all the others in those files who perpetrated such violence and pain on children for emotional distress?
Yeah. Not going to happen.
At this point though, it would certainly be a start if at least some of these people had to go through the legal process of being arrested and tried and imprisoned for what they have done. Knowing that they walk free now, completely able to enjoy their massive wealth and their positions of power is untenable and incredibly agonizing.
All of us who are affected by this and of course, especially those who were directly victimized are having a hard time right now. I don't even pretend to have any idea about what those survivors are going through.
It is starting to rain. Not much. Not nearly enough to clear the air of the pollen which is affecting so many or to nurture the new growth of which spring has presented us, but a start, a promise of a promise.
Better than goddamned nothing.
Love...Ms. Moon
I hope your rain becomes a solid ground-soaking downpour that washes away all the pollen. A class action suit would be a mighty thing indeed if it were to ever happen. We can hope.Could you have Mr Moon construct some raised beds to plant your herbs in? Might be easier than clearing the ground?
ReplyDeleteWe did get good rain. Thank you. We needed it.
DeleteI know there will never be a class action suit. It's just a fantasy.
Well, Glen has enough on his plate without worrying about making me raised beds for herbs. And that still wouldn't solve the entire problem of the encroachment of all those invasive plants.
Sigh.
We've had plenty of moisture, between snow and pelting rain, done now, thank you. I had a great pruning day, too. I like the lightness of cutting out old and shaggy growth to give new shoots a chance. Mine was a butterfly bush, so there will be new growth.
ReplyDeleteI think you did far more pruning that I did. I have so much more pruning I need to do. It truly never ends here.
Deletewhat's the difference between horse chestnuts and buckeyes? The leaves and flowers are the same...
ReplyDeleteI looked that up and no, they are not the same, although they are closely related. Buckeyes are native to North America, horse chestnuts to Europe.
DeleteDo you get hummingbird activity on the buckeye? You’re right about those blossoms. Wherever I’ve lived sagos have been expensive and sought after. I’ve never known anyone to dislike them the way you do. I think a lot of people would be happy to take yours away.
ReplyDeleteWhere the buckeye is located is not a place where I sit and observe very much although I could because there's a very nice porch swing right near it. I need to start doing stuff like that more. Just...being and watching.
DeleteI don't really understand why people like sagos. I mean, they're okay but I much prefer cabbage palms and royal palms and so forth. Dealing with the sagos is always a painful experience. And yet I'm about to plant something known as a saw palmetto which is called that because the branches of the fronds are...sawlike.
Attack Aloes are much better. They cut you and they heal you at the same time.
DeleteWe have snow on the ground today so my daffodils which are getting closer to blooming but not blooming yet are looking a bit forlorn out there. But they will bounce back or at least they usually do.
ReplyDeleteI think women have had emotional turmoil caused by men for all of history, Mary. So sad but so true.
And why? WHY have women put up with this shit all these eons? I guess because we're afraid men will kill us. I mean, is that not the bottom line? Or because if men abandon their families there's a good chance that the family will not survive? Of course that was mostly only true many, many years ago but there are still plenty of women who do not leave men "for the children." My mother was one of those. Meanwhile, her children were trying to figure out how to murder their father and make it look like suicide.
DeleteI'm sorry. I think I am in an angry mood right now and I'm not sure why.
I really do hope your daffodils come back. I'm sure they will. Those things are hardy!
In the 40s here today but it did not come with the predicted thunderstorm, at least not here. So dry.
ReplyDeleteAs for the rich and morally deficient men, human history is filled with such things. If they never face justice we should at least know their names so that they can be reviled.
We got a good amount of rain and now our temperature is dropping. I've just closed windows in the house. Gonna be a duck night tonight.
DeleteYou're right. We should at least know who these men are so that not only can we revile them but we can shame and shun them.
I talked to my husband about rape and the Epstein files. He believes every man in the files should be charged with rape and sent to jail. I said, I doubt they would go to jail. He said, yes they would.
ReplyDeleteI did try to tell him that most men who rape women do not go to jail, and that many rapes are never even reported. He didn't believe me. He lives in a man's world for sure and has no idea.
I hope your herbs survive all of the overgrowth:) I can't even imagine trying to garden in Florida.
MEN HAVE NO IDEA! They don't even have any idea what it's like to feel threatened by a man either physically or sexually, or (usually) both. And I doubt two out of a hundred women have never felt that.
DeleteGardening in Florida can be glorious and it can be frustrating, futile, an invitation to heat stroke, and a good way to get eaten up by fire ants.
Your garden is looking good and thankfully nothing was lost in the FL freezes. Pruning and even cutting things back harshly makes a visible improvement. I love to prune and cut things back or down entirely and then watch for new growth or redesign the entire area completely.
ReplyDeleteI think we all agree, Epstein was one evil/vile human. He knew how to play the rich and powerful as seen by all the names in the files. He was a big player for his targeted male customers. Some say he was an operative/spy and held lots of secrets/goods on those of whom he serviced. He probably traded secrets/goods with others to enrich his own power. (This would not surprise me.)
The women were his currency. Sad. They were likely promised the world and then got little to nothing.
But here's the thing- Epstein could not have done what he did if he had not had the men willing to pay big money or give up secrets or whatever in order to have access to children for sex in a location where they felt safe from the public, the press, constituents, family, and friends.
DeleteSO MANY MEN!
It's a man's world, systemic patriarchal system , teetering on the destruction of human life on this planet. That is a given. Alowing an immense platform for toxic , nonsensical Manosphere blogs. , you tube, Instagram etc. trying to one up each other in horrendous acts against females . They receive much attention, rather than outrage have contributed to a deep illness and insecurity that young men face these days. Instead of kindness or positivity the vulnerable are maligned - mistaking cowardly ignorance for power, BIG power Epstein mega power! . There is an opportunity here to find the evil doers accountable, to educate - hang them all- and to change the paradigm. It may be too late.
ReplyDeleteSome days I feel for sure it's too late.
DeleteThis is one of them.
Limequat? I need to know - I am assuming a Lime Comquat cross, but do tell what is it like? And does it marmalade?
ReplyDeleteYes! And they are a delicious fruit, full of juice with very thin skins. I feel certain you could make marmalade from them.
DeleteA leisurely day is a good thing. It's nice to see the spring growth and blossoms on the buckeye. Like Mitchell said, I think you should see if someone will take those sago palms off your hands! You might even be able to sell them -- I think mature sagos are desirable -- but you'd probably be left with a couple of big holes in your yard.
ReplyDeleteThe whole Epstein thing is just a tangled mass of spaghetti in my brain at this point. By which I mean that I am not paying close attention to the specifics -- but I know Trump had a hand in it and I believe whoever is implicated by the evidence ought to be charged.
You know, I should call a guy I know who owns a large landscaping company to see if he wants any sago palms or aloe plants. It probably wouldn't be worth the work to dig them up for him but, who knows? I'd probably leave the sagos in front of the front porch. I don't know. I'd have to replace them with something, obviously. But there are others planted here and there that are doing nothing but annoying me.
ReplyDeleteI'll just say this about the Epstein files- they are bad enough and are damning enough that Trump had to bomb Iran, thus threatening the peace and stability of the planet, however tenuous it was, in order to distract from them.
About those Sago plams, yes! do that!
DeleteHe has equipment to dig and move large plants. So if he's interested, he can get them out.
Delete