Planting flowers and doing cartwheels

Finally, a pretty day, and it's about time. I picked up the bedding plants I bought at a fundraiser a week ago, and haven't had the time or cooperative weather to get them planted yet. Today was perfect - except for one thing. That pesky shoulder problem of mine won't allow me to do the necessary digging. Hmmm... I could enlist help from my teenage daughters...

I decided on a different approach this year, and even drew out a plan (a first for me) - cosmos, verbena, lobelia, and marigolds in rays instead of my usual rows.



Then, with daughters in tow, "we" set to work. Once they got going, it really didn't take that long, and they had such great attitudes!



The finished product - thanks to Sarah and Emily! I'm anxious to see how it looks as it grows in.



Afterwards, Sarah disappeared to do things indoors. Emily, however, took a few minutes to cartwheel across the yard. Clearly, I didn't work her hard enough...

My front flowerbed

Every year I purchase annuals for my front flowerbed and wonder why. I used to really enjoy getting my hands in the dirt and planting things, and watching them grow. Life changes, though, as the years go by, and so do priorities. It just seems some years that planting that bed is more trouble than it's worth. Sometimes the results are pretty good, while more often than not, it's just OK.

This year is one of those years when my efforts have paid off. I was able to get a nice assortment of colors and varieties that really worked well together, and everything has flourished! I've been able to successfully fight off the slugs in their voracious pursuit of my marigolds, and they (the marigolds, not the slugs), for once, have thrived. I am posting this picture in hopes that I can refer to it next year when I doubt my reasons for kneeling down at the edge of that bed in the still chilly and damp month of May.



For future reference, I planted lobelia, dwarf marigolds, verbena, and cosmos.