I perceive that the outdoor party season is upon us. Around 9:30 p.m. Saturday night I heard the familiar rhythmic thumping that told me that somebody, not too far away, was hosting a shindig with live music, and possibly something to do with the fact that it was Derby Day. I doubt the revelers were put off by the chilly weather.
Earlier in the evening we were in West Chester and stopped in for dinner at Mabel's BBQ on East Market Street. They told us they were swamped with takeout orders for Derby Day parties. Mabel said she had been cooking since 6:30 that morning!
Sunday, May 7, 2017
BIRDS: Where are the hummers?
Do you have hummingbirds yet? A few weeks ago my mother reported seeing a male hummingbird in her garden, so I immediately put out my feeder. Neither one of us has had a single visitor since, though. However, we're still changing our nectar regularly. The wonderful little creatures will be here soon enough.
GARDEN: Hairy Bittercress
Hairy Bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta) is the name of that grass-like weed that has been flourishing in garden beds and lawns this spring. It's new to me, though a gardening friend in Landenberg reports that he has been dealing with it for at least five years.
Probably its most notable feature is its multiple skinny, inch-long seed pods along each stalk. Just try uprooting it and it will forcefully shoot out hundreds of seeds -- hence its nickname, shotweed.
According to the Gardening Know How website, "The leaves are alternate and slightly scalloped with the largest at the base of the plant. Tiny white flowers develop at the ends of the stems and then turn into long seedpods. These pods split open explosively when ripe and fling seeds out into the environment. The weed prefers cool, moist soil and is most prolific after early spring rains. The weeds spread quickly but their appearance reduces as temperatures increase. The plant has a long, deep taproot, which makes pulling them out manually ineffective."
Probably its most notable feature is its multiple skinny, inch-long seed pods along each stalk. Just try uprooting it and it will forcefully shoot out hundreds of seeds -- hence its nickname, shotweed.
According to the Gardening Know How website, "The leaves are alternate and slightly scalloped with the largest at the base of the plant. Tiny white flowers develop at the ends of the stems and then turn into long seedpods. These pods split open explosively when ripe and fling seeds out into the environment. The weed prefers cool, moist soil and is most prolific after early spring rains. The weeds spread quickly but their appearance reduces as temperatures increase. The plant has a long, deep taproot, which makes pulling them out manually ineffective."
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