The holders of my sanity...

Gardening is such exercise; I had forgotten a bit. I took water and snacks with me to the big garden this morning and cut back 20 spirea bushes to the ground. This afternoon I put maybe half the remaining cannas into 10 half-full holding pots on the patio, and after exhausting the two cubic feet of soil I had ready I went to the hardware store for four more.

I also dragged the bags of compost Marci helped me acquire from a local farm out back, even though I haven't decided where to put it yet (everywhere could benefit, really, I might drive by again tomorrow and see if they have more), packed all of the outdoor Christmas greens off to the garage in preparation for the dahlia* move, and got some pansies for the road garden.

*I lifted the lights again on Friday, but they're growing through the shelf now and that's not good for them. Also not gonna lie, when I said there'd be space on the shelf below I forgot that they get wider as well as taller. Marci and I brainstormed ways to get some of them outside early, but I think it's going to come down to more shelves and another light.

...In my defense, I genuinely did not expect them to sprout A WEEK AFTER PLANTING.

Anyway, my point is, I mixed some yogurt with blueberries for my evening snack (don't worry it'll be chocolate and cookies later, this is just the pre-snack where I get some nutrients before loading up on sugar and caffeine to keep myself awake long enough to study) and left it in the kitchen, so every bite I have to get up from the sofa and walk around to make sure all my muscles still work.

Also, today was one of those Productive Days.** I'm not saying every day should be a day where lots of Tasks Get Checked Off, but occasionally such a day comes along and I always wonder, is this just part of the cycle or did I do something to facilitate it? Some combination of sleep (ha ha not today) or herbs, that brain supplement marcicat recommended, or maybe that magical euphoria blanket green is studying??

(I got the white one (amazon link), which makes me feel like I have one of those Gusu Lan winter cloaks that appear in all the Tencent winter art for MDZS. It's delightful. Also suprisingly stain resistant: I didn't even try to keep Daphne's snacks off of it (life is short, let the dog have a bone... although I will admit I didn't realize how lucky I was that my last two dogs preferred chewing on clean chirpy cat toys) and so far the white fluffiness prevails.)

**Wrote stuff, paid stuff, updated stuff, did laundry and research?! Moved the garden bridge out of winter storage. It does make me slightly less anxious on days when I'm like, "no thank you I can not," because I know days where I'm all, "let me do a dozen things real quick" will come around, but think how useful it would be if it were predictable.

As soon as I said, "I think the dahlias are going to be fine," this happens.

That is, I had largely written off the remaining seven containers of unsprouted dahlias, since by now even the latest starter is six inches tall, and I knew going in that three of the containers had likely duds. I figured four more were unexpectedly the same.

NOPE. What am I going to do with this one? It's in the "spa room" with the ivies for now, as there is no more room on the dahlia shelf in the closet.

( picture )

(Good work, little dahlia. I'm very happy to see you.)

Also, the Solomon's Seal is back in the patio garden! I planted it under the porch (with some ferns) the year after we moved in, so it knows it has to get an early start if it wants any sun before the other plants show up.

(The picture isn't tilted. The Solomon's Seal grows at an angle to lean into the light.)

Plus some crocuses (yay!) and Daphne helping out in the garden like she does.

( sprouts, blooms, and paws )