Garden – Page 2 – Gardens For Goldens

Heat Wave

In case you missed the news, we’re having a heat wave out west. No wait…a heat storm. A solid week (at least) of triple digit temperatures is more than a wave.

The Dahlias are loving it…and now outpacing Maria’s sunflowers (ha!)

And while everything else in the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden has survived so far, everybody is looking as tired of this as we are!

The doggies get regular runs in the sprinklers or splashes in the pool…including this little boy that you may have seen on my post yesterday.

His “best” name is still being determined; in the meantime, we call him “Monster”.

What I didn’t mention is that he is blind. We’re hoping that his sight is fixable. We’ll certainly do our best to change it. But he has adapted very well so far as you can see…

and he certainly has no problem finding the treat pocket!

Think good thoughts for our power grid, and more importantly, prayers for our firefighter heroes please. It’s too hot for man or beast.

Stay cool.

A June Night

At 9:42 pm, the thermometer reads 89-degrees.

I made a quick check-up on the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden tonight – when the thermometer still read 106.

I discovered Rob mowing despite his promise not to if it was too hot. He lied. Out of respect, I will not share a photo of him dripping sweat. The fresh cut looks lovely though.

It is too hot for man, woman, beast, or bunny.

“Ah, summer, what power you have to make us suffer and like it.” ~ Russel Baker

The plants and flowers surprised me; they have held up amazingly well.

In their second season, they are taller providing shade for their roots which are better mulched this year as well.

The dogs are tucked in. The only sounds are those of nature’s creatures scurrying to feed and drink before night blankets the garden.

“If a June night could talk, it would probably boast it invented romance.” ~ Bern Williams

Tomorrow’s forecast: 108. Sigh. I think it will be a good day to spend hosing down doggies.

Bee-trayal

Until this weekend, the bees and I had an understanding.

I deadhead the flowers, which produces more for them to enjoy.

I leave them alone; they leave me alone.

Someone didn’t get the message.

A honeybee stung me, stuck in me and wouldn’t let go. I read later that honeybees sting only once, leaving their stinger and venon sac in the victim. This results in their own premature death. Bumblebees, yellow jackets and wasps on the other hand can sting multiple times. That’s just wrong.

The justice of a strike for a life seems fair.

Like the knats that have invaded the garden this year, the spiders have their revenge.

With temperatures already approaching the century mark, the bees, butterflies, dogs and dog walkers were moving slow – easy prey for my camera.

Even the killdeer is too hot to sit on her babies – so she shades them instead.

The pups took their walkers to their favorite shady spots. Lily has this down.

Jack too.

And Bobo.

Lucky pups. Not so lucky walkers and gardeners. Jody worked on sprinklers in the west yard, Maria fixed the drip in the Willow garden, and Rob mowed. I think I got the better end of the deal this weekend, except for the stinging bee.

If it is this hot in the spring, I think we’re in for a long summer. No complaints though, when surrounded by good dogs,

good friends and beautiful flowers…

with mostly well-behaved bees.

Guests of the garden

We have a lake view! The rice fields that surround Homeward Bound Golden Retriever Rescue have been flooded with water surrounding our eight acres of rescue paradise.

With the arrival of the water we have new visitors to the garden – most welcome. The birds were everywhere this weekend,

squabbling over territory and even feeding on our bees.

This particular creature is less welcome.

I’m pretty sure he is a water snake. I’m very sure he needs to return there post-haste!

With our heavy clay soil, I suspect the flooded fields around us help the plants by keeping the roots moist and cool. What a display!

This time last year, we were still planting. Sometimes I look in astonishment at what we have created.

Of course, we had our four-legged visitors as well. Tyson is a bounce-back; returned because his family’s circumstances changed and he was unhappily spending too much time alone. We need to find him a family that can give him the time and attention he needs.

Janie is recovering from cancer treatment. She’s doing great now, and while Judy enjoys having her as her “office dog”, it is time for her to find a family of her own as well.

These adorable pups returned for their vet check and last round of shots. They are from the litter we showed up in March – one of our First Signs of Spring. They are growing up so fast!

Our dog walkers and other volunteers pitched in to continue the foxtail eradication project. As if their other contributions are not enough, they have arrived early and stayed late the past few weekends working double time to get the weeding done. The yards and trails have never looked better – and ensure that the pups have a safe place to play and train.

But my crowning weekend achievement is this:

A spotless garden shed. And a word of warning to my fellow gardeners…it had better stay that way!!
Happy week, all! See you in the garden.

Of thorns

“Life is thickly sown with thorns, and I know no other remedy that to pass quickly through them. The longer we dwell on our misfortunes, the greater is their power to harm us.” ~ Voltaire

We passed through more than a few thorns this weekend – literally and figuratively – beginning with the dreaded foxtails!

Foxtails are nasty pointed grass clusters that lodge themselves into pets’ eyes, ears, noses, toes and fur, among other places. In long-haired dogs (we have more than a few of these!) foxtails can be hidden by fur between the toes or on the body and, if left unattended, can poke the dog’s skin and eventually cause a large abscess requiring surgical removal.

Foxtails are barbed in such a way that they can only move in a “forward” direction. Since a dog’s body is incapable of degrading or decomposing them, they can wreck havoc. They grow in abundance in California – and on an eight acre dog sanctuary located in the country, you can imagine the threat. So this weekend we called on our dog walkers and gardeners for a “weed-a-thon” rising early to tackle the trails, benches, and other areas well traveled by the dogs. It’s not exactly my favorite kind of gardening…but it must be done.

Candy was kept company by her beautiful Shane;

and if the company of dogs is not incentive enough, donuts always do the trick!

Sundays, Kathryn holds Reactive Dog Training Class. This class is for dogs that don’t play nicely with others; some of them are our rescues, others are from community members seeking help.

A dog can’t be forced to like other dogs. But you can help them cope with their fears or anxiety by teaching them alternate behaviors. Our trainers have had amazing success with turning these thorny issues into good canine behaviors. I’ll share more on an upcoming post.

This poor pup was literally covered in thorns.

We are just beginning to write his story of true rescue; it deserves a post all its own. I will bring it to you soon. In between all, we managed to get a little gardening in!

After a week of unseasonably hot temperatures, the weather has cooled, and the garden is breathing a sigh of relief.

It weathered the heat well, and brings forth new treasures each week like this Jerusalem Sage…

Clematis…

Maria’s first sunflowers…

and of course, Roses – thorns and all.

With the promise of two stories to come, have a great week and I’ll hope to see you back here soon!

The language of flowers: Iris

The story of the Iris flower dates back to Ancient Greece, when Iris, the Goddess of the rainbow, acted as the messenger between heaven and earth. She traveled from one world to another, carrying messages across the arc of the rainbow. Purple irises were planted over the graves of women to summon the Goddess to guide the dead in their journey. Today, the flower named for her is considered a symbol of communication and messages.

In the language of flowers, the Iris means faith, hope, and wisdom. The purple iris is symbolic of wisdom and compliments;

blue symbolizes faith and hope;

yellow symbolizes passion;

and white iris symbolizes purity. It’s fitting that they are found in abundance in the Memorial Garden, where our passionate angel volunteers travel the state to rescue and return lost, displaced and broken dogs to a place of faith and hope.

A perfect statement for our mission – standing tall and beautiful this spring in the garden.

“Where flowers bloom so does hope.”
-Lady Bird Johnson

let it rain

After a long, dry winter, the garden bows and say ‘thank you’ for the rain.

Let the rain kiss you.
Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops.
Let the rain sing you a lullaby.
~ Langston Hughes

To know the garden

“I knew in my heart that I wanted to know the garden intimately, to know all the flowers
in each season, to be there from spring through autumn, digging, pruning, planting,
feeding, rejoicing. In short, I had fallen in love.”
~ Elizabeth Murray

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Appreciating the season

“At Christmas I no more desire a rose
Than wish a snow in May’s newfangled mirth;
But like each thing that in season grows.”
~ William Shakespeare

The deluge is over for the time being and I am looking forward to being back in the Memorial Garden this weekend. It is time to trim back the perennials, mow the now unruly lawn, and clean up from our small flood. The season of flowers is past, replaced with the more subtle beauty of browns, grays and sprinkled golds.

There is nothing special about the subject matter today. Just a canvas of winter color to appreciate in its own right.

I’m scheduled to take pictures of some of the Homeward Bound Sanctuary pups this weekend. I’m excited to bring you their gray, gold and white faces –

appreciated “like each thing that in season grows.”

Winter Wools

“The leaves fall, the wind blows, and the farm country slowly changes from the summer cottons into its winter wools.” ~ Henry Beston, Northern Farm

We all had on our winter wools this weekend, with a light frost blanketing the garden on Saturday morning. It’s early for that in the Sacramento Valley. It disappeared quickly, but left the garden a little too wet and cold for any heavy duty effort.

Only a few blooms remain in the garden now –

Mostly, the palette has changed to the colors of the season. Greys, browns, silvers and antique golds replace the brilliant colors of summer.

The pups don’t seem to mind the the low, cloudy skies, as long as they are outside, walking, and among us.
“A dog is one of the remaining reasons why some people can be persuaded to go for a walk.”

This is Norman,

Linus,

and George and Lucy.

I have a crush on George.

I met another Homeward Bound pup this weekend; an alumni named Brody. His human Dad is the manager at one of my favorite places – Green Acres Nursery in Sacramento.

Brody is apparently in charge of customer relations. What a handsome boy! An invitation was issued to visit us in the Memorial Garden, where many of their plants now reside. Although, they might want to wait until we are back in our summer cottons and looking at our colorful best!

When it Rains: Walk

“Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet.” ~ Roger Miller

Day three of five, of pretty much non-stop showers, punctuated by downpours.

The garden is a pond at the moment, but at least the water is in the paths – the beds having been built up with soil and mulch.

Everything seems humbled and bowed in the garden;

no point in putting things right with the fiercest of the storms due tomorrow. We’ll just wait, watch and deal with it when it clears.

But the rain will not dampen our spirit at Homeward Bound.

The feeders, walkers, cleaners, groomers and more were still out in force – covered in muck. We walk in the rain; the dogs don’t seem to mind.

Even Santa put in an appearance! Annually, he takes time out of his busy schedule for holiday photos of the dogs with homes in support of dogs without…rain or shine.

Many thanks to our photographer Eric Schuman, who’s much-better photos will grace our holiday album.

A full, wet, windy day of juggling pups leaves even Santa tired!

The Pineapple Express

This is what the moon looked like a couple of nights ago. (I’m not very good at moon photos, yet – but the sky is what I really want you to focus on. You’ll see why.)

It’s a good thing I dug the Dahlia’s up.

Because this is the result of the first two out of three storms we are experiencing. Our poor Homeward Bound Memorial Garden. Not to mention the soggy doggy runs.

They call it the “Pineapple Express,” or “atmospheric river” – a much more descriptive term, I think. Warm air and moisture move in from the Hawaiian Islands, and dump all over the Central Sacramento Valley and Sierras. What melts in the mountains travels downhill to us, compounding the wet mess.

I can hardly wait to see what the third, and strongest, has in store for us. Does anyone have an Ark?