My Azaleas were over my head, and I really needed to trim them as I am allergic to the leaves and where the AC water drips into that pan outside, I was always getting it on my arms, and I itch like crazy afterwards. I cut them back hard, because they were only trimmed down 3 springs ago and they grew back that much. They really bloomed this year and I attribute that to the tangerines that I placed around them last year and this year, plus we had a lot of rain this past winter.
I had to clean out all the leaves and debris from the big Sycamore tree and now I'm ready to put down brown paper and then Lava Rock and gravel on top of that. I had pine straw mulch around those 6 tomato plants at the other end of the planting bed, but it was not doing the job. It just seems too dry. I also had to take out all the water bottles and wash them and put some new ones in. Some of them were clogged up because I used dirty rainwater. My Bad!
Barb let me come and get a big load of gravel/lava rock. I think it will do the job. She gave me Curly Parsley seed and a big bag of Cape Honeysuckle seeds. I am going to give all of those seeds away because I have 2 plants and a whole bunch of seedlings. She just wanted to get them out of her yard. I totally understand that.
Either tonight or early will be when I do that work out by the garage. It is so hot here you would not believe it. I cut my arm just as I was finishing up at Barbs. My skin is so thin. 
: I do need to be more careful. Barb cleansed and bandaged my arm and DH came to pick me up. Life is good!
Pics when I'm finished with that tomato patch and Azaleas.
I must look into getting some shade cloth to put over the Raised Bed. The sun is just drying the soil out every day and we are in a drought period.
Broad Beans.
The Tithonia opened.
Cosmos.
Grasses taken from inside Lanai.
DH filled an empty tub yesterday with my precious rainwater and it leaked out during the night. 
Neither of us knew there was a hole in the tub, but I sure wish he had not put that water in there. It is extremely dry here now and it may rain towards the end of this month, and it may not. I noticed my biggest Rosemary was drooping on the ends and knew I had to water it. Solution: Fill the bottom of the compromised tub with leaves and put fresh potting soil on top of that, just about 2 inches, and then pull the Rosemary out of the pot, (it was very rootbound), and put it in the tub and finish filling with fresh Miracle Gro potting soil. Water and appreciate. The pot the Rosemary was in is a gray plastic half barrel. I put fresh soil in it and sowed a bunch of Zinnias, Lilliput and Giant in there. Won't that be lovely.
Peace & Plenty.
Yes, it's too hot for me in the daytime to be outside. I wear the 30 sunscreen and I have a 50 ready to go when that is all gone, but it is just too hot to stand it out there if you are not in the shade. Thank goodness I'm able to get everything done in the morning. Today I trimmed the Schefflera for a friend, then took Roxxie for a walk, then came home and put sticks around some of the smaller tomatoes because the rabbits at it off and left it laying. He didn't like the taste, so he just left it and I put it back in the ground, but it probably won't live.
I checked all 22 of the Dill plants and they are okay. I am still giving myself the business because I put that tender little Fig stem in the ground, and it almost died. I still don't know if it will survive.
Tomorrow I am cooking dinner and baking a cake for a birthday girl who is going to be 79. I've also invited another friend for dinner.
The heat has arrived, and spring is pretty much over, but we did have a good spring. Peace & Plenty. The following pic is my Tithonia diversifolia, which is just covered with buds getting ready to pop and I snapped a pic of that one close to the top. Lovely.
I cut grass last evening and added it to the compost bin. I went out this morning and turned it 7 times. Seven is a lucky number, or so the Bible says and the casinos. Well, we have been noticing that the compost bin has been kind of hard to turn or draggy, if you will. I opened the door and peeked in and noticed that the pine straw was tangled around the metal rod in the center that rotates the bin. I had to get my hand pruners and cut all of that and I got a blister for my efforts. At least now it will turn freely, and it can break down faster.
By now all gardeners know that they can use toilet paper rolls to plant seeds in. Well, I had done this a few years ago and didn't have too much success with it, but Ray reminded me of it this morning, so I put 5 toilet paper rolls in a plant pot and filled them with Miracle Gro Potting Mix. I dropped in seeds at the top and put some soil over the seeds, about 1/4 inch. I watered good with rainwater. Before I started, I placed a used coffee filter in the bottom of the pot to keep the soil from washing out. We shall see what happens. I have many seeds left over.
After sunset last evening I knew I had to get all that Dill out of the Raised Bed. It was so ready to go into the garden. I'm basically growing that for the caterpillars to eat when they gorge before turning into a Chrysalis. I know the Swallowtails eat it, but I don't know what other kinds do. I ended up planting and watering 22 Dill plants. I put them in the Patio Garden, around the tomatoes in the dog kennel, and even in the Top of the Bank Garden.
We are getting some really intense hot weather right now and, in a few days, it will be 90 degrees or close to 90. The rains will be fewer until June/July. That is why I've been extremely busy trying to get the plants established so they won't need as much water. I'm praying we have enough. Of course, our grass looks awful, but I do not want to get the irrigation reconnected.
The evening sun has finally reached against the house on the back side now. Those plants do not get a lick of sun in winter, and I really do not understand how they survive.
I have a shrub trimming job to do in the am early, but Wednesday is going to be my busy day. I have a birthday cake to bake and a requested Spaghetti/Meatball dinner to prepare. My friend Dottie is turning 79 soon, but she will be gone back up north soon too so we will celebrate early with her. I am also giving her a package of Silene seeds to plant at her northern house.
Peace & Plenty.
