May is when things really get going in my Pacific Northwest Garden. Lots of nice surprises. This plant grows wild along my street, has finally made an appearance in my yard. I have a new appreciation for the red alder seedlings that pop up everywhere in my yard and have started transplanting them to fill in some bare areas. I moved irises around last year and have been rewarded this year with some beautiful blooms.
My tiny pandemic blueberry plants purchased last spring grew by leaps and bounds. Will I have blueberries this year? (Will the birds allow it?) That remains to be seen.
I have so many strawberry plants, mainly growing in containers. I bought a few, found a few from a generous gardener on Freecycle, and propagated a few more last year.
Speaking of containers, I have an ongoing battle with the local squirrels. They are determined to dig up every pot; it seems to look for non-existent caches of squirrel goodies. I am trying several methods to redirect them. I’ll report back if anything proves to be successful.
The raspberry plants seem to double every year. Last year I read an article about the optimum spacing for raspberries, and the author said it didn’t matter because raspberry plants do what they want. I can confirm that.
My big dream is to have a greenhouse. If you have experience with building a greenhouse, I’d love to hear about it! My short-term solution is a portable 3x3x9 foot greenhouse on the deck. I have the outdoor thermometer sensor inside to keep an eye on the temperature. It’s been in the 50s the last couple of days, but there are three rollup windows to help control the temperature when it heats up.