Peonies

Peonies with Riel House in the background

Peonies overlooking the entrance to the Riel House National Historic Site

Three Sisters Planted

Bed 15 with corn, squash and beans

At last, everything is in the ground. The last holdouts had been the Three Sisters that require the corn to be established ( 4 inches or so) before the squash and beans are planted around them. Each bed took two packages of beans (about 50 beans) and two packages of squash (about 50 or more). If we had too many seeds, we just went back in the same row; too few, we just spread them out more. Since each bed is 4 x 22, there is "around" "roughly" "about" one squash/bean per square foot (i.e one squash/bean seed per corn seed). We'll see later if we are undercrowded or overcrowded. 


Here's another picture:

Bed 13 with corn, beans, squash plus some potatoes from last year.

Cleaned up the Raspberries

Raspberry Beds

Last fall, we were quite rigorous removing the two year old canes so that this year there is lots of room for new growth (primacanes). Today, we surrounded each of the five raspberry beds with sisal rope, confirmed which raspberries were growing within each perimeter, then brutally removed the ones growing outside the perimeters. Of course, the prunings are left in the paths as mulch. All the canes are laden with flowers and ripening fruit. It's going to be a great year for raspberries. 

Search "pruning raspberries" on Google to understand when to prune, what to prune, primacanes, floricanes, etc.

Two FYIs here: Sisal rope is heritage and would have been employed by the Riel family. A clove-hitch knot works very well to attach the rope to our stakes.

First Day of Summer . . .

. . . . and everything is blooming. . .

Peonies at Riel House

Gaillardia, Harebells and Black Eyed Susans in the Parking Lot Garden

Native Grasses in the Parking Lot Garden

Caterpillar on Golden Alexander in the PLG

. . .  and more caterpillars . . .