8AM this morning I spent 45 minutes packing up: tiller, MY wheelbarrow, oldest mower, 5 beefsteak tomatoes, 1 grape tomato, 1 cherry tomato, whiskey barrel planter, blue ceramic planter, weed & grass killer, stainless steel hand trowel, hand rake and bulb planter w/knife, 4 fancy metal supports, 6 new wooden stakes, and 12, dug up this morning ferns to transport.
Good thing I have a ramp.
Called to take them to DD's house, she is somewhat down for the count with cramps, but I still drove the 12 minutes to her house with the old truck.
Had trouble with the old mower, then refilled with new gas and it ran like a charm. Mowed the sunniest area, south side and west of the house, east of the garage. Told DD to decide where she wanted her tomato plants, and to put the brand new, painted cages from 2019 (never used,) where she wanted them. I had her move them for me to till, then put them back again. I showed her how to plant a tomato with a stake and the cage, then left her to do the rest of them, 7 in all.
I mowed around 3 hostas, 1 bleeding heart, and several columbine. She dug up and moved 5 columbines to the "forest garden" between the garage and tree. You see, their yard has areas separated by sidewalks and a cement pad by the porch and stairs to the back door.
She intends to mow the rest of it this year, and is waiting on my friend to repair Her push mower, which is why I am lending her my oldest push mower. Vet has my brand new push mower, and Mine with Honda engine continues to love me and work every time, so there is no hardship.
We transplanted some more LOTV, all of the ferns and 8 wax begonias, the ones with the greenish black leaves and pink flowers. I bought a plat, so there are 36 more to go in and fill in between the perennials there.
We transplanted the grape tomato into a 12 inch blue ceramic pot and shoved in supports. We planted the cherry tomato into aNOTHER 12 inch blue ceramic pot, with supports.
We transplanted the Magnolia Betty, that I had taken home bc she thought it was dead,and before she bought a 2nd one, in the ground and caged so her sister doesn't run the riding mower over it, and put it in the insert in the whiskey barrel planter. All of the planters are in this desert area in the east yard, very sunny location, where a previous owner had put down landscape cloth, most gone now, but it has a lot of stones.
I gave her advice about the tomatoes and to water the pots, but told her I would take care of the magnolia, since the insert has no drainage. She plans to transplant it this Fall, and I told her a good summer in the sun would help it put down some good roots. I also shoved in 6 gladiola bulbs to keep it company.
I left her the hand trowel, etc., bc they are Fisker's, stainless steel, and the hand trowel that she owned bent in the dirt.
We labored for 3 hours, I have a 6PM signing, and no time to garden at my place until tomorrow...in the rain.