And my birthday and anniversary, too. Probably for a couple of years. But, that's o.k. It's worth it!
You see, I have half a garden that looks like this:
The other half - well, not so pretty:
And in case you think that's just dirt, let me explain - that's my front lawn!
Right now, we are on a shared, shallow well. In one of the worst droughts in history. I can't water everything, but I try to water my ornamental plantings. The vegetable garden - not so much. The lawn - not at all. Even my ornamentals don't get the water they want, just enough to keep them alive.
But - Christmas came today!
Soon we will have more water! And that means - we will be able to water our lawn, our vegetable garden, perhaps even more garden areas!!!! Oh, I can imagine it now! Garden areas here and there - all well watered - and a green lawn instead of a brown one!!!! My dreams can now come true!
Yes, Christmas is here at my house!
Wow...I too would be happy not have to worry about using too much water. I don't water the grass and if it browns so be it, but I would hate to see the flowers suffer. I have been so busy as of late that I did not check on my garden and the roses really were pouting being so dry in the 85° weather. But at least we have been getting rain this year. Not like last year.
ReplyDeleteI grew up in a home with a spring fed well so I am also one to conserve water, and I know well the worries about the well going dry, the water table being overly low, etc. Yes, that drill rig must have been a pretty exciting sight! I hope they hit water without having to go down too far. ;)
ReplyDeleteBTW, the other side of your garden is to die for! I love the statuary, the fence, everything growing inside, all of it!
How wonderful. You will have all the water you need and you can garden to your heart's content. Definitely worth celebrating! The first garden photo looks like it belongs in a magazine. Beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWow, thats a big difference - green and lush and grass looking very dead. Florida had a bad draught recently too. Whereas in Ireland, its rain, rain, rain. Your flower pics you posted on 23rd and 24th June are fab, very very pretty!
ReplyDeleteIt's great that you will have more water than you have now. Anything has to be a bonus.
ReplyDeleteCher Sunray Gardens
Wow...that's great! I know how disappointing it can be to watch plants die or suffer during a drought. We had one a few years ago...it was vey hard. Merry Christmas!
ReplyDeleteAh, good for you. And, at least you had your priorities straight :)
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! I love the first picture - perfect!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! Merry christmas and happy birthday. :)
ReplyDeleteGWGT - I'm glad you're getting rain. I'm wondering how long it will be before we get back into a rain pattern! It will be nice to water without constantly having to worry about running out of water!
ReplyDeleteCathy and Steve - So you're well aware of my feelings of worry every time I water, wondering if I'm running the well dry. Yet my flowers need water. Water conservation is something I'm very much used to, but hopefully now I'll have a little more peace of mind.
Grace - It will be wonderful to water without having to constantly worry. I will even now be able to water several areas a day! My garden is going to love it!
Kelli - Yes, I think parts of Florida has received some rain, but most of it is still experiencing drought. Funny, most of the northern part of the US is experiencing too much rain. I always had in the back of my mind that Ireland usually got a lot of rain - everything seems to look so green there in pictures. I hope you're not getting too much this year! It can be worse than too little.
Cher - A bonus indeed. We will be able to water our plants without feeling guilty. A green lawn - that will be an odd sight to me!
Sage Butterfly - And I know how pretty my garden 'could' be, if it had sufficient water. Especially the roses, which have fallen into decline and lost a lot of leaves. I hope this resolves that situation, and my garden is healthier and stronger.
Jess - Not many women would ask for a well for Christmas, would they? I am always practical!
Tatyana - Thank you. Even that picture will look better with more and regular waterings!
Hanne - Thank you! A gift worth several years' worth of celebrations!
Merry Christmas! Hope your drought ends soon.
ReplyDeleteCarolyn - Thank you! I hope it does too. It will be wonderful to see rain falling from the sky! There's nothing like a nice slow rain to perk everything back up and saturate the soil properly.
ReplyDeleteOn a good note your half the garden looks mighty good for just barely being watered. Wow-wonderful. On a better note so happy you are getting more water-and a well at that! That of course means not so high water bills. I sure hope you guys get water soon. We here in Tennessee have suffered our fair share of droughts and I know how I bite my nails each summer. I hate it for you to have to do that too. Maybe we can all do a rain dance in the meantime. Happy drilling-anniversary and Christmas!
ReplyDeletetina - The 'good' half of the garden looked a lot worse, and I upped the water a bit so things wouldn't die. It's frustrating. I hope this solution is the answer to my prayers (rain would help, too!).
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, I wish we could solve our water problem too... Your garden looks intimidating in its good part - how many acres do you have?
ReplyDeleteMasha - We have 10 acres, but not much is garden yet - just a few areas. Mostly due to us not really having much water. Water is such an important part of gardening! I have grand visions now, but we'll see in reality how much I can take care of!
ReplyDeleteBest Wishes for a real gusher of a water well. It's hard to garden when there isn't plentiful moisture.
ReplyDeleteYou mentioned that Pride of Barbados might not survive your winters. I am in zone 8b. Mine dies to the ground but comes back from the roots in time to bloom toward the end of June and until frost. I'm not sure what minimum temperature the roots will survive. I walk a thin balance between plants that can't take our cold and those that can't take our heat. Then there are the ones like peonies and tulips that can't get enough cold here.
Wow, that must have been frustrating to not be able to water plants that really needed it. I'm glad you'll soon have the water you need. We sure take it for granted when we have enough. Droughts are awful.
ReplyDeleteNell Jean - I know that thin line a plant needs to be in to take our heat and our cold. I try to make sure plants will live in zones 7 through 9, though technically I'm in 8a. I may try it to see if it will come back for me. I think it's such a pretty bush.
ReplyDeletePlantPostings - You're exactly right. It has been frustrating, knowing the potential of the garden is not being realized. I hope this helps - a lot!
I don't know what your rain situation is there but do you have gutters on your home and can you capture rainwater with rain barrels? We were introduced to that concept about 5 years ago when we visited some friends in Georgia who were struggling with a severe drought that nearly drained Lake Lanier, their drinking water source. We had a serious drought here last summer and that became a viable option for us here. (That and SoilMoist... but you need to get it down near the roots.)
ReplyDeleteWow! You could own the world with one of those in your backyard. I always wanted a well of my own. Us gardeners, want the strangest things! Congratulations!
ReplyDeleteCathy and Steve - I remember that severe drought they had in Georgia. And we did look into rainwater barrels, but most do not supply much water - even several hooked together. We've been considering different ideas for several years, but with no rain, this option increasingly became the clearest choice for us.
ReplyDeleteTufa Girl - I agree. We gardeners ask for and want things that no one else would ever think of! I hope the fatality rate of my plants starts to decline after this!
I can imagine how happy you feel, since having water means everything to a gardener in a hot climate. We have water restrictions here where I live in SoCa and it is very hard to get the garden through the heat of summer.
ReplyDeleteYour first picture looks phenomenal! I love the garden statue, the fence and the whole garden design of that area.
Christina
Christina - Oh, I will be so very happy! My poor little plants have suffered. California has had a hard time with water, if I recall. Too bad - it's such a beautiful state.
ReplyDeleteWow what a tall well! We bought our place last October and it came with a well. The well came with a metal purple cover over it. BUT we've never seen the well, but we get all our water from it. NO water bill. It did freeze up last winter and we had no water - not so good.
ReplyDeleteCottage Dome - That is the rig that drills the well. It holds up the pipe casing that goes into the ground. Sorry your well froze last winter. That's not such a good thing!
ReplyDeleteHolley, I know like I am bugging you to death...but we have a second well on the property. We put a hand pump on it and it works....right now, I am trying to find a pump for it and have tried reading and understand....anyway, what type of pump did you use and what would you suggest
ReplyDeleteJanie - you are not bugging me at all! I've just been out of town lately. We have a deep well, so we have a deep well pump. Probably not what you need. You probably need an above ground jet pump. However, if it ever quits, you have to prime it by pouring water into it. A submersible pump never needs priming because it stays in the water. I would suggest just going to your local well driller, and seeing what they recommend. There's pros and cons to both.
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