“Yes,” seriously!! A special trip to Tractor Supply (yesterday) for squirrel food. (OK, squirrel food and a few other things.) This little corner of the world is the “Garden of Eat-in.” (The critters love me?!) I could spend my entire day taking pictures of critters. Right now, looking out my living room window, I see a brown gecko on a brown-gold wind-chime, and a red Cardinal on the feeder. Yesterday, a frog hopped out from under a planter on the patio. Wildlife come and go. Remember the rabbit that visits morning and evening (earlier pictures)?? ~~ If you are curious about a feeder bolted to a cute little chair: In North Carolina, raccoons would get into the squirrel feeder at night. Bringing the chair/feeder into the apartment at night, I outwitted the raccoons!!

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The moles are my enemy and I’ve made it difficult for them to dig in my immediate yard area. This past year, I’ve covered the surface with more than one-hundred cement paving blocks. Checking back, I see the cement block project started eleven months ago with A New Project. It rained…, the kids did not arrive to assist…; it has been a one-woman-project. Seriously!!

…broken record. You know, the old 78 RPM vinyl disks we used to play on the phonograph? That kind of “broken record.” Well, it’s an analogy: I’m comparing it to my monotonous repetitious mention of the weather and the heat.

I had every intention to work on projects inside my trailer. However, I went shopping at Tractor Supply, and Lowe’s, for garden items and several more plants. Specifically, I want to get another green pepper plant started before the present plant dies.

Sweat was pouring off me as I foolishly worked (briefly) in the yard mid-afternoon. To my surprise, and delight, I saw my first Periwinkle bloom. Thriving plants make me happy; stricken plants make me sad.

5:18 PM temperature per Houston NBC-TV news: “96 degrees in Livingston and ‘feels like 103′.” ~~ If it is cool where you live, count your blessings!!

…get a tour of my garden. Then the picture appears on the Escapees CARE Facebook page.

You have my permission to skip past this blog message if you have no interest in my garden. I may be the only person interested in watching–and documenting–the growth of some of my plants. Some… were nurtured through the Winter but were hard-hit by our last deep freeze. Some… have failed to push out new growth. But I am hopeful they will recover. 

Begonia from North Carolina

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Begonias from last year

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Blue Geranium (mail order from garden catalog)

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Blue Geranium (mail order from garden catalog)

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Boston Fern

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Butterfly Bush (mail order from garden catalog)

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Cape Honeysuckle from previous year

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Cucumber seeds to plants and vines

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Hummingbird-Trumpet Vines (mail order from garden catalog)

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Larkspur

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Mandevilla from previous year… replaced…

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Mandevilla from previous year

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Mosquito plant (mail order from garden catalog)

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Mosquito plant (mail order from garden catalog)

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Mosquito plant from previous year

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Mosquito plant from Livingston farm and garden supply store

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Pepper (nursery potted plant from Lowe’s)

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Petunias

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Salvia plant from previous year

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Strawberry plants (mail order from garden catalog)

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Tomato plant from Livingston Lowe’s

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Tomato plant(s) from seeds

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Zucchini

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See Mary. Mary, quite contrary… and Trying to get organized. ~~ See this blog message about saving “Tommy” tomato plant, and this one showing his current appearance.

“Sabotage” of my garden!!

Time to recognize the futility of my labor!! A veggie garden isn’t going to survive in Texas heat. I haven’t approached the project “haphazard“; I check the moisture, I provide fertilizer, I “pamper” my garden. Correction: A veggie garden in containers isn’t going to survive in my yard. This makes me very sad; I really hoped for my own home-grown organic veggies.

As I publish this–at 4:20 PM–the Houston TV meteorologist said “feels like 104 in Livingston.”

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Livingston, TX
Wednesday 4:00 PM
Mostly Sunny
90°F | °C
Precipitation: 0%
Humidity: 59%
Wind: 2 mph
Temperature Precipitation Wind

Cooler than yesterday at this time. ~~ “Hot” outdoors; I’m dripping wet with sweat!! Time to shower and apply my time to an indoor project!!

Reluctantly, I closed the shades on the East side of the trailer (early this morning). The heat, through the glass, was unbearable!!

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Houston TV-news meteorologist said (at 4:15) “97 degrees in Livingston.” My thermometer registers 91 degrees, and Internet weather says 92 degrees. Although not expressed as such, I’d say the “feels like” temperature is 97.

Livingston, TX
Tuesday 4:00 PM
Partly Cloudy
92°F | °C
Precipitation: 20%
Humidity: 47%
Wind: 3 mph

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Postscript, Wed., June 10, 3:00 AM: I awakened at 2:05–in a pool of perspiration–and could not go back to sleep. Decided to get up and read email messages. I’m running a fan all night (in the living room) but insufficient for the challenge. I despise the thought that I might need to run the A/C all night!! I almost have a heart attack thinking about the electric bill!! I’ve been conservative so far: No A/C until I enter the trailer after mornings spent in the garden (yesterday, 11:00 AM). Long hot summer stretches ahead!!

Postscript to the postscript: 🙂  While reading email, etc., etc., the small thermometer was resting on my pillow. (Inquiring minds want to know!!) Eighty degrees!! IMHO, too hot for comfortable sleeping!!

Absolutely nothing of merit accomplished this morning!!!!!! The ritual visit in the garden followed by preparation of Cooper’s Hawk visitor blog. ~~ I’m delighted to see new growth on the Christmas Cactus. I absconded with it–from the CARE dining room. It has been languishing for twenty months: No growth, no blooms. I had great success–in North Carolina–with Christmas Cactus’ and want to coax this one to bloom. It’s hanging from a branch, in the shade, near the picnic table. ~~ Actually, 92 degrees outdoors (at one o’clock) in deep shade but the meteorologist said factor in another five degrees for heat index. ~~ My poor thermometer was registering 112 degrees in the sun!!!! ~~ One o’clock and I’m finally going to fix brunch. I’d rather garden, and blog, then eat!!

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Postscript, 6:18 PM: The Houston TV meteorologist just said (6:17) “Livingston ‘feels like’ 101 degrees.”

Confession: I’m discouraged!! It’s 7:00 pm and I just watered most of my plants. They were fine this morning but a wilted sad sight this evening. It isn’t officially “summer” and I fear my garden may not survive!!