This week I reveal who Maureen ate last week, made my first big flower arrangement of the season, and picked my first 3 strawberries, an act that doesn’t sound like much, but felt as triumphant as summiting Everest in flip-flops.
Strawberries: 3. Birds and Voles: 0
I picked the first three strawberries of the season, all of which were shockingly still attached to the plant with no bite marks in sight. This is thanks to the wire cage I built years ago to keep the birds and voles out.
I don't have a tutorial on how I built it but you can get a better look at the strawberry cage in a photo at the bottom of this post.
The berries are coming in not only clean with no peck marks or vole bites, but they are huge. One of them is the size of a baking potato.
I will be making strawberry jam the moment I have more than three.
If you aren't a strawberry jam person may I recommend homemade strawberry fruit rollups?
Maureen’s Latest Victim
Maureen is the Venus Flytrap I’ve been carefully observing and deeply respecting. 👉 If you're curious about keeping one alive (or mildly terrified), they actually sell Venus Flytrap starter kits on Amazon.
Last week one of her traps snapped shut. This week it reopened, revealing the remains of an ant—her first confirmed kill.
Guess what? Maureen trapped another bug this week and I have no idea what this one is. The first one at least looked like an ant, but I have no clue what this one might be.
Look at the shadow in the lower, right, closed trap below.
If I had to, I'd guess common house fly. With a rotund bum.
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Any guesses?
Peony Season (a.k.a. Now We’re Just Showing Off)
The peonies started blooming this week, which means I made my first real flower arrangement of the season. Not a “grab a few stems and hope” arrangement—an actual one. With height, weight, balance, and the risk of knocking things over.
I don’t grow flowers to impress anyone. But if you happen to walk into my house when a peony arrangement is on the table, you will be impressed. It’s just how peonies work.
It's actually kind of small compared to how big it could be but I didn't want to cut anymore peonies. I tried to fill it out a little with apple stems, roses and cresss. Oh! And sweet pea greenery. And climbing hydrangeas.
I still have to book those Ikebana classes so it doesn't take me 5 hours to make a mediocre arrangement.
The Bug That Should Not Fly
On Tuesday, I noticed something on one of my tomato plants. It looked like a very small turtle. With legs. Which isn't surprising as turtles do have legs.
I picked it off, placed it on the table next to me, and turned my head for approximately five seconds. When I looked back, it was gone. I found it again several feet away—now sitting on my Korean mint.
This thing flies. I don’t know how. It’s shaped like a coin with limbs. It has no visible wings. It looks like it should move slowly and thoughtfully. Instead, it vanishes and reappears like a garden-based urban legend.
I used the Google image search method I talked about earlier this week to identify it as a tortoise beetle. Which can indeed fly.
I’m not even mad it ate almost all of my tiny tomato seedling. I’m impressed.
That’s the week.
The berries are safe.
Turtles fly now (pigs must be furious)
And Maureen, god help us, is thriving.
Have a good weekend.
—Karen
Marie Braun
Love your strawberries & peonies. Hoping Maureen didn't eat a ladybug...
I live in the lower mainland of BC and am seriously stressed over the lack of bees/butterflies/ladybugs in our garden this spring. Where have they gone??The only insect I seem to have in residence is an over-abundance of green aphids. My husband was reduced to hand pollinating our Victoria plum tree with a Q-tip.
Karen
I haven't noticed a lack of insects here but I maybe haven't been paying attention. It really hasn't started to warm up here though. I left a roll of landscape cloth in my garden and one end of the tube is now filled with bunny hair and big, fat bees. I hope I don't need to use the cloth because I don't want to disturb the bees. I like them living right in the middle of my garden. Maybe it's a weather thing in BC. What's it like there? ~ karen!
Marie Braun
It was a cold & wet spring that turned most of my flowers to mush, followed by a week of scorching sun that fried what was left. I'm sure climate change has something to do with the lack of insects. I've lived on the West Coast all of my 54 years, and the weather the past few years has been very strange. The heat dome of 2021 nearly finished me off. Or it could be because my neighbour hires a pest control company to routinely spray her house and yard with pesticide because she hates ants/spiders/wasps. But I saw my first ladybug yesterday, so maybe there's hope!
Karen
The heat has just started here in Southern Ontario. A 'heat event' is headed for us for the next week. So here we go ... ~ karen!
Kim
Beautiful arrangement! Our peonies are nothing but memories and plants that need to be cut back :(
Central Alabama, USA
Jo
I have a Venus flytrap in my kitchen. It's infested with green fly ...
Toby
That's actually not too shabby a flower arrangement at all. I bet the ikebana teacher will take you on.
Susan Schlub
1. Your peony arrangement is just perfect! You may have another career opening up.
2. I didn't see what the name of the strawberries you raised. Would say what kind you are growing?
3. Re: Maureen. Should we expect a musical to be out soon about her?
Thanks,
Susan
Karen
Hi Susan. Thanks! I love arranging flowers but honestly it takes me AGES to do any arrangement. The strawberry variety is "Audrey". I've recently replaced "Charlotte". So far, I prefer the Charlotte for taste but Audrey for the sheer size of them! ~ karen
Jan in Waterdown
Love the shine on that ‘berry! I can smell it from here 🤤. Cannot believe you didn’t just shove it in your pie hole!!!! You’re entitled.
Kristin S.
My peonies are also blooming, so there are seven arrangements in the house, and still something like fifty blooms in the backyard! These ones came with the house when I bought it, but two years ago they were failing because of too much shade from the neighbor's tree that grew up. So I dug them up and replanted them in a sunnier place, and this year, wow. The first year after transplanting the blooms were weak (expected), but two years on, I'm really glad I did that.
My other peony-based task is identifying them. I've figured out three of the four types, but that last one is ...elusive. I've got Festiva Maxima, Monsieur Jules Elie, and Mr.s J. V. Elund. These varieties were all registered before my house was built in 1950! Happy peony season!
Karen
Good job on identifying your peony! And two years is quick for a peony to adjust to transplanting. You must have done it just right. ~ karen!
Deb from Maryland
That was a good week indeed. :)
Dianna 4th
Peony arrangment is so nice.
cara
Great post!!! You are busy and surrounded by the mysteries of nature. Yummy strawberries. (I did not see a photo of the cage). Peony time, as brief as it is, is an excellent celebration of summer.
Carry on. Love your info and images and wisdom.
JillB
Your strawberries are beautiful!
Sally
Nice round up! I strongly (v strongly!) believe that if you grow strawberries that perfect then you have no business turning them into jam or anything cooked at all! 🍓 Eaten whole; sliced and on top of a beautiful tart; drenched in ice-cold cream - any of these or similar things which showcase the best are the way to go!
Jan in Waterdown
Sally, I’m with you on that! Save the freshly picked perfect ones for immediate eating and the lesser ones for cooking. Karen’s not mistaken (aka just wrong!) very often but this time?? 🤷🏼
Karen
Everybody calm down. I grow strawberries specifically to make jam, so that's their job in life. Any extras I'll make mini strawberry shortcakes! ~ karen
Debbie
Crazy looking beetle/turtle
Omg
Marie R
Your strawberries are beautiful, nice job! The Maureen update gave me chills, maybe because I saw Little Shop of Horrors this week at a local theater. And a new bug?! Yikes!
Randy P
I tell you what - It's like an episode of Wild Kingdom with Marlin Perkins and Jim Fowler... if they also liked flowers. I'm luvin' it.
Gigi v
Very impressive peonies. More impressive is the bug-never have I seen one in all my 69 years. Thank you for the introduction.