Rain, rain, come again asap

It was another week of summer weather, though we did cool off considerably on Tuesday (only reaching 20C/68F) which I much appreciated.  Though there was rain and possible thunderstorms in the forecast on Thursday, other than some clouds we got nothing.  I'm almost afraid of this month's water bill; regardless I won't regret keeping the plants well watered. The tomatoes are putting out lots of fruit, the peppers look like they may bloom soon, and the last of the lettuce has been picked.  I've learned that peas and sweet peas aren't happy in containers - or at least not in short ones. I did get about a quarter cup of peas from the plants, now I wonder how much I spent watering them?  I think I'll try again next year with five gallon pails.  I don't have room for raised garden beds, at least not where it would get sufficient sun.

Arggh....blogger and photographs are not my friend today.  To the left are one of my containers of tomatoes, plus basil and marigolds.

Below and to the right of the paragraph are the containers when I first planted them on June 5th. The marigolds haven't taken off but the tomatoes sure have!

It was a pretty quiet week for the most part.  I did my walking both in and out of doors.  My camera went with me on the one day.

Down at the creek I could hear the sound of killdeer calling.  

There are two photos of the killdeer as Blogger has apparently removed the "remove image" option.  I wanted to post the one with the pair but initially selected the wrong one. :p

The water level has really dropped in the creek.  We definitely need the rain.

The gophers were out chirping too.  This one seemed as curious about me as I was of him.

The source of the creek water seems to come from the pond overflow.  This section of creek is between the pond and the creek where I walk. There isn't much water for the adult ducks but the little ones were zipping around.

Over at the pond I spotted this pretty wigeon resting in the water.  It has such distinctive markings.

The sole cormorant was back standing guard on its post.  Does it not look like a statue?

I wouldn't mind having one (a statue) in my back yard. 

The pelican had been feeding in the pond before it flew off.  It's been on its own at the pond most of the summer too.  

These are some form of campanula (bellflower) my guess is the seeds blew in or were transported there by birds.  

I believe this was a mallard duck, either molting or an immature male.  The bill would normally be more yellow though I have found photos of mallard ducks with this almost green bill.  He's not quite as handsome as the wigeon especially with the mottled green head.

Thursday the crew showed up to start the process of replacing the fence between my neighbours to the west and I.  I decided not to change out the other section on the east side of the yard mostly due to the cost (lumber prices are out of this world), and will re-paint the old fence sometime this summer.  I can only see that portion of fence from the bedroom window and since I don't spend much time looking out on it, it will stay.  The crew got the old fence down, the post holes dug and the posts cemented in before they left for the day.  They showed up around 10 the next morning and were finished by about 3 in the afternoon. The fence looks good and new gates look great.  I wasn't as impressed with the mess they left behind of dirt from the post holes that were clods of clay.  I shovelled most of it up and put it back behind the trees in the back yard.  It only took about a half hour to get things tidied up so I can't really complain. 

This morning I got out early to do some yardwork as the heat is on again.  It's currently 31C/88F as I finish this post but the morning was perfect.  I watered containers, dug out weeds in the lawn and under the trees, and got the lawn mowed by 11 a.m. and then spent an hour or so reading and relaxing in the shade on the deck.  Next up on the agenda is do some sorting and organizing in the craft room as I ran out to get some baskets this morning at the dollar store.  I decided it would be a good day to work on that as I won't be heading outdoors until this evening.  How people manage without a/c in this weather is beyond me!

Before I came into the house I wandered the yard and took a few photos of various containers. (more than I'm sharing here but I won't bore you with them). Everything is filling in so nicely.

This container has a couple of green pepper plants, a lantana and marigolds.  It gets less sun than the other so the peppers are still fairly short but they seem to be about to push a flower.

These containers have my geraniums, calibrochoa, vinca, lobelia (in smaller containers) and another plant which name escapes me. Bacopa I think.

Lastly this is one of two containers off the patio.  With petunias, calibrochoa, verbena, curly grass and in the center is a variety of Euphorbia.  The two containers are probably my favorite this year so I'll have to keep it in mind for next year.

Have a great week everyone!  If you're getting rain you can send it my way please. :)