The plant sale is done and I'm free to get back to work around the house and yard. It's been so dry that the first order of business is to water...and water...and water. Rain down here seems to be a feast or famine experience, and we are currently experiencing a famine.

Most of the established plants seem to be doing fairly well, but the grass has started to show signs of stress. I would very much like to tear up all of that grass but, since we live in a suburban neighborhood and will probably be putting our house on the market soon, that's not a logical alternative. And, too, if I'm totally honest I have to admit that I love the look of dappled sunlight filtering through the trees onto the green carpet of the lawn.

I found the chrysalis - empty - that Lauren discovered last week. It appeared to have emptied by the happy egress of the (now) moth and not due to predation, so I'm anxious to show it to her.

My biggest challenge in gardening this week, besides the lack of rain, has been our oversized puppy. After purchasing and planting a new blackgum sapling in the empty deck well (where a silver maple stood before Hurricane Ivan toppled it), my husband was anxious to show me how great it looked when I got home. We went out there only to discover that Becker had chewed through the entire trunk and bamboo support stake about 15" above the ground, toppling the young tree completely and leaving the 4' top leaning sadly against the corner of the deck. I'm leaving the stub and hoping that it will put out new side buds, but I have a feeling that's wishful thinking. That deck well may be covered over yet.

I put in a live oak sapling, a Tensaw dahoon holly, 2 arborvitae ferns and a little Dianella start yesterday morning. So far Becker has (thankfully) ignored those. I suspect that under the deck has been declared canine-only territory.

The iris and roses are in full bloom, and I discovered that the Byzantine glads were blooming for the first time too. My hostas are pushing up strongly, despite the warm winter. Only the leaves of the Hummingbird clethra and the Kaempferia rotundifolia haven't put in an appearance yet this spring, but I have full confidence that they will. The eternal optimism of the gardener!