If You Persevere, It May Grow

 

I have always wanted hollyhocks growing in the yard.  You know, those tall stems with multiple flowers that bloom for a couple of months every summer.  They come in lovely pinks, peaches, reds and maroons.  

Maybe I read too many English Murder Mysteries with hollyhocks surrounding the sorry victims thatched cottage.  Whatever.  We have tried to grow hollyhocks and failed.  Sounds like nonsense talk because, as you know, everyone can grow hollyhocks.  We have even walked down back lanes and picked seed buds from hollyhocks that were growing like weeds thinking if they could grow in those conditions, they could grow in our yard. 

Well, success at last.  Several years of trying and here is the hollyhock in our yard.  I was asked to go out and ensure that I took photos so that, should next year not be as good, we will have this memory preserved.  

Thank goodness that we finally had…….

A Hollyhock on Gwynne

Shhhh. The Clematis is Creeping

We have a pole in our front yard for the power and telephone lines.  On that pole is a sign indicating No Parking Anytime to the left of our home.  I think you have to learn to live with the ‘gifts’ that the city gives you so we have planted a vine and a clematis plant at the base of the pole.  This clematis is a plant of extraordinary beauty and has been giving us flowers for the past several weeks.  

About that No Parking sign….  From time to time the city will come by and rip plants away from their signs.  These are guys who likely have no gardening training and are there from the Traffic Bureau.  We have grown (pun) fond of the clematis so this week we took out the ladder, climbed up and cut back the plant so the sign is visible. Oh yes, we also saved a few people from getting tickets.

Photo credit:  Me.  I have tried to get a few good shots of the plant but found that if the sun is shining directly on the plant, the flowers come out very washed out.  Taking the photo from some of the flowers that protrude and at a 45 degree angle helped to get the true colour of the blossoms.  Oh, using the macro lens also made the focus just the plant and blurred the background.  

Eliminating Cat Spray Odour

 There are a few cats in my neighbourhood who are allowed to roam freely.  One of the by-products of these free range cats it that they like to mark or spray ‘their’ territory and that includes my backyard.  When the sun heats up the sprayed area, the smell is way beyond pleasant.    I like to sit outside and enjoy the summer and there are days when this is not possible because of the cat smell.

I have been doing a search on what can be done to first get rid of the smell and, second, get rid of the cats. 

  1. This week we started to dump the morning coffee grounds in the smelly area.  That will, I hope reduce the smell.  Perfume sellers often have a jar of coffee beans for customers to inhale between smelling different perfumes.   Who knows, this may work and costs nothing. 
  2. We bought something called a CatScat mat (don’t you just love it) from Lee Valley and will be putting it along the top of the fence.  
  3. I discovered that cats are not that fond of citrus.  Many people have recommended putting orange peel in the flower beds are around the doors and area that the cats seem to scent.   I found a citrus spray called  Nature’s Miracle Orange-Oxy Power Just for Cats Stain & Odor Remover that is available at pet stores and on Amazon.ca amazon.com
  4. On another note and this one more potent smelling, I have mixed white vinegar with water in a spray (LOL) bottle.  Some goes on the cat sprayed area and the bottle sits on the patio table waiting for me to use to shoot the cat should it dare enter my area while I am outside. 
  5. Finally, and we are not up to doing this, there are humane traps that we could buy and trap the cats to take to the pound.

It seems I am not suffering alone.  My favourite veterinarian columnist, Dr. Bernhard Pukay,  wrote an article in the July 3, 2012 Ottawa Citizen about keeping cats out of flowerbeds.   According to the article, I am on the right track with all of these efforts.

If you are selling your home, make sure that you do everything possible to eliminate offensive odours – both inside and outside the home. 

I hope that:  I don’t get any catcalls for writing this post; my curiosity will kill the cat (smell;) and, this post will not rub you the wrong way.