Hello, my beauteous rose bushes! How are you? I hope that none of you were caught in that terrible storm in and around Milwaukee last week. Oh my! The flooding was horrific. And the resulting damage is awful, just awful. Pictures like that one of the SUV in the sinkhole look surreal, but the devastation is genuine and many people have been adversely affected. It’s such a shame that these things occur. Sometimes I wonder if an anti-rainmaker (dry-maker? drought-maker?) could make a living around these parts. Perhaps that’s a career that Junior should give some thought to. He’s going to have to get serious sooner or later.I’m performing my civic duty this week by announcing that the Racine County Fair starts at noon today: http://www.racinecountyfair.com/ Hooray! They have everything from the BoDeans to a mooing contest to demolition derbies. Great fun for the entire family. Be there or be □ .
Also, don’t forget about the Starving Artists Fair this Sunday, August 1, in East Park on the Gateway campus, Main Street between 10th and 11th Streets. http://kiosk.racinepost.com/2010/07/starving-artists-fair-includes-food.html At the same time, and across Main Street, the Masonic Center will be hosting its annual Job’s Daughters Craft Fair. http://www.racinemasoniccenter.org/
There’s always so much to do in the summer in Racine. I can’t keep up with it all. I don’t even
try. One of my favorite summer pastimes is working in the garden. Just weeding and watering seems to soothe me. Here’s a secret I’m now broadcasting to the world: I like the smell of dirt. Ever since I was a child, I’ve been attracted to the fragrance of soil, especially rich, black dirt. I don’t know why. It’s not like I want to bury my face in a pile of dirt (at least, not for long…), but there’s something about the odor of organic products that gets me, maybe even in a primal way. Oh dear, I never really thought about it that much. Anyway, I always thought that someone in the perfume industry could make a lot of money with a line of products that smelled like soil from around the world. The magical scent of Sahara sand, or soil from the Sphinx, or loam from Luxemburg, . . . I would buy it. Hmmm, maybe I’ll make it! Madame Zoltar’s® Eau de Cologne “Cultivated Clay,” or “Saturated Sandstone,” or “Earthy Earth,” or a million others. Shower up to clean off that everyday grime and then splash on the scent of cultured dirt. Hmmm, . . .Hold on! I just checked the internet. I should have done that before: http://www.demeterfragrance.com/Product.aspx?ProductID=853 Demeter™ has had the fragrance “Dirt” on sale for years. I should have figured. My million dollar ideas haven’t made me a million, or anything, yet. But I do hope that I’ve made some friends along the way, because that’s what matters.
Thank you my dears for reading my blog today. I so enjoy our time together. You are each and every one special to me. Especially YOU! It’s always great when you are around.
If you have doubts or fears, or just too many beers, contact me at: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.
Enjoy the summer. I see lazy, hazy, crazy days ahead, filled with fun, sunshine, and good fortune. Get out there and grab some of it. Metagrobolize!
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8 comments:
A wonderful wednesday to you, Madame. You speak of roses in your blog. I have been having a pesky, pest problem with my rose bushes. Perhaps you can help?
Seems as if the Japanese beetle has arrived in Racine. These creatures are attacking my rose bushes. Each morning and evening, there they are, munching holes all over and totally ruining the flowers and foilage.
Do I resort to poisonous Sevin dust or do I put up with diminished fall blooming and distorted plant damage?
Dirt...Even Jelly Belly candies have one which taste like dirt!
Oh my, I was so unaware of the popularity of dirt. I thought it was my dirty little secret. Thank you for the information, Mr. SER.
Ms. kk, I'm no expert on plants, so I consulted another non-expert, Mr. OrbsCorbs, for some input on your question. His reply was, "Bombs away," which I took to mean an endorsement of the chemical approach to this problem. He also provided this link: http://learningstore.uwex.edu/Assets/pdfs/A3737-E.pdf I still say that the Japanese won the war.
I always look forward to your blogs Madame! You have a fan in MN. :)
KK, if you would rather use something natural on your roses, this guy has some good homemade remedies for all kinds of garden pests and problems.
http://www.jerrybaker.net/garden/homepage.aspx
Thanks for the advice on the pests, Madame and Orbs. DA, I've heard of that guy before. I might have to look and see if the library has his book.
Maybe I should just give up and stay inside. Seems like every year something from nature picks a fight with me. I've duked it out with bees/wasps, rabbits, ants and now Japanese Beetles. Those chipmunks continue to mock me. So far, nature has won on all accounts.
When I was in lawn care for awhile, I had a customer whose lawn had grubs (Japanese beetle larvae) and skunks tore the hell out of it digging up the grubs to eat. I hit it with chemicals but had little success. She moved and Merit insecticide for grubs was introduced, but I never had a customer with the problem again.
You're getting the adults, kk, and they may not even be coming from your lawn. They eat just about anything. Perhaps a flamethrower would help.
This kind of reminds me of the story of the 2 farmers talking about their crops. The one farmer asks the other, "What do you put on your strawberries?"
The other farmer says "Well, I usually spread the cowshit from the barn on them. And if I run short, a little pigshit."
The first farmer says "That funny. I usually put cream and sugar on mine."
Okay, bought the bomb. Will 'ignite' it this afternoon. Look out little Japanese Beetles and any stray earwigs that might be in close proximity! I read that those beetles can fly about a mile to find foliage to munch on. I'm hoping there are no grubs under the grass... ick!!!
Two books by Jerry Baker are on hold at the library. Did I mention, I HATE bugs????
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