LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes And Badlands Wanderings 2024
TR Birthday Shenanigans: I Wander the Northern Badlands Solo
Unheralded
Unheralded
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 76 And An Interlude In Calgary, British Columbia And Home Via Montana
The vibe, the music, the food and the company was mighty fine. Home to harvest.
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 74
A hint of autumn in the air, with the crickets singing, some cool evenings again, windows open, vegetables ripening, peak summer perennials waning, notices of hunting season openers, end-of-summer-chores and — again, again, again— a need for rain.
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 72: The Perennials And Tomatoes Take Center Stage
A deluge of magical rain these past weeks has made all the difference. That and two loads of mulch from the dump and some clearance bags of mulch from Runnings. Busy now, packing for an expedition with a woman friend. Countless lessons about packing from my Mother are informing and inspiring me today. More smiles now than tears. Stay tuned for news …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 71: What A Difference Rain Makes
What a difference rain makes. Dawn, July 10, 2022.
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 70: Here It Is July
Here It Is July at Red Oak House, and 2.75 inches of rain in two nights! And a few days ago, I dug up a shrub rose in an area that has to be re-worked and gifted it to my dear friend, Christine. She has planted it. Moved the clock and touched up the paint, and life goes on. Time …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman —Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 68: Morning After A Deluge
Inch and a quarter of rain in a quick burst and another branch of the neighbors’ tree comes down. We slept through it all.
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 66
Digging in the dirt is my therapy.
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 66 : The Summer Of Smoke
Remember when I said, on June 13, “Guess I’ll just go camping”? Well, we did. We hitched up the travel trailer and headed west, straight into the cauldron, to the historic heatwave in the Pacific Northwest. But we got lucky, and cool weather returned by the time we made it to North Cascades National Park. Highlights were glorious Mount Rainier, where …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 65
I know, I know. It has been many months since I’ve written Red Oak House Garden Notes. How many times can one write about an exceptional drought? How many times can one whine about the long dry winter? I’ve also been busy with rewrites of a manuscript Jim and I have devoted much of the past years crafting. That, and …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 63: Hints Of Autumn
“There’s a bright golden haze on the meadow!” — “Oklahoma,” Rodgers and Hammerstein Jim burst into song this morning — pro tip: Ask him to sing “Moon River” — when we agreed that not only are there hints of autumn at Red Oak House but also haze in the air caused by the combination of smoke from Western fires and dust …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 62
We need rain at Red Oak House. But the new ice maker in the fridge seems to work. My mother would say, maybe when we kids were asking for something that might not be reasonable, “People in hell want ice-water.” But a small celebration was held here when I scored a brand-new Margaritaville blender (our vintage blender on its last …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 61
Assorted Perennials now in bloom at Red Oak House.
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 59
One year ago, at the time of Summer Solstice, I took some photos of our gardens. Here are two views of the irises in bloom. Last year, I divided hostas and other perennials to increase my plants without buying more, a frugal gardener. I give away plants and friends give me plants. We grub raspberries and give the plants …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Gardening Notes No. 57
An early warm spell lured Mr. Green Jeans into planting his tomatoes May 1. Last week’s cold snap killed most of his precious hand-raised heirloom seedlings. He says it is worth the risk because of our short growing season. I’m not much of a risk-taker, but the vegetable garden is his territory, so I try to stay out of it …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 55: Autumn Sunshine
On Friday, I worked joyously in the autumn sunshine at Red Oak House, on a rare still day, planting 92 tulip bulbs at the request of my husband. He had asked me last spring to plant more and when I received an email from a seed company mentioning bulbs, it hit me that there was still time. On Thursday night, …
LILLIAN CROOK: WildDakotaWoman — Red Oak House Garden Notes No. 53
I’m awake before dawn this morning at Red Oak House with a long task list that includes an overdue Garden Notes post. Between painting the house, ailing elderly parents, a trip to Yellowstone and preparations for my upcoming adventure, I have fallen behind in my writing. Yet, I write for pleasure and have no deadline, so it is “all good.” …