Life living in historic Dublin, GA and the Capt Hardy Smith House: When will the late spring heat wave of 2011 end

Hello all. It has been awhile since my last entry. I wish I was at the beach, right now. Those who read my blog probably thought I was. In truth yes, I have been to the beach a few times. Dublin and the Southeast have been stuck in a unrelenting heat wave with temperatures in the mid to upper 90s since about mid May and now we have been flirting with 100 to 102 degrees for the last week with little rain. The humidity has been bad too. We are finding ways to stay cool! I got a little misting thing that attaches to my garden hose to keep my Boston ferns from dying and to keep me cool while I sit and take a break from working in the yard, siting on the porch with the ceiling fan going. Summer is not officially here yet! My family and friends to the north have gotten all the rain we so desperately need this spring. The grass up in Indiana, where I traveled to about 2 weeks ago, is green, lush and beautiful. They got some pretty bad weather a few days after we left the state to return to Georgia.

All the grass in the yard has been planted but I am afraid we will have to replant areas of the east side of the house next season because it got hot sooner than we anticipated. The grass needs water so desperately. I have been watering the grass the best I can and it is actually burning up in places. For the past several weeks, we have been focusing on the yard, the flower beds and moderate landscaping. The driveway will hopefully have gravel in it before the season is over.

John removed the back stairs near the garden recently which will have to be rebuilt. They were getting too dangerous to climb up/down. The area where the stairs was is now occupied by our grill. The basic elements of my garden are complete. I would like to buy some stepping stones to put in there too.

A little fountain may be nice. We could probably rig the water source from the well for a constant flow with a nightly glow of solar powered lights. We have a couple of Tiki oil lamps near the Pindo Palm for the tropical feel when we grill out. We will need to put up a 6 ft privacy fence to surround the garden area when we entertain outside. A white picket one would be pretty with Confederate Jasmine or English ivy cascading all over it.

We planted 4 Confederate Jasmine, two between the magnolias on the shady side of the house, put cedar mulch and river rocks around them. They are thriving, growing quickly and the little white flowers give off the most beautiful, fragrant smell. They grow so quickly that you can almost see them grow right before your eyes! It is pretty amazing. Maybe I won't kill those plants. They sure love the shade. I can look out my bedroom window each morning and enjoy them.

John is working on the front steps. Sanding, priming then painting. The steps will be painted white as before. The Gone With the Wind Room is on hold for now because John was so busy with work and we need to finalize the colors for the walls.

The front flower beds are done. I planted Mediterranean Vinca, Marigolds and Lirope on both sides. We have to water at least once a day because the heat will kill them. Our selections are direct sun, heat and drought tolerant for our area but I don't think 95+ degree temperatures for weeks at a time was what they were bred for. The Med Vinca are ground cover perennials that bloom all season long which in middle Georgia goes through end of October before any hint of a frost occurs. I planted pinks, reds, whites, peaches and a mix of those colors. The combination is quite beautiful. I will have to nip the dead stuff in the fall and they will come back next season. They are also low maintenance.