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Tuesday, April 30, 2013

The New Front Garden

The new front garden is as done as it's going to get for now. I transplanted everything from elsewhere in the yard, and most of the plants are happy. The magnolia looks dead, but I'm already scheming about replacing it with a tree peony (though there may not be space). Soon we will add some sunflowers and California poppies for quick-growing, inexpensive color. I think the broken concrete pieces work for now, though it's not my favorite look.

Umm...I also am not a fan of the cedar mulch. I completely forgot that I prefer aged hemlock when I bought this stuff. But it was soooo cheap. Ah well, it'll only be for one season - then I can justify covering it with something darker and prettier.

The layout ended up being very close to what I had planned out. There were a few additions, including some creeping Jenny, but the only purchased plant was a pansy. The kid saw the yellow and black pansy and declared it a "tiger face" plant and wanted it for the new garden. For $1.50, how could I say no?

Before
After
After after.
So we removed the cedar boards and added more garden on the house-side of the sidewalk. These are basically starter-gardens. Over time I hope to add soft flowy perennials. I like Scott's style over at Rhone Street Gardens.


*Pssst...this is my first scheduled post...I'm in Hawaii! 


Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Shopping the Backyard

Or The Great Plant Migration...
Or What a Sodding Mess...
Or That Plant Looks Dead, Let's Move It to the Front Yard...

You get the idea, we are moving some plants around. Trees in the neighboring yard to the south of us are getting pretty big, and that means our back yard has less and less sun exposure each year. We are trying to grow more food this summer, so we'll need those sunny spots for edibles. Therefore, a few plants need to be relocated.

Also, I hate mowing grass.

So, we decided to smother some grass in the parking strip and create a sweet little flower garden. Luckily we've had some very nice weather, and I've been a busy little bee. Since we are spending a good chunk of change on soil and mulch, the actual plants will all have to come from the yard. I'm hoping to get a gift card to Portland Nursery for my birthday - hint, hint.

We need to move: a magnolia, a tea tree, a lilac, many day lilies, a few iris, five lavenders, a few roses, some grasses, a sedum and a peony. There are a few other plants that I'll probably move or divide as well. So we'll have plenty to fill the new garden.

A regular old parking strip with a water main access point to keep clear.
Smothered.
My yard is always a work in progress, but I think this will look great. It is easy work, but labor intensive. I decided to remove the sod only around the edges. Next up we'll put in some cedar edging, soil and the larger plants (magnolia, tea tree and lilac).

By the way, we'll be laying a brick path just to the left of the new garden!