Bad Weather for a Long Weekend
I was wrong to be hopeful about the weather for gardening this past weekend. It was windy and freezing. However, we are hardcore and did it anyway. I was really regretting purchasing bag-your-own topsoil for the garden when we had to go in the car to get warm in between bags, but in the end it was worth it because we saved some money.
Gardening is hard work! I think we did a lot in two days. We got rid of all the weeds in the front flowerbed, tilled, added topsoil and even got around to planting two euonymus bushes. They're teeny now, but we decided not to spend the money on bigger bushes when these ones will grow. We put mulch around our bushes, but the other half of the front garden where the flowers will go will have to wait until Saturday. I'm thinking of getting some full-sun annuals for the front for now, and then deciding next year about a long-term perennial garden. I took some pictures, but it was totally overcast, unfortunately.
Jeremy is watering the new half-garden.
This is the front of our little house from the street. The light made the siding look blue, but I promise it is white. The siding is one of the things we'd like to replace, including all the trim around the windows and and we'd like to add some shutters and flowerboxes. All in good time, I guess. We're not made of money. Anyway, we've got a big evergreen tree in the yard that's not doing so well. Ideally I'd like to replace it with a birch, but that's not possible for us now so in the meantime we bought some evergreen food. Why not make the tree at least look healthy?
On the right hand side you can see a big concrete square with weeds growing out of the centre of it. We think that's meant to cover an old well or something. I don't even know. We can't move it (where would we move it to?) so I figured if we had the help of a few strong friends, we might be able to dig beneath it enough to drop it down a bit, then put topsoil and sod on top.
More watering
Here's a better view of the front. The weeds in the flower bed went as high in some places as the second slat of siding. On the right you can see an old stump, we think it's cedar. It's dead but not yet rotting, and there is a horrble bush growing from it that we keep cutting down. We're just going to ignore the stump until the garden is finished and then decide what to do with it. Should we just saw it flat to the ground or pay to have it dug up? Freakgirl suggested we plant daisies in it, which was an idea I loved. However, because of the bush, the sides of the stump are kind of branchy and ugly, and I don't know if it'll work. Still, it's an option.
This angle also provides you with a view of our satellite dish. It's fugly, yo. The previous owner got the roof reshingled and didn't want the dish screwed to the roof. I would rather have it on the roof than on the front of the house, but to each his own. When (if) we get our siding redone, we'll put it on the roof and hang a flower basket from there instead.
Also, just below the dish there is a peony plant. It was already in the garden, but not in a good spot. We tried to dig it up and replant it, but I think it's a lost cause. We mangled the roots (it was really deep!) and afterward I looked up information on peonies and learned that they're very particular and should preferably be moved in October. One day I'll learn to do my research first, but I think we killed the peony.
See my bush!
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Comments
It looks awesome! You guys did SOOOOOO much work in a short time. I have peonies, if you want one we can propogate in the fall. They are actually very hardy, and once you have one they get bigger quickly. Can't wait to see it in person.
*littlestar · May 25 · 8:44 AM
maggie, get your parents to get my parents to give you some lilac saplings from their yard (of which they have many) - those things are super hardy and you can practically stick them in sand and they'll grow. they smell so lovely and may help in camouflaging some of the rough areas. the only thing is that they are a bit aggressive, but easy to handle. also, keep in mind that in the fall all the garden centres start selling off their bushes for cheap - that is the time you guys can pick up some nice elegant evergreens, don't know what they're called but they grow tall and thin. they'd be nice as bookends or something on each side of the house. and where that stump is? i think you really need to get rid of it as the root system may infringe on any other trees you may want to plant around it. i have no idea how much it costs to get it taken out by a professional, but maybe it is something that can be cut out with some real elbow grease (and many extra hands).
as you said, you definitely need to get rid of that concrete slab - if it is covering an old well, you can just fill it in and cover it with some sod. however, if it contains the dead body of a girl with long black hair that sometimes comes out of your tv and kills, i can't help you out.
of course, not all of this has to be done all at once! over time.
all of this having been said, it looks so nice already but just wait until you plant some annuals and they start spreading like mad. it will be lovely. i wish i had a yard or even a balcony to plant some flowers!
and that is the end of Sandra's Garden Minute.
sandra · May 25 · 9:43 AM
I like Sandra's Garden Minute. I'm totally taking you up on that lilac thing. I've been thinking about planting them in the backyard. I don't think that the root system of the stump is going to affect anything. I won't be planting anything big right near it since we still need to access the side of the house, and we did try to dig under to see if we could get it out. It's too big a job for us, that's for sure. Also, I discovered previous owners have buried some concrete in and around the stump roots. We tried to dig it out but thought better of it in the end.
One thing I definitely want in the backyard is a Japanese Willow. So beautiful! I saw it at the garden centre and fell in love. No place as yet for something like that in the front, but a few of them dotting the backyard? Oh my!
Maggie · May 25 · 9:51 AM
Littlestar, I'm also taking you up on that peony offer! If mine dies, which I think it will, I'll save a spot for the new one. :D
Maggie · May 25 · 9:54 AM
I've never done any real gardening before, and I am amazed at how physically HARD it is. With the pulling and the lifting and bending and all that. Maggie and I were talking after the first day about how we could both feel ALL our muscles. That kinda nice awareness of them. Sore, almost painful, but not quite.
Then, after day two, it was all pain, all the time. ;)
Anyway, I think our half-garden looks great so far, and will only improve. We should be proud.
Jeremy · May 25 · 10:07 AM
my mom has a japanese maple and it is really pretty, too. a really nice rich plum colour. too bad she planted it where she did, in the front next to the evergreens. makes no sense!
sandra · May 25 · 10:18 AM
Even thinking about your gardening makes me tired... Good work peoples!
Marjon · May 25 · 10:50 AM
There's Lilacs galore here, if you want to steal. 2 in the front garden, on either side. My note-leaving neighbour takes samples regularly (of the nice purple one, not the pinky) without asking, so you bloody well should strip the sod bare ;)
Nicci · May 25 · 11:23 AM
See my bush....Pussy Got Me Dizzay.....are you tryin' to scare me off?
Yeah, the peonies will last and last in the right spot...and if divided at the right time. I have some at this house for about four years that I took from my old house. Had them there about 5 years. That's not the good part. I got them from my old neighbor and she has photos of those peonies being in the same spot in her backyard in the 1930's! I just eat that kinda shit up. Mine are blooming right now.
It is tough work, but there's very little more satisfying than seeing the fruits of that kind of labor, right? Perty.
One more thing....do you say "these ones" for real or fun?
Michael · May 25 · 8:17 PM
Michael, childish habit. Just think of it as charming. ;) Also, I'll try to work in some cock-a-doodle-doo stuff just for you. :D
Wow, 70-year-old peonies!
Maggie · May 25 · 11:34 PM