Spring is in Full Swing!
Lots going on around here which is why I haven't been posting.
We've been blessed with about a week of picture-perfect spring weather. Perfect temps, gentle breezes, no rain. I'm so glad we could make the most of it!
Prepare yourself for a bunch of before pictures.
[caption id="attachment_2807" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
The House[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_2809" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Right half. No landscaping[/caption]
We originally had had landscaping here - with mulch and everything - but it had to be dug up to fix the foundation. Some of the plants we'd had there weren't doing great anyway so we tossed the dead plants and transplanted the remaining few.
My idea is to plant about 3 large plants here or perhaps a hosta bed.
[caption id="attachment_2812" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Right Side View. Very shaded.[/caption]
The right side of the house actually looks better than it used to. The previous owners had begun a little retaining wall....and then gave up. so all of the blocks were dumped there. Then we added insult to injury by stashing additional landscaping blocks and bricks there, too. Tons of siding debris was left behind, as well. So...yeah.
We already moved all the blocks and we'll be moving the rain barrel, too. I already planted a few shade loving plants here - ferns and such, and picked up a bunch of the siding debris and rocks. I'm planning on just planting things here as I come across them in the clearance section of Lowe's. Nothing fancy.
[caption id="attachment_2806" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Left half - the addition. No landscaping.[/caption]
Here's the addition. Not only does it not have landscaping, but it's just a bunch of ugly dirt, weeds, rocks, and drainage hose. We're planning on burying the hose, bring in some fill dirt, and then planting several large bushes/ornamentals. I'm also still hoping to have window boxes again on all 4 windows out front.
[caption id="attachment_2811" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Left Side view. Between the driveway and the addition.[/caption]
More of the same here. This little spot is where I've decided I want my garden. It gets full sun all day, it is close to the house to dissuade critters, and it's just the right size.
The drainage hoses will be buried, more fill dirt brought in. We have several wooden troughs to drag over, as well as a bunch of pots, for planting. I need to get some trellises for up against the house for my climbing plants. Eventually we'll fence all of this in, too.
[caption id="attachment_2808" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Front Flower/herb bed.[/caption]
Back to the front. Here's the flower/herb bed I started a year and a half ago. This is the bed that was planted, had everything ripped up and sitting in the front yard for a week, and was then replanted. Almost everything has come back and looks great! I only had a few casualties.
I'm happy with how this is coming along, but I'd like to add in a few more things to fill in the bare spots where plants died. My lavender is thriving and I'm going to plant my mint on the other end. That should help fill things in, especially as they become full grown.
[caption id="attachment_2810" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Front. Knockout roses and spireas.[/caption]
I'm pretty happy about the way these plants are looking. I just need to clean up the border a bit.
[caption id="attachment_2813" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Front planter. Looking sad.[/caption]
There used to be another plant here, but he didn't make it. I want to plant something else in that corner and then clean up the border. I might expand it so that it fills in that triangle completely. Might make it easier to mow.
[caption id="attachment_2814" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Front yard. Tree ring.[/caption]
The contractor buried some of the front blocks so we've been going out and cleaning that up. It's not done, but getting there. I'm hoping to get more plants going in here, too.
So it's safe to say that we've got our work cut out for us. You'll notice I didn't take any pictures of the back yard! I just don't even have the energy to think much about it right now!
Oh, also not shown: we have several spots in our front yard that were damaged by machinery. All the flooding really did a number and so they are bare and rocky and look horrible. We'll be filling them will dirt and growing a clover/grass mix over top.
We had an entire dumptruck load of dirt delivered on Friday and rented a skid steer to move it. We did that all weekend so there's been some progress. Of course now they're calling for thunderstorms so I'm not sure how this will all be looking in 24 hours, but I'll post updates then.
We've been blessed with about a week of picture-perfect spring weather. Perfect temps, gentle breezes, no rain. I'm so glad we could make the most of it!
Prepare yourself for a bunch of before pictures.
[caption id="attachment_2807" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
The House[/caption][caption id="attachment_2809" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Right half. No landscaping[/caption]We originally had had landscaping here - with mulch and everything - but it had to be dug up to fix the foundation. Some of the plants we'd had there weren't doing great anyway so we tossed the dead plants and transplanted the remaining few.
My idea is to plant about 3 large plants here or perhaps a hosta bed.
[caption id="attachment_2812" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Right Side View. Very shaded.[/caption]The right side of the house actually looks better than it used to. The previous owners had begun a little retaining wall....and then gave up. so all of the blocks were dumped there. Then we added insult to injury by stashing additional landscaping blocks and bricks there, too. Tons of siding debris was left behind, as well. So...yeah.
We already moved all the blocks and we'll be moving the rain barrel, too. I already planted a few shade loving plants here - ferns and such, and picked up a bunch of the siding debris and rocks. I'm planning on just planting things here as I come across them in the clearance section of Lowe's. Nothing fancy.
[caption id="attachment_2806" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Left half - the addition. No landscaping.[/caption]Here's the addition. Not only does it not have landscaping, but it's just a bunch of ugly dirt, weeds, rocks, and drainage hose. We're planning on burying the hose, bring in some fill dirt, and then planting several large bushes/ornamentals. I'm also still hoping to have window boxes again on all 4 windows out front.
[caption id="attachment_2811" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Left Side view. Between the driveway and the addition.[/caption]More of the same here. This little spot is where I've decided I want my garden. It gets full sun all day, it is close to the house to dissuade critters, and it's just the right size.
The drainage hoses will be buried, more fill dirt brought in. We have several wooden troughs to drag over, as well as a bunch of pots, for planting. I need to get some trellises for up against the house for my climbing plants. Eventually we'll fence all of this in, too.
[caption id="attachment_2808" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Front Flower/herb bed.[/caption]Back to the front. Here's the flower/herb bed I started a year and a half ago. This is the bed that was planted, had everything ripped up and sitting in the front yard for a week, and was then replanted. Almost everything has come back and looks great! I only had a few casualties.
I'm happy with how this is coming along, but I'd like to add in a few more things to fill in the bare spots where plants died. My lavender is thriving and I'm going to plant my mint on the other end. That should help fill things in, especially as they become full grown.
[caption id="attachment_2810" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Front. Knockout roses and spireas.[/caption]I'm pretty happy about the way these plants are looking. I just need to clean up the border a bit.
[caption id="attachment_2813" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Front planter. Looking sad.[/caption]There used to be another plant here, but he didn't make it. I want to plant something else in that corner and then clean up the border. I might expand it so that it fills in that triangle completely. Might make it easier to mow.
[caption id="attachment_2814" align="aligncenter" width="300"]
Front yard. Tree ring.[/caption]The contractor buried some of the front blocks so we've been going out and cleaning that up. It's not done, but getting there. I'm hoping to get more plants going in here, too.
So it's safe to say that we've got our work cut out for us. You'll notice I didn't take any pictures of the back yard! I just don't even have the energy to think much about it right now!
Oh, also not shown: we have several spots in our front yard that were damaged by machinery. All the flooding really did a number and so they are bare and rocky and look horrible. We'll be filling them will dirt and growing a clover/grass mix over top.
We had an entire dumptruck load of dirt delivered on Friday and rented a skid steer to move it. We did that all weekend so there's been some progress. Of course now they're calling for thunderstorms so I'm not sure how this will all be looking in 24 hours, but I'll post updates then.
Comments
Post a Comment