Before

After







I am already trying to figure out what to plant in this new space.

Trash and Recycle Center

I needed to move our trash and recycle area out of sight. It had previously been beside the driveway out front. Not the ideal spot but it was convenient. So now it is housed in the backyard, behind the privacy fence and surrounded by its own privacy fence.

I made this project very simple and basic. I did not even use cement for the posts. I have had my fill with cement this week. After the driveway step and not being able to move the next day I needed to simplify.
I first chose the site. I then dug 3 holes about 2 feet deep, with a post hole digger. The Lilac in the photo might look like its right in the way, but it is actually set back about 4 feet from the post on the right. I got the fencing from scrap that my dad was actually throwing out.

I purchased the hinges and the latch from Lowes for under 10$. (I had also purchased some random nails, just to have them on hand. The handle I found in a box of Junk I just can't seem to throw away.

The bricks were gathered up from around the yard. I know that sounds strange, but I have quite a few bricks for random projects. It pays to never throw junk away. I did not use any concrete or sand or gravel. The bricks are just laying on bare ground and hopefully I will get something to grow in the cracks of the bricks. I have a good 6 x 10 foot area now so I can get all the recycles out of the house. Yeah.

Seedlings

Radish seedlings

Spinach seedlings

Where are the peas?

Banana tree

Before

After

Lowes said this was hardy in my area. I won't call them damn liars yet, but I will think it.

Driveway step

I am so very proud of this project. No more mud to step in. Hip hip hooray!!!

Bamboo, bamboo, bamboo

Well I got the Bamboo border finished. My cousin came over and helped me tie the bamboo together. The job was not hard, just a little tedious. The doggies did not know what to make of it, and so far, not one hint of jumping the fence. This is good news for the flowers.

Of course it was not just the dogs that I was concerned with. Many times people would walk down the path and inevitably step on a plant. There will be no more stepping on the plants now. There might not be a lot of plants at this time of year but soon there will be plenty of plants for people not to step on.
Another problem I am sure you might share is all the responsible pet owners walking their dogs down the road to do their business in your flower bed. I put a little bamboo action up there as well. It's only been 1 day but no presents. I still might leave a fabulous artistic sign for those same responsible pet owners. lol

Stump removal

I have had this giant stump laying in the yard since fall. It requires an enormous chain saw, of which I do not have, to remove. I have tried to get someone to move it, with no success. I can't have this eye sore glaring at me through the season, so I must act. I have a plan to turn the lemon into lemonade. This is what I am dealing with. This is just one more thing I need to deal with in the yard this year. Stay tuned for the remedy to this problem.

Bamboo functional and aesthetically pleasing

I have tried over the years to keep the doggies out of Lanai gardens and The Woodlands. Everything I have tried has had varying successes but mostly failures. I have high hopes on this latest project. I think the dogs will not be so eager to leap this fence. Time will tell.

One thing that makes this a true ghetto garden design, is the price. I am out 2 bucks for the twine.

The Bamboo I have growing so its a constant renewable resource, which grows so fast you won't even realize it was ever gone. I have a small section of the fence started as you can see. It isn't very difficult at all, but time consuming it can be. I found it very therapeutic. I can't wait until I get to work on it some more. If I was in Vegas I would put money down that I will be out there tomorrow between jobs playing with bamboo. LOL As always, every time I work in the yard I think of new ideas. I have a fabulous plan for the giant stump stuck in the yard. If I cant move it, I will make art out of it.Any ideas of what would grow out of a dead tree. I will get more into that another time. I also decided where I need to make the trash/recycle area, as everyone cheers with excitement. I am putting it back in the backyard instead of on display by the driveway. Why I thought moving it next to the driveway was ever a good idea. I know it will be a far greater pain in the aster to deal with trash nights, but there are perks. I now have brand new area for a new garden bed. What shall I name it. lol

Driveway Step

Between my driveway and the walk lies a horrible spot of muddy grass. It is on a small incline, and with every rain becomes a muddy mess. You have to carefully navigate yourself safely to the walkway. For more years I care to admit, we have dealt with this issue.

Those days are over!!! I finally built the step.

It is almost 4 feet wide and about 4 to 5 foot long. We started about 10:30 and had it finished by 2:30. I also had to take a break and get more cement.
I have to say, I was well prepared and ready for the challenge. Last night I had made a list of all the tools I would need and got them all together at the start.

Plastic Row covers, the jury's out

I am so not lovin' the plastic row covers. First problem, do I call them row covers, hoop houses, cold frames, WTH. I have already planted under each of them, so as Tim Gunn would say, "Make it Work". I need to trim all bamboo ends because they are too long. Then I need to fix the ends to be more flexible and workable than they are now. Hopefully I will be posting a follow up success story, soon.

Mulch Madness

I thought I had done a pretty good job of cleaning up the yard last fall. Then I started to rake the few leaves that I had left on the flower beds for winter. As you recall I had already raked out most of the beds, but The West Lawn is its own beast. I never thought I would gather all the leaves. They doubled in size since they fell off the trees somehow. The good news is that they are all chopped up now and waiting to be spread as mulch.

Happy St. Patricks Day

I did get the Peas, Radish, Spinach, Broccoli, Napa Cabbage, Bok Choy, Celeriac, Carrots, Lettuce and Asparagus planted today. I did not plant the onions, I ran out of time. There is always tomorrow. I have big plans for working in the yard tomorrow. I hope tomorrow is as glorious as today was.

Oh what a beautiful pond. LMAO

A friend stopped over to see my ponds. He heard that I had the ponds and creek cleaned and working for the new season. LOL As you can see,


he aparantely got the wrong information.
It might be hard to tell in this photo, but where the log and piles of leaves are located IS the creek. lol It dumps into a lower pond and has three different waterfalls.
It would be so nice to have the waterfalls working again. They haven't been operational in at least 3 years. Neither pond leaks, however the creek that connects the two together has issues. I believe the year of the Cicadas was the culprit, if not the neighbors cat. Which by the way, if you own a cat and think its cute to let them outside to roam the neighborhood, ITS NOT. We have to keep our dogs on a leash or in a fenced in area, what makes cats so special. All they do is kill baby birds and rabbits and such and take a dump in my flower pots. I am quite certain that the neighbors would be displeased if I let my dogs do their business in their flower pots. Enough about that. I digress, I think I have to many other projects on my plate for this season.

The Veggie Garden

Looking towards the south.
Facing the west.
I am quite proud of my pea teepee. Lets see how it holds up against mother nature.
I am equally as proud of my squash trellis. I hope that I can train the little boogers to climb it instead of sprawling all over the ground.

Just about everything is in place in the veggie garden, except the veggies. Tomorrow is St. Patricks Day so I am going to give growing peas a try. Over the next couple of days, I plan on transplanting the broccoli, bok choy, chinese cabbage, celeriac and onions. I will be planting all of them under protection of row covers. I also plan on sowing the spinach and radish seeds. I think I will wait to put out the asparagus. I don't have asparagus growing in the garden yet, so I will find out when my neighbors asparagus is coming up and then transplant mine.

Spring is in the air

Surprise Lillies

First blooming Forsythia

The delicate little Crocus
Everywhere you look, you will see spring flowers popping up. From daffodils to tulips, they are all over the place. Besides the early spring bloomers, I noticed my Poppies, Ligularia and other perennials are also popping up. Lets hope the bad weather is far far behind us. I was happy to see this little guy. Ligularia. I had two of these and the other little guy died out last year. I am afraid I will have to move this one so he doesn't succomb to the same fate.

Stonecrop Sedum

Blast from the past.

I just had to put up a some photos with a little more color.

The West Lawn

One of my favorite places to sit and enjoy a cup of coffee. It has currently fallen on hard times, but it will be back to her formal grace soon. Sometimes you need more than a shovel and a grand idea, but I have not given up. With some good fortune she will stand in her majesty once again.

The snowball bush in this photo is a grandchild so to speak of my grandmothers snowball bush. My dad got a start from my grandmother and I got a start from my dad. So I always think of grandma when I look at it. One of the best ways to increase your plant varieties without having to open up your wallet is to get a start. Its free, easy, and I was always told, never say "thank you" for a start. They will die. I don't know if there is any truth to this, or if it was started by a rude gardener. lol But why risk it.

I love this little bench. It is completely surrounded by vegitaion in the summer, so when you sit there, it is very secluded and peaceful. A great place.

The Luau lanai
I love having family and friends over to hang out on the back porch. Its a perfect place to throw a luau. We have a water feature, a chimnia, a bar, and some great ambiance. I put out giant photos of our trip to Hawaii to help with the setting. Its especially lovely at night when the torches are burning and the twinkle lights set the scene. When Leilani gets behind the bar, good times.

I am hoping the Banana trees come back this year. They are suppose to be hardy in this area. We will see. You don't see both trees in the photo but there are two. I was surprised at how large the trees got at the end of the season. They were both about 8ft tall at least.

One of my pots/waterfountain did not make it through the winter. So once again this fountain will get an update. Maybe I will go back to using the frog fountain.

I haven't names this area yet. Yes I like to name areas in my yard. It lets someone know where in the yard I am talking about, and its fun and campy.

I am also planning on giving this area a face lift this season. Of course I am going to enlarge the planting area. I am thinking something leaning towards France meets Great Britain.

What the hell?

I was cleaning out one of the flower beds today and putting down fresh mulch, when I ran across this sight.



I have no idea what these are. I am thinking it is either some kind of berries from the Yew is was next to, or the deer are having some kind of digestion problems. lol Any ideas?

Rose Propagation

Not a very good picture I know, but this is my attempt at propagating a rose cutting. "I've never done this before" . This cutting is not from a live rose bush, rather a cutting from a bouquet of flowers. I only started one cutting, but I have since decided to do a couple more because I would really like this to be successful. I also need to take photos of the process since I forgot the first time.
I won't tell you how to take a cutting, because I am not sure I did it right. I will tell you how I did this cutting.
First I cut a 2 liter bottle in half, filled the bottom with potting soil about 3-4 inches. I wet the soil fairly good, but not having standing water. I then took one of the flowers, and cut the stem just above a stem with five leaves on it. I then cut the stem right below a stem with 3 leaves on it. That left me with a cutting about 6-8 inches long. I dipped the bottom of the cutting into root hormone and then stuck it into the soil. (next time I will bruise the base of the cutting about an inch on the bottom) I gave it a little spritz with the spray bottle and put the top of the 2 liter back on. And Voila. Wish me luck on this endeavor, I think I will need it.

A day off

I love waking up and knowing I don't have a thing to do except play in the yard. I wanted to start the day with a cup of coffee and then get busy getting everything done on my To Do List. I did not get everything done on my list. I never do. I always make a list that is way to long to ever get finished in one day, and I always find other projects along the way. Of course for me it is never really about a list. Its more about being one with my yard. lol That sounds even funnier after I said it, but it is so true. I enjoy reflecting, envisioning, and observing what is going on in the yard. I know the neighbors think I am insane, especially this time of year. They see me everyday walking around the yard in my robe, with my coffee, a cigarette, and a camera in my pocket. Everything is still shades of brown and gray with a constant gloom in the air. But when you really start looking for the signs of spring, they are everywhere. Today the gloom had vanished, and for the first time this year, it felt like spring. The sun was shining, the weather was so nice and it was my day off. It didn't take long before I was in the yard, rummaging through the leaves trying to find anything green. And then I start seeing,

and some crocus, and some of my favorite spring flowers, the tulip.

Ready to Winter Sow

I recently ran across a garden forum on the topic of winter sowing. Not only have I never done it, I had never heard of it. Winter Sowing is a great site to get information about this topic as with GardenWeb.
This is going to be my attempt at Winter sowing.



Those are not bags of trash, rather, bags of empty 2 liter plastic bottles. I haven't decided how I am going to use the bottles. Two of my ideas are to winter sow in them, or make homemade drip irrigation systems out of them for the vegetable garden. I think I will be using them for the latter at this time. But who says I can't do both.




The black container filled with leaves, is really a container with mason jars and rooting medium that I totally forgot about from last year. I had tried to start different shrubs from cuttings. Clearly that worked out well. lmao One thing I can say, it looks at home in my ghetto greenhouse. lol