Gardening ...
before and after photos
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Last week I dared to show you the before photo of my overgrown yard. When we moved here, we got rid of the grass in the North side yard. (That's where the veggies are.) My daughter has taken over that yard, adding borage, lavender, and ornamental grasses to the climbing rose, grapes, and the veggie garden boxes. The maple tree I planted there the fall we moved in (2021) is now large enough to provide plenty of shade.
We removed more grass on the South side yard, and I planted a hazelnut tree, an Indian plum tree, multiple raspberry bushes, and many native flowers. Daughter wanted a patch of grass surrounding the hazelnut tree, so we left it.
Three and a half years later, everything has reached its "leap" stage and it is all too much for me to manage. Daughter can no longer keep up with the grass (she has a push mower). When we moved here the grass was sparse and easier to control. Now (years with no chemicals) it is lush and thick. It's also filled with the natural herbs we refuse to kill (dandelions and plantain primarily) because they provide homes and food for bees.
I had a wonderful time planting when we moved in. I added seven trees, multiple bushes, seven roses bushes, four mini rose bushes, iris, lavender, peonies, and so many native flowers. In gardening, perennials are said to sleep, creep, and leap. The first year they "sleep," establishing roots. The second year they "creep," showing growth and promise. The third year they "leap," and in Portland that means they run rampant!
I planted a red twig dogwood bush for winter interest. I thought a fully grown bush would be slightly larger than a lilac bush (oh yeah, I planted six of those too). This year I am going to have to cut back wildly, as the red twig dogwood is already the size of a Volkswagen. And I have to dig up the second one I planted last year.
The raspberry bushes will also have to be thoroughly cut back. But this year we will have an abundance of raspberries -- the bushes are brimming with tiny berries already.
The grapevine grew through the fence and is encroaching on our neighbor's vegetable garden. The vine is the size of a tree limb. We'll have to saw it off.
Meanwhile, I decided to call in the butches to help us get a bit of control. Rent-A-Butch is available in the Portland area and also in the Hudson Valley area of New York. They do all sorts of things, and they work only for LGBTQIA+2S folks. They were here for two and a half hours, and did an amazing job. They were careful in my backyard habit area, so there is still work to be done. It will have to be done by hand as it involves carefully weeding the grass out of native plants, including my patch of milkweed for the butterflies. There is grass under the raspberry bushes too. It might have to wait until fall when I cut back the bushes.
Please enjoy the before and after photos!
How goes it with your own garden? or houseplants? (My own are growing and thriving.) Are you enjoying the season?
Happy Memorial Day Sandra! Love seeing what you have done with the yard at your home! Also love that you have your daughter and the Butches to help you with keeping up with it. I have just spent the last two days in the yard here. Lovely just right days temperature wise, to be taking care of the many things that needed to be done. Getting several perennials in the ground that I had babied through this past winter. And taking the time in the mornings to do some watering under the eves of the house, where there are several flower beds. The lawn got 'high-mowed' in sections at different times and I got my exercise. All while eagles and ravens soared over head and a little bunny kept an eye on me! Be well Sandra and take a sniff of your beautiful roses for me! :-)
Ok...so this is the way my gardening season usually starts. In March I swear I will tackle the blackberries and other weeds early before they "creep", but it's too cool to work outside (in my opinion). So here it is end of May and I have purchased numerous plants that need to be put in the ground but after I clean out the blackberries. Fortunately I got two new pygmy goats this spring to join my Nigerian dwarf. They are blackberry destroying machines! Hopefully with their help I'll get it done before too long!!