Before I share this years progress and Tips-N-Tricks we've learned I want to share some of the pictures from last year. Unfortunately my old phone died and took with it a lot of pics from later in the summer when things were really pretty so you'll just have to take my word for it... ;)
Gorgeous Giants:
 |
| Canna Lilies |
canna lilies! We had several patches of these in various places in our yard. These "cannons" are a tribute to my husbands parents who always had them in their yard.
Canna lilies are very easy to plant as they are rhizome bulbs that stay near the surface of the ground. They don't tolerate the cold winters here in Indiana. So, for the best results year after year, the bulbs need to be dug up and stored in black trash bags in a cool dry place like your basement or garage.
These will multiply like crazy every year which makes them great for sharing with your family, friends and neighbors!
Side Yard Progress:
We added a long flower bed along the side of our house. And of course we had to line the beds with fieldstone we found around new build sites within our neighborhood and surrounding areas. It's fun finding the different rocks and they look great!
- Quick Tip: the best time to find fieldstone is in a new housing addition when they dig a new basement or foundation. Another good place to look is in freshly plowed fields.
 |
| Knock Out Roses! |
I planted Knock Out Roses, Clematis and Sunflowers along the side of the house. This rose bush was a distressed plant we got at Lowes and with a little TLC it has now doubled in size since we planted it. I can't wait to see it in bloom this year!
- Quick Tip: BUY DISTRESSED PLANTS! This will save you so much money. Most of the time the plants you find on the distressed wrack at your home improvement store or nursery are either past their bloom time, root bound or just look a little scraggly. When you plant, water and fertilize these plants they will take off and you will be pleasantly surprised!
 |
| Sunflower Starts |
So, as I said before, I lost a lot of my pics when my old phone died on me and in turn I don't have the pictures of the sunflowers when they were full grown with their amazing blooms. It makes me a little sad because sunflowers are my favorite and they were so beautiful. I will make sure and post pics this year!
Anyways, I started these guys with seeds and watching them grow up to 8 feet was very cool!
Backyard Progress:
We made some major impact changes in our back yard with a flower bed that goes the length of the yard. Our house backs up to a nature preserve, which is my favorite part of the yard. I wanted to make a transition area with a colorful shade garden that breaks up all the green from the wood to the grass.
Before we had a sea of green, which yes is beautiful but of course I wanted to kick it up a notch. This shade garden has several different varieties of hosta, sedum, bleeding hearts, ornamental grass, lilac and a hedge of weigela that will create a natural fence when it matures.
This year our back yard is going to take on a whole new life with plans for a large patio with pergola and fire pit and new grill!I'm really looking forward to having an amazing outdoor living space to enjoy our beautiful yard and woods!
I will also be planting more shade loving plants with lots of color to fill in the flowerbed.
Our Little Visitors:
There have been lots of little critters visiting our yard and driving our cats crazy! It is so much fun to watch our cats, Stormie and Shadow, stalk the wildlife out the windows, or as we like to call it... Cat TV!We have a plethora of different kinds of birds, crazy squirrels, chipmunks and raccoons that come to visit us almost daily.
This year we have already added 2 additional bird feeders and have created a bit of a wildlife sanctuary. I love it!
No comments:
Post a Comment