Why I Oughta...

On Monday, I posted about adding a series of perennials to our front porch beds - including Autumn Moor Grasses and eight Summer Beauty Alliums that are in front of some small Green Velvet Boxwoods (that I planted last month).   As I was planting those, I realized that the edge of the bed has crept-in and I needed to cut the grass that had been growing in there - out.   I've been thinking about the extension of the curved portion of the bed (where the Norway Maple tree *was* and have been musing about how to use some dry-stacked stone there and/or how the bed can be extended down the property line to (eventually) connect with the small, circular bed around the Saucer Magnolia.   But, for now....I decided to just simply clean the bed edge up and extend it out - just a little bit.  Here, below, is the 'after' - a natural edge like this makes the bed look that much more polished.  That (above) is the after.  Here, below is the 'before'.  Quite a change, right?  The Fr

2022 was the year of groundcover in my garden.  I added dozens of various carex and at the very end of the season, I found five small quart-sized Ajuga Chocolate Chip plants and stuck them in the ground .  The groundcover of my mother - vinca and pachysandra - are out.  And sedges and Ajugas are in.  At least...for me. I was surprised (not sure why?) to find these six packs of Ajuga Chocolate Chip at the orange Big Box store - see below for the nursery tray of the six plugs:  They carry this tag:  Bugleweed 'Chocolate Chip' - Ajuga Tenorii I opted to put six on one side of the backyard and six on the other. Below is a look at the curved border - kitchen window border - with the Fanal Astilbes being (now) fronted by six Ajuga Chocolate Chip. Behind these - around the Oakleaf Hydrangeas - we are fighting Vinca that has crept over from our neighbor's yard.  I planted two of these plugs in amongst some of the vinca.  Hoping that the Ajuga can outcompete the Vinca. On the other