Why I Oughta...

Yesterday, I posted some photos showing how I used the "Lasagna Method" to smother some grass with cardboard and top-it with mulch to improve a foundation-adjacent garden bed on the side of our house.  The goal was to raise up the soil level, smother out grass and improve the area looks-wise.   But, that wasn't the only recent improvement that I completed over on that side of the house.  While I was using gravel and river rock to level-out the pizza oven site, I decided to take a couple of bags of the River Rock to put to work by the downspout surface drain outlet.   I've been wrasslin' with surface water on this side of my house for years - here's a post from 2020 where I talk about 'floating mulch' due to the downspout release .  Over the years, I've seen the area erode and this Spring, I've attempted to address it in a few ways.  First, by hauling over some of the excavated material from the pizza oven project to 'fill in' some low

Last Fall, when I was digging up/out the (extended) IB2DWs bed for the small conifer garden along the property line, I turned to a mix of grass-removal techniques.  The whole area was turf, so I did three things:  Dug it out, smothered it/covered it up and flipped it over (and smothered it).   For the material that I excavated, I brought most of it over to the southside of the house and used it to fill in the little gully/swale on the side of the house.  And, I tucked in a bunch of it (flipped over) along the side of the porch where I'd seen some erosion over the years.  On this side of the house, we have just ONE downspout that handles a big portion of the roof and when it gets clogged up, that gutter 'tops'.  That's one source of the erosion.  The other is the downspout outlet.  Whatever *does* get down the downspout, comes out one of those surface drains.    That 'flipped' turf was a way to raise the ground-level here.  And, like a bunch of the areas that I w

This past Winter, I identified that we were experiencing some 'sinking' in the gravel walkway on the side of our house .  I put it together using Bluestone Chips and some metal edging, but starting last year, I noticed that the 'level' of gravel seemed to be going DOWN with time.  Looking back, when I installed the path in 2021, I went pretty 'thin' with the Bluestone chips on the path - because I used MOST of them back by the firepit.   Last Summer, I made a couple of trips to the landscape supply yard and brought home 50 gallons of stone that I applied to the firepit area and the side path.  I thought that'd be enough to raise the level of the stone.  But, alas...it still felt like it was sinking. So, fixing this 'sinking' gravel on the path is something I want to take-on in 2024.  I even included it in my 'early look' at 2024 projects .    There are a number of (potential) methods that one could use to try to keep the gravel from sinking

This past season, I opted for a different method of winter crown protection for our Disneyland Roses (Floribunda Roses) than I've used in previous years.  In each of the past few Falls, I have set up a ring of chicken wire and filled it with chopped-up fallen tree leaves to serve as insulation on the crown of the rose bush.  This year, I opted for mounding of biosolids .  A 'hilling up' in the traditional way, but using municipal biosolids vs something like compost.  As Winter started to fade away, I went out and inspected the roses and discovered a good part of the canes were still green - so that means that the combination of a mild Winter, their protected location and the mounding of biosolids did their job.   That also meant that it was time to get out there and do an annual pruning of the roses - part of my 'seasonal tasks' that I keep-up on in each of my annual to-do lists. (This year will be no different.) I've done this each of the past-few late Winters/

Just about a month ago (mid-February), I gave the pair of SugarTyme Crabapple trees a dormant pruning to remove some waterspouts, shorten the length of some branching and clean the two trees up .  They're being trained in espalier into (what I hope to become) a Palmette Verrier.  In looking around the yard, it appears that these two trees are the furthest ahead and have leaves opening up from the buds all along the branching.  See below for the current state of the tiny, green foliage: This *should* be the growing season when I can begin to 'turn up' the tips of a couple of these layers to begin to form the Palmette Verrier espalier shape.  If you go to this post (and scroll down), you can see what I'm thinking for shape .  Of note....these two Sugar Tyme crabapple trees are south-facing and are COMPLETELY protected from any northern cold fronts.  They're right up against the house - a white house - that reflects the sun's heat.  I suspect that the placement and

The pair of SugarTyme Crabapple trees that are planted on the southside of our house - up against the house via esapalier - are now entering their fourth growing season.  Planted in Fall 2021 , they've now been through three Winters and are beginning to be in a position to LOOK more like a tree being espalier'ed.   They flowered in their first Spring (May 2022 ) and I have SLOWLY pruned them into what I *HOPE* will be their final form:  Palmette Verrier Espalier.  That is a form that has horizontal branching that turns UP at the tips with the lowest branching being the longest.  The last time that I worked these trees was May of 2023 when I pruned/wired up the branches .     I've begun to adopt a pattern of dormant pruning on my espaliers including the Greenspire Lindens and these crabapples.   Here, below, is what they look like coming out of Winter.  These were untouched since last May: Below is a closer look at the tree on the left - closer to the back gate: And here, be

Over the past few years, I've been adding Bluestone Chips to a path on the north side of our house that takes you from our driveway to the back/side boardwalk.   One of the items on my 2024 to-do list is to sort out what is going on over there.  Is the gravel sinking in?  What do I do to remedy the situation?  Larger gravel?  Some sort of grid?    Next Summer, before I add more Bluestone Chips, I need to diagnose the failure and implement a remedy.

Every Fall, I've gone about protecting our Disneyland Roses (Floribunda Roses) from Winter using an insulation method of laying Fall leaves around the bush.  Typically, I take a small ring of chicken wire and create a ring.  Anchored by a bamboo pole, I erect the chicken wire ring around the rose and fill the center with leaves that I pick up off the lawn.  Some of those leaves are chopped up with the mower, some are just raked up and piled in there. This post from November 2022 shows how I set up that Winter Protection for roses last year .   H ere's another post showing Fall 2020 that shows similar chicken wire rings and leaves that I used to overwinter the crowns of our Disneyland Roses. That system seemed to work just fine.  It wasn't elegant, but (*knock on wood*) I haven't lost a Disneyland Rose yet.  But, my roses are starting to get large and unwieldy.  That has made the chicken wire rings more challenging every year.  So, I went off on the Web to see if there

The last few Falls, I've divided a great number of Summer Beauty Alliums .  This year, I didn't get to all that many, but I *did* add a few 'free' plants.   There was a pair of them flanking the Baby Blue Spruce in back that were getting pretty big.  You can see them below - on the right in the first photo and more in the middle in the second: I dug them both up and divided each - then replaced them in their spots.  Those two new plants - via division - went in on that side of the garden.  One behind the fence - Hosta Replacement.  The other by the Disneyland Roses. Two 'free plants'.  That I KNOW perform.  That's like free money, right? With these two, I BELIEVE that I've wrapped up Fall Planting posts. What's the total from below?   Holy crap.  I planted 68 new things.  Created 26 new plants via division.  Adding 94 total things to the garden in a four-week sprint.  30 ground cover plants make up almost 1/3rd of the 94.  Wow. 94 things in the garde

100-or-so days after planting a 5-gallon Climbing Hydrangea ( Hydrangea anomala petiolaris ) back by the firepit, we're seeing some real upwards leader growth.  Or...what I plantsmen call "aerial rootlets".   We have this climbing, flowering vine going up a Hackberry tree and the R O U G H bark sure seems to be helpful in giving those aerial roots something to grab on-to. See below for the current mid-Summer form of our Climbing Hydrangea:  There are a few, sparse blooms on it this year, too.  So, that's kinda nice, right?   I'm hoping that this will wrap around (and not injure) the tree, so that it can be viewed from all angles. This also has me wondering:  where else could I plant one?  I've long talked about espalier'd trees along the garage, but maybe this is a better answer there, too?  Or...what about both? Last year, I saw one of these at 50% off the end-of-year sale at the Growing Place .  I'll have to pop back over there again this year. 

The three Disneyland Roses (Floribunda roses) that are planted in full sun on the south side of our house are currently in the midst of their second bloom cycle of the growing season.  The first set of blooms this season were in early/mid June .  Now, about six-weeks later, we're seeing the next flush of pink/orange/salmon blooms.  See below for a look at some of the Disneyland Roses in mid-Summer: Here, below, is a look at the three Disneyland Roses (along with the pair of Sugar Tyme Crabapple trees that are in espalier) along the side of our house: In 2022, I saw four bloom cycles - June, August, late September and again in early November .  Yes...November.   My plan is to feed these this week and then one more time (September) before putting a stop to the seasonal fertilizer for the season.  

As far back as Summer of 2017 (the Summer we moved into our house), I've been posting, talking, dreaming and planning for the 'entrance' to our backyard along the northside of our house.  This post from July 2017 shows where we started - a small, narrow strip of land between our screened porch and our fence that has a grade down from our house .    In the six (yes...SIX) years since then, I've looked at this problem a ton of ways.  I've had pros come up with designs .  I found inspiration on YouTube that included a waterfall .   And, I began to address some of the issues with this spot.   What were those issues? 1.  Privacy.  We needed to add some screening along this fenceline to make our patio and screened porch usable. 2.  Access.  Getting from our driveway to our patio has been tough - the grade has been the biggest pain. 3.  Size.  It is narrow in there.  4.  Cost.  How can I accomodate the right mix of materials and construction to make the costs work. Now...

Our Disneyland Roses (at least the ones that have been planted with southern exposure a few seasons back) get their first flush of flower blooms in early June.  They bloomed in early/mid June in 2022 and in early/mid (10th of the month) June in 2021, too .  This year is no different as the first sets of blooms have hit our Floribunda roses.  Below are some photos - first showing some of the flowers that I clipped off and have put in a vase in our kitchen. The Disneyland Rose - in Zone 5b - get at least three full flushes of blooms.  June (now) is the first.  And the last one is in October.   There is another one in-between in August or so.  At least...that's what I think happens.  Perhaps they get four flushes?  I'll have to observe more closely this year.  While the bloom schedule is right on track, I'm seeing something that is new to me:  leaves being eaten up and destroyed by SOMETHING.  See below for a look at the tattered foliage: Pest?  Fungus?  Slugs?  Roseslugs?  A

Our Indiana Street purple Iris is blooming (again).   I posted a photo showing the pointed foliage tips emerging from the mulch early this Spring .  And now, we're getting a purple flower show on the side of our front porch.  The Iris came from my Sister who dug it out of her (and our...for two years) neighbor Wes' garden before it was destroyed by a teardown.  Wes (and my sister and us) all lived on Indiana Street.  Hence...me calling this our "Indiana Street Iris". We don't have too many flowers in our garden and I think I've been conditioned to think of irises as a flower that would be in 'your grandmothers garden' and something pedestrian.  (note...I also don't know the difference between Siberian and Bearded Irises...) I suppose I put them in the same category as Daylilies.  Something that I'm sure is fine for YOUR garden, but not something I need in mine.   I'm not totally sure why I feel that way.  But, I'm starting to think diff

Planted in the early Fall of 2021 , this pair of Sugar Tyme Crabapple trees are starting to show a bit of espalier training form with four levels on very young trees.  One year ago ( post here ), all four layers weren't really quite established.  Today?  All of them are *started*, with the inside, bottom layer the smallest.   See below for a photo showing these flowering crabapple trees in mid-May 2023. My plan is to turn the tips up by pruning them off and driving new growth.  The 2nd-for-lowest limbs are probably the closest to being ready for that hard prune.  I recently pruned off the apical meristem in an attempt to drive new, thicker growth down the tree.  I've also left on a trunk-thickener branch at the bottom that I don't intend to train, but am using to thicken-up the trunk. 

They say that roses are 'heavy eaters'.  That means that - if you have them in your garden - you should feed them every 30 days or so.  And that's what I've attempted to do over the past few growing seasons.  #16 on my 2023 to-do list is to continue with the seasonal projects - including feeding.   I'm trying to get to know these floribunda roses a bit more this season; starting with a hard prune a few weeks back .  I had a little bit of leftover Rose Food from last year, so I split the bag three-ways and sprinkled the granules at the base of the three roses on the side of the house.   If you look closely at the photo below, you can also see (in addition to the rose fertilizer granules) some signs of new, green(ish-red) growth from the canes of the floribunda rose. Here, below, is the brand (Vigoro) that I had on hand.   If the garden diary is any guide, it seems that I have seen a flush of blooms about 30 days after feeding.  With this being the first stage, I'