Why I Oughta...

I last added ten (10) bags of gravel to the excavated wood-fired pizza oven construction site to begin to level the area.  As a reminder, this is being built on-top of our drywell, so this gravel layer is an extra insurance policy for drainage below the slab in hopes of avoiding heaving.  When I added the ten bags, I noted that I thought I'd need another round of gravel to finish the project.  Before heading to the store, I eye-balled the site and decided that I needed a bit more material on the western edge of the site.  Thanks to a sale, I decided to add six (6) bags of River Rock to that side.  Thinking that the larger size of the rocks would fill in the deeper portion of the dig - that part is going to *mostly* be outside the footprint of the foundation.   Here's the site after six bags of river rock added to the left side (note the different color): Below is the Menards item # for the River Rock - 180-2006.  Normally priced $3.49 per bag, it was on sale for $2.24.   I'

Earlier in March, I posted the details of a partial project in our front-porch bed that included the application of some cardboard to smother turfgrass that has crept into the bed .  I laid down cardboard, the topped with with a mix of clay, topsoil and biosolids.  I still need to finish the rest of that bed. But, in the meantime, I also applied the same treatment to a couple of spots in the expanded IB2DWs bed.  Last Fall, I carved out some new beds and removed SOME turf.  Turns out, I left behind A LOT of it, so...cardboard was the play here.   I did this in two spots - closer to the Bald Cypress - 'above' the first Baby Blue Spruce.  Then, again, closer to the sidewalk by the other Baby Blue Spruce tree.   Below are a some photos showing the post-cardboard + top soil + biosolids application.  There's still more grass to smother in this bed, but this is a good start: I used topsoil, clay and then a big batch of biosolids.  In an attempt to mix those biosolids with even mo

Each Spring and Fall in our neighborhood, if you pay attention, you'll hear the croaking that comes with the bi-annual migration of Sandhill Cranes .  They seem to fly right over our block each Fall (on their way south) and Spring (on their way back north).  Sandhill Cranes fly HIGH in the sky and in weird, sometimes-swirling patterns.   I saw them over the weekend.  Turn up your audio and have a look at their northern migration over the Western Chicago suburbs in mid-March 2024: Here is a link to a similar video of the same flight north last year in 2023 .

As part of my 2023 "Fall Planting" spring, I added a number of sedum groundcovers in a few spots of our garden.  Three of those sedums were named Sedum kamtschaticum 'Variegatum' - with one of them going in the front porch bed along the south property line and two of them down in the 'hard to grow' section of the IB2DWs (extended) bed by the sidewalk .  They were big plants when they went in, but I wasn't sure how they'd do after being planted so late in the season.  Not to mention...the (dang!) rabbits were happy to gnaw on their green, succulent-like foliage all Winter.   When the snow melted, there wasn't much of the plants there.  But, fast forward to today in Mid-March, and here, below is what that little bed (right up against the sidewalk) looks like.  Tulips to the right side and turfgrass to the left.  In between?  Those variegated sedums: Below is a close-up photo of one of the sedums showing their new 2024 growing season growth: I'm e

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

Last year, I planted a number of Seslaria Autumnalis (Autumn Moor Grasses) in our front porch beds that I picked up from Roy Diblik's Northwind Perennial Farm in Wisconsin.  They did REALLY well in their first year - so well, in fact - that I decided to roll-the-dice and divide a couple of them in their FIRST Fall in the garden.  I divided three of them and planted the three new divisions in the backyard - around the tree-swing Oak tree .    Some of my other Fall Divisions dealt with some 'heaving' and I'm not sure if they're going to make it.  But, these three Moor Grasses?  See below - they appear to be putting on green blades for their second growing season: These are inter-planted with some Summer Beauty Allium that are planted closer to the border.  And, what appears to be some to-be-determined Allium bulbs (based on the foliage) closer to the trunk of the tree.   My plan is to (likely) divide a few more of the Moor Grasses in front, but I'll keep an eye o

Last May, I planted a pair of Brookside Geraniums in the square beds on either side of our backstoop along with a pair of Spring Grove Ginkgos .  These geraniums were from the Morton Sale and I tucked them into the back of the little beds.  A month-after-planting, I looked-back-in on the planting and they were doing well - and in bloom by the end of June .   That meant that this past Winter was their FIRST Winter - and I didn't have any data on their reemergence.  We can now add these to the [garden diary] showing the Brookside Geranium foliage comes up in a small, dark-green clump in mid-March.    You can see the current state of this Brookside Geranium below: Last year, these sort-of 'spilled' out one side of the bed and didn't spread very much.  Perhaps this will be the year that these will fill-out a little more.