Last Look Around, 2017

We had unseasonably mild weather yesterday, the day after Thanksgiving, and I took advantage of it to get some outside chores completed.  Cleaning out the gutters, mulching leaves, run the lawn mower out of gas, test out the snow thrower, vacuum and put winter mats in the car, you get the idea.  This may be a last look at the yard and gardens for 2017.  I took these pictures before noon and you can see by the shadows how low the sun gets at its highest this time of year.  The wood has been scavenged from the roadside over the last few weeks for next year's fires.  More after the break.

Late October Cleanup

It is late October, almost Halloween.  We've cleaned up the yard some, and the gardens, but we're still waiting on the leaves left to fall.  Everything is on time, I'm just anxious to get everything set for winter since I know it is inevitable.  The hanging plants, front and back, have been tossed as well as some of the potted plants.  And I've mulched many of the poor looking hostas so far, frosts will kill the rest and the lily of the valley greens along the garage and I will mulch them with my string trimmer, too.  Leaves will be added eventually.

Kate got the west garden strawberries and herbs laid out with straw for the winter yesterday.






And in the east garden she got the garlic planted and covered with straw and a screen last weekend.  Also the other day she mulched plants and replanted some stump flowers to the garden for winter.  If they make it then they get replanted in spring.

Another look around the back after the break.

Fall Update

Last weekend Kate replanted the plants in the corner of the porch area.  They should now fit the space better, especially if we can keep the nibblers away.  The weekend prior she cleaned up the gardens.









The plants that are left here on the stump will be either replanted into the ground somewhere or end up in the compost bin.  I'd like to keep the purple grassy one but I'm not bringing it in over winter again.

Also last weekend, I emptied the left side of the compost bin into the east garden.  The soil needs the nutrients badly.  Very soon the garlic will be planted here.

Late September

I know I haven't been posting regularly over here this year, but I have been posting so that's good!  Today I did a lot of work outside before taking these pictures shortly after midday.  I trimmed the arborvitae out front and power washed the front of the house.  We get a lot of insects and spiders on the front of the house, and their excrement and webs really make it look dirty so I wanted to clean it again before it got too cool out and before winter.  Not ideal sun angles for pictures, but it's when I had the time so that's when it happened.

We really haven't paid a lot of attention to the gardens lately.  It seems to be managing just fine for now.  The strawberry plants are all still alive in the east garden, and I noticed a random tomato plant growing in there, too.  It's in the top left of the picture.


The west garden is, well, just is.  The onions are from a poor batch of seeds and the herbs are all alive still.  Before long it will be time to add the soil from the compost bin and clean them up for winter.


After the break is another yard tour.  It is autumn now and the plants are showing the wear of a long summer and recent dry spells.  This tour has commentary added to the pictures for context.  Come along, let's take a look at our yard and garden as it is now!

It's all after the break, go on, click it!

Late August

As we get toward late August, I noticed I hadn't posted here in a while.  Here's the gardens now, yard tour after the break.  No writing, just pictures.

Garlic, Plus More

In the past couple days we harvested the Dill, Garlic, Lettuce and Radishes.

On Thursday I harvested the dill plants that had popped up all over the east garden, and got all the weeds out from around the garlic.

Yesterday, Kate harvested that garlic and it was a rather good crop.  Still not enough to last until next year's harvest, she said.








In the west garden she also got the radishes.  She may try planting again for a third harvest of them this year.  I'm not a fan but she likes them and she also gives some to her dad.


She also brought in the romaine lettuce, but the leaf lettuce was very overgrown so most if not all went into the compost bin.  A shame, but lack of time and growing hordes of mosquitoes have kept us away from the garden.

Late July

Even though I'm posting this first, this yard and garden tour is from after my bike ride this afternoon.  When I got home I first put my bike up, and by this time the yard was dry enough to mow so mow I did, then I took these pictures.

We've had a very wet spring and summer so far, in fact we had a some little lakes again in the back yard last night.  Something to remember for when I install a permanent fire pit in the yard.









And there's usually a few slugs every year, but more so this year with all the wetness.  Maybe not quite the damage my blogger friend Blue Witch has described to me, but you can see their damage on some hostas and the lettuce in the garden if you look close.

Otherwise, it has been a fine year for the yard and garden for us.

After the break is the full picture tour.

4 July 2017

Mid-June Yard and Garden Pictures

I'm not going to take the time to write in detail, it's taken enough time uploading and posting the pictures.  Here's what I said earlier today over on my regular site:

We lost one plant that I really like in a storm, but my wife brought in the flowering stalk and we've had it inside for almost a week now.  Something, either squirrels or rabbits, has been nibbling on some potted plants.  I moved one into the area between the gardens and it is still getting eaten so it must be squirrels there as rabbits can't get in.  And I've missed the full bloom of the lilies as all the petals have now fallen, same for the peonies.  But the day lilies are blooming now and the garden is looking very well. 



















As usual, full picture tour after the break:

More Plants

More plants have been added to the yard and garden.






















Another picture tour after the break.

Full Spring Yard Tour

The fun part of taking pictures each year (and collecting them in one easy spot) is seeing the growth.  The year to year evolution of our whole yard, of course, but here just week to week or month to month and over the whole season, watching all these plants grow and bloom and provide a little color and happiness in our lives.

The strawberry plants have really taken to the compost-enriched soil of the west garden.  I haven't seen the plants look so robust in some time.  The garlic and herbs are coming along as well.




Shortly before these pictures Kate planted a bunch of seed rows in the east garden.  And the raspberry plants are still there.  The east garden never got much of the compost soil because it was hard to add in between the plants.  Moving the strawberry plants gives us a chance to enrich the cheap soil I started with.  I hope the seeds do well, but they may do better next year.  Also, after uploading pictures we remembered to cover the area where seed rows are planted to help keep them from being dug up so I had to go out again to get an updated picture.  Just two chicken wire covers I slapped together a few years ago that we've used off and on in the garden and they seem to work well.

Now, the tour starts after the break.  This time I thought I'd add a little caption commentary, just for kicks!

Before the Hostas Fall

Another back yard tour to show the growth since last time.  Spring is a wonderful time of year.  I like it when the hostas are bursting forth yet have not fallen, like here, but the ones on the side of the house have already started to fall.
Next weekend - Mother's Day weekend - will probably be plant shopping time.  Time to pick out all sorts of colorful fun plants and fill the pots and plant beds.

Garden Redo

Last weekend Kate weeded the area around the stump and this weekend it was time for the garden.  She spent hours out there weeding, trimming raspberry plants, and moving ALL the strawberry plants from the east garden to the west garden.  This way we can add compost to the east garden this year.  Most all the hay has been put into the center path for weed control there and netting has been placed over the west garden to keep critters from un-planting that which has just been planted.  The garlic is on top and there are herbs on the bottom with strawberry plants planted wherever they fit.






There's another yard tour after the break.  She also spread mulch in the flowerbeds which makes it look much nicer until I get some plants in there.  Hostas and lily of the valley are coming up.  And in front, where my wife put tulips a few years ago, they finally have a few flowers!  Too little too late, though.  They go downhill after spring and then is empty for the rest of the summer.  The last picture, I plan to replant that area with new plants in a couple weeks.

Hello Spring 2017

It finally dried out enough and the sun showed up so I got to take a picture tour of the yard and gardens for Spring!  These pics are from Saturday, as of yet I see no blooms (but some are getting close).  It was officially spring a week ago, but I've done nothing outside yet other than dig up a few rocks that became exposed over winter around the stump.  I think I'll use them in the corner under the lilac to define that corner some more.

Full tour after the break: