Since the weather has been warm enough for me to be digging in the earth, I've been working hard in the flower garden and waiting patiently to see the fruits of my labour. I've been rewarded and it's heavenly. Here are some photos that span the first two summers since we moved here:
When we arrived (Autumn, 2012) - I had no idea what to expect come Spring, only that there would be a ton of goldenrod to contend with. My grandfather had been gone for 6 years and I was expecting little left of what used to lie in front of the rock wall that separated the back yard from the fields (fields of goldenrod, of course). And now there was an added challenge: a new septic tank was installed, an eyesore directly beneath the kitchen window, and the company used a very poor-quality topsoil to fill and smooth over the mess:
The following Spring/Summer (2013) - grass, goldenrod, and other weeds had completely taken over, only the poppies and peonies can be spotted from several feet away when in bloom. By August the rock wall that borders the flower garden can't even be seen. We were so busy focusing our efforts on the vegetable garden, all I had time to do was sprinkle some flower seeds around the septic area and pull goldenrod whenever I had a spare moment:
Spring/Summer 2014 - last summer I simply had no time but I learned a lot while working two days a week for an experienced gardener. When I'd come home the vegetable garden was my priority... any attempts at keeping the weeds at bay in the flower garden were lame. It wasn't until Autumn before I finally had a chance to weed, dig, transfer, and plan - and I spent a good couple of solid weeks doing just that. But here's what it looked like in July:
(just about everything you see is a weed but up close there were beautiful plants trying their best to compete for space and sunlight...enough flowers survived that I knew I could fill the beds by moving things around rather than spending money on new ones... I was also fortunate enough to bring some plants back with me from my job down the road)
Spring/Summer 2015 - This is the first year that I'm able to spend time keeping on top of the flower garden. I can't believe what a difference it's made (keep in mind I only bought a few new plants, these were all here years before we arrived, those I did buy went in front of the house and around the septic bed)...I can't wait to see what unfolds throughout the rest of the summer...
3 weeks ago:
Today:
6 weeks ago:
Today:
6 weeks ago, here you get a sense of how close this is to our window:
Today:
6 weeks ago:
Today:
6 weeks ago:
Today:
Soon the poppies, peonies, and roses will be done but in the meantime I have been thoroughly enjoying my view.
2013:
Today:
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