October 22, 2011

Small Flower Bed

This is one of our two fences separating us from our neighbors. It's not much to look at, and the northern-facing fence casts a constant shadow on a small part of the lawn. This shaded area is constantly subjected to weeds, moss, and a different look and texture than the rest of the lawn. The lawn itself is not Kentucky bluegrass. We're not sure exactly what it is, but it seems to be a native grass. It is patchy, but slow-growing (I only mowed once this season). Repairing the lawn will be the last thing on our yard to-do list.

Because this small strip of the lawn was so different, and the fence so boring, we decided to put in a small flower bed. It is about two and a half feet wide and about 27 feet long. First I dug out all the existing plants (weeds). Then I dug a narrow trench to put the concrete edging stones, making sure they were straight and lined up vertically to each other. I used a weed cloth over the dirt and tucked under the edgers. Finally, I topped it off with mulch.

In the spring, I'll pick out some shade-loving plants and ornamental grasses to plant there. I don't expect it to be too hard to push aside the mulch, cut open the weed cloth, dig a hole, and insert a plant.

October 12, 2011

The Third and Final Stone Wall


After some weather delays, I have finally finished the last stone wall. It was hard pulling out enough rocks to complete the project, and I had to use a few more of the smaller ones than I wanted to, but I did it. The dirt has been regraded through most of it, but there is still some work to do in that arena. I think I will call this project complete until spring. Then, I will start planning which plants I will put in and where they will go.

While the weather is still nice (at least for the next week), I'll be tackling a smaller project - putting in a bed along the fence we share with our neighbors. I have all the material already. The plants will have to wait until spring again, though.