Finally! Place for WS Babies

14 years ago

We signed papers on a house on Monday, after living in limbo for over a year (two for DH). The new house is smaller than the old, so it will be an adjustment there (we are the original stuff junkies, I swear), BUT - it has 1.4 acres, and an inground pool. Woohoo! We close at the end of May, if all goes well, and it should.

When we had the building inspection today, the seller was on site. DH of course asked about all the construction issues; I, on the other hand, wanted to know about the plants. There are a pair of what might be Bradford pears - seller said they didn't produce fruit, but called them Bartletts. There's a nice Japanese maple, a crape myrtle, and a couple of dwarf river (? not 100% sure of variety) birches. Some choice azaleas, in bloom now, some lilies (not in bloom yet), and what looks like they might be canna lilies returning, and an ornamental grass I haven't identified - not pampas; may be a miscanthus. Lots of liriope for filler (some of that will be coming out, for sure). And tons of flat, grassy, lawn, woohoo! Plenty of space to rip up for my plants.

I'm not terribly excited about this, as I'm sure you can tell...(LOL)

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Comments (24)

shoregrowin
WOO HOO!!!! Drippy has ROOTS! :)
That's fantastic news, girl! One and 1/4 acres AND an inground pool? Let me know when the cabana boy arrives and I'll beat feet down to help you get planting. ;)

I'm tickled for you and your DH!

Shore
shoregrowin
WOO HOO!!!! Drippy has ROOTS! :)
That's fantastic news, girl! One and 1/4 acres AND an inground pool? Let me know when the cabana boy arrives and I'll beat feet down to help you get planting. ;)

I'm tickled for you and your DH!

Shore
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Thank you everyone! Already I'm starting to see flower buds forming on my dianthus, the nicotiana and a verbascum has a flower stalk on it too. When it stops raining I'll take pics of the entire beds to show you what they look like. Proudgm, I got my plant markers from Paw Paw Everlast Label Co. I just used a paint marker and wrote the names of the daylilies and hostas on them. There really was no planning involved, I just grew a bunch of seeds of plants that I wanted to try and then found places for most of them. Some of them I had planned where they were going to be, like the ones in the Dracula bed, but a lot of them I just started sticking them here and there to fill up my new beds. Now I have more seeds I'm going to start to fill in the bare spots, some this summer and some this winter. Starting from seed is much easier, fun and rewarding the WS method than indoors. Plus, much easier on my bank account! Karen
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shoregrowin
WOO HOO!!!! Drippy has ROOTS! :)
That's fantastic news, girl! One and 1/4 acres AND an inground pool? Let me know when the cabana boy arrives and I'll beat feet down to help you get planting. ;)

I'm tickled for you and your DH!

Shore
shoregrowin
WOO HOO!!!! Drippy has ROOTS! :)
That's fantastic news, girl! One and 1/4 acres AND an inground pool? Let me know when the cabana boy arrives and I'll beat feet down to help you get planting. ;)

I'm tickled for you and your DH!

Shore
tiffy_z5_6_can
14 years ago
Ahhh... What a bummer!! You'll have to actually plant stuff in the ground and make decisions as to where to place them. (Can you tell I have a huge smile on my face as I write this?? :O) :O) :O)

Now there's something to 'happy dance' about! Finally, a place where you can exercise the gardener's motto, "Lawn is overrated."

Sounds like you have a few bones and lots of space to swing that shovel around. I am soooo happy for you!

Is the closing at the end of May or can you start gardening before then?
kqcrna
14 years ago
That's great Drippy! We'll need pictures ASAP...

Karen
tiffy_z5_6_can
14 years ago
Hey Shore, I think she said 1.4 acres!!!! It's going to be party time for Drippy!!!!
drippy
Original Author
14 years ago
I am such a rooted type person, I have been seriously questioning my state of mind for awhile - finally things are looking very hopeful!

Shore, the inground pool has been serviced by the pool company already, and looks great. DH asked the seller about maintenance yesterday, as we've never had a pool before, so he's on top of that (and will inform me, I'm sure, as soon as we're in there). The property is 1.4 acres, almost 1 1/2 - it is fenced but divided, which is perfect. There is a privacy fence around the pool and large backyard area, then a large rectangular chunk is surrounded by chain link fence - I see vegetables...and other things! :) I'm warned there's lots of rabbits in the area; let's hope Drippy is still alert enough to bark at them, LOL.

Tiffy, we are trying to get the closing ASAP, but at the moment it's scheduled for the end of May. The seller is putting new windows in as a condition of the sale, so that will probably take 2-3 weeks anyway. Plus we have to wait for the phenomenal amount of mortgage paperwork to get approved, so when all that comes together, away we go. Meanwhile, I have many wintersown babies on my deck awaiting transport - and I am so thrilled that the plants I either started from seed in MA (like my beach plum, which is now a small tree), and the memorial plants I started from cuttings, all made it through the winter.

Besides the WS babies, here are the plants I am bringing with me:

Lacecap hydrangea (memorial)
Bluebird ROS (also memorial - Tiffy, you have grandbabies from this - did they ever bloom? were they blue?)
Magpie columbine (WS earlier)
Holly (cutting from a nice specimen)
Boxwood (cutting from a nice specimen)
Beach plum (WS earlier)
Bay (purchased - not hardy, but lives outdoors here most of the year)
Ornamental fig (20th anniversary present from DH that I have managed to keep alive for 11 years)
Montauk Daisy (cutting from plant)
Echinacea Kim's Knee Hi (WS earlier - had to have it for the name :))

So it's a good start! Dying to get an herb garden going again - I may try to design a traditional one, but I'm not terribly artistic, so we'll see.
PVick
14 years ago
Great news, drippy - so happy for you!

PV
dawiff
14 years ago
That's such great news, Kim! I'm really happy for you, and I completely understand your enthusiasm. We moved into our new place in the Seattle area last September, and it was such a relief to be settled. You have been in such a state of limbo for sooooo long, you must be relieved to be settling down again.

And the new house and gardens sound great! We'll be wanting lots of pictures.
albertar
13 years ago
That is fantastic news Kim, finally being able to call somewhere home again. I'm wondering how much different it will all be from your previous MA gardening to now being able to garden in AL. Keep us all posted, :)

Alberta
bakemom_gw
13 years ago
Great news! I just had a professional landscaper come out and rip out the old stuff from before I was here and created something beautiful. It's a mullet. Business up front and party in the back.
pitimpinai
13 years ago
Wonderful! Congratulations, especially for a new garden to play in. :-D
GawdinFever
13 years ago
Congratulations, Kim!

I too relocated last year and I'm trying to do away with all the well-cared for lawn. Neighbors think I'm nuts, but ah well---so did the last ones! ;)

Please share before & after pics!?
richdelmo
13 years ago
Something tells me you'll be reporting record number of containers next year. Best of luck on the new house and property.
drippy
Original Author
13 years ago
I think so, Rich - my "Seeds I Have" file has become a ridiculous 64 pages (single spaced) long. And I just placed another order during Gardens North 50% off April seed sale (almost missed it - got in the next to last day, I think). Guess I better get busy! Even at the apartment, I managed to start 133 containers. Not all of them have germinated - there's always a percentage for me that don't - but the ones that have will be headed to the new house, along with the dozen or so potted plants I brought with me from MA. I have a really nice beach plum I grew from WSing; have to research where to plant it here so it will survive - it took me nearly 5 years to get one of the seeds to germinate; I don't want to lose it now!

One of the great things about this place is that I finally have the space to do different things - my classic herb garden (I'm looking into doing an actual designed one, like maybe a knot garden), tropical-esque near the pool, vegetables, and plenty of room to extend ornamental beds. Can't wait!
mnwsgal
13 years ago
Congratulations on your new home. How exciting to have lots of space for your gardening ideas and to get those special potted plants into the ground.
northerner_on
13 years ago
Congratulations on your new home. How exciting to be able to set up your own garden beds and actually 'go nuts' with WSing. We'll be looking forward to pics.
Northerner.
drippy
Original Author
13 years ago
Closing scheduled Monday; keep your fingers crossed! I have a LOT of plants to move from this deck, LOL. Good thing DS is on his way home from grad school this very weekend. :)

If it's the 90 degrees they predict it's going to be, we will run from the lawyer's office to the pool.
mnwsgal
13 years ago
Will cross my fingers for you when I get up tomorrow, though I stay up nights and sleep until 11 a.m. so you may already be finished before I get up. I will go to sleep thinking good thoughts for your closing and sending the vibes your way.

86 and humid here today and no pool; air conditioning is a blessing. Planted beans and one tomato today. More to do tomorrow with temps in the high 80s expected all week.
drippy
Original Author
13 years ago
We closed! First plants start getting moved up tomorrow. Things weren't perfect, of course (everything always favors the bank), but a little tweaking here & there; we'll be fine. DS did a little pool vacuuming, and while DH is at work tomorrow, DS & I will move some stuff up.

Looking forward to a little breathing space again - our 1-bedroom apt. is close, to say the least.
mnwsgal
13 years ago
Hurrah! I can picture you all taking a dip in the pool after a long day of moving. Glad your son has arrived to help with the move.
prairiemoon2 z6b MA
13 years ago
Wow! So glad I stopped by to hear this great news! Congratulations Drippy!! It's been TOO long that you've been a nomad. [g] Can't wait to see the first photos of your new garden space. :-)
loisthegardener_nc7b
13 years ago
Congratulations!

Finally! Place for WS Babies

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shoregrowin

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