I had a productive weekend!

13 years ago

Since we just moved into this house last fall, there has been a list of 'major projects' that needed to be done before I could start treating myself to creating a cottage garden. I'm happy to report I got two of them done this weekend! I cleaned out the square front flowerbed where DH put his flagpole (heavy layer of weeds in hard-packed clay soil), filled it with mulch and a couple large containers, and got his petunias planted - I told him that filling the rest of the space was up to him!

I also tore out and rebuilt a small section of drystack stone retaining wall that had washed out sometime before we moved in - of course, because it didn't go back together the same way it was originally built, it now looks like it needs a nice capstone layer to be completely finished. But, I am completely bushed and happy enough with it that I will be ready to plant my giant blue hostas and other goodies when they arrive in the mail this coming week.

After that, I can start thinking seriously about how to expand the lone perennial bed here that will become my cottage garden! (The final large project is a horrificly large and unproductive vegetable garden which will require an entire weekend or more unto itself to really be cleaned out. I have to wait til I have the money to pay someone to do some hauling before I can tackle that.)

The cottage garden area is shown in the photo below, and the link takes you to the photo album of new pictures of our property from this weekend, after we had mowed but before I put in the new wall and petunias.

Here is a link that might be useful: New house and yard

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Comments (10)

trailrunner
13 years ago
What a wondeful space you have. There is so much potential and you will have such a great time developing all of it. I can hardly wait for more pics as it progresses. I love the bed by the little shed . The garden will keep you in everything you will need for a whole year !! Have fun and please post more pics...I love rock walls ! c
bluesunflower
13 years ago
That is a really great piece of property you have! Those mature trees are a real bonus. Do you have a grand vision for the whole area or are you saving your sanity to lose a little bit at a time?

Congratulations on your new home.
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Had a busy weekend...
Q
Comments (16)
Thank you everyone for the compliments. The kids are definately in disguise Jeanne! They are all good kids but I wouldn't compare them to angels (unless they are sleeping) LOL. I won't tell Chris all the nice things you have all said about him (I wouldn't want his head to blow up) :) I have always thought he was pretty good looking too. Even before we got together...Marlene, most of the stepping stones that actually made it to my garden were made by my daughter. The designs are mine but all of the ones I made myself were sold or given as gifts. I kept the ones that the kids made because they mean more to me. Luna Lena, yes the floor is all stained glass. The girls and I did that right after we moved in here almost 3 years ago. (I designed it and the girls helped doing some of the cutting and grinding of the glass. Rosemarie, No I didn't make the glow in the dark gazing ball. I bought that at Meijer.
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We've had Seth all weekend....
Q
Comments (16)
LOL...we both just woke up! He slept for 2 and a half hours! I got to doze off for an hour or so. I woke up and papa was holding him in the rocking chair where he slept another 30 mintues. Mona he is 15 months and so full of energy! He keeps us, usually me, hopping! Mom and dad just called and they are on their way home now...a few more hours! I enjoy him though....a one on one with each of them is always a treat!
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A good laugh I had this weekend
Q
Comments (15)
In my companies defense, I haven't always been savy about country life. In 1978, DH & I went on a vacation with another couple and we stopped in a VERY small town In Montana, called Ingomar. All there really was in that town (that I remember) was a saloon, The Jersey Lily, where we went in (of course). After a couple tall ones, nature called and all they had was two out houses in back. I took one look at the signs on them and had to go back in to ask if I was a bull or a heifer. LOL Dotttie
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A little OT but I had to share this product I discovered...
Q
Comments (24)
My grandmother did not get into Horchow very often, nor did she buy her clothes at Neiman-Marcus. She made lye soap. She washed her clothes in it and those of my grandfather, their 8 children and many of her 56 grandchildren. She cleaned the butcher house with that lye soap, a house where certain things occurred that some of the delicate-minded would consider murder, but it was survival, food for building muscles for those who worked hard, so that they could live. Fortunately, for her she did not live long enough to witness all this PC madness. She died from working in the cotton fields that had been sprayed with insecticides, bathing with lye soap and putting gray wash water on her garden. They farmed hundreds of acres and since there was not enough water from the pots that held gray water, my grandaddy transported water via horse and buggy. Poor horses. They were fed food from all those fields that were treated with insecticides. He too, died, before all this madness. My grandmother died at the tender age of 89 from emphysema and incidentally she had never smoked, was not married to a smoker and none of her children smoked, and none of their friends back then smoked. They were very pious and pure, no alcohol and no tobacco, and had no idea about drugs. My grandfather was killed by a young protester, high on pot, who lost control of his vehicle, and hit my little grandaddy as he was driving to start his day and open up his little neighborhood grocery store that he had been running for years, when at the ripe old age of 99, he died. It's a shame they used all those insecticides and lye, or they might have lived to see the downfall of this country.
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little_dani
13 years ago
What is the year and model of your red car? It looks like a '58 Ford to me, but I could be wrong. My eyes are not what they used to be.

Love the property, Love the car!

I am an old car nut, having owned, restored, and driven many, many of them in my lifetime. My DH can't figure out how I recognize a '52 Chevy going down the street, Girls don't know about cars...

Janie
janetgia
Original Author
13 years ago
Thank you! Yes the property has so much to offer - it's very park-like, almost a full acre within city limits... good spacing between neighbors, and lots of trees.

As far as a vision... the only thing I'm really envisioning is using the sideyard as some sort of walk-through (i.e. paths and various points of interest) cottage/cutting garden. I have a "sort of" plan I sketched on a dinner napkin not too long ago. The rest of the property is really lovely the way it is, so I probably won't do too much.

And yes, I DO expect to be losing sanity a little at a time. LOL In fact, I think I left some of it among the stones of my rock wall!
janetgia
Original Author
13 years ago
Janie, you have a good eye! That's a '59 Ford Fairlane. It's what my hubby calls a "20-foot car," meaning it looks good from 20 feet. Any closer than that and you begin to see it has some issues :) We have built several old cars in the past 20 years - our first was a 37 Chevy street rod, and this Ford is our most recent project. I often impress my hubby by being able to identify some old car going down the road - I REALLY impressed him the day he realized I knew how to tell the difference between 1939 and 1940 Fords! LOL
little_dani
13 years ago
I had a '59 Ford Fairlane. Mine was white, and pretty nice. It had been kept in a garage, and was seldom driven. Until I got it, that is. LOL

I had a '49 Ford PU once. The only thing 'Ford' about it was the body, however. It had a 350 engine in it and a Pontiac rear end. We didn't do that bit of mechanical miricle, it was done when we got it. We painted it 'Candy Apple' RED, and named it "Bully", and drove it for the longest time. It was so cute, but way more motor than it needed. I think my DH tore out a drive shaft every time he drove it.

Janie
gldno1
13 years ago
Janet, you have a beautiful big, shady space to work. Congratulations on attacking the "to-do list". I love all the shade trees.
ladypat1
13 years ago
What a wonderful, peaceful place. You can have years of enjoyment (and work) at this place. I also look forward to updates in pictures over the years. What an opportunity! Pat
DYH
13 years ago
You have such a nice place. I agree with your park-like description as it looks like quite a great place to spend time. Don't rush your garden, enjoy the journey.

Cameron
FlowerLady6
13 years ago
Such a beautiful, peaceful place you have. A blank canvas awaiting your creative touch. Have fun and don't stress.

FlowerLady

I had a productive weekend!

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I had a productive weekend!

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