My gardening helper!
After edging and weeding
This past weekend was the Scott Arboretum Plant Sale (held every other year). In past years I have bought a LOT. This year, I definitely did not need as many plants. I am finally at a point where most of changes and additions in the garden are smaller. That said, the sideyard is a bit of a mess. We added the new steps and a bluestone landing back in May, then I proceeded to ignore the area, except for the occasional mow/weed wacking. The area was in desperate need of some edging, weeding and planting.
New Steps with Blueberry Bushes on either side
I also decided that this would be a good spot for blueberries. I have thought about planting blueberry bushes for the last few years, although I hadn’t found a good spot until now. This area is in sun for a good part of the day, so I thought it would be a good choice. Additionally the blueberry bush leaves turn a pleasant reddish color in the fall (and go with the coloring of the front porch). I picked up 2 of the “Patriot” variety. These get 3′-4′ tall and wide (smaller then a lot of the other varieties) and tend to look good most of the year. I think the kids will really like being able to pick blueberries, although I have a feeling we will be covering these with mesh so that the birds don’t take them first. This area is right off of the kitchen, which is nice too.
Sad and embarassing weedy patch! Home of future raised bed. I also need to transplant the cedar tree that seeded itself here.
Part of this area is also going to be designated for a raised planting bed for veggies. I haven’t started on the future planting bed area yet, but I did manage to get the edging done and began to battle back the pachysandra. The pachysandra was brutal and I know there are a ton of roots still there (they tend to break when you are trying to pull them out). This will be a multi-year battle! At least it is mostly gone from the upper portion of the hill.
