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.
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.
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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.