Spring Was Here

My yard is alive again, and I am REALLY going to miss it.

I planted my annuals and moved all my pots to get ready to take with me.

As I was planting the annuals, I knew the timing of their growth would be perfect with the timing of our move. I would get to see them pretty big and the new owner would walk into a beautiful yard!

The Heaven Scent Gardenias I planted before Mr. Brigglesworth was born did not make the winter. They have started to come back, but I planted annuals around them so the space wasn't so bare.

The yard has really come together. I find every reason to go outside or peak out the window.

Even when it storms, I think it is pretty.

I’ve learned a lot of lessons in this yard. Not every plant survived.

Dogwoods need shade

All my lessons I will take with me to the new house. I will have a new yard to design and grow. I plan to do it in phases like I did this house..

I have a plan, but I know that plan can change. Once with framing goes up on the house, I will be able to see what views I will have, and I will take advantage of those views. Just like I did in the kitchen. I think this is the best view.

The door is open and you are drawn to look outside.

The side window isn’t bad either. The trees give great privacy and they get to show of their flowers in the summer.

2010

2014

The new owner walked around and asked me to identify everything. I then sent him my yard layout that says exactly what each plant is. I’m glad I did that. I had already forgotten what type of azalea I planted two years ago. I have a good feeling the yard will be continued to be cared for.

One thing that will not remain with the house are Nana’s Iris’s.

Those have meaning and I can’t leave them behind. She gave them to me before Little JCrew was born. 

This yard really sold our house. The new owner even came over two weekends ago and told us he was positioning the bed differently so that he could take advantage of the view we created.

It's come a long way from this...

2009

2014

2009

I'm glad to have enjoyed it all these years and excited to create a new one.

Part Six of the BackYard Overhaul

Even though the hill is complete, there was one piece still left.

Once the Loropetalums were removed and given to my mom, there was a balnk spot underneath the Chinese Fringe Trees.

Look closely to see bushes.

I found a gorgeous plant while doing research. A local nursery has only one of this plant. Otto Luyken Laurel. Then when I was picking up my Loropetalums, I saw a multitude of these Laurels and they were beautiful. They had varying sizes and I got the smallest.

Becuase they get big, I wouldn't need that much. You see these plants in the historic district and they are nice and spread out.

When I first found them, they were expensive, so I was holding off getting them until a year down the road. But the smaller sizes at a different nursery had them priced lower and I went ahead and bought them. We were on a roll; I didn't want to stop if my working hubby was willing.

My awesome hubby dug up the Loropetalums and then planted the Laurels in the ground. I'm so excited about these guys. They will make it feel like an old house instantly.

They bloom in the Spring and again in the Fall.

I'm so happy I stumbled upon these guys. They make me happy!

 

The backyard overhaul is now complete!!

 

 

Part Five of the Backyard Overhaul

After getting the gardenia's in the ground, we were on a role and kept going.

The next part of the overhaul was to relocate two Loropetalum bushes that I had gotten for free. I was going to move them onto the hill. However, I couldn't find matching plants to go with them. The Loropetalum I had was not like the deep purple ones at nurseries. Mine faded to a green color and the only ones I found like that were of poor quality. In fact, every single Loropetalum I found was in poor condition. There was one place I hadn't looked yet and I wish I would have looked there first.

I did not end up getting the Purple Diamond Loropetalum from Southern Living like I have before. They're pretty but also cost a pretty penny. The nursery I went to had Plum Delight Loropetalum that was just the same, but cheaper. That's when I decided I could get the six plants instead of four and I'd let my mom have the other Loropetalums in my yard.

These holes were easy to dig. We were done in seconds.

They are hard to see because they blend in with the red clay right now, but once they get bigger and the other green plants get bigger, they will be a nice contrast.

The hill is now complete! We just need to add mulch. It feels good to have plants back on the hill and know that they will do good. I still miss my roses, but this will be just as beautiful to look at.

Part Four of the Backyard Overhaul

 The last time I left you in the backyard, I had just finished planting nine holly bushes on the back row of where the rose bushes were. I was so proud to get ahead of schedule and accomplish this task mid-week, but then I lost momentum. Both Mr. JCrew and I had an exhausting week so we took the weekend off from yard work.

It didn't take us long to get back in to the swing. Next up on the backyard list was to plant the gardenias.

I had a hard time coming up with plants to replace the roses. They had to like full sun, produce some kind of flower and be frost proof. Most gardenias are not frost proof, but there are a couple new varieties. When I asked Cory at CatBird Seat, he recommended 'Heaven Scent' Gardenia. They would grow bigger than the height I needed, but could be trimmed to size. I was sold.

There were two sizes available at the time, but I didn't purchase them right away. I was still in research mode. But when time came to purchase them, the only size available was the smaller size. This had its benefits... 1) they were cheaper. 2) smaller holes to dig.

Note: this was the larger size in a three-gallon pot.

After I planted the holly bushes, my next task was to get the holes ready for the next plants. That was the task I couldn't finish because I was tired. However, I did notice my existing holes were in different spots than my drawing.

 

 

I then realized it be easiest to reduce the number of Loropetalums and add gardenais.

I don't mind the smaller size of the gardenia, it just makes it necessary to use binoculars to see them! I will have lots of years to watch them grow, but I do wish they would have been slightly bigger.

Oh well. The Indian Hawthorne plants I got were just as tiny, and two years later they have grown together. Hopefully, that is what happens with these.

Indian Hawthorne first planted - 2010

Indian Hawthorne now 2012

Looking good so far!

Part Three of the Backyard Overhaul

This business of setting a realistic schedule is working for me. I get things done and then some. When I finish one thing, I assess the time and how I'm feeling, then decide whether to move on to the next thing.

Not all things go faster than planned. I had a couple things on my list non-yard related that did take longer, but it really motivates me when I can tackle what I had planned.

Part Three of the backyard overhaul involved planting new plants into the existing holes left from the roses on the hill. I already replaced the roses on the West side of the yard with Autumn Angel Azaleas. Now onto the 23 holes left on the hill.

I wanted to use the existing holes because it would be easier, and I liked the design.

However, before I could fill the holes in, I had to remove the roots left behind by the roses. When we removed the rose bushes, it was easiest to use the pick-ax, but that left the roots still in the ground.

I think I've landed on three different plants to use on the hill. The first plant I chose was the Dwarf Buford Holly. I would use these to line the fence on the highest part of the hill. We already have them in the front yard and I really like how they've thickened up and are joining together. They would create a nice backdrop for the rest of the bed.

Once I got the azaleas planted, I was in the mood to plant more. So, while we were out and about, I bought four of the nine holly bushes. Four could fit in the car, since we dont have a truck anymore, and four is a manageable number to plant (especially since we had to tackle existing roots in each hole.)

In between the rain on Sunday, we got four bushes planted!

Surprisingly, all the bushes were very uniform. That usually doesn't happen.

While out on our day off Monday, I got the remaining five bushes. I did not have the intention of putting them in the ground yet, but have them ready. They were on the schedule to plant this weekend. But I got a burst of energy and really wanted to use my Wednesday night to plant them!

Little JCrew and I set out to plant what we could. Since I was working ahead of schedule, I was okay with not getting all five in the ground.

With his help, I got three more in the ground. He got into some mischief which caused me to stop. He's such a boy! But it's so cute to see him enjoy the outside. He really loves it and always points to go outside.

Little JCrew went down rather early for bedtime. Guess that's what short naps do to ya. And there was still sun left, so I ran outside to plant the last two.

I was wondering how the spacing from the existing holes looked. I didn't measure, but hoped they were still good.

At least from the side, they're straight!

And from the side, you see how big the Magnolia tree has gotten. From the porch, she still looks narrow, but she's growing just like her twin.

Part three of the overhaul is complete and ahead of schedule. Guess that means I'm on to part four!

Part Two of the Backyard Overhaul

The Rose Rosette Disease has infected the Rose bushes in our area. Everywhere we drive we see infected rose bushes. There is currently no cure, other than digging up the bush.

So, that's what we did. It was orginally planned as a five day process. I've learned to space things out in order to not overwhelm the hubby! :) But we dug up all 27 bushes in one morning.

The rose bushes stayed there and died before we hauled them off.

 

Surpsingly, there were plenty of weeds that needed to be cleared.

And that didn't take long.

Earlier in the week, I had gone to my favorite nursery  (CatBird Seat) and asked Cory some questions about the plants I was going to use to replace the roses. I've had a hard time deciding. I picked out a dwarf azalea for the west side of the yard (White Gumpo) and asked how well they cold take sun. He then gave me an alternative that could handle the spot in my yard.

Autumn Angel is an Encore Azalea. It continuously flowers throughout Spring and Fall and won't grow big (3ft by 3ft max.) And it had white flowers like the Gumpo does.

I was sold. I got enough to replace the roses that were on the West side of the yard and brought them to their new home. On the yard overhaul schedule, it was on the plan to plant the azaleas.

I'm really pleased with their new location. They will stay low and I can trim them as a hedge once they grow together. I remember reading this fact when I was spacing out my roses. "If you want to form a hedge, plant the bushes the width of the mature size apart." This means that if a bush is suppose to get 3ft wide at maturity, I should plant two bushes three feet apart. This measurement is from center of the bush to the center of the other bush. Good rule to know.

Part two is complete. I like doing things in phases. It helps this pregnant lady not get worn out!! (Yes, I'm still doing the work. I don't turn into a pumpkin after 33 weeks.)