Marathon Monday weekend was that for us: a marathon! We had three days of free time, good weather shining down on us, a mound of soil and “compost” (really deteriorated mulch) delivered, and friends with wheelbarrows and stamina come help.
We rototilled and amended and terraced the most problematic part of our front yard: the slope. The terraces – some in the sun, some in partial shade – will be perennial beds for herbs, and there is lots of room for flowering shrubs around the bird feeders. The path in between we seeded with Nichols Nursery Ecological Lawn. Let’s see if it takes. The robins and even the squirrels already like it). I really wanted to plant some buckwheat to amend the soil, but we couldn’t wait for warmer weather…
We also rototilled the entire vegetable garden area, path and all. It will be much easier to dig and sift the loosened soil into the raised bed frames. Some areas had huge amounts of stones, so I pretended I was digging for potatoes. Here is Amie carrying some of that huge bounty away:
If those were really potatoes, we’d win some sort of price at a fair! Amie also got to sow some bluebonnets (blue lupine) in the flower box:
Lupine is a nitrogen-fixing flower, and I wanted to give it a trial run before I plant it in the perennial beds to make them ready for the perennial herbs later on.
Of course there was also time for a wheelbarrow ride!
And while we worked – especially when we were hammering in the stakes that will hold the terraces in place – we had a visitor:
It’s that elusive Pileated Woodpecker! He was fearless, came to within about 10 feet of us, checking us out, making a right racket!
Inside the house I have started greening the potato seed.
Yup, that’s the bedroom dresser. It’s not like we had gotten ’round to decorating our bedroom anyway!
Your garden is really taking shape! I am always eager to get started with our garden each year and to see how the weather effects us and how the seeds produce.
We just added a new little cement pad around our watering hose pipe because I was really tired of getting my feet muddy when I water. Yesterday was the first day that I was able to walk on it and it was glorious.
We haven’t put our seeds in the ground yet…just a week or so to go before we sow the seed. I did plant a few sunflowers in pots on the deck and they are about three inches high already. We also prepared a new bed where we are going to plant a milkweed patch for hopefully some monarchs to visit.
Anyway, I enjoyed catching up on your blog this morning and thanks for the comment on my blog yesterday.
Barb-Harmony Art Mom
love watching your garden come together!