Hedges, Bushes, and More Hedges

I have openly appreciated our home’s previous owner (the original owner/builder) on choosing complimentary flowering bushes. I’m grateful, really I am, but geez we have a lot of them. I haven’t taken to counting, but I’m pretty sure that doing so would render a number somewhere near 100. Also, these bushes are O.L.D.–landscaper friend has estimated 50+ years on some–and most haven’t been pruned in about five years or so. They are a bit unruly.

So that’s what we’ve been doing–pruning bushes. We have trimmed about a quarter and can already tell a huge difference. See the before of one row:

Row in the back yard

And the after:

Same row, quite a bit shorter

We trimmed about 5 ft. off these bushes and are happy we can now see all the way to the fence line from our deck. We plan to shape them a little once they start growing back.

And to give you an idea of the size of these hedges:

Overgrown azaleas in front of house (I am not a dwarf)

Yes, there is a house back there somewhere. Here is the almost-after:

We scalped 'em

We took a good 6-7 ft. off those suckers and couldn’t be happier with the results. They look a little sad here, but trust me, they’re coming back nicely. All are full of new growth and green again. Here’s what they looked like a few weeks ago:

New azalea growth

And here they are today:

More new azalea growth

And of course, the poison oak has new growth as well. Grrr.

Boo on poison oak.

I will deal with the above soon, or because of my relationship with it, I’ll have Husband do it.

And here’s the true after:

Newly trimmed hedges

Funny thing about trimming hedges: the weeds love all the extra sunlight, air, space, etc. and take over. Must weed-eat ASAP.

Although we do have an electric hedge trimmer, we did all of the above pruning without it. A good pair of hedge shears and pruning loppers will get you a long way. Save the hedge trimmer for shaping.

We’ve been spending the weekends in our recently purchased, swanky baby pool, but have another bush area to tackle soon.

Hello, Weekend Plans.

I’ve also got to figure out what to do with the front of our house now that it is visible. Any suggestions for making it not so sad looking?

Evidence of Success

Here’s a little proof that all is happy and healthy in the garden.

Cucumbers starting to vine

Healthy, leafy tomato vines

Flowering pole beans

First banana pepper

Edamame/soybeans coming in

I got out this morning and took all of these pictures. I was overjoyed to find the baby soybeans. Everything looks green, and the paper is keeping the grass and weeds at bay.  Another week or so, and the okra and squash should be big enough to matter, too.

What’s going on in your garden? Have you been able to pick something yet?

Around the Garden in Mid-May

I’m happy to report that, since replanting, our garden is doing wonderfully well! We have tons of little okra, squash, collard, pea, and canteloupe seedlings. We’ll have to get out and thin them soon. I’m also overjoyed that the water-logged pepper and tomato plants have come back to life. They are putting on new, green growth, and beginning to flower. Yes! The beans are beginning to climb, and the cucumbers aren’t far behind. All in all, I’d say things are going great in the vegetable patch.

Other areas are doing remarkably well, too. We’ve found a number of wild blackberry vines around the property and have been enjoying fresh blackberries when we walk around the yard. The herb gardens have also taken off. The Thai basil that reseeded itself last year is pretty close to being invasive, but it’s just so pretty that I don’t mind. The tarragon came back and is full of yellow buds. The oregano is over a foot high, and the parsley, cilantro, basil, and dill is beginning to get big enough to pick. My in-laws gave me some chocolate mint and cinnamon basil cuttings that I’m trying to root. It sure is hard not to eat them while they’re rooting! The various mints and the lemon balm have also taken off, and I’ve been enjoying fresh teas each morning. Oh, and the thyme is flowering–so pretty and delicate.

In the fruit areas, the fig trees are full of little figs, tempting me already, and the domestic blackberry vines are full of almost-ripe berries. The blueberry rootings have been planted and look healthy as well. The strawberries are almost done, but they sure were good while they lasted. Warm, just-picked strawberry = yum.

And the garlic is scaping. The garlic is scaping! Shouldn’t be too much longer before I can pull it. Double Yes! Take a look at its humble beginnings last fall here.

By far, the most whimsical item in the garden.

I’m also happy to report that the first daylily has bloomed.

She's a beauty!

 

Summer is fast approaching down here in Mississippi. I’m not sure what I want more, the summer-ripened fruits or the cool, spring weather. Both can be delicious in their own way.

 

What about you? What’s going on in your garden?

 

 

How Not to Plant a Garden

Spring is my, and many people’s, favorite time of year. Nothing makes me happier than an increase in temperature, breezes, flowers, and chirping birds. Whenever this time of year comes, I’m always itching to get out and plant something. We had a rough winter here in Mississippi and were repaid with a heavenly spring. Basically, we’ve had spring-like weather since late February/early March with few cold snaps.

I was able to get my vegetable garden in early, and with my over-the-top plan, I wanted to make sure I did everything possible to keep out that pesky grass! Please take note, that what seemed like brilliance to my husband and me was actually a disater in the making. Here’s what we did:

Gardening Advice #3–To Compost or Not to Compost?

The answer is always to compost!

My friend Rachel recently asked if I composted and what advice I had on the subject. I do compost and have learned quite a lot in the past few years I’ve been doing so.

Lesson #1: Compost Must Be Turned

Bosmere Compost Bin

Back in 2008 when I decided to start a compost pile, I bought one of these. It came highly recommended and looked neat and tidy, which was important to me at the time. I thought this would be a an ideal composter because it is easy to assemble (i.e. I didn’t have to build it); it has a lid at the top for easily adding food scraps, leaves, etc.; and it has a sliding door at the bottom for compost retrieval. According to everything I read, all I had to do was drop scraps in the top in the appropriate ratios, and in a few months, I would have beautiful compost coming out the bottom that I could shovel in my garden or pots.

Well, this isn’t exactly what happened. First, my husband and I moved out of our rental and bought a house. We (smartly, I think) decided not to try to move the partially composted material. We left all that behind, packed up the compost bin, and started over at the new place. So, we lost a few precious months, but I figured no biggie, we’d have that thing filled up again in no time.

We moved into our new house in 2009 and have yet to pull any compost out of the bin. To be sure, there are bugs in there doing something. The fact that I have been able to add to it on a regular basis means that the pile gradually shrinks. Also, when I lift the door at the bottom, what I see is beginning to resemble compost, but there are still a lot of whole particles in there. The problem is this: I took their claims at face value and haven’t turned the pile once. Alternately, when I move piles of leaves from one area to another (turning by proxy), they break down in no time.

Conclusion: Compost Must Be Turned.