It’s coming together nicely, and already looks so different than it did early this spring, especially with the addition of the pergola.
The pots by the window will hopefully provide us with tomatoes, cucumbers and limes.
I dream about having espaliered apple trees along the brick wall, but for now these morning glories are pretty. They just grew all on their own.
The ground cover plants keep filling in nicely.
Although we have our eye out for a fountain, for now this birdbath makes me smile.. One of my birthday gifts.
I didn’t get pictures of the sun perennial garden we’re working on. Here’s another birthday gift that is in the shade perennial garden.
In the front potager (kitchen) garden, we have more herbs than we know what to do with. The pole beans are already six inches taller than in this picture.
And, my favorite summertime room. This is my view every morning as I read and sip coffee. I recently hung several prisms in the windows that fill the room with tiny rainbows.
For those interested in the house updates…
I’ve been working on the backyard whenever it’s been warm (and dry) enough. It didn’t even get close to finished last year since 1) I focused mainly on the front yard and 2) Any time I did spend back there was usually spent ripping overgrown brush and dead bushes out before there was any chance of putting anything in.
Here are the before pictures.
This is by the shed. The broken concrete led to a handy dandy gas grill, complete with wasp nest.
To the right a little, with more broken up concrete.
And, moving further to the right. Notice the lovely (broken) air conditioner unit hidden behind the (ugly) fence section.
And even more to the right..
Beautiful.
Now, the after pics. I used the unbroken cement squares and made a checkerboard pattern. Weird, but the kids like it.
I extended the bed to go all around the tree.
Late last fall, the Green Stewards guys got rid of the air conditioner unit and put in the patio and little walkways. I’m wanting to plant espaliered apple trees along the brick wall. I’m also thinking I’ll plant tomatoes and peppers under the windows, or maybe bush cucumbers, since it gets lots of afternoon sun there. I can envision containers of strawberries too.
We found tons of patio stone and bricks half buried and covered by grass, brush and ground cover. I reshaped the beds (managing to save some groundcover) and re-laid a small patio edged with the found bricks. On the center stone, I want a fountain. I left some dirt to plant flowers or something around the fountain, again using leaf compost to build up the soil.
We broke open a jar of homemade pickles today and were so pleased to discover that they were absolutely scrumptious! I can’t claim the credit, as Skylar and our sweet friend Grace are the ones who made them. She just sent me the recipe, which is a family recipe of theirs. (Thanks, Aunt Myrt!)
Pickle recipe for 1 quart size jar:
Sterilize jar and heat lids in hot water.
While still hot, fill jar with
- 2 cloves of garlic
- cucumbers (whole, spear or sliced)
- 1-2 heads of dill
- 1 Tbs of canning salt.
Boil 1/2 cup a.c. vinegar. Pour into jar and fill to top with boiling water.
Screw on lid and ring and water bath 15 minutes
(And now for the really hard part.) Let set for 4-5 months before eating.
Our gardens did so well this year, even though we had a late start. We planted only two zucchini plants, but we still have more than enough!
The basil is as tall as Carmen. Pesto, anyone?
A couple beds of broccoli and brussel sprouts are the victims of hungry slugs.
This is the damage they cause, before they eat the entire plant.
Skylar did some internet research to find natural ways to combat slugs, and made some traps to set in our gardens. She took shallow pans, filled them partway with beer, and set them in the dirt. A couple sites said to also sprinkle a little yeast over the beer. She prepared them that evening, since slugs come out during the night and early morning. We were eager to check the traps the next morning.
I would say that they worked.
Beer Slug Soup, anyone?
