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Since I've been given a clean-ish bill of health, I thought it advisable to spend my weekend expending as much energy as possible. Saturday, my Samurai dug out the last recalcitrant thirty-year-old mangy Japanese holly shrub, with the help of a big ole pickax and his mighty thews. (Pocket Thor, I'm telling ya!) I mowed the lawn, admired our nice green baby grasses, and mostly finished building the raised bed across the front of the house. For you landscaping geeks (like Knitgeek and Mongolherder), we have a little boxy ranch house. As you face it from the street, there's a porch on the right, with a nice wedge-shaped planting bed in front of it, ending in the sidewalk to the driveway, which is to the far right. On the left, we have a brick wall with two windows. Under it, we had a single hideous shrub--the one murdered by myself and my mighty spouse. Now on the left, we have a nice raised bed. There's a red camellia in the center, between the two windows, with plenty of room to grow. Under each window, I planted a lilac Encore azalea. Tucked into the very shady corner near the porch is a very happy hosta, and a little white dwarf azalea lives right next to the porch steps. I still have lots of room to plant stuff, and this bed is a versatile one. The bed in front of the porch is in deep shade all day, but the front of the new bed gets about four hours of afternoon sun, due to the angle of the house. I'm thinking perennials--maybe some daisies, coreopsis, angelonia if I can find it. I'm fond of cottage-garden plantings, but I'll strive for some semblance of balance. I realized today that I've shagged 800 lbs.(20 bags at 40 lbs. each) of topsoil around the yard in the last week, and almost that much mulch. Oof. I still have plants to move in the side beds, and then I get to start on the back. Why the rush? I need to get stuff in the ground and established before it gets too hot--for me or for the poor transplants. I probably have until Memorial Day, if things in Our Fair Coastal City run true to form. We went to Busch Gardens yesterday with Raj, Kim, and adorable Alex, plus Kim's niece and nephew. Had lots of fun, and discovered the Fun Pass. If you're a Va. resident, you pay for one day's admission, get your fun pass, and get in until Sept. 4 without paying again. It doesn't include HallowScream, but it's an excellent deal. You can buy them online, but only until May 15th. If you behave and promise to pet my doggie, you can even come stay at the Castle of Coolness with us, and we'll go with ya! |
 
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Uber Garden Monkey and Captain Shrubslayer