#Microblog Mondays: Starting Over

I really, really miss my gardens -- the chaos, the profusion of flowers and colors and butterflies, the beautiful mature (but never ever "finished") beds.

Hey, flowerbabies...I miss you!

Here at the new house, I had to put most of my energy into the deck container plantings, because that's where we spend the most time, and because I sort of want to see what exists as is for a year season first half of the growing season.

Some of the deck containers

So far, it looks like that's a whole lot of garlic mustard (invasive NY weed), autumn olive (invasive NY shrub), honeysuckle (invasive NY shrub), dandelions, sneezeweed, and a tiny smattering of fun surprises (mostly daffodils and our amazing magnolia tree).

So, I planted a garden in the corner by the road, even though I can't see it from the house. It makes me happy to plant something that I'll see every time I come home, and that will add beauty to the neighborhood. Eventually.

Man I wish our address was Peepers Hollow!

This was at least THREE wheelbarrows full of sod that I dug up with a spade and pulled by hand (more lovely dark dirt to come and real edging). There's two false indigo, three veronicastrum, two sea hollies, three foxglove, and two black eyed susan vines that will eventually cover the tuteur in the middle. I can't help but think it looks like a pet cemetery. Going in this week are purple and rose salvia, orange and yellow hummingbird mint, purple coneflowers, and Moonbeam coreopsis. 

It is easy to forget that my gardens before were a product of at least TWELVE YEARS of sweat, muddy knees, and hours out in the garden. In the beginning, they weren't much bigger than my new little corner plot. They were just as sparse. It takes time for beds to fill in, for the trial and error of plant selection and soil amendment and watering and deer resistance to result in an explosion of color and textures.

It doesn't happen overnight. Kind of like healing from loss, you want it to just POOF be healed, but it takes time for things to take root and multiply and become the garden you want it to be. It takes time to heal from wounds of the heart and soul, and like my garden, there's always work to do, things to tweak, plants that don't work out and need to be replaced. And in this garden, rocks that need to be dug up and that are a pain in the tuchus, but that you can use as makeshift edging.

I'm excited for the opportunity to go through the process of creating all new garden spaces, little by little, and to see how they will evolve and grow over time.

Want to read more #Microblog Mondays? Go here and enjoy!