Every. Single. Day!
I have a lot of great plants in my yard, the problem is that they have been left to their own devices for a little too long. For instance, I could easily get 15-20 new hosta plants out of one of the large clumps in my yard – and there are probably a dozen large clumps. Yikes.
I’m not just digging things up randomly however – I have a plan. My plans for the sunny side of the garage do not include these shrubs.
(Click any image to enlarge)
I am not a huge fan of shrubs, particularly if they don’t bloom. When I lived in the south, my experience with shrubs usually involved wasp nests and large spiders. Shudder. I had planned to dig these boxwood up at some point so that I could prepare this spot for a vegetable patch next summer.
I had lunch with my realtor (now friend) yesterday and I told her what I’d been doing. She has a house that she and her husband have recently built that is a bit thin on landscaping. She not only came over after lunch and adopted a large clump of some creeping groundcover I’d pulled out but after she saw them, she also said she wanted to come and get the shrubs.
How much luckier could I get – I’m thrilled that someone else did the work of digging all FIVE shrubs up (in the HOT and humid noontime sun) and she’s thrilled to have the shrubs. I gave her a bonus deal too – dig up five shrubs and take a clump of hosta free!
There are yet more lilies in the back corner near the fence as well as a lone peony that I will be relocating. The bed needs a bit more cleaning up, but I can almost see my tomato plants there now.
You may have noticed I have a bit of a love / hate thing going on with the lilies. My ambivalence is largely due to this project.
There was nothing but grass under this tree until I spent an hour hacking it up with my handy dandy hoe. I scavenged the bricks from a nearby weed pile and voila – several hours later, I had a bed of newly transplanted lilies. They haven’t died yet and my grudge against them will likely dissipate once I see some flower action from them.
It will be interesting to see what the yard looks like this time next year when things have had time to settle in to their new spots and fill in a bit.
That spot by the garage will be perfect for your tomatoes! They will like the protection and added warmth from the garage wall.
Be sure to take a lot of “before” pictures of the yard to have them to compare to how the yard looks a couple of years from now.
by Mama Pea July 4th, 2012 at 9:51 pmI sure hope you are right, Mama Pea – I can’t wait til I can start growing FOOD!
The shrubs weren’t hard to dig up, in large part because we have nice dirt. There is lots of clay in this area, but not much in my yard
by Jenyfer July 5th, 2012 at 8:04 amYou got a lot done! I have been dealing with barberry bushes by the front of the house and can’t even seem to kill them. They are actually thriving! That IS a great place for tomatoes – can’t wait to see all that you’ve done.
by susan July 5th, 2012 at 1:49 pmAs much as I’ve done, I still have a ton more to do! Should be a breeze next spring by comparison
by Jenyfer July 5th, 2012 at 3:40 pm