Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Pesky Front Garden

For three summers now, I have fretted about my front lawn. Each year, I say ENOUGH! I will just plant food out there and be done with it. I suck at everything else. Then I cave and try to plant batches of flowers, which I neglect or hate or can't really afford. I've managed to kill a handful of hostas that were allegedly going to grow wild and look good year round.

I killed perfectly lovely fire bush.

I may have killed the lavender plant my friend stuck in the yard for me.

There are perhaps six tulips that have survived to grow again this year, and they look sprouty and lovely among the grass and weeds taking over the front bed.

This is the year where I say enough for real and I am planting food out there. Judge away, neighbors!

It was so gorgeous outside that I figured even my sick baby could benefit from helping me in the garden a little bit:
Look at his sad little water eyes! He breaks my heart.

I trucked him up front while I got the soil ready. Perhaps you can see in the background the brick border buried under gross grass and weeds? It looks like that year round, so we just hoed some compost into the soil and planted the vining peas along the trellis. Miles obviously just supervised and offered instructions.

Provided I can revive the lavender, I'll have that up there along with other herbs. I'm sticking mint, sage, basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary in my front plot. Those are things I know how to grow, they are things that are useful, and they fit our budget for landscaping. Plus, most of them are perennial!

I know, you are thinking, but mint is invasive! It will take over your whole front lawn and eat the neighbor children! To this I say, good! Less for Corey to not mow, more for me to make tea.

5 comments:

p said...

you killed the firebush because it was an invasive species and you care about the flora.

i think you should also grow a giant pumpkin.

P said...

I agree with p once again! Also: do not underestimate mint. Also also: how did you manage to kill hostas??

Katy said...

em, i do not know. they just done died! i didn't know the firebush was potentially invasive! i guess it's good that it's gone. i usually plant squash vines to the left of the house...pumpkins 2 years ago and gourds last autumn. the gourds were more successful so i will probably repeat.

p said...

trellis some cucumbers, all you need to do is water the hell out of them and they're pretty easy.

Katy said...

p! cucumbers are a back yard fruit. gosh, where do you come from?