Weeds Are Plants Too, Right?!

So even though I'm slightly embarrassed by some of these pictures, I thought I would show you around our yard today. We've had a full spring and so there are some areas of our yard which really need some time and attention and well, they just haven't gotten it yet. But we're working on it and hopefully soon (like before September!) these areas will have gotten the care they deserve.

So after that disclaimer, on with the tour...

This portulaca planter sits on my kitchen windowsill and it just makes me happy as I'm doing dishes or working at the sink.

And this planter of snapdragon with alyssum was an experiment this year but I absolutely love it.

The bed with our lamppost is all perennials with just the hanging basket and the window box for some colour. And thankfully the free mulch from the landfill has stopped smelling like garbage so that's a plus :)

I still haven't figured out what works best in the front bed. I am loving the white impatiens border this year but I'm disappointed in the annuals I picked out. Although the Marine Bells are finally starting to bloom so maybe I'll be happier with this bed in July. Maybe...

This bed was random this year. I plopped in two hydrangeas and some coleus and accidentally removed a bush. However, it's doing okay and since I rarely see it, I'm not that bothered by it. Out of sight, out of mind, right?!

This bed is proof that ongoing maintenance is required if you want your yard to always look its best. Or at least, somewhat loved. Since this is a bed I see all the time when I'm in the backyard you'd think I'd be doing a better job of maintaining it.

This bed just illustrates that morning (when I took these pictures) is not the best time of day for yard photography. Ha!

And this is obviously the challenge spot of our yard -- the corner behind the garage. The hedge needs to be trimmed, all the beds need to be weeded, and the thistle forest needs to be dug out from behind the garage so we can unearth the raspberries which are (supposedly) growing there. Some of the thistles are almost as tall as the hedge. It's gotten so bad that Dave and I have some free time this weekend to celebrate our anniversary and we are planning on spending some of that time weeding. That's seriously committed (or sad).

 

If you look really closely you can see that I've been making attempts to attack this part of our yard. See the (miniscule) black patches of dirt which give glimpses of hope as to what this could look like?

The bed on the left is my future cutting garden and the bed on the right is my strawberry patch. Sadly you can't really see the strawberries for the weeds, which is kind of the theme of this particular patch of our yard.

So as not to leave you on a really depressing note, I'll end with the tree we planted last summer. After weeding beneath it this spring, I randomly plopped some dianthus (similar to Sweet William) at its base. It makes me happy every time I see it.

And the one thing you may have picked up in this post is that, in general, my yard makes me happy. I love taking care of everything (or attempting to at least!) and seeing how things change throughout the season. My gardening method is a little random, and I could definitely use some more focused time, but this yard is a work in progress and one that I very much enjoy.

And also, next time I take pictures of our yard, I promise to do it at a different time of day, since I'm thinking my photography skills need some work too :)