Monday, April 19, 2010

The Crazy Bug Bit Me!

I did something a bit crazy yesterday. I think I've mentioned before that I basically have a black thumb when it comes to houseplants. I've never had one survive so we have no plants in our home. I've only in the past year or so started planting and growing things in my yard- a rose bush that was here when we bought the house has continued to thrive, a lilac bush that I planted gets bigger each year, my blackberry bush is returning for the 3rd year, I had a successful vegetable garden last year. My wonderful husband has a gift for imagining a project and then working it out and doing it all on his own. He built our deck. He tore out a dying bush and built a 2 tiered stone wall that is also a garden space. This year, he built a brick wall to create a defined front flower bed.

Today, I must have had a high fever or something because I decided that all of his hard work would be best showcased with some lovely flowers. I also planted flowers in the tiered wall he built last year.

The blue pot on the porch? Why, that's a strawberry pot! I planted 3 strawberries plants in the side bubbles and gerbera daisies in the top. Isn't it pretty?

I hope to start work on the raised veggie garden (the bed that Jeff built last year) in the next weekend or 2. My mom has started tomatoes that she'll bring up. I picked up a few brussels sprouts plants and some banana pepper plants. Yum! We'll see what else I pick up to plant in there- I'm open to suggestions! I'm thinking 2 or 3 tomato plants will be plenty. And then I'd love to have a variety of other veggies growing! Here's my lilac bush a few weeks ago... And a shot of the lilacs today! They smell divine! Hooray for springtime!! Photobucket

9 comments:

Katherine said...

Nothing like flowers to make it feel like spring. The lilacs are just amazing. I'm dying to plant some at my house. I love planting heirloom tomatoes, kinds you can't find at the store. Lettuce and squash are another favorite. But for some reason, I just can not grow a decent bell pepper.

Mellodee said...

I too, have a non-growing kind of black thumb. In the 35+ years that we have owned our various homes, the best that I can usually manage is one day in the Fall (for trimming and winter prep) and one day in Spring. I never planted much more than a few flats of flowers here and there in pots for the deck and the front. Need I say, that with this lavish amount of attention and care, I usually ended up with just what you'd expect....a spindly pathetic looking plant with one or two scraggly flowers. I finally realized that if I didn't ever buy any new plants I wouldn't ever have anything to plant! (I'm a pretty good at figuring these things out, although it takes about 30 years!!)

So now I just close my eyes and grit my teeth whenever I pass the garden center. Eventually the urge for flowers goes away! :)

I hope you have better results with your efforts!

Garret said...

I agree... that is some crazy ass bug.

Eternal Lizdom said...

I think it was the Flartus-bug that bit me. I'm always inspired by her gardening and nature shots and talk of fresh veggies and such...

Alison said...

Oooo, I miss lilacs! They don't grow down here, and they're one of my favorite flowers.

Looks like Jeff's quite the handyman. We could certainly use him down here for a few projects (*contemplates temporary spouse swap, chef for a handyman*).

As for your veggie garden, beans are usually easy to grow and productive. Plus, they grow fast enough to get the kids excited. And I love growing peas, though you have to plant them early. Maybe let Teagan have a corner to plant something she wants to eat?

(wv: funke. Oh yeah, baby)

(Oh, and I love your farmers' market report idea, though I'm not sure I have the time or attention to spare...were you thinking of a Mr. Linky-type thing? I didn't have time to email you last night, but I am curious.)

C. Beth said...

Yes, I have a black thumb too, so I am HIGHLLY impressed! Great job, Liz!

Lola said...

oh yes- the black thumb :) Beautiful transformation- can your oh-so-handy husband come teach mine a thing or two? We pay in beer or pizza (or both, depending on his likes!). :)

Our house needs seriously landscaping help. 6 years there this summer...

Karen M. Peterson said...

Lovely!

That's one thing about living in a townhome. No room to really plant anything, besides a few potter herbs my roommate is working on.

Joy@TPMG said...

Your flower garden looks amazing. I love flowers. It is still a little early for us to put out flowers where we live but I can't wait for May! You must love to be in your yard, especially with the smell of lilacs in the air!