Our Yard | The Plans for 2011

I’m an elaborate planner. I like to think it runs in the family. My mother used to pour over and peruse gardening magazines and design magazines trying to see what she could do with the land I grew up on. Sadly those plans weren’t able to come to fruition. However, this desire to pour over magazines and information must be genetic because I do the same thing. Little by little, our plans are being put into place and executed. That said, there are times when I still feel completely overwhelmed and hopeless. I ask myself why I’m bothering to do this, what the point of it all is, and fret about how it is taking so long to accomplish little things.

I’ve quickly sketched out (digitally) this representation to our yard. It isn’t at all to scale, nor exact, and in fact I’m sure my husband is sniggering in his sleeve right now. Ignore him. I also got tired of not having names for the various beds around the yard (perhaps Charles or Cecilia would be great names), so I labelled them with the most basic names I could come up with.

When we first bought this house, only the black sections of the diagram and the small triangle on the far right side of the screen (unlabeled, but part of the hosta and fern bed), which was half its current size, were in place. In four and half years, we have put up a fence to encircle the yard, built the six raised beds in the garden section, built a fence in front of the fruit bushes and planted the fruit bushes (blackberry and raspberry), started the flowers & herbs bed next to the water feature, put in a compost bin and installed rain barrels, created the hosta & fern bed on the left side of the sidewalk, replanted the hosta/fern/shade bed in front of the house (by ripping out some ugly bushes), and shortened our deck to allow for the fruit trees to be installed.

Planning and Executing the Urban Garden

It all started in the summer of 2007 when I planted a couple tomato plants. I had a notorious black thumb and people were surprised I’d even consider it. Honestly, that first year it didn’t go so well.

I sat up most of that following winter looking through books, magazines, and websites trying to figure out how I could do it better. I decided on raised beds in the garden for several reasons: easier on my knees, better soil and less compaction, no tilling or massive digging, less weeds, less predators, ease of creating hoops and companion planting. I made a lot of plans, entered a gardening challenge, and the beds went in that spring in April of 2008.

In Welcome to My Yard (June 2009), a full year later, I discuss how I’m going to hang the beautiful floats off the pergola. Check. I discuss moving the hydrangea so that I’ll have room for a dwarf fruit tree. We’ve cut back the deck and will most likely not move the hydrangea, but we are putting in a dwarf fruit tree in the mint & tree area. I’m hoping for this fall. I discuss the patio. That’s in the works right now with the beginning of a retaining wall being built. I also discuss a moonflower next to my honeysuckle plant… That thing never got more than a couple leaves before it died. Bummer. I’ll eventually replace it with another honeysuckle.

In Garden Plans (December 2010), I discuss the butterfly garden: “It’ll be a mix of edibles for animals, milkweed, and prairie plants.” That’s on the plan for this fall and next spring. I discuss the hostas and ferns bed: “The front bed will be expanded with more hostas and shade-loving plants. The north-side bed will have more hostas and ground cover. I’d also like to find a bushy-style plant approximately three feet tall that will cover the foundation, flower, and have attractive foilage.” Check. Oh, I gave up on the flowering. Instead, I’m planting ferns along the foundation. I discussed the flowers & herbs bed: “In the backyard, the start of a south-side bed near the fence was completed this fall. It’s got plastic over it right now for killing the weeds (and a thick layer of snow). I’d like to do a mix of edible and ornamental in that bed with some tall sunflowers in the back corner. The only thing it currently has is ornamental grasses near the fountain and some peonies.” I’m working on that right now! More plastic has been put down, the herb garden has been put up, sunflower seeds have been purchased, and flowers are on the drawing board.

In June of 2011 and this month, I’ve asked for your help over and over as I continue to plan parts of my yard. I asked for your help when I knew I needed to plant more. I’ve asked for your help with the fountain. I also asked the question: “Am I an urban homesteader?” Honestly, I think we still have a long way to go until that’s truth.

In reviewing all of this and remembering the journey to get here (truly starting in the spring of 2008 – that means three years have passed), I have reaffirmed my desire to go through with this. After all, I get to have strawberry dreams.

Plans for 2011

It would be quite impossible and overwhelming to do all of my plans in one year which is why I have set goals for specific parts of the yard to come together in specific years. We’re a little behind, but I’m not that worried about it. Life doesn’t have to happen on time. This year, I’d like to complete the following:

• Garden: deconstruct the rabbit hutches (ours have all died and we won’t be getting more), harvest and can lots of vegetables, mulch down the pathways, refill some compost in the beds, continue the compost project (we received 2,000 red worms a month ago!)
• Fruit bushes: nothing except maintenance! (Harvesting, weeding, pruning)
• Mint & Fruit Trees: order two dwarf fruit trees, plant shade-loving ground cover, harvest and use mint (done!), shorten deck (done!)
• Hostas & Ferns: nothing (already added ground cover and a fern)
• Patio: build concrete retaining wall, build flower retaining walls, install patio pavers
• Flowers & Herbs: beautify fountain, finish lining and edging bed, plant sunflowers, construct living fence and plant herbs (done!)
• Butterfly Garden: till/spray/line (haven’t decided), plan types of plants (done!), plant seeds and perennials

Plans for 2012

• Garden: construct the cold-frame, plant and harvest many vegetables and herbs, continue composting
• Fruit bushes: nothing except maintenance! (Harvesting, weeding, pruning.)
• Mint & Fruit Trees: maintain + grow Camellia Sinesis in a pot
• Hostas & Ferns: continue adding plants and ground cover; focus on more ferns to cover foundation
• Patio: build outdoor kitchen area (fridge, sink, grill), plant flower beds, build & install pergola
• Flowers & Herbs: add more plants, replant annual herbs
• Butterfly Garden: plant seeds and perennials, add more plants to the plan

Conclusion

We’ve got a lot to do, but now that I look back on all that we’ve accomplished in the past three years, I don’t feel nearly as hopeless. I’m thankful that I have the opportunity to not only dream and plan, but also to execute. I really hope that someday soon I can lean back in my wicker chair on my pergola-covered patio, gaze over at the various plantings, sip some lemonade garnished with lemon balm and mint (from my yard!), and feel happy and at peace.

You can catch up on the daily grind of the yard through the Our Yard series.