Happy Mother's Day

 It's been 15 years now since I last got to have my mom with me on Mother's Day and that last one was rough. She was declining rapidly health wise and passed away just a few weeks later.

I owe it to my mom for my love of gardening and bird watching. It was when she was sick that I started tending her flower gardens.  I think she would be very pleased with my rose garden project.

I spent this past weekend, including Mother's Day, working on the garden. I'm making progress but of course...there is still way more to go. 

I've got all the bare root roses planted at least and more roses should be shipping this week. 

A couple pics of my progress so far. The white plastic is my pond; I covered for now so water and debris doesn't get in there before I'm ready to officially set it up!

Of course, I had hand scketched a plan of the garden but have made changes (multiple times) as I have progressed....realizing in the process I may have been over zealous in the quantity of roses I ordered....I am barely going to fit them but I believe I can get all of them in there...32 rose bushes total (30 different kinds).

Can't wait to see which one blooms first!!

Front view of the garden. This will be the entrance....have blueberry bushes and rhubarb here; I also decided to put one rose bush on either side out here due to space and how many roses I purchased. 

White plastic is the pond. This is also where I plan to add fairy houses and such...as well as some roses...of course!

Tired and sore but loving this project!

 So I've learned a few things the hard way. One....don't ever touch a screw that you just used an electric screw driver on! Ouch!!

2nd...i will never use Spar Urethane to seal my decorative pots again.....it coated them all yellow and to make it worse I had applied the first coat with a sponge applicator....ugh...it made drips.

You know...its all okay. So my garden won't be perfect....it will be unique and mine!

So many times I hear people say they are afraid to try gardening; I look at it as an adventure...just like life. So you make a mistake, but you can learn from that. I killed my first Orchid.....was afraid to get another one; but I recently did. Looking up info online, I am gonna try a different potting medium. We will see.

Part of my mission with my garden is to recycle and use as much as I can of what we already have. The back fence doesn't look the prettiest so I added some lattice that was left over from previous project. By the time our grapes fill the back fence it won't matter. Plus, soon we will have rose bushes a trellis and bench. 

Here is how I left it when I finished for today

The front where you see fresh mulch is actually just outside the garden. We've had blueberry bushes and rhubarb there for years. But you can't have a shabby looking entrance into a rose garden, so I am dressing that up.

Got my 5 yards of mulch and soil today.

Still alot of work to do! Oh, I purchase a set of 5 roses that were selected by the company I got them from. Figured it was a surprise. They got delivered this week and the selection they sent is wonderful and look how amazing the roots look

I also mixed, by hand, 4 bags of cement to make my stepping stones that I plan to paint. I have one finished that had been just sitting in our garage.

Can't wait to start painting the rest!!

Earthquake tiller Rocks!

 I am so impressed by my little rototiller. Definately worth the investment. It's still crazy hard work clearing a garden but I love this thing! Have a bit more to do but here is a pic before I started and what I got done today.

I am also super glad I saw this little one before I hit him with the tiller, I would have been super sad.

I was just about to do a bit more before I called it a day but nature decided for me. First the black flies came out and started biting but also 3 turkeys decided to have dinner. 

Anyway, it was a super good day. I got to play in dirt, see lots of birds and got some work done on my soon to be rose garden 🌹

Strawberry tower progress

 

So I painted my last pot for the strawberry towers; I am very happy how it turned out. My husband suggested I add our town's former chief of police' badge which I thought was a wonderful idea. Chief Maloney passed away in the line of duty in 2012 during a stand off in our town for a drug raid. Not only is this symbol on my tower in honor of him but for all the people who effortlessly risk their lives serving our communities on a daily basis.

I was hoping to put the towers together today; but after some research have determined that I need to seal the pots or all my work will eventually chip off. I will be working on sealing them this week and hope to have pics of finished project next weekend.....stay tuned!

Weekend project

 So I still haven't used my Earthquake tiller yet. Hoping next weekend the weather will cooperate. 

I have been busy planning out my rose garden, making my wish list of rose bushes I want and looking up deer resistant companion plants.

I was lucky enough to have a 4 day weekend so I decided even though we had April snow showers to keep busy on a super fun project.

I am making 2 strawberry topsy turvy planters. Not put together just yet, but I am having so much fun painting the clay pots.

I am no artist, that's for sure; but it is so fun painting, using my imagination and using up supplies around the garage and house.

Part of my rose garden idea is recycling stuff we have that is basically rotting and using it for decoration in my garden.

I didn't get fussy about paints, just using what we had on hand from previous projects.

Here are a few pics of my project so far. Will definately post pics when my towers are complete! 

Breaking Ground

 I know....it has been years of silence. That's what happens when you decide to go to grad school. You have no life....literally!

Fortunately, school is behind me and I have plans to fill my free time by creating a rose garden. I have given up on attempting a veggie garden. As much as I love growing and eating fresh veggies, we have too much wild life that also love them, so all the work and they reap the benefit. I have decided to support my local farmers and signed up for a CSA for 2021. I will be turning our overgrown, neglected plot into a beautiful oasis. So far....knock on wood, wild life hasn't bothered the few rose bushes I do have.

I am so excited about this project. I will take pics and update our progess as we go.

I bought an Earthquake Versa tiller/cultivator based on the amazing reviews. I have it put together and ready to go; can't wait to see what it can do.

Newest Member of the Family

This is Willow, she is a spit fire little bunny we adopted recently from the NH SPCA. We lost our dear Guillermo who we adopted last November unexpectantly and he left a big hole in my heart, along with 2 other rabbits we have lost over the past 15 months. Bunnies are absolutely amazing little creatures. I highly recommend that anyone who is considering adopting a bunny do their homework first. Rabbits have special needs, they need unlimited timothy hay, appropriate veggies, water, fresh, clean cages and socialization - Oh, don't forget having them fixed! They can be litterbox trained and love out of cage time to interact with their human friends and  get exercise. The thing about rabbits is- they LOVE to chew. So be fore warned, having a bunny is like having a baby or puppy - You MUST bunny proof the part(s) of your house that you will allow your bun to roam. This means electrical cords, possibly carpet and anything wood is up for grabs in a bunnies mind. Despite best efforts we have lost a few things or have had things torn up (like phone cords, mouse cords and carpet) but we love our little bunny friends and can live with or replace the damaged items. This year we have had a family of cotton tails in our back yard. SO much fun to watch and I am happy to share the dandelions and clover with them :)