Hmmm...

My plans for this summer. Definitely I wish to do the farmer's market again. It just makes sense because of the perennials that need to be divided...and the people asking for them.

In the yard though...

Under the maple tree you see in this picture I took last spring are perennials that have been able to survive without any help (fertilizer or extra watering) for the past 10 years. It is time to redo the cheap lawn edging I put in for the edge (at that time not realizing the poor quality of it). While I am at it I 'need' to expand the beds and fill in the holes where perennials have 'passed away'. There will be lots of room in here for new daylilies, lilies, irises, etc, etc.

The other project I am working on is in the area south of the greenhouse which used to be a holding garden for perennials. Someone gave me a perennial with grass in it years ago and I did not take the time to get rid of it at that time. So, this summer the area in the top left of the picture will be 'roundup'ed and planted and mulched. Walking paths and a bench will also be put in there but where those will go will be decided as I plant the area up. This picture was taken mid summer, before I finished planting up the lower area and the right side of the picture.

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If I get those two areas done I will be very happy. I have lots of new lilies, assorted bearded irises, siberian irises, phlox, daylilies and hostas coming from orders I am placing this spring. Those combined with other perennials already in the holding garden should provide enough variety in the new beds that I shouldn't have to go out to find more when I am planting up these areas.

What is everyone else doing?

Brenda

I'm still planning (wishing) on building a larger pond if my girlfriend's DH will have time this summer to come dig a hole with the Bobcat for me ;)

I started two expansions last fall, one perennial bed and the other a shrub bed to fill up.

And of course I'm filling the shade garden that I lasagna two years ago with hostas/shade plants and the holding field garden with lilies, daylilies and irises come spring.

Can't wait, I'm so ready!

Sharon

I don't have a lot planned for this summer, mostly fixing up different areas and finishing up others. The big thing will be finally moving Hansa. Dh just can't seem to get his act together with his friend with the little tractor, so i told the guy last fall to come in May and we'd do it. Once that's done, i want to plant some lilies across the front of it, and make a circular bed for irises around my crabapple tree. I'll be moving Blanc Double de Coubert as well, but she's smaller and i can manage her myself. Besides that, it's mostly small upkeep type things that i want to do, nothing major.

My son and his family are planning on landscaping this summer so i'll probably be helping them with that. I wonder if they'll come and help me weed in return? LOL - who am i kidding?!

My big plans are to build a vegetable garden - I almost died last summer with no veggies in the backyard! I can't believe how much I missed growing them.

The other things are to get the weeds/grass out of all the perimeter beds and edge them; and to weed-n-feed all the Creeping Charlie out of the front lawn. It hops over lawn edging!

This year the big push will be on getting the fence completed (one side left) and some sod put down, then the planting can finally commence! We had trees brought in late last fall so we're really looking forward to seeing them in leaf. Also, the steps off the deck need to be installed.

Our landscape plan includes a dry creek bed - I don't think the husband is 100% on board with that yet. We spent so much time raking rocks and getting rid of them the idea of hauling rocks back in to the yard is questionable. :)
I'll get my creek bed in the end, one way or another...

I think the focus will be on the back garden this year. I want to extend the island bed, join it up with the extension in front of the lilac hedge. Basically making it all garden and no grass. The veggie bed will pretty much be made into a flower bed this year....with just planting some lettuces and chard....not much else. I will still plant veggies in the greenhouse though....so not really losing anything.

Sierra

Oh My...projects...shouldn't get me started...lol

The spring will be year 3 of a multi year plan. When we bought this house there was nothing at all for a landscape just a few old apple trees and grass everywhere.

Year 1
Fence the back yard, turned out to be a major job as it was rocks everywhere and they were huge, (but I now have rock gardens too) I remember when we looked at the house wondering why no one had fences...now I know. We also put in a french drain along one whole side of the property... was a very big job but had to be done. The only gardens we got done were a tiny strip by the front sidewalk and a little pod of 4 roses in the back.

Year 2 (last year)
The big project for last year was the deck. The little strip by the front sidewalk grew to a larger L-shape. The little pod grew to a much larger size with another small garden along the back. In between the 2 beds we put an arbour that will become the entrance to the bed when the small ones are joined together. We also planted the small strip along the east side of the house where the sidewalk to the back yard is. All in all I think we added 30 some odd roses and about 9 or 10 clematis plus perennials and other stuff.

Last August I went to H-Depot to get a spool of twine and came home with the twine and a pond kit so.....

oh almost forgot started the digging to expand (yet again) the L-shape in the front yard and did a lasagna bed last summer out there as well for planting this spring.

Year 3 (2008)

30 roses coming from Pickering.....

Build a small corner deck with pergola top in the back corner of the yard. I want it small and cozy, a little snuggle spot with roses and clematis

Install the pond & waterfall....

Dig to join the two back gardens into one, accessed through the arbour. The pond and pergola will be inside this garden.

Cathy

I have so many projects that there is just no way to get them all done so I will have to make a decisiion. I'm pretty sure I will work on the front yard, make the pond bigger and expand a front flower bed. I have a caragana hedge running along the front of my property and after the first nice flush of green growth it get powdery mildew and it looks worse every year. May be it's time to get a back hoe

Stan

I have a caragana hedge running along the front of my property and after the first nice flush of green growth it get powdery mildew and it looks worse every year. May be it's time to get a back hoe

**HA! Good luck with that! I have a caragana hedge running along the front of my property and one year we took it to the ground and the stems or should I say trunks were larger than most people thighs. When I had a track hoe in the yard last spring to take out the stumps of a dozen or more trees that we cut down...I asked about him taking out the front hedge. He just smiled at me and said "I could do it...but you sure won't want to see the mess after I was done"
It made a huge difference by just cutting it down to the ground (was over 20ft high when I bought the property) and they leaped to 6 ft in two years. Although extremely tedious, I did spray them with baking soda/dishsoap/water mix this spring and nipped the powdery mildew very well. So much so, I will be ontop of it this year as nothing looks more ghastly than that hedge with mildew gone rampant.
Debbie

I have to move/build a new compost so that I can get the back fence replaced with a sliding type. Not having a car for winter and gardening really is hard. Last year I created flowing flower beds with enough room between to park a car.

I also have to build a stronger arbour for my grape plant. I have dreams of replacing an ugly awning on my font window with a grape plant to provide shade from the hot summer sun and let more light into the house in the winter.

Sorry Stan, but I got to thinking that you live in Camrose, so obviously do not have the issue I have with a long lived out of control caragana hedge.
I'm sure you will not have near the trouble of getting rid of your caragana's as I would.
And to think my neighbor (who's from Nova Scotia and says they don't have caragana's down there) thinks they are the most gorgeous hedge going. I just shake my head at him...
Debbie

We have caraganas along 2 sides in our shelter belt. Each year I have to go and eat one or two of the flowers. I did so every summer as a kid and it brings back lots of memories. For those who have never tried it....they are very sweet.

Brenda

I had a caragana hedge along the front sidewalk too. Same thing for me with the powdery mildew, same thing cutting it down, dousing in Roundup, hacking at the stumps, etc. Finally I did get rid of it once & for all: I sold the house!

Brenda I meant to say before, what a handsome looking maple tree that is.

Thanks, Gillian.

I dare not try to guess how old that maple is. The right side branch gets lower and lower every year. We will probably cut most of that branch off this summer since we do not want a big storm to come and actually break it at its base. A storm would probably destroy the whole tree. Well, hmmmm. Then I could plant lots of full sun plants....hmmmm.

When there was a wedding in our yard a few years ago, the bride and groom lay on the grass in the shade of that same tree. The bride and groom also stood behind the overhanging branch and placed their hands on the bark while the photographer took close up pictures of their rings/hands. The pictures turned out very well.

Friends got their family pictures taken under the same maple tree last summer. All their family were able to stand in its shade. In another picture the grandkids all sat on the overhanging branch...something kids would naturally do.

Brenda

Well, I won't have as much planting to do this year, so will be concentrating on finishing pathways, arbour, build compost bin, and hopefully get control of a certain out of control spot where another perennial bed will go on the other side of the stone pathway.
I got the flag stones down last summer and will be adding thyme in between them this spring and continue lining the borders with Walker's Low catmint if it's survived the winter.
I would also like to try one pathway with solid thyme between a perennial bed and the veggie garden. Should be easy to mow if needed and use the tiller to keep the edge neat on the veggie side.

I've got 4 posts in for the arbour at the main garden gate, now I just have to come up with a creative way to put sides and a top on it while making it look nice. I used treated posts because that's what we had on hand and what we used for the garden fence, but now I'm not sure how I'll ever make all that green look rustic and attractive :( I could stain them I spose...or rip them out and start over! Suggestions are welcome :) You all are sooo creative!

Here's a pic of the stone pathway along with the maybe arbor posts...they need help :(

Brenda, I am also an admirer of your tree...it just begs to be climbed :)

What about vines growing up your posts? Or tall perennials near/around them - lilies? Once it starts to fill in, you'll hardly notice them!

Your photo with the tree is beautiful Brenda..it looks like a setting in a park.Toots I like what you have done with the flagstones. For me, it is time to start planting down the fence line now that we have the electric fence to keep the horses back. A lot of board rails need to be replaced from the horses chewing on them. Is a person ever finished with their gardens?..Nope..savona

This year I'm hoping to finally get my patio. At this point it is a somewhat gravelly area with flower pots around it. I'm hoping for nice thick tamped gravel with some narrow flower beds around it. I need to get my pond area planted, and I suppose it's possible I might finally get a fence between the cattle alley and and the lawn.
I love those big old maple trees, but you do tend to lose trunks, especially if you're unlucky enough to have freezing rain or heavy snow while the trees are in leaf. I've lost more than one nice shady area that way.
Connie

Debbie, I have no idea how old the hedge is but the house is a 100 years old this year. Any people I've talked to that were around 20 - 30 years ago remember the hedge. I did cut some down to the ground last spring and the new growth was very nice initially but then go powdery mildew on it. The hedge is about 75' long. Do you think if I sprayed it this year I could control the mildew?

Thanks, Marcia. I think that's a good idea, its just the only vine that I can think of that's vigourous enough in my zone to do much climbing is Perennial Hops, but I'm leary of planting it in the flower beds just because of its creeping habit. What do you think...is it controllable? It would look lovely and it would definately cover the whole arbor.
I've planted a wild honeysuckle (Lonicera dioica var. glaucescens) on one side but they are slow growing and I'm not sure if it will fill in much.

Does anyone know of a really hardy tame variety of honeysuckle, or any other vine for that matter, that would work?

Connie, good luck on the fence between the lawn and the cattle alley! Wish I was there to help you :)

Toots, there's wild cucumber vine as well and maybe it wouldn't run rampant in your zone. It's fast growing as self-seeding. I don't have hops, but a friend who lived in Thompson MB for years had one and she never complained about it. Hers was on a trellis against her house.

Maybe someone else will have another suggestion. :)

Hi Stanly..although I didn't measure, I used water, dishsoap and baking soda and at the very first hint of mildew, I sprayed my hedge thoroughly. Then repeated a few days later and again a few days after that.
(and no, I have no idea why I did it that way) but figured if I could stop it in it's tracks, that was all that mattered and I knew I couldn't hurt or kill the hedge (unfortunately:) no matter how many times I sprayed it.
It was pretty much mildew free.
Now to see if it works again this year...
Debbie

It's so interesting to hear what plans everyone has for their gardens this year.

I've got one new area to plant up this summer. It's a spot that I used to grow vegetables there, but they haven't been doing well in that spot, probably due to the nearby spruce tree. So I'm hoping that perennials will do much better there....I hope.

It seems that I will also have to build a rock garden of some sort this year, so that I will have a place to plant the 33 sempervivums that I just ordered. Addiction is a horrible thing..........;^)

Toots, why not plant Scarlet Runner Beans? They're fast growing and annual, so you don't have to worry about hardiness. I don't mind the green wood at all, BTW. If you don't like it, maybe you could stain it dark brown or something.

Toots..I have clematis macrapetala "Blue Bird"..it is very hardy. I am sure you would have really good luck with it..savona

Such busy beavers everyone is.

That big old maple is beautiful, Brenda. I also have one of them that, from as near as I can figure, is somewhere between 80 and 100 years old. A 70 yr old cousin of mine remembers climbing that tree when he was a child and he said it was big then. This property that we now own was at one time owned by my great-grandparents way back when the town was first settled. So, I figure it's entirely possible that they planted that tree or at the very least didn't cut it down if it was already there.

Brenda, I'm assuming all that water is spring flooding, right? Or do you have a small creek flowing through there?

Sharon, how big a pond are you planning? Like, will you have to swim over to the water lilies? Do I need to morph you into a mermaid, too?

Reading thru the posts I can relate to soooo much. Get a handle on this, expand that, finish over there, LOL. Reading thru Cathy's yearly plans brings back fond (and tiring) memories of my own five year plan for this yard. It's a good way to go about it all. The big secret, though, is that it (the plan) really never ends.

I like Caragana, and I know a lot of people just hate it. I don't have any (maybe that's why I like it) but there's a lot of old bushes around - none with mildew problems, though. I never knew the flowers were edible.

Toots, your treated wood will weather and bleach from the sun and the greenish tinge will go away. My suggestion for a vine would be Clematis tangutica. I have Radar Love, started from seed, growing in a few different places and none of it is suffering from winter damage. The vines are winter hardy - no need to cut them back and I like when the seedheads get all frosted up. The one I have in front of the house (protected spot) last year reached the roof of the house - I guess about 15', and I think that's about 4 years from seed. The ones on the fence (not protected) are around 6' or so and nice and bushy. It is one tough plant.

Sharon, how big a pond are you planning? Like, will you have to swim over to the water lilies? Do I need to morph you into a mermaid, too?

LOL, yes, I want it big, but not too big that I'll be swimming it it. No, Angela is the mermaid queen, don't want to step on her tail ;)

Sharon

Everyone's plans sound so lovely. Reading through them is making me long for spring all the more! I too have a few too many plans for my own good. I think I'm putting off the hypertufa basin pond project for next year because I've already got alot lined up.

Biggest project, 1 and 1/2 acre wildflower meadow to be seeded. I spent all of last year getting the site ready for seeding. I'm also starting a veggy garden, building a small chicken coop, planting a bunch of cherry trees and a plum tree, putting railings on the house, installing lattice around the deck...you get the idea...lol! I can't wait to see green again!

Camaria, please, pretty please post your progress with the wildflower meadow! Sounds wonderful :)

Thanks for all the vine ideas guys :) I really never thought clematis would do much here, but sounds like they're definately worth a try. I do believe I've seen Radar Love at the local nursery.

Gil, just wondering if Scarlet runners should be started indoors or WS'd? Or do they grow fast enough to be sown directly outside?

Toots, I have always just planted mine outside when I plant the veggie garden. I soak them for a day before, and use a legume inoculant. They grow very fast once they get going but you have to watch out for cutworms!

How did I miss this thread? I love projects. We put up 4' lattice panels with 2' gaps in between (wish we'd done 3' gaps now but too late!) along the sidewalk to the front door and this year I've got it on the DH's list to put a pergola top so you will enter our home via covered walkway in dappled shade, rather than the heat gauntlet we have now. Can't decide what I want to climb up. Clematis, grape?, kiwi? Roses? I can't decide.

I'm also hankering to expand my bed on the north fence (receives sun most of the day) as I want to order a ton of daylilies. There are so many beautiful ones.

I've also got to pull back my mulch on one half of my bank, add a load of compost to it and then add mulch.

I can hardly wait!
Kate