Leasa, you have the layout for a wonderful cottage garden at your new place. Looks like you have some nice plants that, despite the neglect, have managed to hold their own. I really, really love your rock wall!! I'm sorry I can't help you with ID of the plants but I'm sure others will be able to tell you what you have. You mentioned putting a deck off the back of the house. If it were me I'd opt for a patio of some kind vice a deck. We replaced our wooden deck last year with a synthetic material (TREX), which I'm very pleased with, however all decks require maintenance to keep their nice appearance not to mention that pressure treated wood will, over time, splinter and gets just down right ratty looking. I'd much prefer to have a brick or paver patio...like what Steven and Brian and Caroline did at their places. I loved the picture of you and the dandelions. I can tell you are very excited about your new home and can't wait to get started. Vikki

Because I live so far away, I don't have a clue what most of the plants might be.
With my luck, what ever lives under the barn would be black and white.
Because some of the plants are still in pots, I think some one who liked to garden got too ill/old to take care of things. How sad.

Kathy

You have some nice slopes and 'garden room' potential in that garden, but I could not even begin to offer advice.
I had a look at the rest of the site and snooped around your 'fixer'. I solemnly swear that I won't ever complain again about the projects that have to be done on my house. Do you even have time for the garden?? I would think that, for now the best you could do is keep the worst of the weeds whacked and try to maintain the valuable plants among them as best as possible by making sure they don't get crowded out (and by planting the potted stuff somewhere for now).
Your house has some great potential (love the floors and all the wood everywhere!) - I got a good chuckle when I saw the can of Endust and the feather duster. THAT is optimism!

I wish you all the best with the restore.

Leasa ~ What a wonderful piece of property just waiting for your loving, creative touch. You have so much to work with and that's great! I loved that picture of you with the dandelions and saved it to CG's folder of friends here on my puter.

Enjoy your new home and gardens.

FlowerLady

Hi Leasa! Wow you have so much space around your new home. With all there is to do inside as well as outside I think I'd be beyond overwhelmed at this point. But you have a lot of spirit and a lot of talent so I know that this is going to be a positive and productive venture for you. I also am in the wrong zone to help with ID's but you could post your link at the "name that plant" forum here at Garden Web. They have never failed me yet and are very knowledgeable over there. I think what I would do is make a bed...move the identifiable plants to it and then as things come into bloom that you want to keep and incorporate into your garden, either move them too or mark them with tags as you come across the names. Somehow you are going to have to seperate the salvageable plants from the weeds and this seems the easiest way to me. You are very lucky that the PO was a gardener and left so much behind to help you build your new gardens with. I wish you much good fortune and happiness in your endeavours.

MeMo

LOVE the house! The details are exquisite. What a wonderful piece of property; can't wait to see more. You *are* going to post regular illustrated progress reports, aren't you?

I'm just guessing at some of these, but:
Second row, middle - Photoninia (AKA Redtip)
4th row, far right - Sedum. Also 16th row, far left.
5th row, far right - Creeping Jenny?
The paperwhite is called "Phesant's Eye"; I planted them at our old place.

Lesa, I'm thinking along Memo's lines - observation.
I would really take this year to do what you have been doing, cleaning out and then observing and photographing the plants so you remember where everything is.
Places like the asparagus bed that you don't want to weed, you could put down layers of newspaper and mulch to kill the current weeds and to help from preventing re-seeding.
For places eg. around your columbine, I'd weed - let it flower and then let it re-seed itself.
Some things you might need to move and pot as you clear out the land...

How exciting for you to discover all the interesting treasures you have bought!

GGG

I guessed sedum, too. That one thing didn't look like hollyhock, but could it be a malva of some kind?

Plume poppy -- Ryan Gainey of Atlanta said, "So it's invasive -- get invaded!"

A couple of those unknowns look like berry foliage, check for thorns. Don't know if you have blackberries, maybe raspberries?

I don't know anything about zone 5 plants, but there are pinks (dianthus) for every garden, which will grow over the edges of a stone wall. Little bitty rooted pieces will spread well.

My suggestion for the unknowns is to get a good regional reference book. Your county extension agent might have some info, too, or online.

That conifer in the round bed where the dandelions are, was it harmed by fire, eaten by bagworms, or is that the way they look in early spring? If it puts out new growth, it looks as if it would be a good anchor for a rock garden, with the bed expanded right or left and some dwarf conifers and rock garden perennials added in the Alan/Adrian Bloom manner. There's a Rock Garden Forum, isn't there?

Looks like lots of work and lots of potential beauty and pleasure there.

Nell

Good that you now have the "before photos", Leasa. They'll be a good reference as well as fun to compare them with the future transformation.

The only "advice" I can give is to focus on an area that you can enjoy from inside the house for now. It wouldn't have to be very large, just big enough so you can enjoy some blooms and foliage through the summer, fall and winter. Perhaps you could lift some of your plants from other parts of the property to locate in the "first" garden area. KEEP IT SIMPLE. You've got enough other stuff on your plate. Then this fall if you're finding you have the time, energy and cash you could pick an additional garden area to work on. Or not. Let the garden be your place of rest and renewal.

Enjoy the process and thanks for taking us along for the ride!
Patti

Gosh, I envy you your enthusiasm!
Wish I had it in me to do what you are doing. I'll just follow your progress and cheer you on from the sidelines.

My guesses:

2nd row middle - Weigelia
3rd row right - Turtle Head sead pod from a previous year
5th row left - not a hollyhock!
6th row centre - Turthe Head
12th row right - fern of some sort
13th row centre - Snow-in-Summer
16th row left - creeping charlie, I think.
19th row centre - it's a weed, can't remember the name - it stains your hands yellow.

You've got some pretty flowers there and i absolutely love that really textured fern.Good luck and remember Rome wasn't built in a day!!!
Kathi

Great spaces! I love that "east end where porch used to be" space and would definitely put a garden there first. :) And I LOVE the spot where you're talking about putting in a deck -- but I wouldn't put a deck, patio, or anything 'hard' there. If ever there was a spot to laze in bare feet with a cool drink, that's it. :)

Enjoy your adventure!

Leasa: I bet once you remove the weeds and just clear things out a bit, the gardens will start to look amazing. You already have a wonderful selection of plants growing there.

No ideas just yet, but I'll keep thinking!

Tracy

Leasa, what an adventure your new/old home is going to take you on, you are getting to do something I have always dreamed about doing. Take your time. get the lay of the land. Sit out with a cool drink, observe the way the sun plays over this new gardening space, sun, dappled shade. deep shade. Think of all the plants you love and then make notes to plant them in spots where you'll enjoy them. Above all, enjoy the journey.

Annette

I agree that white daffodil with the colored center is "Pheasant's Eye", I planted it as well. So pretty.

And I don't think that is a hollyhock either. And I have never seen a fern like that, very unique.

Shortly everything will start blooming and it will be easier to tell what it all is, especially the bushes that look like berry bushes.

Wow, so much space! I second (third?) the suggestion to spend most of this year observing the areas you wish to garden in and take lots of notes. Maybe start with a small area that will give you some instant gratification and plant some of your favorite flowers and shrubs. Even if they have to live in containers for a bit you'll at least have some things in bloom to look at and enjoy.

How about trees? Do you have many and do you want more? I think you need an orchard. : )

Love that fern pic, too. You always take the best pics. Have fun with the planning and send me an email if you need to whine about remodeling. Been there and am still there. lol!

: )
Diana

chris_ont That room our neighbors, who are fixing up an old house and have a similar room, called the Mexican Prison, I SWEAR to you I did not even see that can or the duster until I popped the pix up on the screen. The room is light with one tiny watt red light. The plaster walls have never been covered, no window but connects to the master bedroom on the other side of the winder stairs to the kitchen. We plan to break a door way into the master bath and use it for laundry and closet.

Vikki, Kathy, Kathi, party_music50, Tracy, Annette thanks for your words of encouragement!

FlowerLady, check out the dandy I found yesterday!

MeMo thanks for the tip I have posted to the Name That Plant forum and they really are quick and smart!

Littledog thanks for the names!

CCC--Opps! Too late on the newspaper advice! I spend a couple hours in there yesterday weeding. The columbine appears to be a volunteer in a dead rose pot.
The placement of the roses and asp. bed confuse me. They are sorta right in the middle of the veggie garden.

Nell, the plume poppy has grown about 6 inches this week! I think the tree in the middle is a gonner, maybe the garden too it is in very sad shape.

Patti, I think we want to make more gardens, maybe slightly raised beds in front of the trees to cut down on the lawn. These suckers have been resting for several years! Time they wake up! ;)

homemaker thanks for the names! I think I will take MeMo's advice and post on the Name That Plant forum.

cziga the ferns are growing nicely! Cant wait for them to be full sized.

Diana we found several pots in the house and I've started putting plants in them, I'm hoping more will pop up but a neighbor told me yesterday, most of the flowers were where the trees are now, she said he planted ever one of those trees. Used to be beautiful flowers, guess I better explore the woods for stragglers!

Thanks EVERYONE for stopping by and offering suggestion, comments and encouragement!

Leasa

Here is a link that might be useful: dandy and more!