When we moved into this house, we inherited a poorly sodded, weed-covered front lawn. After weeks of painstaking hand-weeding, the lawn is for the most part weed-free! A little something pokes up here and there, but it's actually mostly bermuda now.
Now we just have to deal with the bare patches and ridiculously compacted soil. I think a good core aerator might solve both problems.

Denna

I'm not much of a bragger but I will say that a couple of months ago I was kind of bummed that it didn't look like I was going to find the trees and shrubs I wanted for my landscaping project. And just in the last few weeks, I found everything I was looking for. And got some pretty good deals too.

Sugarhill, It sounds wonderful! I know you must be really happy to be done with the liriope project. You have the best ideas for threads too.

Okay here goes, I am really proud of how much I have accomplished in the 3 years (tomorrow) that we have been in our home. This spring Tara Dillard was in my yard and she commented that she was amazed at how much I had done in such a short amount of time considering I have a preschooler at home and I have done all of it myself except for the deck. (BTW her show was cancelled that is why they never came back for followup footage, so much for my 15 minutes of fame) The project I am the most proud of is my flagstone pathway connecting the new stairway on the side around to the new deck. The Bluestar Creeper and Creeping Thyme are really starting to fill in nicely and a neighbor even commented that it looks like it has been there for years already. With the cooler weather I find all the neighborhood kids are playing in my yard and it is so nice to sit and chat on the deck. I am finally loving my yard.

never thought I'd be posting on this thread! Have been putting pine straw down this weekend - ordered 50 but probably need another 75 - but as I was spreading it I saw that my artemesia (sp?) which looked way beyond dead has actually started to sprout again around the crown. Then I noticed that the russian sage was doing the same, and the yarrow! So, I am glad that I didn't pull up the 'dead' plants but let them be. I can actually see what I have achieved this year and, you know, I think i deserve a pat on the back! I will try and take some more photos so that you can see the before and results to date. Have a wonderful weekend everyone. And Kathy, I am so pleased that you can enjoy your deck and garden now, I know you have worked really hard in it.

We moved to our house almost 8 years ago. Pretty much the only landscaping that had been done were poured concrete borders all along the driveway and around any and every tree in the yard to create "islands". We have since removed almost all of the concrete bordering - a horrendous job that has left us with literally tons of concrete blocks and aching backs. Fortunately we have been able to use nearly all of it as an embakement along the creek bordering our property line thus preventing erosion. So, along with being close to removing all the concrete borders, this is the first year I've not had to work like a hired laborer... it is all finally coming together! We have 15 gallons of wine 'ageing' from grape/muscadine plants; I put up 24 pints of jelly, the newly planted fescue looks great. Life is good.

While my landscape is coming along according to plan (but slowly), I'd like to celebrate the smaller things - I successfully rooted some hydrangea cuttings this summer, both oakleaf and Annabelle. I do think that ANYONE could probably root Annabelle, but I was very pleased about the oakleaf ones.

I also transplanted some butterfly weed (a. tuberosa) and I just noticed that it sent up a new shoot after dying back to the ground completely. Yeah!

This year I successfully overwintered a Persian shield plant outside. So it was partially sealed in a ziplock baggie and buried in leaf litter. So it was an accident. So ten others died. So what?? In yer face, Zone Map! Boo-yah! [scandalous victory dance]

After having Angel Trumpets for several years with no blooms I decided to really get on a schedule with their feeding and watering schedule and get some blooms. It worked and I am getting ready to see my second round of blooms. One tree is about 8 feet tall and has well over 100 buds on it. The other 3 are about 5 foot and are also loaded with blooms, cant wait and now know how to get those blooms. Congrats to all the others for their accomplishments.

I would someday like to brag that I've seen the caretaker do a scandelous victory dance, lol :)

GGG

GGG, it would probably send you to the Whiners Only thread.

I am proud that I weeded my rose bed in the front yard. Now it looks good.

The plant I've been most proud of is a Pineapple Sage. We bought it on a lark at the Callaway Garden Native Plant sale last spring, and after I planted it, we kind of forgot it. Now it is 3 ft x 4 ft and covered with red blooms! Beautiful!

Last year, from April until September, I worked on erecting my dream greenhouse. Aluminum frame, Polycarbonate panels, pressurized misting system, heating, venting and shade cloth, propagation misters, thermatically controlled temp and fan/shutter system, benches, multiple electrical and water outlets, web based climate controllers, blah-blah-blah, . . .

This year I put it through it's paces and as winter approaches I still have tah-maters growing like it's summer. I'm gardening in there so wonderfuly that I feel like a real pig. I now have a nice complement of spiders and toads to help me keep the bugs in check.

Oink.

Oink-Oink!!