One place I lived had an old apple orchard. The trees looked half dead, but they had apples on them every year with no care at all. I remember being stuck up in a tree with cows all around. They wanted apples. Some people want to mow and cut and trim until everything is controlled. I like a little disorder which probably drives others crazy. I love old gardens.

I have had the dubious pleasure of driving by the former places we lived and seeing all my hard work cut down. I know it's their perfect right, but it is sad.

I have done the same thing here and my elderly neighbor lives just down the road from me. She seems to love what I have done. She didn't have any flowers, just Yews and evergreens pruned in those tight little shapes.

I can't imagine anyone ever cutting down good trees or especially fruit trees. They will learn eventually.

This spring I discovered a huge patch of what turned out to be some beautiful purple and yellow iris, which I separated and spread throughout the front garden.

I've also got some mystery bulb-looking grassy things coming up that I'm anxious to see what they are.

This is our first spring in this house so it's fun to be surprised.

teeandcee, isn't it great? Do you wonder about the person who planted them?
The farm behind us is abandoned, house burned, but she had such beautiful flower beds, and a vine over the front gate, that had died by the time I saw it. She was a Cherokee, they were married 76 years.

76 years! Wow! I remember they were interviewing a couple on TV that had been married for 75 years and they asked the husband what the secret was for staying together for so long. He laughed and said "Don't die!" lol

Teeandcee - Good for you for waiting instead of digging it all up like some people do. We didn't inherit any treasures here. It was just a hayfield. Wish there had been something.

I'm just going to assume that someone will bulldoze all my plants out someday. : ( We're not planning on moving anytime soon though. Hope my kids all have their own yards before then, so I can give them starts of their favorites.

Ceresone - I think a lot of people don't realize the cost of plants. I wonder if those people will wish they had kept the fruit trees when they find out how expensive new ones are. And then they'll really regret it when they find out how long it takes for the new ones to mature.

Yes, I do wonder about the former gardener. I'd love to talk plants with her. She obviously enjoyed the look of a cottage garden based on stuff I've discovered. I moved a pile of coneflower out of the front yard into the back last winter (I want my front yard to be more formal) in addition to some daylilies.

Wow, 76 years!! That's a lifetime! I hope I have that long with my hubby.

Right on, Ceresone! Waiting is especially important if you're new to the area. I would also say you should wait a year to see what's also growing naturally in your woods and fields...like those crazy asparagus! They pop up in places you wouldn't even think ...