Inspiration Station

Friends, I have a problem.  I have no idea what to do with this area of the yard.  It's rather large - I'm going to guess about 12' wide x 20' deep?  Some of the plants in this area were established by Mom.  When she was alive, there was a large strawberry patch in the foreground.  The summer she was sick, one of my aunts and her daughter-in-law came and took a lot of the strawberry plants (I am sure that was done with my mom's blessing, but it left a large hole in the garden).  There were a few stragglers left, and I gave them to friends the next summer.  I'm not sure strawberries would have done well with Gabe and Archie tromping through them anyway.

Since then, it's basically just a weed haven.  I have no landscape designer abilities whatsoever.  I really don't need more growing space.  I was thinking of making cement blocks and putting them down here.  I envision weeds still growing between the blocks, and it's not a vision I'm keen to see to fruition.

Does anyone have any ideas for me?

Jacki and the Beanstalk

Kentucky Wonder pole beans are starting to climb.

Water Barrels

The City of Saskatoon has been experiencing problems at its water treatment plant since early June.   A mandatory ban on outdoor water usage was put into place for a few weeks, with a $300 fine to be levied on anyone breaking the ban.  Now, we are allowed to use sprinklers for a few hours a week (or we can fill a pail or watering can at any time and water that way).  The City has been encouraging people to use water barrels.

At the School of Yard Knocks, water barrels are a way of life.  The ones I use were cheap to buy and no-frills (no screen, no tap).  My parents always stressed that rain water was better for plants than the chlorinated water from the sprinklers.  It's "free" too - other than the cost of setting things up.  I have four 60-gallon water barrels - two off one downspout at the garage and two off one downspout off the back of the house.  I am currently down to about 30 gallons.  It's been hot and dry for a couple of weeks.

Usually, when all four barrels are bone dry, I will fill one each at the house and the garage with water from the hose, and let that sit for a few days.  My parents said the chlorine would evaporate (is that true?  I don't know).  I'm hoping we might get an unexpected rain shower before the weekend.

Do you use rain barrels?  How many do you have in your garden?  I'm considering getting a few more.

Laundry Day

Who else out there line dries their laundry?  No bottled detergent or fabric softener can beat that scent.

I found my clematis!

Okay, I found it a few weeks ago while weeding, but I did find it.  I totally forgot it was out there, and frankly I never expected it to survive the winter.  Tootsie over in Red Deer has a beautiful Jackmanii clematis; and I read an article last year in Gardens West magazine about clematis on the prairies as well.  The Gardens West article suggested planting the clematis root at an angle, so that spring melt doesn't pool around it.  Between the two of them, I figured I might as well give it a try - it's a beautiful plant.  It's still pretty small, but it seems to be putting out buds.  Fingers are crossed. 

Idyllic Scents and Colours

My yard smells beautiful this year.  The lilacs are really pumping out the scent, and the frequent rains keep everything fresh.  My peonies are adding beautiful colour as well.

I don't think I've posted a photo of my lilac tree before.  I think it may need to be pruned?  I don't know anything about lilacs - my parents planted it.

I got this peony plant at Canadian Tire a couple years ago.  I am not sure of the variety.

An iris, planted by my mom.  My Auntie Mary says my mom was really frustrated that her irises never came up or bloomed.  Well, they do now mama :-)  (There may actually be an upside to not being as obsessive about weeding as you were!)

And these peonies were planted by my mom as well:

Gardens are a LOT of work, but certainly worth it.  Don't you agree?

My "Herb" Bed

Two years ago, I moved my herb bed frame out of a shaded area of the garden and into the sun.  I spent some time figuring out how to deter the dogs from walking on my plants, and how to pretty the whole thing up.  I blogged about that project in a serial extending over Part One and Part Two.

Since then, the bed has become nicely established.  It is surrounded by yarrow, which is threatening to take the whole thing over, but I do love my yarrow, so I'm not pulling it out (yet).  This year, for the first time ever (cue drum roll please!) two of my perennial herbs survived the winter.  I'm not sure what I did differently.  My Auntie Mary warned me about planting peppermint because she said it would be invasive, but I've had to replant all mints annually.  This year, though, my spearrmint and my oregano (!) both survived the winter.  The chives are also doing well in their converted canner planter.  I stuck a few more herbs in there (trailing rosemary, chocolate mint, and another oregano plant, which I bought before I realized last year's survived).  I always put some flowers in for colour too.

The view from my deck:

Quadrant 1 is mostly herbs.  Top row:  oregano, rosemary.  Middle row:  chocolate mint, petunia in shoe.  Bottom row: spearmint and another petunia.

Quadrant 2: snapdragons in the upper left; yarrow on the bottom left, chives on the right.

Quadrant 3 is mostly flowers, with daisies (which also survived the winter) in the basket on the left, yarrow in the bottom centre, and my new oregano plant on the right.  Snapdragons here and there for colour.

Quadrant 4:  the yarrow took over one of the herb containers, and scarlet runner beans are planted at the base of the trellis.