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| I added two stumps in the midst of the rose garden, for seating and for bird lookouts. |
I will try to get new photos of the main rose garden merging into the circular maple tree garden. In the backyard is the fence garden for Mrs. Gardener (our neighbor's wife - she loves roses). I conspired to build the fence garden to quell any opposition to the way I was going to take over the fence. Previously it was kept weed free with chemicals. One time it was a 3 foot stripe of no growth of anything. Now it is mulched with shredded cyprus from last year and the leaves still remaining from autumn.
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| Chaste Tree |
My starter projects from last year have taken root in a glorious way. The asparagus, which I planted my way, is six feet tall, promising to be extra good next year. All the berries are doing well. The strange new plants (Chaste Tree) are thriving, and the butterfly bushes are packed with leaves.
Our helper observed how our remaining lawn is lush in its growth, far more than his. I started early with compost in the corner of the yard and sprinkled red wiggler earthworms all over. A church member thought the earthworms revived his yard, and I have no doubt, given the nature of the red wiggler. A pine forest can be changed over, just from earthworms coming in from fishermen's boots and altering the soil structure, away from acid.
I told Mr. Gardener that I was originally going to haul compost from the bin, but no matter how much we put in (and he added his share) it always sank to the bottom. That told me how much was being used and distributed by the soil creatures.
Likewise I cannot put too much food under the crepe myrtle bush. No matter how much leaf mulch, mushroom compost, and grass clippings I have added, the soil is free of organic matter in short order. In fact, the feeding has apparently created a bigger soil population with a ravenous appetite for all things organic. To enhance the effect, I prune the crepe myrtle of extra twigs and old dry twigs. The same pruning will make rose bushes more productive and boost the size and quality of the roses.
