Making my own Mulch

The last few days I've felt like I looked so silly out in the garden. I'm trying something new this year, and its very out of the box for me. See, normally, every fall I leave most of the garden in tact, blow and/or rake some leaves over the beds, and wait for a blanket of snow. Some years we put a layer of compost in over the beds, but not every fall. Winter lays heavy over the remnants of last years garden, and often creates some fun structural images, like the dead heads of Echinacea flowers with snow topping them like ice cream cones. I do this for several reasons. First, in a zone 4 garden you should never prune a rose after September 1st- and if I'm not out there pruning roses, I tend to not want to take cutters to anything else. Second, the seed heads of many flowers (including rose hips) feed the birds through fall and into winter- watch and you can see the finches hoping from flower to flower eating. Third, the natural progression of things has always resulted in fun reseeding, and I love that--- finding where Verbena Bonariensis, Nicotiana, Lamb's Ear, Rudbeckia, alyssum and Penstemon would like to grow the following year is an adventure- and helps create the natural look to the garden that I love. Also, I simply poop out on heavy garden chores by fall- I've got my mind on knitting, and baking. I let the garden sort of "be" and by spring I am watching the snow melt drip by drip so I can run out there and joyously clean up the garden. In years past I've gone through each bed, and clipped all the dead matter, loaded up loads and loads of wheel barrels full, and hauled it into the compost, or worse even to the city compost by the truck load. Suddenly, it occurs to me how silly this is. So much added work... for what? A clean bed for a few weeks this time of year before everything grows back over it again? All of the matter, if broken up small enough, will decompose no matter where I've put it.

This year I'm taking on the tedious task of clipping all of last years dead matter into smaller bits like mulch, with my hand pruners, and dropping it where it be. The result isn't a nicely manicured bed with the bags load of cedar mulch from the hardware store... instead its a natural, chaotic, quilt of many colors. The pale hollow stems of last years lilies and mallow, the seed heads of every imaginable shape and size, and decaying leaves of all hues, left to lay. So picture me, standing gingerly among the newly sprouting perennial tops, carefully avoiding the long wispy branches of roses that I have yet to hard prune, holding 5 feet of stem and chopping, clipping, cutting and occasionally breaking with my hands, pieces flying in every direction. Its awful silly. I'm sure the neighbors think- what on earth is she doing? Well naturally, I'm making my own mulch.

I'm almost done- finished about 75% of the beds, and plan on completing the rest in the next day or two. So much less work than hauling it all away, and I'm just sure its somehow a better choice. Eventually this spring I may top some of the roses and clematis with blanket of fresh compost from our pile.

Now if I can just hold tight while the plants cover it all up. I must resist the urge to go buy uniform cedar mulch. I have got to remind myself this is a better, more economically and eco-friendly option. After all, it won't be long before the lysimachia, ferns, and daylily foliage is all you see-- and the before the leafy perennials cover all of last years matter turned mulch, the tulips and daffodils will serve as a nice distraction.

Happy gardening!

Handmade

I made this fairy garden birdbath/ urn planter last night! And the rock word. So excited to start selling some fairy garden accessories soon! I will keep you posted!

Overflowing With Ideas

I found endless ideas at the Chicago Flower and Garden Show. I was snapping pictures left and right. Here are some of my favorites!

If I ever have a reason to have a lavish garden party, this one looks pretty romantic.

My favorite area was this section (for vendor information see here).

I love this ladder shelf... and I have a ladder or two just waiting to be made into a similar model. And if you are short on space and have a drill, this wall planter would allow you to grow plenty of edibles.

 

They tucked their hose into old tires. and the tiered garden is a nice space saver, too. But my favorite thing about this picture is the shovel as the rail post.  

 

Love this herringbone brick pattern. 

Love, love, love this sort-of adirondack chair.  

 

And I wish I had a reason to make a giant letter in my garden... 

This shed seems to be made from all salvage materials.  So inspiring! 

And note to self: someday have a flower market! 

We put in a Pond!

Our neighbors have a large and awesome pond. They called me over the other day to ask if we wanted a pond liner she didn't plan on using. She had picked it up off the curb when our now landlord lived here-it used to be where I now I have hostas planted. My son Ben has been asking for a pond for a really long time- he always loves the water feature aspects of any garden place we visit. So we jumped for joy when this pond liner fell in our laps.

We figured out where we wanted it, called the dig line, acquired a filter, and while I rounded up rocks from various parts of the yard, my husband dug a hole and put it in. Ta Da!

 I "attached" it to an existing bed.

 My aunt gave us this quirky alligator years ago and I knew right away I wanted him close to the water. I planted steppables (thyme, sedge, and moss) around him so the kids can stepp all over here and get close to the water without any obstacles. The flat rock in the foreground of this photo is immovable, so the boys can lay right on top of it.

I had a hole in the rock garden area behind the pond I filled with this gorgeous sedum "October Daphne;" love the water hues here, and think it looks great spilling towards the the pond.

Since then we've added a floating blue ceramic frog and some fish... but 5 of the 6 fish already perished. Oh well. More coming soon! I also saw about 15 tiny birds splashing in the fountain on a very hot 94 degree day! So neat! The dragonflies seem to love it, also. But more than anything, my kids love it. They are by it all the time, reading, looking at the fish, putting their hands in the water. So great!

My Kind of Whimsy

The junk in my garden is nothing if not whimsical. I love making the garden feel like a magical place. Mostly, I like to accomplish through masses of flowers in dozens of shades and shapes, large leaves like elephant ears, or hostas, or vines clinging through walkways or scaling walls, and by attracting wildlife like birds, bees, butterflies, and frogs. The chaos is enchanting. I was so delighted to find in our new home, as soon as I planted, they all came, thanks most in part to the lush gardens of my neighbors, existing plants, and nearby lake, no doubt.

But my second favorite way to add whimsy is through objects. Here are some of my favorites. I found this odd metal structure on a Hobby Lobby clearance aisle. I immediately wanted it to be my side table lamp in the garden. I've had tons of different plants growing under the cage. My favorite was poor man's weather glass, with bright blue flowers. This year I have a succulent under it for now, but that is subject to change. There is a candle in the top compartment. The witch's-hat-like top comes off. I think ceramic birds and urns spilling with young succulent plants add to the whimsy also, but leave enough room for me to set my glass of wine.

These old chimes fell off their old wooden plate long ago, but I didn't like being without their whimsical sound. I had since turned a metal tin into a planter, and the top was sitting around doing nothing on my table in the garden. I put them together, bringing new life to the chimes. I hooked them on a whimsical shaped shepard's hook, low to the ground, among the roses and lilies.

I might as well start calling myself the queen of clearance, because as much I love junk- it is increasing harder to find on my own. While clearance sections abound. For gardening- winter means deals. These adorable whimsical cone shaped planters reminded me of a garden patio at the Wisconsin Renaissance Faire. And they were cheap. I have them hanging from the crab apples. This year I planted two types of ivy (plants are still very small). Last year it was fuchsia. Something about their shape, and having them in the trees is so very whimsical to me.  

Nothing says whimsy more than fairies, and I have fairies. This is a new addition this year. I have had the little metal house for years. Two sides of glass had broken over the years. I always stick something in there, like a potted succulent, or candles. This year I decided to actually make the whole bottom tray into a garden. I poked a few drainage holes, and created a rock border to capture the soil. I then used the two glass walls and shells to create a hill. So far it is holding up, but I put it right by the backdoor in case a really heavy rain comes. I don't know if the hill would hold up, so I can just pull it inside. The fairy was a gift from a student I coached years ago. An the shells are from a California beach.

This fairy sits in a tiny pot with various succulents. Seashells cover the soil where the young succulents haven't filled in yet. I want the aeonium the get tall and look like trees!

This guy might be my favorite thing in the garden. I plucked him out of my great grandpa's garden. I like to think he watches over things for me. Chippy, old, and definitely whimsical.

Birdbaths add tons of whimsy, as well as birds, butterflies, and more... but my favorite part of this old $5 cement yard sale find is the two green glass floating balls, and the cherub watching over the hostas beneath. Whimsy city.

Finally, the last bit of whimsy I have to share with you is this large fairy has a broken foot thanks to a careless lawn mower. She's tucked behind this johnson's blue geranium on a bed of moss, beside a old crumbling cement step. I say, the more broken up things are, the better. She's not going anywhere, any time soon.

 

Happy spring!