letters from the wilderness
Well, my garden plans are big; they're visionary. And, they're going to take time, a decent amount of time. I remind myself almost daily it took me more than 20 years to create the garden I had in Pennsylvania. There, I had decent soil and access to free leaf mulch. Here in Virginia, while I... Continue Reading →
So, I'm working on the thyme bed which wraps around the front and side of our one-acre property. Fortunately, about 90% of the bed is in good shape. Can you imagine the hours I could potentially spend weeding this! For now, I just need to worry about the bottom edge of the bed where grass... Continue Reading →
I think for the next 5 years, almost all of my garden posts will start off with the phrase "I'm working on..." So, I'm working on this side patio area located next to one of the basement doors. I think at one point the basement was intended for living space. There are 2 dry wells,... Continue Reading →
On June 1st my sister-in-law and I began our summer soul camp, a challenge/reset/something. She had done a workshop through North Ridge Farm a few years ago called "Summer Soul Camp." Feeling like she needed a reset, a time of shutting the garden gate to reconnect with family, home, and self, my sister-in-law proposed we... Continue Reading →
Our inside project for Memorial Day weekend was finishing the breakfast room. Once we had painted the walls, I was lax about painting the molding. It's a lot of molding. A lot of tedious painting. I was struggling until my hubby offered to work with me to finish the project. I love the contrast between... Continue Reading →
Despite the marauding deer, I have a number of plants doing things in the garden. Sometimes, I am an impatient garden, anxious to see the seeds I just planted pop up RIGHT NOW. Other times, I try to focus on the flowers and the progress I've made so far this year. Unfortunately, one of these... Continue Reading →
Memorial Day weekend saw us tackling 2 projects, one inside the house and the other outside. I am so happy with how much we accomplished! First up - the outside project. In the spirit of using what I have for now, I started installing a brick edging along this front bed. When I got down... Continue Reading →
As I mentioned in my sheet composting/lasagna gardening post yesterday, I'm expanding or rather, combining 3 share beds by the driveway into one bed. Our efforts to grow grass in this area last summer were a waste of time and money. Given the position of this area near the driveway, I wanted to create something... Continue Reading →
This area adjacent to our driveway is a difficult area. We tried growing grass here last year and failed miserably. I decided to create a large bed combing 3 smaller beds and covering the area in between. Since I'm not ready to plant the area which would be a big investment in plants, I'm making... Continue Reading →
We have water/erosion issues in our yard. Some of it is caused by the drains linked to the gutters, and some of it is caused simply by how the yard is graded. In the front of our home, the water comes from the driveway and runs across the front walk then alongside a front bed,... Continue Reading →
2 dogs and a house 