Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Summer Continues

Okay, school has been out for a month, running and CYIA camps are over for the 3 youngest, and Kirsten's softball season is over except for the final tournament games Thursday and Friday. The days of summer now revolve around XC practices, thinking of chores for the kids to do, and trying to get into some of the larger projects on my to-do list.

One area of progress I'm enjoying every day is my back yard and garden. Gary installed the shade sails I ordered last summer and boy, do they make a difference! I like the fact that they're not permanent so we can take them down after summer, and there are no roots to deal with in the back garden. I love my trees in the front yard but it gets so frustrating to cut through maple tree roots to plant anything around the front of my house. Yes, I did make a raised bed, and the roots still invade. So shade sails are a nice solution for the back.


This corner is the last part of the garden to be planted. I know the chairs look pretty dumb, but they're protecting new roses from too much sun. By the end of this week there will be a few more chairs in the garden as I have a few more roses to plant. It'll feel weird to not order many roses next year!


This summer has been very mild, and windier than we've had for several years. No heat stress on the garden - but there's plenty more summer to come.


Loving the color of The Impressionist, below. It starts out all orangey, then fades to a beautiful pink as it opens.




It's amazing to look back at some of the old pictures of the back yard and compare to what we have now - soooo different!!

Next up, going through the garage and basement, purging junk - and taking breaks in the garden.

5 comments:

Nicola said...

You have a lovely garden Von! It must great to have shade from those sails, we could do with something like that. Our neighbour has a very nice conservatory with a lovely smoked colored roof, but for a while the sun shines so brightly off it that we can't sit at our table on our patio. We are going to have to re-jig things so that we can put our table in such a way so that we don't look at the roof when we look at each other. Our summer over here is not as hot as it could be, which suits me fine as I just don't do well in heat and humidity. It has also been quite dry so we really could do with the rain, but overnight would be great. Enjoy the rest of your summer.

Kathy A. said...

I remember the photos when you tore your yard apart and redid the beds. Your hard work paid off. The gardens are stunning. Oh, I love the roses - my favorite.

Dianne said...

Your flowers and gardens look fabulous Von! I love the colors of the roses. The sails are really nice too. We have a patio umbrella, but these look like they cover more.

Heera said...

Your garden is beautiful Von. You have a talent for roses and I do love those cone flowers. I tried them for two years and everytime the rabbits got them. I have given up on them now. But I do love looking at them in other people's gardens. Thanks for visiting my blog and for your lovely comments.

debijeanm said...

I love your sails, too. They're elegant as well as useful. And thanks for the pictures of your roses. I need one more pretty something for the new planter and I think you may have directed me to a good rose to consider.