how our gardens grow

Lately my friends and I over at the Handmade Artists Forum have been comparing our gardening stories.  So last night I took a few pics to share with you.

This is my herb garden.  I love fresh herbs when I cook.  I had to cut back a lot last week because the weather here has been just perfect lately and everything was going crazy!  Starting in the back left corner I have, parsley, lemon balm, rosemary, sage, oregano, basil, mint, marjoram, and chives.  I didn't read the fine print when I planted the mint...and it doesn't just spread above ground, it spreads underground, and mixing in with my other herbs.  Frustrating.

This is our vegetable garden, almost a full 1/4 acre.  That's a lot for a family of 5.  We have 5 rows of corn, 3 rows of peas, 1 row of butternut squash, 1 row of potatoes, 2 rows of peppers, 1 row of pickling cucumbers, 3 rows of regular cucumbers, and tons of tomatoes....I love tomatoes.  What did not come up was the spinach, very little carrots, and eggplant.  Last week I harvested 3 bushels of cucumbers....and last night I tried my hand at making pickles again.  They don't look right!  hahaha

Now my fun gardens.  I love butterflies, and my butterfly garden is blooming large and the Swallowtails are returning.  Yeah!  I have flowers ranging in colors from white to pink to purple.  When my butterflies get bigger and more numerous...I'll share some more pictures of them with you.

These small plants are also in my butterfly garden.  I love the red color of the zinnia on the left, and they are another butterfly favorite.  And on the right is clover.  I had an envelope of seeds and when I planted the bushes, I just threw in the seeds to see what would come up.  They don't get very big, and I'm still waiting for the flowers to open.

A few years ago I planted this hydrangea to hide my air conditioner unit.  It didn't bloom for the first 2 years, and it only got a few blooms last summer.  So this year I did not cut it back at all...(actually I forgot), and now it is amazing!  I love the color.

And along the side of our house I planted some day lilies...I originally wanted the bright orange ones you find growing wild on the sides of the road, but the nursery only had these colored ones.  I have 2 of this very nice red/rust and 2 of a light yellow/beige.  But some night, when no-one is looking, I may go find myself some of those wild bright orange ones.  :~D  I find gardening to be so stress free and relaxing, and I recommend it to everyone.  There is a perfect garden for every size home and every personality.

Be blessed,

Debbi