Last week, the awesome folks at Ryobi invited us to check out their power tools, and to hear the awesome Frank Ferragine (aka Frankie Flowers) talk about his new book, and how to spice up our gardens. Did you get it? My gardening pun? Yeah, I know, I’m hilarious.
We got to try out some awesome tools (I’m in love with this 40v cordless mower, even though I currently have no [living] grass.) Frank also gave us some awesome tips on gardening.
All of this was enough to inspire the heck out of me, and we spent the weekend trying to spruce up the backyard.
Here’s what we got accomplished:
The ivy got pruned by El Granto. Although I’m not sure I agree with his choice of tools, it is looking a heck of a lot better with all the dead branches trimmed.
The dead shrubs came out and a too big rose bush headed to Grants Mum’s garden.
Several trips were made to the garden centers as well as the adorable corner store in my neighborhood.
We also headed to the local garden center to pick up a bag of triple mix, and a couple bags of black mulch. We brought our old lady shopping card (cause dirt is heavy!) apparently it was too much even for our shopping cart, and one wheel gave out. OOPS!
With the mulch and dirt back at home, the planters got filled, baskets were hung, and the flower garden was tilled and planted.
We added a few perennial Hostas, some grasses, and annuals for color. The black mulch really makes the whole thing look more like a garden, and less like a dirt patch.
We added a small herb garden next to the deck. I love using fresh herbs in my cooking, and its lovely just to pop outside and cut some as needed.
This year we have rosemary, two types of basil, parsley, thyme, chives and green onions. I have about 2′ left of open garden to add other items as I see fit.
Our BBQ & surrounding area got a thorough cleaning, and new boxwoods were planted in the planter box beside the a/c unit. It’s been so cold this spring, that we haven’t even uncovered the air conditioner yet!
While we worked our butts off, there is still so much to do in the backyard. I will be back later in the week with a Backyard to-do & project list, but I will leave you with a sneak peek of my dirty little secret.
AKA the grass-less backyard.
HELP! The yard needs so much work, from a lawn, to a new path, and a whole lot of paint & TLC.