Back to Reality: Renovating our Front Yard to Remove The Lawn  and Add  Edibles

Back to Reality: Renovating our Front Yard to Remove The Lawn and Add Edibles

So what is your motivation for making changes in the garden? In my yard it all started with Helpful husband. He had better things to do so he stopped mowing the lawn. And when our irrigation system imploded he stopped watering the lawn. Only the weeds were growing.
So with pencil and paper and I did for us what I usually do for others: A front yard redesign starting with removing the lawn and adding more parking for all our toys and vehicles. We … started by widening the right side of the yard, building a small wall to contain the plants, and creating  extra parking. Then came the edible and ornamental plants.

Weeds and Gratitude

Weeds and Gratitude

If you want to be a money winner at lotto you have to buy tickets. Ok – got it. But if you want to be a winner in the garden all you have to do is weed consistently. Or at least pull out things that are about to bloom and remove them from the property. Do not, I repeat, do not put the blooming weeds in your compost pile. This will just multiply your problem

How Much Mulch Do Trees Need?

How Much Mulch Do Trees Need?

I felt like a fraud last week. I was having dinner with Dr. Linda Chalker-Scott and she was correcting my understanding of wood mulch depth around trees. For years I have been insisting on 4 inches (10 cms) of wood mulch at the base of trees in new landscape installations. She was disputing that…. so If you are using bark mulch tell me how much mulch you use. You may be surprised by Linda’s suggestion.