Backyard Plans

Now that spring has sprung, and planting time is just around the corner (Mother's Day for us), it's time to start making plans for our backyard. Since it's fairly small - 18x24 feet - it will be easy to transform this weed-and-junk pit into a beautiful, flower-filled garden.

There's all sorts of junk in our backyard - five (five!) trash cans, various storage containers, cinder blocks, a fire ring, an iron ornamental fish, a healthy mystery bush, a holly bush and a few holly bush stumps. Oh, there's also an Evelyn hiding in the picture below...can you find her?
We plan to leave the bricks and pavers. True, it's an odd arrangement, but they serve their purpose. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. But something that does need improvement is the weed situation. Evelyn had fun blowing dandelion seeds this afternoon, as there were several dandelions to choose from.
Yesterday, Evelyn helped me measure the dimensions of the backyard so I could make a map. Based on the amount of sun and shade the backyard gets, I already had in mind some of the flowers and bushes I want. But I needed to make sure the plants would work in the space we have. After moving my flower and bush circles around my map, I think this plan will work.

There are two butterfly bushes in the top left corner; the little circles on the left are columbine and lavender; there are two hydrangeas and one (big) rhododendron on the right; and the green circle is the mystery bush that gets to stay. Now that the planning is done, it's time to execute - next up is killing off the weeds with Round-Up, ordering plants and buying a boat-load of mulch. Stay tuned to see what the weekend warriors do next.