My Garden

I LOVE gardening and landscaping. I am such an amateur at it, but I have been learning a lot over the past few years. I'm always so excited when spring arrives because it means I can start messing around outside again. It's really a wonderful way for me to relax. I even enjoy weeding my gardens. I know - GASP!

I've come to learn that the best way for me to garden is by experimentation. That was hard for me to accept as a perfectionist. When I first started, I wanted to make sure I got it right the first time. However, now I put a plant/shrub/flower where I think I want it. I'll examine it in that spot all during the summer season, and if it just doesn't jive with me, I'll move it in the fall or early spring of the next year. Giving myself the okay to fail makes it easier to accept experimentation when planting. I've learned that it's best not to be intimidated by it, and it's much more productive to dive in and get your thumbs dirty!

One of the more economical things I've discovered about container gardens is that you can pretty much use anything for a container. I use a lot of baskets. I simply line the basket with a garbage bag which I have punched holes in, and fill that up with soil and the flowers. Garage sales and thrift shops are great places to search for containers. Old wooden boxes with holes drilled in the bottom would look great. Tin containers would give a rustic look. You just need to make sure that your container has a way to release the extra moisture so make sure you use a container that you can drill holes into.

Borders are another nice touch. Lucky for us, my dad owns property that had been strip-mined. As a result, there are piles and piles of nice limestone that Brad uses for our borders. It's a nice rustic look that matches our landscaping and home well.

I've also learned that it's best to add to your landscaping a little each year. That way you're not overwhelmed by the cost of it. The first year we landscaped, we did our entire front which ended up being a nice chunk of cash. Last summer we added a little to the front. This year we landscaped part of the back. And hopefully next spring we'll be able to landscape the rest of the back.

One of my favorite plants are hostas. Hostas are beautiful plants that come in a huge variety of breeds. They flower. And they can be endlessly divided which means they are an economical plant as well. We started with five hostas three years ago and we just divided them this spring so we now have ten. Daylilies are another nice plant that flowers and can be divided like the hostas. I've always recently learned that hydrangeas are also an easy plant to propagate and so I will be experimenting with that in the next few years to come. A love a plant that goes a long way!

Remember, don't be overwhelmed by the thought of landscaping your home. Take it slow and remember that you have the years to come to add to it and tweak it to your liking. A landscaped yard is such an asset to a home, in my opinion. There's something incredibly lovely and relaxing about going out onto your porch/deck/patio and enjoying a beautifully vegetated yard.

Happy gardening!

~Amber