It seems like all I’ve been doing lately is gardening. I’ve really enjoyed it, although on the inside-the-house front the kitchen surfaces are sticky enough to perform double duty as flypaper. (While I was typing that last sentence someone dropped an egg on the floor).
I have some before and after photos to show for all my efforts, and while by no means is it finished, it’s a start. Here we go:
Remember this? My poor lattice:
A scrubdown, a little repair work and a new coat of paint later:
It’s amazing what a little paint can do.
And here’s an ugly situation:
Better:
And this:
Still needs some work, but the improvement is encouraging.
I need to neaten up the woodpile, decide what to do with the slide, and move that lonely log somewhere.
Okay, one more today. this is the water barrel area before:
After:
The daffodils help!
I’ll be back with more soon. If you have blogs or places you can upload pictures of your progress, link to them in the comments. I’d love to see what you’re doing in your gardens, and I’d love to hear how your clean up is going.
Hi, Daisy. What zone are you in? I live in Zone 5a and we still have snow and will have more before Spring. Is it good to straw much now? I usually wait and that may be why I have so many weeds. Thanks.
Dottie–We’re in 7b. I tend to mulch after I do any clean-up, which is usually spring and fall but could be anytime depending on special projects and the like. In terms of actual garden beds where I grow veg, I mulch around baby plants and I mulch the rows. When in doubt, mulch! Just not right up to the trunks or stems, leave a little space, but you probably knew that.
Hi Daisy, I literally laughed out loud about over the “visual” image you painted about your countertop flypaper, and I could “hear” and “see” that egg dropping!
Great work on your garden – we’re still under snow right now, but blog posts & pictures will ensue soon!
Bonnie
Daisy,
You are inspiring! Especially love the after photo of the rain barrel w/blooming daffodils! so fun to see the before and after photos. Keep up the good work!
Diane Bayer
Daisy,
You are kicking my bum into gear. We are just now starting to have some warmer weather and I’m starting to get my yard back into shape. And gosh darn it, I will not miss out on my townships spring junk days! I’m starting a pile of junk so there is no excuse of trying to find it all when the time comes. Thank you for the inspiration!
Thanks, Daisy. Appreciate it. The snow finally melted enough to get photos today. O.M.G., I do not recall leaving everything in such a mess. Thanks for your inspiration.
Your pictures look great! I can really see the progress! We asked a few friends over for a workday, and I have to say, weeding and edging and replanting goes so much faster with six people than with just one or two!
We’ve still got a lot to do, but our raised beds are cleaned out and replanted, a lot of the weeds are gone from the front yard, some planter boxes that we had are now filled with herbs instead of dead house plants, and the front lawn no longer looks like it belongs to an abandoned house! I’ll probably do a post about it later this week.
Well worth a case of beer and a spread of cold cuts, fruit salad, and (of course), home-grown veggies. We’re very lucky to have friends to help us out like that.
Still playing along with you, so hopefully we’ll have more to report next week!
Elizabeth Vega–What a great idea. You have great friends. Looking forward to seeing some pictures. It feels so rewarding to make real progress.
Leila–I love making piles of junk! And I love even more when they go bye-bye. Keep it up!
Diane Bayer–Thanks, Diane. More “afters” soon!
Bonnie–Ha, thanks! I definitely want to see your pics. Don’t forget a picture of the famous butternut.
Dottie–haha, it’s okay. The worse it is the better it’ll look when it’s done!