April 2012

April things had started show more promise

This is driveway before the creek.  I planted a Don Juan Rose.

I had a Macho fern on the porch that was doing poorly.  The gardener at the local co-op suggested I get out of the sun and feed it.  She was right...the other fern in the picture is wild.

I thought I planted 500 dwarf sunflower seeds...notice the red clay soil...nothing happened...one of my bigger failures this year.

Put the right plant in the right place.....I learned this the hard way.  This rose bush is a Sundowner rose.  It did bloom but the place was so hot, dry and clay-ee..that it was hard to accommodate the rose.  I, eventually, moved it in the fall.

The "sticks" in the ground that I planted started to bloom.  The Endless summer hydrangeas were looking beautiful  I, also, learned that you can affect their color.  Since I felt that pink would look bad with a red house...and I love purple flowers...I added aluminum sulfate and they stayed purple....every so often it will have a pink bloom on the same plant which is a bit astonishing to me.  I, also, (per my mother's suggestion) made an official bed for my front plants...notice that the lines are a bit squirrley....My husband is an engineer by degree and I'm an accountant....his complaint was noted...and and my rebuttal was....I told you I didn't know what I was doing!...lol  On the porch, I planted English ivy and a snake plant together.

My husband said he like sunflowers....I planted about 200 seeds...jumbo  treat, giant,  and some other large size...that purported being 16 feet....it didn't happen for me...  this one in the picture....we affectionately called Sam....it was the biggest and most beautiful of the 150 that survived.

This is the drive of our front field.  My first year I played with annuals because I knew that as time progressed I would get better.  I didn't want to put something permanent that I would want to change later.

Side of a part of the drive.

This is the front entrance of the drive...it's a tunnel of trees.

Front field is full of trees.  Some beautiful hidden magnolias...behind these trees is a creek that bends and swerves.

Behind this pile is a magnificent magnolia tree.

These trees were like the one in front of the house and many other in the pictures listed....I cut the bottoms of them to see the trees....it really make a difference

Another picture of the front field.  The majority of the property lies behind the house...some parts I have yet to venture to ....even after being here for over two years.

We have beautiful oak groves that have a lot of underbrush...oh the possibilities and oh the work...the creek flows just behind here. 

More roses......Six of them...two Paradise roses and 4 double bloom  Knock  Out roses.
Beautiful roses that I feel I planted in the wrong place.

I added an American Blaze climbing rose

My darling dearest husband bought me the Savannah Bird Girl for my birthday.  I had him mount it on a cement block...It's not going anywhere...in front of it I placed Kimberly ferns. 

Jumbo treat sunflowers

I planted Pennington wildflower mix

The cosmos began blooming....this again, was a horrible spot that detail later.