Like this:

Oh people, there’s been an explosion of growth in the garden lately.  But before I show you that, let me tell you about my most recent project.

I’ve been wanting some height in the garden.  Some sort of arbor or trellis that I could paint cobalt blue for a pop of color, then plant flowers that will grow up it.  I really wanted cedar tuteurs, but boy-howdy are they expensive.

I came up with a compromise:

Okay, so not a great photo, but hopefully you get the idea.  I bought bamboo poles and spray-painted them cobalt blue, then tied them together with light blue grosgrain ribbon.  Instead of spending $240 + shipping/handling for two (not that I was actually going to spend that kind of money), I spent less than $20 including the spray paint.  Plus, I got to spray paint!  I haven’t decided what vines to plant on them, but I’m sure I’ll find something fun soon.

What else is going on out in the garden?

Here’s my old fashioned garden by the back door:

Wow, quite a contrast with a year ago.

Over on the far left, there’s a pink rose by the fence and some lilac colored irises just in front.  Up in the front, I have alliums that are about to bloom, loads of bee balm (a.k.a. monarda), rose campion, and purple and white coneflowers.  (Not that any of those will be blooming for at least a month.)  Back there in the middle, that small shrub is a lilac that did nothing at all last year.  It didn’t grow at all, much less bloom.  It must have known that I had murder in my heart this spring, because all of sudden it just started growing.  To the left of it, near the rose, is a peony that probably won’t bloom for at least another two weeks.  There are supposed to be foxgloves there in the back by the house, but they probably won’t do much for another year or two.  With foxgloves, I usually put in plants every year for three or four years and also throw seeds down every single year.  Eventually, they’ll take hold and wow me every spring.  In front of the rock border, you can see some of the creeping jenny I have in the path.

In the kitchen garden, I’ve mostly been busy with mulch:

Okay, so that’s not a great angle.  It was taken near the top of the hill, looking downward.  Basically, I’ve been mulching all the grass paths around the kitchen garden.  All of the light brown spots are either food or flower gardens that are mulched with shredded cypress and the dark brown places are mulched with chipped pine.  I’ll take better photos soon.

In the kitchen garden itself, the asparagus is going gangbusters.

Considering that I planted only a dozen spears a year ago, I’m pleased with how well the asparagus is doing.  I planted another dozen spears this year too, so eventually I’ll have a really nice asparagus harvest every spring.

Up in the front yard, we have a lot of color too.

Compare that with last year and you’ll be amazed.  Eventually, that whole area will be filled with phlox in a variety of colors.  The butterfly bushes don’t look great right now because I had to cut them back pretty severely.  Most were badly crushed by the snow, but all have rebounded nicely.  I’ll be covering more grass with mulch soon and adding more butterfly bushes for more color (and butterflies!).

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