Dodging Raindrops

Monday - Rain.

Tuesday - Rain.

Wednesday - Rain.

Thursday - Rain.

Friday - Lots of rain.

Saturday - no rain.  What?!  How can that be?

Well, I can tell you I jumped on that opportunity!  I focused my efforts on the front garden although the sides and back are in desperate need of attention.  We had a wicked cold snap right around last Thanksgiving and I lost a number of shrubs as a result. 

This is senecio greyii.  It has grayish green leaves and is evergreen.  It has been a great foundational plant in my garden.

 

Here's what mine look like:

Nice, huh?  I had 5 of them.  Grayish green has turned to grayish black.

I also had Nandina.  Here's a healthy one - but not in my garden,



Here's mine:

More sticks than leaves.  Two of these bit the dust.  There are two more in the in the side yard, but they may pull through.

And a rock rose.  Pretty, right?



Well, maybe not so pretty - especially with this over exposed photo.  Again, mostly sticks.

Don't even get me going about hebe - which is a super cute plant.  I've been told you can cut it back and it will return lush and wonderful again.  Been there, done that.  Without the much hoped for result.  Lesson, if it dies every winter it must be a case of wrong plant, wrong spot.  Move on.

The morning was spent digging all of these out.  The yard waste bin is completely full along with any other container I could find.  It looks better already - even though I have not yet replanted. 

Sadly, I have a few more to pull out.  Perhaps next weekend.

I may not replant every plant.  Several years ago we took out all the grass in the front yard and installed a garden.   Sort of english cottage, complete white picket fence and little gray house with shutters.  It's pretty cute.  Over the last few of years everything has grown larger and some would even say overgrown.  I say 'jungle-y".   I think I might give the replacements a little more room to grow.  It is super easy to overplant when everything is small.

No worries.  Here is the NW everything grows very quickly - much faster than the plant lables indicate.  The front will be full, lush and 'jungle-y" again in no time! 

I was stiff and sore the following morning.  Shocker, huh?  But it felt sooo good to be back outside digging in the dirt again.  If you are a gardener, you totally understand.