new bed

Last weekend we got the bed builder dirt (1 yard and 1/2) and I reshaped it and here's what I did today....


After I visited the nursery, I realized that August is not the best time to start a bed....there are not a lot of plants to choose from, but I decided on some basics and when the spring rolls around I may move out some of the liriope and make room for some others. But for today, I planted:
1 crape myrtle
2 azaleas
a couple of agapanthus
a couple of iris's
a bunch of liriope

I know...I said a thousand times I didn't want a crepe myrtle - but again - not too many choices, so I picked a smaller breed that is different - it's white and has darker leaves so I think it's different enough. I still need to put down some mulch and weed barrier. I am going to use newspaper for that and thought it'd be easier to lay it all down after the plants were in the ground. We'll see.
I'm slightly concerned about the irises...I didn't have much luck with them at the other house, but the lady at the nursery assured me that they are native to Louisiana and should be harty and difficult to kill....hmmm. I think I'll fill in with some annuals....some kind of pretty flower just to add more color.

ps - mark mowed after I took these so the grass looks better :) And - if you look closely in the second pic you can see Sam keeping watch out the window.

Watching Grass Grow....

I noticed that it's been about a month since I posted that big mud hole that was our backyard and I am encouraged by the improvements. The most noticeable one is the fence (yea!). The dogs are really loving the freedom that they now have to run and I think it's been great exercise for them. They've never looked so fit and trim. Also - I'm happy about the grass that's coming in. When we noticed that it was good grass back there we decided against hydroseeding and just thought we'd take a chance. I'm excited to see it coming in so nicely. Last week we supplemented the grass with some seed and it loved all the rain that Eduard brought us.

Today I did this:Phew - in 100 degree heat I about had a heart attack tilling, and digging, and weeding, but I'm anxious to get it going. This is about 2/3 of the way through what I did today. I tilled and weeded a bit more before calling it quits. I like the edging stuff I found. It's Smart Edge composite edging and was pretty easy to work with. I like that it's made of recycled materials but be careful with this stuff - it breaks apart relatively easily. It comes all rolled up and you have to let it 'rest' open for at least an hour, and when you are unrolling it, you can bend and break it. I'm speaking from experience. I may rework the side. I can't decide if when it has plants in there, you won't notice that it's kind of straight or if it should be curvier.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to building it up and actually getting some basic plants in there. With it being August already I'm not really sure what I can plant yet but I'd like to put some Agapanthus for sure - I love those....and I'm not sure what else. Lots of perennials. I'm open to suggestions...