Friday, March 5, 2010

Garden Thoughts


We spent more time at the farm property today and signed the contract this afternoon.
This triangular garden bed must have been used only for annuals as there seems to be nothing breaking ground except an iris root or two in the far left corner.
I wandered round the back yard plotting and planning and decided this will make a fine place for an herb garden.  I may center it with an old rose, a low growing one.
I hope that I can buy potted herbs locally.  If not I'll send away to an Oregon nursery I've used before.
How about lemony signet marigolds for edging?
Or, some pansies and violas?
Nepeta, the lower growing kinds make a good edging.
So many things will grow well here that I feel joyfully overwhelmed with choices after so many years without a garden.

J. strolled the acres again and thought about where he would plant  raspberry canes, a strawberry bed.
We walked in sharp north wind and sunshine, planning, hoping, wanting the miles and days between now and move-in day to go quickly.
Late in the afternoon we drove to the next town where there is a Lowes Home Improvement Store.
I picked up brochures on cabinetry, we looked at samples of finishes, light fixtures, picked up more paint cards.
This is a very different style of house than we have had before.  After an initial hesitancy about "getting it right" I think we are having good ideas.
Will start the return trip to Wyoming tomorrow.  There are spring snows and storms between here and there.  Old Snort'n Nort'n will deal with it all.

11 comments:

  1. Yeee-haa,

    Get back home/round em up and head em out!!!!


    Congratulations. Hope you will be very happy for a long time there.

    Kind regards to both....Al

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  2. I can well imagine that you are raring to get started on all your plans for your new house and garden.Hope you have a safe journey back through the snow and storms.

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  3. You know, your new place has SUCH a good feel to it - the land looks so . . . right. I am sure you will have so much pleasure from your garden now (and I hope you don't have a bevy of local deer who want to have the pleasure of eating it!)

    Pansies and violas would make a lovely edging and the cats would appreciate the nepeta! Do you have Nasturtiums in the States? They would look lovely tumbling out of tubs by the porch. I always grow a fresh colour each year - last year it was a scarlet one, and a cream one (the latter planted to ramble up through deep purple clematis).

    I wish you a safe journey home.

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  4. Love making those kind of plans. Out would come my notebook and pencil, then a rough outline of the area, and then...let your imagination go. I've designed several homes on paper, not seriously, but planning where rooms would be, windows and doors and large furniture. I even planned one for somewhere on Hawaii next to a waterfall and just back from a real lagoon, complete with jetty, small boat and an outdoor shower. Have a safe trip back and a quick return!

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  5. I am enjoying your updates, keep them coming! It's almost as exciting as moving myself.

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  6. Congratulations! You certainly are lucky as well as blessed, the way this has unfolded! Soon the moving and unpacking will be behind you and you will be outside planting in that good Kentucky dirt! Don't forget to tuck in a catnip bed for your feline family! Will you have a vegetable garden? My aunt came from Owensboro, KY and we went out there many years ago when it was all farms, now a very different story, but KY is still a lovely state. Wishing you much happiness in your new home!

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  7. wow I can hardly believe that things have progressed so fast.

    Love your idea of a herb garden on that spot ...some are so beautiful as well as tasty ...Tyme makes a good border ...and there are so many varieties ..I love lemon tyme. Rosemary and bay would give height ...oow you are going to have such fun.

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  8. This is so exciting, and I almost felt I was with you in that garden, talking herbs, which are a passion of mine. A few years back, I wrote a 12-part series of articles on creating various kinds of herb gardens for a UK gardening magazine. Without being overly pushy, I will happily scan some of them and email them to you, if you would like that.

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  9. Comment no 2: I think in my earlier message today, I was so excited about your listing of herbs to grow that I forgot to say that I have missed all the frantic goings-on to sell and move house. Congratulations if you have found somewhere to be happy and to be able to do whatever the coming months and years bring. Love from England.

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  10. Al; We know we are back in cattle territory--the odor of feedlots surges through the truck windows. J. has put on heroic miles yesterday afternoon and today.
    Rowan: Thus far the predicted storms have held off--just drab damp weather.
    BB: The "feel" of the place hit us almost at once. The house is smaller than we anticipated, but the beauty of location and acreage make up for it, and there are several possibilities for expanding the living space if we choose to do that later.
    Nasturtiums are a favorite---did you notice the brick planter on the patio--I think that will be a place for them--maybe "Empress of India" which will spill over the sides.
    Chris: It is so strange to be working with a house that we didn't plan from the ground up--a bit daunting, but still fun. I'm not good at spacial concepts or working out things on paper, but J. is. I suspect he already has a good idea just how much flooring and such he will need to refurbish the rooms.
    Kath: If ever I had feared boring my readers with the details of the house, reading the installments re your kitchen makeover convinced me that some of us enjoy these projects even though they take place far away.
    MTVA: We drove through Owensboro yesterday, taking a different return route. I have a feeling you are very familiar with VA, WV, KY--right down to that good "dirt." The seller, Mr. S. has had soil tests done and will be handing over the paperwork on that.
    Angie: the excitement of this over-rides the exhaustion a good deal of the time and keeps me going. My gardening books will be some of the first to be rooted out of hte van and unpacked.
    WSC; As I have read your journal [both blogs] I have often wished that I had access to your articles on gardening and crafting.
    I will be without internet for a spell during the actual move and may end up with a different e-mail address, but would love to see your articles. thank you for offering.

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  11. I'm so glad I've discovered your blog. I lived in Kentucky (Elizabethtown) for seven years and loved it. It's a beautiful place to live. Can't wait to see what you do there. Blessings!

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