MULCH!

For my 30th birthday I got the wish of my heart.... 36 yards of mulch (this is only half of it). Now isn't that something to cherish?

We spent two days spreading it about four inches thick and wondering why in heaven's name we have such big flower beds.

It makes the yard look more finished, and I love the color contrast with the green grass.

Now I am just trying to convince Mike to till it into the native concrete so I can have healthy, fluffy soil. It would certainly make planting much easier as we start to fill in with plants and shrubs!
 

If anyone is interested, this is where we bought it from: Timpanogos Special Services District.

State of the Garden

 We harvested our first lettuce this week! It is such a good feeling to bring it from garden to table!

It didn't come in very evenly, but I think it's because there was a little crust on the soil when the seelings were trying to break through.

Actually, all of my seeds came up patchy.... poor carrots.

The pumpkins are already growing rapidly. There are two mounds like this and I should probably thin them before they go crazy!

The row of cantaloupes are looking good.

The corn is growing nice and even. The back row is mammoth sunflowers. They are going to be beautiful!

The peas are getting a little taller. They aren't as impressive as my neighbor's, so next year we'll have to start in February like he did! (I love how I accidentally framed Ella with the chicken wire.)

The shallots came in really well.

I finally convinced Mike to save me the grass clippings to use in the garden. We're going to try using them to keep the weeds down on the rows.

In other news, Mike borrowed a bobcat from a neighbor and cleared our back yard again. It helps to be able to imagine what we want to do back there. We may not get to it this year, but we can at least dream....circular paver patio, extended deck, fire pit, playset, and of course more grass...

Starts from Mom's Garden

We visited my mom over Memorial Day, and 'tis the season for iris! I love this time of year when the air is sweetly scented with Russian Olive blossoms and the iris and peonies are in their full glory. 

My mom has iris from my grandmothers on both sides. Now that I have a yard of my own hopefully I can keep this inheritance of beauty alive!

This variegated one is my favorite. It smells like grapes.

I took some of each color: white, periwinkle, dark purple, purple and yellow, purple and white, and two different shades of yellow.

I had a flash of genius and raided my mom's extensive collection of ribbon to tie around the rhizomes so I could remember what color they are when the blooms are done and gone.
  

For some tips on how to plant iris, check back here. 

I also took starts of some perennials and groundcovers. I love sweet woodruff (above) and have plenty of flower beds to let it spread in.

Another good spreader is dead nettle. I got some in yellow and pink. 

A little start of Mom's chives will be perfect in my herb garden. 

She also gave me a summer phlox (pink I think), sedum (far left), and a forget-me-not. Now I just need to find them a new home!