Yes, I'm ready to start gardening! The weather was warm enough last week to start turning over the soil in the new bed along the fence, and to begin to expand the edges of the shrub and perennial bed off the right side of the stone patio. I plan to plant winter squash in the couple of feet of new curve beyond the arching cotoneaster. I 'm looking forward to vines wandering among the flowers.
The fence bed needs to be especially well dug because it is going to be planted with asparagus, a perennial crop. I was worried that it would be full of rock and roots (this is New England!), but I only found a few, including this one I dispatched with my saw. Tree roots lack the flexible fibers of stems, and break easily, so the best technique for most smaller roots is just to snap them of with a sharp upward pull.
I also dug a hole and planted a ten foot high walnut branch ( a hurricane remnant) in the bed made from trex decking, then anchored it further by tying it to a metal post I pounded in next to it. Walnut is a hard wood, and this pole for beans or morning glories (but not both together, because the morning glories will win) should last several years.
I worked on the shape of the flower bed curves for quite a while, with Sol supervising.
Here's the curve at the end of the day. It was getting cold and very windy. I will look at the shape for a couple of weeks before I dig up the rest of the grass. Although my raised beds are efficient and geometric, I enjoy the whimsy and freedom of curves in the rest of the garden, and the art of getting them right for my eye.
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