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Saturday, July 25, 2020

All dressed up..... Part 2... THE REVEAL!

Hi friends and followers......

Here's the "reveal" finally, of our backyard gravel project.....as far as we've gotten anyway. We're not done yet!  

Photo heavy, so grab your tea or coffee.......

OUR PATIO AREA:

Fresh, new, 4" deep gravel.. and best of all... no dirt and no weeds!
 Remember, it was like this before:

And though you can't see it that well in the photo, it is MOSTLY DIRT! Very little gravel.
Now, it's clean and new....



We did run out of gravel for our "patio" area, as I said in my prior post.... so hubby spent a day digging what was left from the driveway area that the guy in the loader couldn't get with his bucket. He/we also dug and brought a few wheelbarrow loads from our "back 40" as it was pretty deep there and we didn't need it so deep. We dumped as much as we could scrounge, onto our "patio" as that is what we use the most.

We still haven't finished our "alley" by the garage where the catio is. Hopefully we can do that in the Fall when it cools off again. I'm really not in the mood to have another big pile of gravel in our driveway!


Iris in foreground that I transplanted from our front yard in April!


I wanted to transplant the flowers OUT of all the plastic tubs (blue and green) but I could not find ANY that were even similar (and affordable) to match our nice wood cedar planters. We may have to build our own.


See the Iris in the blue tub? Those are the ones I dug up earlier in the year, in April, and transplanted hundreds (well maybe 50) of them.




Ran out of gravel for under hutch. Will get more in the Fall. This reloading bench, now garden "hutch" will get stained and sealed to protect it in the winter months. And of course, we  had to leave room for the kitties to sleep on the bottom. I'll put new and fresh beds for them there. They love sleeping there!

Decorated with some pretties. I've used the hutch for planting flowers for the summer, so now it's mostly just for looks - but comes in really handy to set our small tools on, watering can, things we use in the flower beds.


I planted two strawberry plants earlier this year, and finally just now getting a few strawberries! They are the hugest strawberry plants I've ever seen!

Love the fountain. It still works! I stored it in the garage all winter so it wouldn't freeze. LOVE the sounds of the trickling water.
NOW... FOR THE "BACK 40" REVEAL..........

Nice new fresh gravel... and no weeds! We're not quite done raking and leveling it yet. We ran out of steam. 
Remember, it looked like this:



Our problem now is.... instead of weeds, we have to deal with LEAVES! There are two huge Chinese Elm trees in the neighbors' yard, and whenever the wind blows (which is always)... the dried up leaves fall in our yard.. and I mean.. there are piles of them already!

Future flower bed will divide the lawn/weeds from the gravel area. Hubby reseeded the lawn, but it's not doing well no mater how much we water and feed it... but of course, the weeds love it.

We bought a leaf blower for the leaves, thinking we could blow them into a corner and then pick them up. That was a big FAIL. All it did was create a tornado of leaves... flying all over the place, into the neighbor's yard and back over on our grass! So we need to find another solution....... any ideas?


When you live in town, and not on acreage, you don't have the luxury of being able to have a big brush pile and a place to put all the leaves, branches and twigs that blow into your yard.

We have a burn barrel (sort of) but there is a burn ban on now. Oh no! weeds coming up already in the "flower bed"!!

We need a place for our tools.... need another shed..... in time I hope. The Golden Chain tree there has died. It didn't like being transplanted.

Spotty lawn. Sod would be best but not in the budget.
One final look..........  we are happy with what we've done so far. We're taking a break for awhile. All flowers are planted that I want to plant for the summer.  The back lawn "weed battle" will continue. I go out almost every day and try to dig up at least 20 weeds. Weed killer does not work as it kills the little bit of grass that we  have!


The front yard is looking good and the shrubs are growing by leaps and bounds. Our Quaking Aspen is awesome, and the crab apple tree has grown at least 4 feet. I need to remulch the little potted flower area as it's been 2 years (or 3?) since I did it last.  I did get the garden bench painted white again.  Still a few more things to do in the front.









I've managed to continue with my paper crafting in between all the yard work.... that is my solace and my Haven and peaceful place....... love my craft room! I can just go there and "bury my head in the sand" and not think about what is happening in the world today.

And of course, now I have a nice little oasis to sit at outside.. by the fountain...... which we have been doing more lately.

Until next time.. hope everyone is safe and well.

~With hugs and blessings to everyone.....~
~Marilyn~







10 comments:

  1. Wow, that really is looking great! A huge job but worth it! My neighbor has a leaf/grass blower that also vacuums up the leaves into a large cloth bag that he empties. That might work if it doesn't suck of the gravel... It is a portable thing that hangs by a strap over his shoulder. He even climbs on his roof to suck the leaves out of his gutters in the fall!

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    1. Thank you Ellen D. Our leaf blower has the vacuum and bag too, but didn't work very well as sucked up the gravel too! We got a smaller one but haven't tried it yet. Maybe they'll all just dry up and blow away on their own. It has been windy enough here! Marilyn

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  2. Oh my gosh Marilyn this turned out so nice. What a big job but what wonderful results.
    Enjoy your new space. Happy Weekend.
    xoxo
    Kris

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    1. Thank you Kris. We're really enjoying it.. with the little fountain in the evenings. Trouble is, it's been so darned hot here! Hopefully once it cools down we'll get out there more. Marilyn

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  3. Marilyn, I'm so excited to see the transformation of your yard!! You have put so much work into it, what a blessing to now have an oasis and place to sit back and enjoy the beauty!!! I wish I had a solution for your leaf situation,but I think a wet dry vacuum might world work if you could get them in a pile? Always one issue or another!! But the lovely spot you have created is very special!! Well done, my friend!!

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    1. Thank you Marilyn. Seems like some of the leaves, because they are so small, just dry up and kind of blow off in the wind (most of them anyway). This Fall, we'll see what's there. We did get a smaller leaf blower but haven't tried it yet. Has been so darned hot here! We sure do enjoy our "patio" more now as is so clean and I can walk out there even in my good shoes or slippers! The flowers are flourishing, even in the heat. We water every day. We still have the "back 40" to deal with, but that can come in the Fall. I just don't want all those little leaves to compost on top of the gravel, make dirt, and then give the weeds a place to grow again! Neverending fight........ Marilyn

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  4. I love your pea gravel patio. The looks is just so clean.

    Ours is much smaller. Despite laying down weed fabric, we have persistent canna lilies pushing through. We actually haven't had one for a week so we think the problem might be over!

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    1. Carol.. I love it too! It seems so much cleaner now. I know weeds will come back in a year or two.. am hoping more like three. If the dead leaves all turn to compost (before we can blow them off).. then it will turn into dirt on top of the gravel, and weeds will grow again! Every spring, we would have little pansies (or Johnny Jumpups) growing all over the dirt in the gravel and I would dig them up and put them in the my pots. That's what alot of my pots are now, those little pansies that grew in the gravel! I hope it'll stay nice for awhile at least. Marilyn

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  5. Wow, Marilyn, you and hubby have really been working. That is no easy task hauling and spreading that gravel, especially as much as you have. It sure looks good though and I can just imagine sitting under the shade of your umbrella and listening to the music of the fountain. Good payment for a job well done. Your front is looking very lush and the roses and other flowers are just beautiful. You did good..Stay well..xxoJudy

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  6. Oh Marilyn, your place looks amazing! All of your hard work has created a very restful spot . . . I wish I were there. I would make a yummy salad from my garden and phone in a pizza delivery and we could spend the evening sitting out there in your charming area and catching up on girl talk.
    Again it looks amazing, enjoy :)

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