Weeding: Sector Two

Well I did a little more weeding today. I think the weeds from Sector One gave a heads up to the weeds in Sector Two because the weeds today were vengeful! They all seemed to sprout thorns overnight!

The last time that I weeded there were a few throng plants. It wasn't anything that my gardening gloves couldn't handle. I just grabbed onto them, ripped them out of the ground and tossed them aside. This time the thorns poked right through my gloves! Then they held on were they were! I had to pull dozens of tiny prickles out of the fabric of my gloves.

I did the rest of the weeding with a rag and a glove. That seems to have done the trick. Sector Two is a very small section of the yard, but it was definitely the worst! With these two areas done, over half of the work load is complete. There are 3 more areas that need weeding, but they aren't very bad so I think it will be pretty easy to tackle them! The end is in sight!!

Weeding: Sector One

Hello Gardening Mentors!
I've taken your advice and have sectioned off my yard for weeding purposes. Today I weeded around the garden as it is my favorite part of the yard. It took me about an hour, but it went by pretty quickly and I did a very thorough job. Everything is now pristine and not tainted by unwanted weeds.

I did happen to see something glorious in the garden while I was weeding... Ladybugs! Hooray! For some reason they were crawling around on some yucky weeds, but they didn't seem perturbed at all when I gently moved them to the tomato plants. There were a few of them, so I let Caleb "catch" one and put it in his bug keeper for a little while. He is very good about letting his little critters go so she was released back into the tomatoes shortly after.





They were such good tempered little ladybugs. I hope I get to see them tomorrow.

P.S. Took this ladybug picture from the web. I wasn't quick enough to think of snapping a picture of our little guests. Trust me though, they looked just like this one.

I Hate Weeding

I know that a lot of you gardeners find it somewhat therapeutic, but I hate weeding.  I wish I could just wave a magic wand ala Harry Potter and make them all instantly disappear.  I find it to be back breaking work.  It leads to mounds of yard debris which I have no idea with what to do. I also firmly believe that weeds are like grey hairs; if you pull one, two will come back in its place.

I very nearly always put it off. Sometimes I get ready to pull weeds, I walk outside, I look at the task before me, and then I turn around and go back inside.  I procrastinate pulling weeds so much that they start to get out of hand and it makes me hate it that much more.  You've seen the pictures. You know what I mean.

Sunday is my weed pulling day.  I have Saturday off of work, but I have obligations so I have to wait until Sunday.  I am dedicating myself to pulling weeds.  I'm gonna do it.  I am.  Sunday is the day.
.... no
I'm still not convinced.   Okay, fine. I'll do.

I have to do it. I owe it to my plants.  Everything is trying SO hard to grow.  I feel as if I should be harvesting so much more than I am.  I have been reading other blogs on the web (see my blog roll) and it seems as if everyone is eating up their garden.  It also seems like everyone is much better at it than I am.  I hope that the Summer runs long since it took so long to get here, but something tells me I won't be that lucky.

Okay, I'll see you guys on Sunday.

Too Embarrassing Not To Share

I know that I have written a couple of posts about the yard work that I have been doing. Well, it's more been about the yard work I have been planning. A few weeks ago I pulled almost all of the weeds out of my yard. After 2 or 3 solid weeks of rain, those weeds are back and they brought friends.

Shawn and I managed to pull most of them but there are still a few left that need to be removed. One area that had been neglected since we moved in was the side yard. We found a weed that was 6 FEET tall!

It looks shorter in this picture because we had already crushed the stalk trying to remove it. Once we had decided to hack through it with a shovel, I knew I needed documentation.

And now, without further ado, I give you, The Biggest Weed I Have Ever Seen!



(Husband included in picture for size reference. Husband = 6'1")

Attack of the 3 Foot Weeds

Last weekend was spent pulling weeds. It's all a part of a beautification process that I have started in my backyard. I worked for hours and only got half way through all of the weeds that have taken over several areas of my yard. I was trying to get as much done as possible because it's going to rain the rest of the week.

These weeds were monstrous. Most of them were 3 feet tall or taller. They were thick, too. It was like a forest of evil plants trying to take over the yard. Fortunately, they all came up pretty easily. I have a whole other half of the yard to do, but I feel like I made some real headway this time. Hopefully, new ones don't sprout up before the rain stops and I am able to get out there again.

Pondless Waterfall

I am thrilled to have a garden. I love to sit next to my humble little garden bed and watch my plants flutter in the breeze. Since I have been spending so much time outside in my backyard, I have noticed something terrible. My back yard is ugly.

To be more precise, it's a diamond in the rough. We had a long Winter of neglect. There are weeds towering everywhere. The lawn needs to be edged. There is a patch of dirt where the previous tenants failed at a garden and the grass seed failed to germinate. A few camping chairs are my only form of lawn furniture. There is a large pile of limbs from some trees that were cut down last Summer.

I have already started the process of beautifying my yard. It's been slow going. I try to do a little bit everyday, but it's so overwhelming that I feel as if I haven't gotten anything done. I've decided to give myself a goal. I am creating an image that I want to strive for. I have decided that once my yard is completely cleaned, I will reward myself by building a water feature.

Since I have a 2 year old, and a water loving dog, I have decided to go with a pondless waterfall. I was poking around on the web and found this.

There are a lot of different varieties, some of them more elaborate than others. I am looking for something easy to build and simple looking. I like how this one has a little area on top to plant things.

The good news is that my house is build in an old river bed, and I have an over abundance of river rock. I also have some huge boulders that can go underground to fill up the under gravel pond. The only rocks that I will need to acquire will be the flat rocks. Exciting? Yes, I know!