Building the Foundation

The first year we were here, our focus was trees. We needed to get trees in so that they could grow, since it takes quite a few years for that to happen. The orchard was the result: a whopping 12 trees, only one of which came with the house. There are now also three maple trees, an eastern redbud, a magnolia, three crabapples, and the original honey locust and blue spruce. Oh, and five arborvitae.

We rocked our goal that year. Woot!

Last year, the goal was for shrubs. While doing trees, we had added a few bushes: a weigela, four boxwoods, a few ferns (only one survived), two spireas, and five eunonymous. Eunonymous-es? Anyway. So we had a pretty darn good start on our "foundation" planting.

Now, how many shrubs do you think I put in last year? Not that many, let me tell you - and I waited until the very end of the planting season. I snagged nine rose bushes during fall clearance and put those in.

Very pathetic. So this year, we're working on shrubs. Again.

To give myself some momentum, I ordered a few shrubs while it was still snowy. That way, I would have to put them in the ground when they arrived. Ordering shrubs from catalogs hasn't worked in the past, but I am nothing if not an optimist. So I went for it, using SpringHill Nursery, since they have sent me lovely seeds in the past.

The plants arrived last week in fabulous condition, looking like I picked them up locally. Four lilacs and four goatsbeards. The lilacs are fun varieties, one with pink and white flowers, the other with red flowers edged with white. The goatsbeards look a little like ferns, but they bloom white all along these long white stems. Amazingly enough, seven of them are already in the ground.

Looking a little worse for wear after a few snowstorms...one of the pink lilacs.

A baby goatsbeard. Isn't it cute?

And there's still snow around another lilac. Melt already!

You can hardly see them, but seven of the plants are along this wall.
Eventually, they will shade the side of the house during summer.

So wish me luck...hopefully I won't get sidetracked with just perennials this year. And of course, I will keep you updated (especially when those rose bushes bloom!).