The Waste Land

I can see grass again in my yard. 


I had almost forgotten what it looks like, and was planning on purchasing mukluks and wearing them 24/7 with my grandmother's fur coat. But God in His infinite wisdom melted the snow so that I would not have to commit that fashion sin.


I don't care much for T.S. Eliot, but my yard does currently resemble a barren, desolate, empty land. Unless you count the snowman yard stake hiding in the flower bed behind the azaleas.


My other problem? 

 

Although it would indeed appear that I have a green thumb, I do not. This was simply a marker accident in preparation for today's post.


My thumb has not been helpful at all in my gardening efforts. In fact, none of my fingers have been helpful. 


All of the fun new projects popping up around Blogland have me dreaming about Spring, flowers, and outdoor entertaining. I have visions of hydrangeas, peonies, roses, and marigolds. 


So that my future guests don't have to stare at a jungle of weeds, I thought it would be wise to plan ahead and start thinking about what types of plants I'd like to have this year, finances permitting.


Last year, I took a couple of days to chart the sunny/shady areas in the backyard. It was really helpful when choosing a plant to know which areas of my yard were full sun vs. partial shade, etc. I lost that chart, so here is a new version, which I'll be working on this week. I keep it on the counter next to the kitchen sink. It overlooks the back yard, making it easy for me to remember to fill it in.

I made a very rough sketch of the back of my house and the back yard. 

Clearly, it's not to scale. The scribbles that look like clouds are large bushes. I know you're shocked I don't have an art degree.


I assigned different letters/colors to certain areas of the yard and then wrote down what kind of sunlight each area had at different points in the day. 

For example, section D (blue) is full sun most of the day, and was the perfect spot to grow tomatoes. I only had three plants last year, but they more than quadrupled in size. Section E (red) is mostly shade, and was a terrific spot for my hydrangea bush that T accidentally fried with too much fertilizer.

This might seem really boring, and it totally is. 


But I am learning that planning is essential to gardening. I wish I'd known that when I planted my daffodil bulbs a few years ago. It looks like someone just came and threw fistfuls of daffodils in my front flower beds. I may not have the resources to grow my dream garden this year, but I can take steps in the right direction.


...Beginning with finding something to get the green marker off my thumb.


{What's your favorite thing to plant, come Spring?}


Linking to Kimba's DIY Day party over at A Soft Place to Land.