game on

(prepare yourself for a lengthy post - it's been a while, after all)

after nearly six months in the new abode, and many indoor house projects later...we've gotten down to business in the yard. we started out by pulling up the lawn in the front yard and replacing it (over time) with tons of perennials, some edibles, and a gravel path. in the fall, we planted tulip and daffodil bulbs that provided some cheery spring color. i will say that people picked most of the tulips before we had a chance to enjoy them. we're still bitter.

before

way too many shovels worth of sod later

after

we also upgraded the planting strip by yoinking the grass and putting in some salvaged bricks, perennials (heather, euphorbia, hebes, thyme, rosemary, lavendar), and ruby red chard.

before

after

blueberries, huckleberries, mixed greens, snap peas, and broccoli have made their home up front. chard seeds are sprouting, and squash starts (we started several varieties from seed) are settling in. we hesitate to put too many edibles up front, given that we've witnessed multiple neighborhood pets do their business in our yard. yes, it's unfortunate. but, once we get a fence up...

brian put together a re-bar trellis

and the peas are on their way up

mmm, mixed greens

a hop vine, herbs, and some container-grown lettuce and micro greens are nestled around the front porch.

did you know that hop vines grow up to 25 feet a year?

wow.

now, on to the backyard. first off, it was a jungle. literally. blackberry brambles and piles of junk right smack in the middle of the level part of the yard (the rest of it is a bit sloped). dozens of yard waste bags later, and we could start envisioning a clearer path.

before - the pile of junk

during (yes, we considered renting goats)

after-ish

this past weekend, we made some serious progress. we leveled out the area as best we could. then, proceeded to make some really interesting decisions. after about half an hour of discussing layout, we decided to go with three 4x12 foot raised beds and a smaller 4x4 footer to maximize the space. of course, we needed wood to build these giant raised beds, so we headed to lowe's, rented their truck, and grabbed supplies.

we also needed compost, and lots of it. for the past couple months, we debated the merits of getting some delivered. but, we never moved on that idea. given the pleasant weather on sunday, it was clear that our only option was to use the truck to load a ton of bags of compost (totally rational, right?). 100 bags and one fun unloading adventure later, and we were on our way to a new backyard garden.

it appears that we were so on task that we didn't take a ton of during photos. oops. the actual bed-building didn't take too much effort. it was the gravel bag hauling and the compost bag opening that wore use out.

now we're on to planning out what will occupy those roomy beds. this weekend is the seattle tilth edible plant sale, where i hope to pick up several types of tomatoes, some artichokes, an eggplant, herbs, and a few other things to fill in the beds.

luckily, we've got a ton of starts in the coldframe that brian built (after i conceived the awesome idea). kale, onions, leeks, melon, pumpkins, several types of cucumbers and squash, brussels sprouts, and cabbage are coming along quite well.

strawberries are going strong, as are garlic and several types of lettuces. we've also got raspberries, grapes, and a couple semi-dwarf apple trees going.

that's it for now. looking forward to getting our hands dirty and having fun with another growing season. game on.