The Green Grass Grows all Around and Around...

What a magnificent day outside today! Part of the day including planting flowers...lots of flowers. John has often commented that we should just plant ones that come back every year, but I would miss the process. Although John is definitely into landscaping, up until about two years ago, it was just me would put the flowers into the ground. Now it's a team effort! And I finally found my favorites today--my Salvias. Yes, those aren't difficult to find, but for whatever reason the Bonfire ones are a little harder to find around here. I adore those--they get to be approximately 2 feet tall; some of the other ones are only around 8 inches or so. Last year, I planted ones from the seeds I saved from the year before, but this year, I didn't get seeds started soon enough, so I bought the plants.

John also planted 4

Forsythia bushes.

(wish I had a picture of the one we had growing up--I need to ask the siblings about that)
We had one when I was growing up, and I remember the comfort of going inside the one we had--not sure how old I was, definitely young, and not sure if it was for just one season or more than one. I do know, from what mom says, it had gotten a bit out of control--but hey, that was perfect for hiding, although I'm not sure how hidden I was. But I remember liking it, and bringing all the items from nature that I collected in it with me. So, I convinced John that we needed to have some of those...problem is that that are planted in an area that is considered part of the front yard, and there is NO WAY John will let them get out of control. Oh well. Maybe, just maybe, I'll plant one somewhere in the backyard that will be

all

mine!

I miss the yard I grew up in--in CT...it was just about perfect for a child. There were 3 hills (Side note: thanks to the glaciers over 700,000 years ago, I live in flat country now) for sledding, although one of them went off a 4 or 5 foot wall onto the street. I think we only did that one a few times, and somebody was on car watch duty while the other person would go...hurt a little, but it was fun! No, mom and dad weren't aware. There were also a couple of flat areas--one often used for badminton, the other sometimes for crochet. A huge garden area, a bushy area with berries, and a wooded area perfect for climbing trees and being alone, and the best part---a steep hill that led down to a creek. We had paths on that hill, but several years after leaving home and the house no longer ours, I looked at the hill and didn't see any those supposed "paths." Oh, how fortunate I was to have parents that didn't hover over us. It was a world of "danger" and discovery.

Yards, I'm not into the whole chemically induced green grass thing. For years, I wouldn't let John use chemicals in our yard. Several years ago, I gave in, because the yard was looking a bit pathetic, so we had it "treated" for about a year. Yep, great looking yard. Yep, huge increase in the number of seizures our dog had. So we (I) stopped that.

But now, we're in this new yard (1 year in July), and with it, comes new weeds. The neighbors to the left and right of us "take care of their yards." John feels the pressure to do the same. I have a HUGE opinion about this...not happening, at least not with the standard treatments that are readily available with a quick phone call. I've started searching for environmentally friendly ways to take care of a lawn. Tips are welcome.

This is a photo of our lawn in the backyard before the first mowing of the season...I think those are pretty! But, yeah, I purposely didn't include any dandelions in the range of the camera's lens. Not a fan of those.