Making the Sweet Wild Meadow a little less wild

I'm a big fan of open space and thought that would be one of the functions of our place when we bought it.  I later discovered the City has a fire prevention ordinance that prevents me from letting things get too out of hand.  The result?  As of today, my husband and I have tamed some of the wildness with lots of mowing,  two new trees, and I just got done planting some flowering bushes in order to add some curb appeal and give me an incentive to keep those pesky weeds at bay. 

 

Pictures?  Soon.

 

Best investments?

#1 gardening clogs

They're safer than flipflops and easier to clean than tennis shoes - just rinse them off and you're good to go. (Store them inside or the snails will find them - yuck)

#2  Irrigation system

Ours had gone defunct for years, and the previous owner seemed to want to hand water.  I love her style and philosophy, but I need my plants to stay alive!  So, I tapped into the old system and creatively redirected the existing lines and added new ones.  The result?  Automatic TLC for these beauties!  (Saves some water too, since I try to use drip or light spray when possible.) 

#3  mulch

Form AND function.  It's just so pretty to see a newly planted flower surrounded by rich, dark mulch.  The plants get a very obvious benefit of added nutrients, more water is retained, and weeds are discouraged.  It's a win-win situation, except I ran out of money, so the mulch is just in a few select spots.  Kind of funny, but it works for now.

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What else is going on around here?

 

Our butterflies were a beautiful success - more on that in another post.

The girls just had their ballet recital, and it was beyond adorable!

We're going full speed ahead towards summer!  Yay!