Ta da!

I can't believe what a great job the roofers did cleaning up... and I don't think any of my plants bit the dust! There's a clematis in the back that might have lost a limb or two, but she'll survive. Anyway, new roof! What do you think?

New Roof

When you are getting a new roof, you have to do things like take the window boxes off your house and work from home... and this is what it looks like:

Unfortunately it doesn't actually sound as peaceful as the picture may lead you to believe; I feel like I'm under seige! 

Anyway, here is a pic of the roof this morning as the workers were just getting underway (on the rear of the house):

And here is some of the ensuing destruction...

Will my plants make it through unscathed? Doubtful. Will the roof NOT look it's going to collapse any moment? Yes! I think it's worth the trade off, but oh how I fear for my plant-children today.

I'll post more once they are done and we'll see what the final verdict is!

Groundhog Day

My neighbor has informed me that there seems to be a groundhog living in my yard and, lo and behold, as I stepped out into the yard last night, I caught a glimpse of his fat and furry little butt scrambling under the shed. A groundhog! Living in my tiny backyard! By my tiny vegetable garden! And he's HUGE! Actually, he looked more like this than the above pic:

Or maybe this...

This might explain the assault that's been happening to my lettuce and beans lately. Or, that might be the evil albino squirrel or his birdie henchmen. 

Anyway, since he's so fluffy and muppety looking, I couldn't very well get behind Alex's idea of scaring him off with the bb gun or smoking him out from below the shed (the dear vegan husband is so brutally territorial when it comes to his food!) so instead we took a bunch of chicken wire and caged in the raised bed that's been getting the most abuse, and put some bird netting over everything else. We also caged in the baby paw paw tree that has been having quite a few leaves nibbled lately. So now my yard looks like a prison yard for rogue vegetable plants. 

Hopefully Mr. Woodchuck and I can find a happy coexistence. But if he won't accept my boundaries, I'm not sure what will happen next. I'm open to suggestions...

Plant Close-Ups

I love how everything in the yard looks when you get close-up. And since I was out with the camera anyway, I snapped a few close ones. All of these original images are extra large, so if you want to get really up close and personal, click on the picture to see the big version.

balloon flowers

columbine

tulip

azalea

oregano

solomon's seal, nestled in some bleeding heart

raspberries... just starting to happen

paw paw

tiny strawberries

In the Yard - 5/5/2010

Cinco de Mayo! Finally up to present day. What a difference a month and a half makes!

yay, we finally have color!!

the much neglected jerusalem artichoke patch. they don't seem to care whether i weed or not... they just keep coming. 

the back yard, where the useful plants live:

a peek in the cold frame - kale, bok choy, beets, turnips, carrots, collards, chard, and some random herbs

the other raised bed - various salad greens, scallions, radishes, and a lone marigold in the corner

the holding zone, currently holding some bee balm and hollyhocks. but where should i plant them? gotta love buying a plant without a plan...

the garlic patch

baby asparagus in a bed that i have yet to weed this year

the shed, surrounded by rasberries, catmint and honeysuckle

my tiny paw paw tree!!

strawberries

beans and okra... you just can't see them yet. ;)

miscellaneous annuals i started from seed. i'm not sure what i'll do with them though.

In the Yard - 3/18/2010

Here's the scene on March 18...

salad greens and radishes are planted in the cold frame

garlic is up

and so are the crocus

God, what a welcome sight those crocus are when it's still a blustery winter in Boston. 

In the Yard - 3/8/2010

Here we are on March 8, 2010... doesn't get much bleaker than this.

the front

there are peas along that fence, they just haven't done much yet

the remnants from the previous fall... scallions and spinach wintered over pretty well in the cold frame

the first daffodil peeking up

first signs of crocus

Chronicle of a Yard

Since my yard is constantly evolving, I figured I ought to be chronicling the changes. So, since I haven't posted anything in a while, I'll start a couple months back...