garden therapy- post 2 of 3

The side yard of my house is the polar opposite of my front yard. I will be spending my garden therapy time between the side yard and the back part of my gardens.


1. What is the problem?


It is wild and woolly. The hardscapes are rotting and falling apart. The rock garden is overgrown and crazy. The trees have over grown and need pruning. The fence is only half done. The grass is pretty much not alive in the only section that my son can play in. It is a mess.


2. What would is say?


Help me! I am choking! I want sun, I want water, I want that rotting mess removed and the weeds pulled!


3. What is lacking?


a plan. A comprehensive plan. And a tree trimmer.


4. How would I like this to be described?


FINISHED





Here are the before pictures. The space has a lot of potential. I trimmed the hell out of it all last year so I could see the river. This year I have to trim even more I think.

This is rotting railroad ties that formed stairs down to the side yard. We have removed about half of them. (they circled all the way around the tree) The grass in the open part is sick and rather sad. Mostly wildflowers actually from the hippies. Since I want the boy to be able to play here I have to re seed. Past the grassy area is my woods. I want to remove 2 of the big pines so that the oak and the maple can grow bigger. Last year I removed a ring of horrid shrubbery at the edge of the grass and forest.

The half built fence and the overgrown rock garden. Between the garden and the fence is overgrown 3 ft tall grasses.
The rock garden is actully full of fantastic grasses and flowers, it's just overrun with weeds right now.
The back part of the side yard. The plants are daylillies planted by the builder of this house (not the hippies) Unfortunately, the pines have gotten so big that the sun doesn't reach the flowers anymore and they aren't doing so well. I have to prune and trim.
The view from the bench is one that I hacked out last year. All the shrubs which should have been 3 ft tall were about 10. I have more to go this year.
This is the view UP the rotten railroad tie steps. The fence will be finished this year- going all the way to the right past the pines and than closer to the house and the pines will be raised up to accomodate the fence.