How Does Your Garden Grow?

How can I tell it's officially Fall?

 

Uh, because I'm finally starting to work on my list of summer chores?

I planted this herb garden in front of our Finnish aitta (granary) shortly after we moved here. It has been badly neglected for many years.

After weeding, tilling, raking, and leveling, it's time to get it ready for spring planting.

I don't have enough sandstone for the paths, so I'm putting down wood chips that I got for free from the utility guys who were working on the county roads this summer. It will at least keep some of the weeds at bay. My new neighbor brought me a load of composted cow manure. Sweet.

I'm digging up Black-Eyed-Susans and transplanting them in front of the big pine. I like the vibrant Fall color.

Planting a northern garden can be tricky. Around here nothing gets babied. It makes it or it doesn't.

Lavender grows well, though mine have never been pruned and are getting woody. It is one plant I'll always have in my garden. On a summer day there might be a hundred bees on the flowers. I'm leaving spots for new transplants.

Baby's breath also likes this dry and sunny space. It was huge and wild, but I had to cut it back in order to till.

Every year I marvel at how well the heather is doing. I remember ordering two plants from a catalog at least 15 years ago. The flowers are starting to turn brown, but they are lovely and delicate during the summer. They're planted right along where my husband throws snow. Every Spring I come out and rough them up because they're so matted on the ground. I always think of them as growing in Scotland or the U.K., but they also thrive in my garden in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Go figure.

I've never had much luck with hollyhocks, so this year I started them early from seed. They're hearty plants. Too bad the deer love them.

How do you like how I've fixed the missing window pane? Too bad I can't Photoshop all the repairs around here. Even on a gentleman's farm they are never ending.

Speaking of deer....this guy is freezer ready. He's also a major pest. We can't leave the garage door open or he walks right in.

I hope you're enjoying whatever season you're having!

~Diane and Bambi
 

Phase 2 - Landscaping Dreams

Well, we're not yet quite finished with Phase 1, but my work is done (hand-dipping 14 bundles of cedar shakes and hand-brushing rough-sawn cedar to the tune of about $1,000 worth of stain).

If the weather holds out, we'll transplant a white pine on the corner and in the spring I'll plant Sea Green Junipers and native grasses, perhaps lay a sandstone pathway around the perimeter. I envision a mass of black-eyed Susans for fall color. We can't do anything until the excavator comes back to put gravel in front of the doors and run the floor drains off the side of the hill. Next week, hopefully.

Yesterday, I hustled (against the weather) and put a coat of Benjamin Moore Benwood Clear Acrylic finish on the inside of the window moldings. It is water-based and doesn't yellow like shellac or varnish. I have been using it for years on pine trim and normally put on  2-3 coats, but I'm afraid the next coats will have to wait until spring. It's entirely possible that we may not see another day above 50 degrees.

The weather is changing fast. Our wet 50 degrees feels like 30. Most of the leaves have fallen from the trees, and I noticed on my way home from work that the Houghton Country Road Commission had come through and placed their long, whip 'markers' for the snowplows. Ugh. That means snow flurries can't be far behind.

My plan for the weekend, if weather permits, is to start moving furniture from the 'real' garage- the one we haven't been able to park a car in for three years-into the loft of the new building. Next year, I hope she gets a makeover. It will be my new workshop/junkshop/staging area. To all: have a sweet weekend!

I know what you did last summer

In between my IT job, teaching a university ESL course, and a recently vacated rental....we've been building this. Let me tell you I would rather have a root canal than build. I absolutely HATE it. My husband and I built a new house in the late eighties and I was sick every day for three months. Morning sickness on steroids. This building was a close second.

It started out as a 30 x 40 metal building but once it was framed in and I saw my 16 x 40 storage loft, things changed. The metal siding turned into cedar shake on the gable ends and clapboard on the sides. This is called building 'on-the-fly'. I don't recommend it.

Alas, here she is.....TA DA....the tractor building! Tomorrow, weather permitting, I finish staining and the Hormann garage doors (engineered in Germany, made in the U.S.A.) will be installed on Wednesday. All the doors have windows to let in as much natural light as possible.

Am I relaxed yet?  Nope. I still need to pick out light fixtures (for starters: Made in America Barn Light Electric gooseneck fixtures over each front bay) and, honestly, I have no idea what color to order because I don't know what the cedar will look like in the spring. All wood has all been finished with Cabot Bleaching Oil, a popular stain used on the East Coast. Within 6 - 12 months it's supposed to turn to a light gray/driftwood color, but I really have no idea how it will look after a Copper Country winter. I'm leaning toward the green lights because, well, it's a tractor building. I am, however, open to suggestions.

Anyway, thanks to my talented and patient brother (Bob the Builder from San Francisco), this is the new addition to our farm.

Sometime between now and Tuesday (when my brother returns to finish up and spend a few days at camp with our family), I foresee a trip to Marquette for a service door lockset. A result of living in this particular rural area is that it's two hours to the nearest Lowes or Home Depot. Not complainin', just sayin'.

My new Words of Wisdom: Done is Better than Perfect.