Who watches Jersey Shore? Remember when they went camping and Deena stood on that picnic bench and said “the wilderness!”? For some reason it made me laugh. I’m from Jersey though, so it might be a you-had-to-be-there you-have-to-be-from-there thing. Anyway, we mentioned that we had lots of outdoor upgrades on the agenda this spring, so let’s get into it, shall we? Remember how our yard looked like this when we bought the house?
And then we limbed up the magnolia and transplanted/removed a lot of the bushes and painted the front door, to get it looking more like this?
Well, it has definitely come a long way, but it’s still a far (far!) cry from where we’d like it to be (to the point that we apologize to our neighbors way too often for weedy patches of dirt in the middle of the yard and dead flowers by the mailbox, etc). So when a deal came up on Living Social for a one hour consultation with a certified landscape designer named Katherine Brooks for $60 (instead of $125) we went for it.
It might sound weird for two people who are crazy about doing things themselves to pay sixty beans to a landscape expert, but we’re black thumbs. So someone who knows all about what to plant (or transplant) where, and can plant ideas (see what I did there? it’s a landscaping pun) that we’d never come to on our own accord definitely has value to us. For example, about five minutes into our consultation with Katherine (who was very nice by the way), she mentioned that we’ll never get any grass to grow under the giant circle beneath our limbed up magnolia because the roots are so shallow they crowd out grass. We had actually planned to seed that area in the spring and the fall and hope for the best, so she easily saved us sixty bucks worth of grass seed and water and a whole lot of time and frustration while offering up a nice alternative solution (more on that in a sec).
She also tossed out a list of plants that she thought would do best in certain areas of our yard, and a bunch of suggestions about what we could transplant (you know we love working with what we have), general sustainable landscaping tips for our area, how we could reconfigure our garden beds (she even brought one of those sprayer things to mark off the grass), and identified lots of existing greenery for us (knowing what something’s called means we could google how to care for it or transplant it). So we’d say it was money well spent – and you know we’re cheap, haha. When she backed out of the driveway we already had a four page plan scribbled down in a notebook. Here are just some of her suggestions:
- seed the yard asap in many of the bare spots that remain from digging up bushes last fall
- plant a few american holly trees and sweet bay magnolia tress in the back to add privacy
- hosta, coleus, kimberly fern, or small boxwoods would do well in the empty planters on our porch
- get the ivy off all of the large oak trees in the back yard (slowly over time it can hurt them and we don’t want that)
- transplant the periwinkle (a lush green groundcover that we have growing everywhere)…
…. around the base of the magnolia since it’s one of the only things that can grow there and hide that circle of dirt…
- transplant/remove the ailing boxwoods and azaleas crowding the path to the front door and replace them with more appropriately sized perennials that won’t encroach as much
- plant a bunch of things around the house’s foundation (there’s waaaay too much bare dirt and brick on either side of the porch) – she gave us a list of specific plants that would do well in those lighting conditions and that amount of space
- dig up the odd rectangle of brick that was laid right next to the driveway in the planting bed under the window, so the landscaping can look more balanced
- plant ground cover around the mailbox (we did our best with flowers there and it always eventually grew to look unkempt, so groundcover is a more realistic option for not-always-on-it-landscapers like us)
- plant trees on the side of our lot so it looks less like a weird gully full of nothing (she gave us a list of trees that would love that area, like dogwoods, redbuds, river birches, and even a few weeping willows)
- transplant a few bushes on one side of the patio to the other side of the patio so they no longer crowd the path
- plant more hydrangeas in our patio garden (we have three very happy ones there, so adding more to the completely bare side of the garden will bring balance and color)
- cut down two diseased trees and one completely dead rhododendron bush next to the patio
- remove the giant euonymus vines on the oak tree next to our patio (we originally heard from an arborist who said it was ok, but they have gotten even bigger and heavier and after hurricane Irene we realized it could have been trouble, so when she said they should be removed we took note)
- sell all the cobblestones we already removed (and plan to remove around the plantings in the back) – apparently you can get a few bucks a pop and they make it so hard to mow around plant beds
- cut back the ornamental grasses on the side yard and the butterfly bushes in the back yard (March is apparently the time to do that every year)
- plant aucuba on the left side of our house (there are no plants next to the house on that entire side – just a dirt planting bed with nothing but weeds)
- and at least ten other things that are too complicated to mention until we tackle them
So yeah… it’s quite a list. But we knew from our first house‘s slooooow curb appeal makeover (we worked on that baby for 4.5 years) that these things take time. And to keep them from feeling too overwhelmed, it’s best to take it one day (and one project) at a time. So one of the first things on our list was to get some plants for around the house’s foundation. Because garden beds full of nothing but dirt (and the occasional weed) isn’t a good look. We actually purchased a Living Social deal for a local nursery last fall, so we had $80 to spend before it expired in three days (we spent $40 for the deal). So we ran over with a list of plants-that-will-hopefully-live from Katherine, and picked our favorites.
We had a hilarious conversation in the car. Well, it wasn’t funny until the drive home. But on the way there we were saying “I hope we have room for all the plants we’ll get with our $80! We had taken the stroller out of the trunk and everything, just to make room. Then we got there and realized that nearly all the bushes were $25-50 a pop. So yeah… we left with two bushes. And they easily fit in the car. And we snickered because we envisioned the car full of lush plants as far as the eye could see… but plants are expensive. Haha. Here’s what we came home with. It’s hard to tell the scale from this picture, but they’re each around two feet wide, which is nice. They’ll still grow a few feet larger over time, but sometimes when you buy the cheap tiny things it takes years for them to even get two feet wide.
They’re otto luyken laurels, which came highly recommended by Katherine as a few of the bigger foundation shrubs we could add (she gave us info about how to space them and how far away from each other to plant them, etc). Thankfully these guys are guaranteed for a year, so if they give up the ghost we can get a credit towards something else. But we have no intention of letting them die (its been raining like crazy lately, which is hopefully helping them to settle in nicely).
As for where we planted them, we’re just starting on the garden beds to the left and the right of the porch (which clearly have a long way to go). So one got a nice roomy spot on the left…
… and the other scored some prime real estate on the right.
So when those garden beds come along a bit more (they each need at least five more plants) we’ll share all the before and after pics. We have a lot to clear out, including a big rectangle of bricks laid to create some sort of hose platform to the right of the bush above. Sounds like a sledgehammer job for Super $herdog. What are you guys doing outside these days? Any new plants or flowers going on?
Gaidig says
I’ve got seed starts for my veggie garden going.
JacquiBee says
At the risk of repeating advice from another commenter ( I havent time just now to read em all)The best way to get a lot of plants is to find a seedling nursery that sells to the public and get lots of little plants about the size of your succulants ( not super tiny) and they are supposed to do well and might be a lot cheaper sso you can get more. Id hope thay might be $10-15 each
YoungHouseLove says
So smart Jacqui!
xo
s
Heidi P. says
Holy cow! I only charge $25/hr for a consult! Or $50 for throwing in a rough sketch of the plan! Maybe I should up my pricing!
YoungHouseLove says
I think you should!
xo,
s
Jen says
The Henrico dump does have mulch! However, a friend told me to beware of what you may find in the mulch (termites, etc), so to just use it far away from the house.
Can I ask which nursery you went to? I moved to the Richmond area last year and am on the hunt for some good (and less expensive) places to buy plants :)
YoungHouseLove says
We went to Cross Creek since that was the place with the groupon. It was gorgeous but we have also had great luck at Great Big Greenhouse (and their prices might be slightly lower). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Stacy says
Somebody may have mentioned this already, ( sorry if I’m being redundant) but really do your research regarding Weeping Willows if you’re considering planting one or more.
For starters, they’re not very strong tree so they’re prone to falling over in storms such as hurricanes. I know thinking about hurricanes is not pleasant, but you don’t want a Weeping Willow falling on your house either.
Second, Weeping Willows are known for seeking out water from any source they can get it. I don’t know if you have town/ city sewer or a private septic system, but if you have a private septic system, you may not want to plant them as the roots will seek out the water from the leaching field and can grow into it. It can cost thousands of dollars to repair the mess that Weeping Willows can cause on a septic system, so I personally wouldn’t go there.
Other than that, it sounds like the both of you are going to be busy.
My plans are to clean out the garden beds, again. The stupid oak trees are holding on to their dead leaves so as soon as I get the yard clean, they drop more dead leaves. Meh! My other plans are to get some grass seed down, treat the Japanese Maple, Weeping Cherry Tree, and the Birch trees so the beetles and worms don’t chew all the leaves off as soon as they fully bloom and work on the garden near the back of the house. I was going to plant lavender there, but I decided to go with Heather instead as they keep their flowers and color through the winter.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, you’re the third person to warn us! It’s an area that’s low and moist and very far away from our house (and we don’t have a septic system), but it’s good to know!
xo,
s
Rachel says
It sounds like you got some great tips… I really love the idea of groundcover by the base of the tree… we have a huge tree in the front as well and I can’t get grass to grow for the life of me… I will def have to try that!!
ps… is it terrible that Deena went to my high school? She was a grade below me… needless to say we weren’t in the same circles at school, but, yea, shocked to see her on there haha. Ahhh Jersey, I love it :-)
YoungHouseLove says
No way?! That’s so funny!
xo,
s
mp says
Getting professional advice was smart! Sometimes the best DIYers know it’s time to ask for help.
I’ve never bookmarked any of your posts, but just did for this one, since I live about an hour and a half west of Casa Petersik and can use the fine Ms. Brooks’ advice for my four acres. Thanks for sharing!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, good luck MP! She’s great!
xo,
s
Annmarie says
“The wilderness!” I lol every time I hear it! And I’m not from Jersey.
Rachel says
It’s been pretty cold and rainy here in the Seattle area (WHAT?? I know.) but when the sun peaked out for a second this weekend I ran to the store to get flowers to fill pots for my front porch because my neighbors are selling their house and I was determined to help by making my curb appeal “super awesome!” The problem is that after filling 9 random pots and putting them all around my steps & porch it’s looking more schizophrenic than super awesome. Sigh. At least it makes me happy to see my bright Gerbra Daisies and Dr Seuss Flower Poofs (I don’t know their actual name, but they look like tiny Truffula Trees) welcoming me home. :)
AJJT says
I wish I had pictures of a before and after DIY re-seeding that my mom did of her entire yard. My father kept a beautiful, lush green lawn. It was mowed like a baseball field -on a diagonal with alternating green and greener grass. Our nice mailman would even joke that it was too nice to walk on so much so that our house was the only one that he’d use the sidewalk instead of cutting across the yard. Then he suddenly passed away – at 52. During the first few years my mom did the bare minimum and cut the grass. The yard became overrun by crab grass. Then last year she decided to dig it all up and start over with seed. I just visited her last weekend (in NJ) and it’s again a vibrant, lush green yard. My dad would be so proud.
Anywho. In my limited experience of helping my mom landscape – hold out on buying plants until the fall. Everyone wants to make their yards look pretty in the spring/ summer. But the nurseries will be anxious to unload the last of their inventory before winter. My mom and I filled two beds that run the length of her cape cod for less than $500. I think the plants (boxwoods and such) were marked down60%. And everything survived their first winter – and subsequent winters despite the late season planting.
Good luck!
YoungHouseLove says
Aw, that’s an amazing story about that lush yard. I’m so sorry for your loss, and I’m sure your dad would be so proud! Great tip about buying in the fall too!
xo,
s
Jennifer says
We are also in the process of very slowly re-doing our entire back, and side, yards and are learning the wonderful pricing (not) of plants.
I literally just came in the house from meeting with a friend who’s coming back tomorrow to cut out a large area of liquid limestone from our side yard. We painted the rendered brick fence over the weekend (a gorgeous British Paints Blue Gum Park colour) and will be taking out all the yellow sand under the limestone and planting climbing Star Jasmine at the back (which will eventually snake up the wall along some amazing stainless steel climbing holders) and Agapanthus at the front. This will be what we look out our two family room picture windows onto – yeah!
Melissa says
It’s starting to look great! We bought a house 2 years ago and every spring we feel overwhelmed. It’s over 2 acres and was not kept up BUT we are making progress! We’ve been ripping out dead trees and shrubs and now we need to start planting. Thanks for the reminder that it is a SLOWWWW process. :)
cindy says
This whole week has been dedicated to the outdoors…its beautiful in NYC so we are taking advantage…we are thatching the grass, followed by aerating, adding lime and then re-seeding…lots of work and my poor hubby has been so sore since he is doing it manually…I also planted some herbs this past weekend but I have a black thumb as well and my basil started to brown ;(…I moved it to a shadier spot to see if that was the problem and I added more water…I so want to have an herb garden but are there just people who are not gardeners??? My mother in law is sooo good with all that stuff but she is away so I cannot pick her brain…any suggestions?
YoungHouseLove says
Anyone have any suggestions for Cindy? I think maybe it got burned in the sun? A bit of shade and water sounds good. Maybe pull off the brown leaves too so green ones can grow in?
xo,
s
Sarah says
Love your blog! We just did an outside overhaul as well
http://rivercitywallers.blogspot.com/2012_03_01_archive.html
LOVE the laurels!! We went with those as well. They have a very classy kind of structured look without the maintenance of boxwoods and not as painful as a holly bush.
YoungHouseLove says
Wow- that looks great!
xo,
s
Stacy says
I was thinking about your magnolia tree and what to do with it. I know you guys said you didn’t want to mulch, and while groundcovers are nice, they can be a pain. I love English Ivy and have some growing on our fence, but it’s a high maintenance project. It’s impossibe to rake, and just running the runners over with the lawn mower actually encourages it to spread beyond its means. I live in MA, so I know if periwinkle behaves the same way or not. Anyway, here is another idea.
We now have a oak tree stump in the middle of our backyard. Catapillers killed the tree which we had cut down a couple of weeks ago as it was completely rotted in the center.
Prior to the tree coming down, I planted a bunch of hosta around the base of it. Think of a semi-circle or a backwards letter C as I couldn’t go all the way around the base.
Hostas are a shade plant. They don’t mind some sun, but they tend to fry if they get full sun all day long. The ones around the stump get about 5 hours of sun, but it’s filtered so they don’t wilt when it gets really hot out. We also have hosta out front, but I have to water those more often as they direct sun for several hours during the day.
Instead of using something invasive to act as a back drop for the hosta, I planted Lilly of the Valley. It is another shade plant that gets tiny flowers on them that looks like strings of pearls. It does spread once established, but not like a ivy, mint, ect. It pretty much stays put, it just fills in with time.
Hummingbirds can’t be bothered with the Lilly of the Valley, but they do love the Hosta flowers. We have hummingbirds around all summer and once the hosta start to wilt in the fall, the hummingbirds disappear until the next year.
The cool thing about hostas is that they can be split up so you always have a supply of them once established plants get big enough. Some of ours are 7 plus years old and I’ve never split them up as I love big hostas, but if at some point they get too big, I can break them up into 2,3 4 pieces and either plant them elsewhere, donate them or whatever.
I don’t know if Lilly of the Valley is a plant that would work in your area or not, but those are equallly simple to care for and take to be being transplanted well as long as it isn’t done during the middle of the summer. If they are moved later in the spring or in the fall, they do fine.
If you are looking for something that doesn’t require lots of attention, produces flowers and only needs to be watered, hostas are the way to go.
As for our stump, I had the tree company intentionally leave it about 3 feet tall so I could put a concrete bird bath bowl on top of it. I haven’t done that yet, but it’s on the to-do list.
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks for all the tips! They’re definitely other possibilities! We use an electric leaf blower for our groundcover that makes clearing leaves out really easy, but we’ll have to see where we end up!
xo,
s
Amy Knisely says
We’re working on some backyard gardening this spring. We just installed our fence and this week we’ll be building our stone fire pit.
When we bought the house there was a smallish concrete mermaid statue on a slate “ledge” in the yard. We have no idea what it was for, and unfortunately had to take the slate ledge down when we installed the fence (as it was right on the property border). The other project will be reusing the slate and some of the brick from the ugly planters we demolished to rebuild her “ledge.”
We’re also planning a blue and white garden in our backyard, lots of iris, lily, wood squill, hyacinth, climbing English rose, delphinium, lupine and hopefully some clematis for the fence and possibly some peony or white rhododendron or azalea. I love big, lush gardens. It’s going to take a while for it to get there (because as you’ve stated, plants aren’t cheap) but in about 5 years the backyard will be quite stunning!
YoungHouseLove says
Wow- sounds like you’re busy! Good luck with everything!
xo,
s
Amy Knisely says
OH another thing – see if there’s a Cooperative Extension from a university or a conservation organization near you that does a plant sale. We have one here in Binghamton through Cornell Cooperative Extension. You can buy a LOT of plants for very cheap. I know it’s kind of far for you guys to travel, but for anyone else in upstate NY here’s the link:
http://ccetompkins.org/garden/spring-plant-sale
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks for the tip and the link Amy!
xo,
s
Stacy says
For Cindy- Herbs like sandy soil and lots of sun. If the soil is heavy due to too much clay, the roots will simply rot as the water just sits and doesn’t go anywhere. Herbs like dry “feet” or roots. They do not tolerate sitting in any amount of water. If heavy soil is the problem, it can be lightened with sand, peat moss and or vermiculite.
Also, if the plant was purchased from somewhere where it was kept indoors, the plant may have simply went into major stress mode as it wasn’t allow to adjust from being indoors to being outside. The best way to to make this transition is to place the new plants in a area that gets some sun for a few hours, then bring it back in. Repeat this process for a week or so. While it seems silly, this allows the plant to adapt to the conditions of it’s new home versus going from a climate controlled area to the great outdoors.
If the plant was purchased from a outdoor nursery type place, then I would look to the soil conditions and recall how the plants were being kept. If there were protected by a overhang or something of that nature, I would go through the same process as if the plants came from inside.
Can the plant that is in queation be saved? I honestly don’t know. Soil can be amended an fixed, but without any other details it is impossible to say what needs to happen to fix it and possibly save the plant.
cindy says
Thank you so much…I actually bought them from Home Depot…they were on sale…these plants had biodegradable containers which they said helps so that the plants are not shocked.. so I dont know if they were kept outdoors or not…I followed some tips on having gravel/rocks on the bottom so that there is some drainage and I used potting soil but maybe I should have used something different…I also moved them to shadier spot last night and removed the brown leaves so we shall see what they look like today when I get home…my mother in law planted them in pots but she did use compost so maybe that helped…I wish I could have her green thumb!!! I think I may invest in the meter so at least I can know if I am over/under watering..Thanks for the tips!!!
YHL – Maybe a post a la Gardening for Dummies might help those of us who want to garden but need some help???
YoungHouseLove says
I need a post like that too! Who wants to write it? We need a good gardener to chime in!
xo,
s
Stacy says
P.S. For all of those that have black thumbs whether it be for houseplants or outdoor gardens, invest in a moisture meter. They don’t have to be the expensive digital read out ones. A cheap one like what can be found in this article http://www.ehow.com/how_4890450_house-plant-soil-moisture-meter.html works wonders.
I have 2 of the ones shown in the above article and it keeps both my indoor and outdoor plants healthy as I never have to guess whether my plants are underwatered or overwatered. Overwatering kills plants just as quickly as plants that that are forgotten and are not watered. Cacti are of course the exception of the rule, but even those need atleast alittle water from time to time.
YoungHouseLove says
Great tip Stacy!
xo,
s
dlichtenberg says
I’m making a plug for roses! They are surprisingly easy care if you go with a sturdy shrub or climbing rose. I like the Knockout shrub roses. Even though they’ve been overdone, they are maintance free and bloom until frost. I also like White Dawn and Zephirine Drouhin (no thorns!) climbers. Both rebloom and are fragrent.
YoungHouseLove says
They sound so pretty!
xo,
s
ErinAnn says
I live in a condo complex and we had some major ivy-infestation in our trees. Our arborist just cut the ivy low down on the tree and then said to just let it die up above — that way it doesn’t damage the tree so much with pulling out live roots. So, just cut down low and then pull it off the bottom of the tree and ground. The other stuff will die and get all crumbly. It will look yucky for a while, but better than having it kill your tree.
YoungHouseLove says
Smart!!
xo,
s
Leah E-H says
That’s awesome she was able to help you so much!
The only thing I would add is maybe to reconsider planting holly trees. When you have kids, the dead leaves that holly trees drop are sharp and pointy. And, as an adult, gardening around those sharp, pointy dead leaves is not fun. Even with gardening gloves on, picking up the dead leaves pokes right through. We actually just cut down a holly tree at our house, after much consideration, b/c I hate to cut down a tree.
So, just something to mull over for ya :)
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, they’d be way in the back of our almost-an-acre lot in the back woods. So it wouldn’t be where any kiddos (or dogs) play!
xo,
s
Jennifer says
I fell in love with your site after reading about you in the Washington Post last year and have followed you ever since. So yay YHL!! And, I finally have some house love of my own and there is so much to do, especially in the once-loved and then benignly neglected yard. At any rate, your comment about ivy removal in your yard prompted a comment….well, a question, really: how are you going about it? Last summer I ripped out by hand the large swath of encroaching ivy on one side of the house. Rawr! :) Heh. This spring, I lit into the ivy on the other side….which is far more tricksey because it is rooted under the holly hedge and winding up around all the trees. While it provides an awesome upper body work out, I can’t help thinking there has got to be a better way….so I decided to write and ask! :-)
YoungHouseLove says
Someone commented with a tip that if you cut it off at the bast of the tree and just make sure it’s all cut and removed a bit down there, the rest going up the tree will just die off on its own and crumble and fall off after a while since the roots are the lifeline and if they’re cut you’re good. Hope it’s true! We have to try it!
xo,
s
Jasanna says
Love the landscaping..you guys have done a lot with the yard and it looks great!
http://munchtalk.blogspot.com/
Jordan@the2seasons says
I am getting caught up on your post after traveling and I feel like I am reading my life about the front yard landscape. We bought our first house around the same time you got yours and our front was horrible. We decided last year to work on a DIY patio and the backyard. This year the front and we too are also always telling our neighbors it will be better soon and just look the other way. This is all new to us to we hired someone as well just to give us guidance on what will work etc. Good luck on your progress I hope we all are successful!
YoungHouseLove says
Good luck Jordan! You can do it!
xo,
s
Starr@ The Kiefer Cottage says
Periwinkle isn’t lush. It’s *a* lush who likes to drink up all the resources of everything else–we spent a month (pretty much our entire February) removing all the periwinkle from our backyard. When we thought we were finished, the warm weather coaxed up some more. I anticipate years of periwinkle induced rage.
We bought a house with a jungle for a backyard last year. It’s looking better every day as we add raised beds, tear down monster trees, cut back invasive honeysuckle (and aforementioned periwinkle), lovingly pamper new grass, and now we have a few fruits trees back there. The veggies go in soon.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, so sorry for your periwinkle battle! May you win the war!
xo,
s
Bob says
Man you guys are good. You never mentioned how you dug things up? Interested to know if you tilled or broke out the good ole shovel. We’ve got a great assortment of Tillers at Tillers Direct. Check us out next time you’re looking to move some dirt!
YoungHouseLove says
We just used regular old sweat and a shovel! Hah. But a tiller sounds great!
xo,
s
Dayna says
We bought a 70’s rancher last summer, complete with the requisite UGLY nondescript evergreen bushes lining the rectangular bed beneath the bedroom windows. My husband removed them and we have planted ornamental grasses instead. While they are still small, the house already has a more naturalized, updated look. We live in the Shenandoah Valley and also have a bed full of giant boulders that were apparently placed in the spot after they were removed from the foundation area. The previous owners had grass growing among them and kept it all weedwhacked. What a chore! We are in the process of making a sun garden in that area… can’t wait to really see it in bloom!
Mrs. Handyverger says
It sounds like that was a $60 that was well-spent! We need to do so much with our yard here; I’m tempted to look for landscape consultants in my neighborhood. (Of course, my younger brother’s a bit of an expert on landscaping with native plants. I should totally use and abuse him, don’t you think? ;)
YoungHouseLove says
Lucky! I bet he’ll have lots of good ideas!
xo,
s
Meaghan says
Thank you so much for this post! We just moved from the city to the ‘burbs and have no idea what to do with the landscaping. I keep getting postcards for full-service landscaping companies, but all I really wanted was someone to come over to tell us what was overgrown, ideas for plants, etc. and we would then do the work. However, when I tried to google this, I came up with nothing. I saw the term “landscape design consultation” on your Living Social pic and tried this term…bingo…found a woman in the next town over from us that does the same thing. I’m so excited for her to come by!
-meaghan
YoungHouseLove says
Yay! Good luck!
xo,
s
Lucia says
I am always tempted by these Living Social/Groupon deals for professional services that we need. How did you decide to go with the consultant through Living Social? Did you ask for references?
YoungHouseLove says
We just took it as a sign and went for it. We wanted someone certified and she listed her certifications so we were sold!
xo,
s
alisha says
We have been super excited about playing in our 1/2 acre backyard this spring after recently celebrating our first year in our first home…and, as an extra bonus, our first spring as newlyweds!
We JUST completed a 6′ wooden privacy fence (with hidden gate) that matches up perfectly with our neighbor’s existing side fence (they allowed us to build off theirs) which also extends our northern side lot fenced in backyard 10′ forward (almost flush with face of house now, but still far enough back to leave a spot for the utility boxes) a vast improvement from the 4′ silver chain link fence that used to divide the space (without a gate, mind you).
I was surprised how much brighter it makes the area feel because there is now a surface for light to reflect back from (instead of that space simply being the shadow zone/black hole dividing the curb from that patch of sunshine waaay in the back of the yard). Plus, it makes our little 1940s house appear more substantial from the street (and hiding all the other backyard project chaos/doggie mayhem from the view of polite society is pretty sweet, too).
Before the fence project, we’ve been busy replanting forsythia (moved from said fence’s path), creating a moss garden (also moved from fence path), planting a gaggle of fruit trees (3 apple! 2 pear! 1 peach!), and constructing a platform/work space off the back of our garage (sloping yard) from upcycled (F R E E !!!) wood retaining walls found on our lot.
I have to say it is an amazing feeling of accomplishment to see the flowers we planted last summer begin to reemerge from the ground…and to have the plethora of small projects/repair jobs around the yard begin to pull together into the shared vision we have for our home.
Thanks for being an inspiration to the rest of us! Good luck with the landscaping projects! (Oh! Idea! Do you guys have Big Lots stores down there? My husband found a great deal on fruit trees there–$15 a pop!)
YoungHouseLove says
Wow- that’s such a deal! We do have Big Lots I think, so we’ll have to check them out. All your work and that awesome fence sound amazing!
xo,
s
Diane T. says
Will you give a heads up when you put the cobblestones on craigslist?
YoungHouseLove says
Will do! We usually link to our craigslist ad as a p.s. to a post we put up that day!
xo,
s
Gretchen says
I bought the same Groupon and had Katherine out to my house recently for a consultation! I tell ya, I learned more about my yard in that hour that I ever would have on my own. I wanted to pass along two things I learned, just in case either might come in handy since you have a little one too…
First, she warned me that all the periwinkle that we have growing around our shed attracts snakes here. That kind of freaked me out.
Second, she also recommended the otto luyken laurels for the front of our house. I’ve always loved them and did a search online to see how big they get. I ended up learning that the berries it produces are highly poisonous. Just thought I’d pass along the info in case it’s helpful to know…
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks so much Gretchen! She was so great, huh? Good tips too- thanks!
xo,
s
Sara says
I don’t know if anybody has already said this, but those laurels are highly poisonous to people and animals. So please be careful!
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks for the warning! Thankfully Clara doesn’t put things like that in her mouth and Burger holds out for people food (literally, he doesn’t chew on anything outside because it’s not delicious enough). Of course we’ll always keep an eye out just in case! Thanks again for the tip.
xo,
s