Gardening

[greenthumb59]

Despite my twice daily murder of squash bugs, I think they have successfully bored into the small pumpkin plant.  Its wilting this morning despite being watered.  This plant is on one of the straw bales.  I honestly don't mind losing it.  

The hot hot weather has finally infiltrated our area.  We haven't had rain for several days now, so I spent this morning watering stuff.  

I am pretty sure I discovered a yellow jacket nest in the front yard.  I watched one crawl into a small hole at the base of a tree.  Our neighbor is going to come over at dark tonight and we will kill the little bastards.  

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

We're adding a new flower bed up against a new wooden fence in our backyard. It will be mostly perennials. We had sheep panel put at the top of it so we can having climbing plants. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm eager to hear them. We're in Zone 8b.

[Pink Cashmere]

Jun 23, 2024 9:48:22 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

Jun 22, 2024 21:56:24 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

I seem to recall reading something about Duke plants, but I don’t remember what they are. 

So far, the first 2 tomato plants I planted are thriving and have a few dozen fruits growing. I still need to cut off another tomato on the SM plant, because it has BER. 

I am really, really not excited about moving my plants off the deck tomorrow, so that the repairs to the deck can start Monday. Even though I tried something different last year, it is just truth so far, that I am much more comfortable with my plants being on the deck. Maybe, and hopefully I will be better about that one day, but I’m just being honest about me not being there yet.

Something is most definitely eating my green bean seeds and sprouts. I have 3 containers that I planted seeds in, and I am ready to just Chuck 2 out of the 3, soil and all. Most of the seeds that even tried to sprout, something has eaten all of the baby leaves off of them, so I’m over it.

Sorry ‘duke’ plants are actually a typo.  I meant to type ‘cuke’ plants - cucumbers. Sorry!!  [img alt="" class="smile" src="//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/embarrassed.png"]

I also have something eating my cantaloupe leaves. I have a raised bed garden with garden fencing all around and a gate, but I still have some critter getting in and specifically eating the cantaloupe leaves. I suspect rabbits, because last year, one squeezed under the fencing and had babies in my squash plants - I’m not sure you can create something strong enough to keep all the critters out!! 

I know you’re not big on bugs and crawling things, so I’ll tell you my evolution as a gardener. I used to hate all of the crawlies myself, until I found out how great worms are in the garden. They aerate the soil, they process the dirt through their poop - plus, they’re like canaries in the coal mine - if you don’t have worms in your soil, it’s unhealthy soil. Now, when I dig out my compost box, I’m happy to see all the worms living there, and carefully pick them out in my gloved hands to transfer them from the compost box to garden, appreciating how long and fat they are. So it is possible to become accustomed to at least some of the garden’s tiny fauna. 

I learned that worms are good thing a few years ago. They are still icky to me, but when I was digging a hole to plant a rosebush a few years ago, I accidentally sliced a big fat earthworm, and felt bad about it. 

A few days ago, there was a small spider on one of my tomato plants when I was doing my inspections. I just pretended I didn’t see it and moved on.

Trying to grow vegetables has forced me to accept that bugs have their place in the natural order of things. So I am doing a little better with my fears because of that, but I still have a long way to go. Big bugs and spiders…. Are still a huge NO for me. The spider in my plant the other day was so small that I could look the other way, but any bigger than that, and especially the big ass, aggressive wolf spiders that move so fast…… even though I understand that they have their role to play too, I just can’t deal with them.

The day Mrs. T “saved” me from a huge wolf spider in my garage, I actually had the shovel in my hand, trying to work up the nerve to smash it. But they are so aggressive and move so fast, that I was standing in the driveway for at least 10 minutes, trying to figure out how to make sure I killed it with the first strike, since the shovel wasn’t flat and the ideal tool. 

And it was so big, that in my mind, if I didn’t get it right the first time, it could lift the shovel and run off to hide or run toward me. I understood at the time that that was irrational thinking, but my fears concerning those things aren’t rational to begin with. And those things can be huge, and they move fast. Me no likey.

[greenthumb59]

Knee Deep in Water Chloe That's a big area!  Are you wanting to plant for privacy, for pollinators, for flowers and/or veggies?  I'm not familiar with native plants in your area, but that's what I would recommend.  Go native!

[happyhoix]

Jun 24, 2024 17:53:18 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

Jun 23, 2024 9:48:22 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

Sorry ‘duke’ plants are actually a typo.  I meant to type ‘cuke’ plants - cucumbers. Sorry!!  [img alt="[img src="//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/embarrassed.png" alt="" class="smile"]" class="smile" src="//storage.proboards.com/forum/images/smiley/embarrassed.png"]

I also have something eating my cantaloupe leaves. I have a raised bed garden with garden fencing all around and a gate, but I still have some critter getting in and specifically eating the cantaloupe leaves. I suspect rabbits, because last year, one squeezed under the fencing and had babies in my squash plants - I’m not sure you can create something strong enough to keep all the critters out!! 

I know you’re not big on bugs and crawling things, so I’ll tell you my evolution as a gardener. I used to hate all of the crawlies myself, until I found out how great worms are in the garden. They aerate the soil, they process the dirt through their poop - plus, they’re like canaries in the coal mine - if you don’t have worms in your soil, it’s unhealthy soil. Now, when I dig out my compost box, I’m happy to see all the worms living there, and carefully pick them out in my gloved hands to transfer them from the compost box to garden, appreciating how long and fat they are. So it is possible to become accustomed to at least some of the garden’s tiny fauna. 

I learned that worms are good thing a few years ago. They are still icky to me, but when I was digging a hole to plant a rosebush a few years ago, I accidentally sliced a big fat earthworm, and felt bad about it. 

A few days ago, there was a small spider on one of my tomato plants when I was doing my inspections. I just pretended I didn’t see it and moved on.

Trying to grow vegetables has forced me to accept that bugs have their place in the natural order of things. So I am doing a little better with my fears because of that, but I still have a long way to go. Big bugs and spiders…. Are still a huge NO for me. The spider in my plant the other day was so small that I could look the other way, but any bigger than that, and especially the big ass, aggressive wolf spiders that move so fast…… even though I understand that they have their role to play too, I just can’t deal with them.

The day Mrs. T “saved” me from a huge wolf spider in my garage, I actually had the shovel in my hand, trying to work up the nerve to smash it. But they are so aggressive and move so fast, that I was standing in the driveway for at least 10 minutes, trying to figure out how to make sure I killed it with the first strike, since the shovel wasn’t flat and the ideal tool. 

And it was so big, that in my mind, if I didn’t get it right the first time, it could lift the shovel and run off to hide or run toward me. I understood at the time that that was irrational thinking, but my fears concerning those things aren’t rational to begin with. And those things can be huge, and they move fast. Me no likey.

Well, I like worms now, but still hate spiders. I can leave the smaller ones alone, even the ones as large as garden spiders, which get pretty large - but they hand out in the garden, on bushes. Wolf spiders, on the other hand, like to come in the house, and that’s a hard no for me.

At the risk of really grossing you out, about 40 years ago (an eternity!) DH and I bought our first house that was built in a field that apparently was a wolf spider habitat. They came into the house. One day, I went to work, took off my street shoes and put on my steel toed shoes to start work, and found the remains of a wolf spider in my shoe!! It apparently was in the closet and decided to hid in my shoe. I came close to throwing up right there. Even now, 40 years later, I get the heebie jeebies thinking about that.  I’m way more careful when I put shoes on now…. So I totally get your spider thing!!!

[happyhoix]

Jun 23, 2024 13:35:14 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

We're adding a new flower bed up against a new wooden fence in our backyard. It will be mostly perennials. We had sheep panel put at the top of it so we can having climbing plants. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm eager to hear them. We're in Zone 8b.

Beautiful fence.

What about confederate jasmine? It grows in zone 8. Saw one at a gardening tour in Savannah Ga where they had grown some on a trellis to cover the whole side of a building overlooking a cobblestone courtyard with a fountain in it - gorgeous. This was spring and the whole thing was covered with flowers. I can’t smell but I bet it smelled nice, too. 

I would stick a bunch of ornamental grasses in there, too - I like pink muhly grass. It’s pretty indestructible, all I do with mine is trim it back in the fall. It also self sows. 

[Tennesseer]

We just had a thunderstorm pass through. As I was walking past a window in my bedroom, I thought I saw a small leaf stuck to my window out doors. Took a look at the very small leaf and it was this little fellow way less than an inch long. A spring peeper. Cute little guy.

[Pink Cashmere]

Jun 24, 2024 20:03:02 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

Jun 24, 2024 17:53:18 GMT -5 Pink Cashmere said:

I learned that worms are good thing a few years ago. They are still icky to me, but when I was digging a hole to plant a rosebush a few years ago, I accidentally sliced a big fat earthworm, and felt bad about it. 

A few days ago, there was a small spider on one of my tomato plants when I was doing my inspections. I just pretended I didn’t see it and moved on.

Trying to grow vegetables has forced me to accept that bugs have their place in the natural order of things. So I am doing a little better with my fears because of that, but I still have a long way to go. Big bugs and spiders…. Are still a huge NO for me. The spider in my plant the other day was so small that I could look the other way, but any bigger than that, and especially the big ass, aggressive wolf spiders that move so fast…… even though I understand that they have their role to play too, I just can’t deal with them.

The day Mrs. T “saved” me from a huge wolf spider in my garage, I actually had the shovel in my hand, trying to work up the nerve to smash it. But they are so aggressive and move so fast, that I was standing in the driveway for at least 10 minutes, trying to figure out how to make sure I killed it with the first strike, since the shovel wasn’t flat and the ideal tool. 

And it was so big, that in my mind, if I didn’t get it right the first time, it could lift the shovel and run off to hide or run toward me. I understood at the time that that was irrational thinking, but my fears concerning those things aren’t rational to begin with. And those things can be huge, and they move fast. Me no likey.

Well, I like worms now, but still hate spiders. I can leave the smaller ones alone, even the ones as large as garden spiders, which get pretty large - but they hand out in the garden, on bushes. Wolf spiders, on the other hand, like to come in the house, and that’s a hard no for me.

At the risk of really grossing you out, about 40 years ago (an eternity!) DH and I bought our first house that was built in a field that apparently was a wolf spider habitat. They came into the house. One day, I went to work, took off my street shoes and put on my steel toed shoes to start work, and found the remains of a wolf spider in my shoe!! It apparently was in the closet and decided to hid in my shoe. I came close to throwing up right there. Even now, 40 years later, I get the heebie jeebies thinking about that.  I’m way more careful when I put shoes on now…. So I totally get your spider thing!!!

EEEEK!!!!

I am glad someone understands my spider thing.

[Pink Cashmere]

It is kind of freaking me out that my tomatoes are out in the yard now, since we had to move everything off the deck for the repairs.

They aren’t literally on the ground, they are on the furniture that was on the deck lol. But still, I have to walk through the grass to get to them and stand in the grass to tend to them, and I am afraid of what might be on them. I know it sounds really silly, but I’m so serious. I insisted Mister go with me to water them a couple days ago. They are not nearly getting the kind of attention they’d been getting when they were on the deck.

The big San Marzano that has been so temperamental, has at least 30 tomatoes growing now. A couple of them need to be removed because… BER. Now, I just basically run out there to see if the bigger tomatoes have started to ripen so I can take them inside. So far they are all still green. The Roma that I planted at the same time, has about 20. I’ve not looked closely since we moved them off the deck, but I don’t think any of the others have tomatoes, just a few flowers.

I threw the rest of the Kellogg’s soil I had, in the trash when we were clearing the deck off. Nothing I planted in that soil is really thriving. I had enough soil from last year, to plant the SM and first Roma, and they both took off almost immediately. Everything else, not so much. I will not buy that soil again. Everything I mixed with the soil when I was planting, was the same, the only difference was the soil. That’s what I used when I planted my green beans, and I was worried I’d have to thin them after they sprouted, but only maybe 1/4 of them even sprouted. Not enough to really even bother with. 

So trying to not spend as much money on soil this year, backfired big time. I want to say I might as well have bought Miracle Grow, but I did buy that first, and it was mostly like a bag of mulch with a little soil thrown in. I’d never seen that before, and I’d been buying Miracle Grow for decades. So that’s why I bought the Kellogg’s. 

[Tennesseer]

My dwarf Mexican sunflower (Tithonia), Fiesta Del Sol, is just about in full bloom. Will bloom up through the first frost.  They are the shorter orange-flowered plants in the front.  Behind them are the orange Turk's Cap lillies.  to the left of the Mexican sunflowers are Four-O'Clocks (Mirabilis) whose flowers don't open until late afternoon nearing sundown.

[happyhoix]

Jun 27, 2024 17:26:29 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

My dwarf Mexican sunflower (Tithonia), Fiesta Del Sol, is just about in full bloom. Will bloom up through the first frost.  They are the shorter orange-flowered plants in the front.  Behind them are the orange Turk's Cap lillies.  to the left of the Mexican sunflowers are Four-O'Clocks (Mirabilis) whose flowers don't open until late afternoon nearing sundown.

These are beautiful Tenn..Just like a magazine spread. My flowers look like they are struggling to keep their heads above the weeds.

Next year I’ll be retired and hopefully I’ll have happier plants.

[Tennesseer]

Jun 28, 2024 15:32:57 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

Jun 27, 2024 17:26:29 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

My dwarf Mexican sunflower (Tithonia), Fiesta Del Sol, is just about in full bloom. Will bloom up through the first frost.  They are the shorter orange-flowered plants in the front.  Behind them are the orange Turk's Cap lillies.  to the left of the Mexican sunflowers are Four-O'Clocks (Mirabilis) whose flowers don't open until late afternoon nearing sundown.

These are beautiful Tenn..Just like a magazine spread. My flowers look like they are struggling to keep their heads above the weeds.

Next year I’ll be retired and hopefully I’ll have happier plants.

The interesting thing about those Mexican sunflowers is I planted no seeds there this spring. They sprouted from seeds dropped over winter. Acting like a perennial.

[greenthumb59]

I'm about to go out and do my evening watering.  I also make sure the bird baths have clean water in them.

So I have a question for my fellow gardeners!

This was the first year I planted potatoes.  I got a couple of different varieties, and started them in March.

I live in zone 7a.  We did have a lot of rain this past spring, and it hasn't really been hot until the last week or so.

I planted six large pots with the potatoes, and put the remaining potatoes in the composted straw bales from last year.

All of them came up.  And then in early June the stems started dying.

I thought potatoes bloomed, and then died off, and then you harvest them?

I went ahead and harvested the plants that died.  I have gotten two decent batches of potatoes from them.

I have probably about 8 plants left that are slowly fading off.  They don't look like they are gonna bloom.

What did I do wrong??
 
And my observation - so far - is the potatoes that were in the large pots produced more potatoes than those in the ground.

[CCL]

Jun 28, 2024 16:26:03 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Jun 28, 2024 15:32:57 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

These are beautiful Tenn..Just like a magazine spread. My flowers look like they are struggling to keep their heads above the weeds.

Next year I’ll be retired and hopefully I’ll have happier plants.

The interesting thing about those Mexican sunflowers is I planted no seeds there this spring. They sprouted from seeds dropped over winter. Acting like a perennial.

My marigolds do that every year. I haven't needed to plant seeds since the year I moved in.

[happyhoix]

Jun 28, 2024 16:26:03 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Jun 28, 2024 15:32:57 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

These are beautiful Tenn..Just like a magazine spread. My flowers look like they are struggling to keep their heads above the weeds.

Next year I’ll be retired and hopefully I’ll have happier plants.

The interesting thing about those Mexican sunflowers is I planted no seeds there this spring. They sprouted from seeds dropped over winter. Acting like a perennial.

I have four clocks that do that. Haven’t planted any in years, but some pop up every spring in various parts of the bed.

[Tennesseer]

Jun 28, 2024 22:51:07 GMT -5 happyhoix said:

Jun 28, 2024 16:26:03 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

The interesting thing about those Mexican sunflowers is I planted no seeds there this spring. They sprouted from seeds dropped over winter. Acting like a perennial.

I have four clocks that do that. Haven’t planted any in years, but some pop up every spring in various parts of the bed.

To a fault.

[greenthumb59]

Tennesseer  Tennessee - do you cut your verbena back each summer once they've done their first blooming and are rather leggy?  

I also have a couple of volunteer Mexican sunflowers.  I just love them and so do the hummingbirds and the butterflies!

[Tennesseer]

Jun 29, 2024 18:22:19 GMT -5 greenthumb59 said:

Tennesseer  Tennessee - do you cut your verbena back each summer once they've done their first blooming and are rather leggy?  

I also have a couple of volunteer Mexican sunflowers.  I just love them and so do the hummingbirds and the butterflies!

I cut back the verbena which hang over the driveway. The rest I leave alone. You cannot see what is on the other side of the tall lillies. But everything in that bed, minus the tall lillies is for the pollinators and hummingbirds. I mow/mulch it down after the first of the new year.

[Tennesseer]

I mentioned it earlier in this thread but check the bigbox stores for plants being thrown out. Very possible freebies.

Frustrated Home Depot employee shares photo of countless carts full of gardening products wasted for no good reason: 'Not our call'

Afrustrated employee shared images of a staggering amount of plants set for the garbage at their Home Depot, sparking a heated discussion about the company's supply chain.

What happened?
The employee posted a series of photos in a subreddit community for Home Depot associates not officially affiliated with the company. Rows and rows of carts are filled to the brim with a variety of plants — overwhelmingly potted in what appears to be plastic.

"Senseless waste," the original poster simply said.

"Just yesterday, I saw so many tomato plants get tossed," one commenter responded. "I just think what could have happened if we donated it to a garden."

Why is this important?

Tossing plants back into the earth may not seem like a worrying prospect, but when organic matter rots, it releases methane, a potent planet-warming gas. Of course, the practices of a single store won't throw the whole planet's climate out of balance.

However, the collective policies and actions of companies across multiple sectors are contributing to overconsumption of resources and rising global temperatures. This can ultimately impact the availability and costs of essentials like food.

Rest of articles here: Frustrated Home Depot employee shares photo of countless carts full of gardening products wasted for no good reason: 'Not our call'[/b]

[greenthumb59]

Jun 29, 2024 22:27:47 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Jun 29, 2024 18:22:19 GMT -5 greenthumb59 said:

Tennesseer   Tennessee - do you cut your verbena back each summer once they've done their first blooming and are rather leggy?  

I also have a couple of volunteer Mexican sunflowers.  I just love them and so do the hummingbirds and the butterflies!

I cut back the verbena which hang over the driveway. The rest I leave alone. You cannot see what is on the other side of the tall lillies. But everything in that bed, minus the tall lillies is for the pollinators and hummingbirds. I mow/mulch it down after the first of the new year.

Thanks!  Right now the goldfinches are eating seeds off of them.  But eventually I do cut some of them back because they are down on the ground and getting mowed.  They will grow back and bloom again though - bonus!!  This is a plant I really love.

[Tennesseer]

Jun 30, 2024 15:36:23 GMT -5 greenthumb59 said:

Jun 29, 2024 22:27:47 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

I cut back the verbena which hang over the driveway. The rest I leave alone. You cannot see what is on the other side of the tall lillies. But everything in that bed, minus the tall lillies is for the pollinators and hummingbirds. I mow/mulch it down after the first of the new year.

Thanks!  Right now the goldfinches are eating seeds off of them.  But eventually I do cut some of them back because they are down on the ground and getting mowed.  They will grow back and bloom again though - bonus!!  This is a plant I really love.

It's harder than I thought. The past few winters in SW Tennessee has had several very hard freezes but they come back.

[NoNamePerson]

Couldn't help but think of this group!! I plead the fifth  

[happyhoix]

Jun 28, 2024 17:43:11 GMT -5 greenthumb59 said:

I'm about to go out and do my evening watering.  I also make sure the bird baths have clean water in them.

So I have a question for my fellow gardeners!

This was the first year I planted potatoes.  I got a couple of different varieties, and started them in March.

I live in zone 7a.  We did have a lot of rain this past spring, and it hasn't really been hot until the last week or so.

I planted six large pots with the potatoes, and put the remaining potatoes in the composted straw bales from last year.

All of them came up.  And then in early June the stems started dying.

I thought potatoes bloomed, and then died off, and then you harvest them?

I went ahead and harvested the plants that died.  I have gotten two decent batches of potatoes from them.

I have probably about 8 plants left that are slowly fading off.  They don't look like they are gonna bloom.

What did I do wrong??
 
And my observation - so far - is the potatoes that were in the large pots produced more potatoes than those in the ground.

I have given up planting potatoes because the bigger and thicker and happier the foliage is, the less yield I get.

Last year was maybe 10 decent sized potatoes and a bunch of little ones for four plants.

The master gardener I work with says they are too hot. I plant them in potato pots between the raised beds and they get direct sun about 90 percent of the day.

I read where another gardener around here plants his directly in a big pile of compost in a mostly shady spot.

I gave up. This year I put tomatoes in the potato pots and they are doing fine. Got the first handful of cherry tomatoes today.

[Opti]

Crap. I just saw my first Lantern fly nymph. I was hoping all this humidity would have taken them out, but no. 

[Pink Cashmere]

I have a couple of SM tomatoes trying to ripen. They are changing colors, and at the first hint of orange or red, I’m taking them off the vines. 

Aside from the one other tomato plant that is some variety of Roma that has several green tomatoes on it, none of the others are doing well at all. The other varieties are Better Boy and Celebrity, and everything is struggling and pitiful besides the SM and Roma plants I mention, even the other SM and Roma plants.

I have given up on and abandoned the green beans I planted. 3 different containers. I don’t even water them anymore. When we put our deck back together, I’m just going to what’s in those containers.

I know I have been fussing about the soil I bought this year, but I really believe that the soil is why many of my plants aren’t thriving. The SM and Roma plants that are doing okay, are in soil left over from what I bought last year. That’s the same soil that the green beans I planted last year were in. And the same soil I repotted my big lemon tree in this spring. They are all doing fine. Well except for the BER on some of the SM tomatoes, which I’ve read can be an issue with them, and probably due more to watering issues than issues with the soil. Everything I used the different soil I bought this year for, is not fine, or even close.

Anyway, I am watching the SM tomatoes that are trying to ripen closely. I want to get them in the house asap, rather than let them completely ripen on the vine and risk pests and critters getting to them before I do.

[greenthumb59]

We have been out of town for a few days.  DS2 watered for me while I was gone.  This morning I dug up the last of the potatoes and pulled the red onions.  The onion tops were withering away, so I just pulled them.  They are a nice size.  I'll let it all dry in the shade for a couple of days and then we will bring them inside for storage.

I harvested three batches of potatoes in total.  We are gonna store them in a cardboard box with some shredded newspapers.  It will be enough for a few meals.  I still think they could have done better.  Maybe I need a different fertilizer?

A few of the potatoes were already sprouting so I just re-planted those.  We will see what happens.

My garden is a big old weedy mess.  Again, me being passive-aggressive because DH won't do anything to maintain the ground garden.  He planted it and never even walks through it.  I never wanted a ground garden because I knew I would end up taking care of it.  So I'm content to let his stuff do whatever.  He may get a few ears of corn, but he will have to pull them.

[Tennesseer]

Jun 23, 2024 13:35:14 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

We're adding a new flower bed up against a new wooden fence in our backyard. It will be mostly perennials. We had sheep panel put at the top of it so we can having climbing plants. If anyone has any suggestions, I'm eager to hear them. We're in Zone 8b.

You need several garden beds along the wall with green shrubbery taller than the fence breaking up the solid brown fence. That's a lot of brown fence.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

It's heatwave week, so we're doing twice per day watering. I've covered my tomatoes with sheets. We've only had two bell peppers so far off of any of our vegetable plants. At this point, I need to stop spending money on new plants this year. 

Tennesseer, it is a lot of brown fence, but it was a lovely view of the neighbor's yard through a chainlink fence. When we bought the house two years ago, there was a bramble of bushes on the neighbor's side of the fence. Three weeks after we moved in, they ripped out all of their bushes revealing their dingy property. DH couldn't take it anymore, and had the chainlink fence removed and this one built. 

[NoNamePerson]

Knee Deep in Water Chloe. The potential along the fence is unlimited. I was mentally landscaping it.     
I’m kinda jealous! 

[greenthumb59]

Oh yeah you guys needed that fence!  Have you decided what you'll want to plant there?