Garden Tour 2020

This year seems like a different year then others don’t you think?  In some ways I see blogging as like an online Journal. As a Home and Garden Blogger sharing updates of my garden each year is like a journal entry I can look back on and see what my Garden was doing in mid July 2020.

I haven’t shared a gardening post in a while.

Truth be told.  I had HUGE breaks in my blog posts over the last couple years, why? I was busy gardening.  I fully believed I wasn’t good or worthy enough to share it. Although I always knew I should include it and share what I’m doing.  This year I’m not going to do that.

Garden Tour 2020

Ok – This year has either been incredible for some places.  Not where we live.  I’m actually in an amazing growing zone 8b. Yet 2020 and the gardening groups in my local area are ALL struggling with their gardens.  Mine – Just seems slow.  It’s weeks behind where it was previous years.

Current photo taken July 15.  My family in Ontario have bigger spaghetti Squash then mine, I’ve seen lots of harvest posts from people in Saskatchewan. Here…is my 4 raised beds.

My Best thing going – Tomatoes and Snap Peas grown in the greenhouse. Strawberries, Garlic, Lettuce and Rhubarb from the raised beds.  Some of my herbs are super happy this year too.

My 4 year old told me clearly when the strawberries ripened in June he won’t eat the green ones.  I had a minimal harvest last year, now I know why. This year he waited till they turned red.  Our youngest who is 2 discovered the strawberry patch this year.

I don’t mind that the kids know where food comes from and where to find a snack.

Still not a big enough strawberry harvest for me to make my own jam out of it, but exciting to have some in my backyard.

Photo from above was taken in June, it has still been my best first mini harvest.  I’m used to much more at this time. I just harvested Garlic today and I plan to plant more more plants.  I’ve learned I can and hope to extend the growing season in July.  I live in a good zone to be able to do that.  Here’s hoping.

Green House Success!

Want to hear a good and funny story.  I was NOT laughing a couple of years ago when I ripped out massive tomato plants that produced nothing but blossom rot and tomatoes that ripened weird.

Fast forward to last week when my neighbor told me about a compost area we had our our property. It used to be a dog run. UMM….I used that soil for my greenhouse the same year I had major issues with my plants.

Notice I have my tomatoes in POTS!! Those look like healthy Roma’s to me.

I’m just happy to overcome this frustrating year I had and found a way to still use my greenhouse and not have another awful year.

Hard to capture, I love the view when I’m in here looking out into our yard.

Cut Flower Garden – In progress

I made a new garden last year.  It’s a memorial Garden. It’s still in progress as I figure out what to grow here. It’s somewhat of a challenging spot in this part of the yard as there is a massive willow in our neighbors yard near it.

Any Cut Flower suggestions let me know.

A better view of this garden is on this weeks video on YouTube linked below.

Front Garden

Here’s some highlights. I will be pulling up most of these beds and redesigning them. My husband I have kept them looking half decent. However, I’m about ready to start fresh with this space.

Love these roses. I counted more then 40 blooms on this bush this year.

A recent addition of Spanish Lavender from my plant haul this year.

An old co-worker of my husband from years ago heard I had a garden.  He came home with a bin of Day Lily’s the next day.  It took a few years for them to bloom – They are sure lovely this year.

This hydrangea I saved and moved from the backyard.  It originally was where my raised beds are. I took 4 years for it to bloom this full. I’ve been asked to do a post on Hydrangea’s.  I really don’t feel like an expert on these plants. I must be doing something right though?  This bush is becoming a favorite.

I’ve been waiting for 6 years to have another bush like this one.  I know this as ‘painted willow’.  When my husband and I got married we were surrounded by the tree variety of this type of bush. My husband got me 2 for mother’s day.

This is also another mother’s day gift.  I’m waiting in anticipation for this to bloom. All I remember is it being called ‘Candelabra’. The blooms change colors into the fall.

As I mentioned my front garden is all over the place and due for a make over.  I’m just sharing the highlights.

As you can see it makes for great bouquets for my home. My picked flower haul from my garden before I make them into bouquets for my home.

Here’s the FULL video from YouTube

Please let me know if there is something you want me to explain more on in an upcoming post.

I have lots of more content coming for our Home and Garden.

Carrie