photo Jane Richmond_zpsux4wawxl.png

Monday, April 7, 2014

In The Garden || A New Beginning

{ Ranunculus & Hyacinth }

Amongst all of the madness last fall of finalizing book number two, big changes were happening at home too! Elsie and I (with the help of a ton of friends!) moved from our temporary situation in a happy little apartment with a shady balcony, to a more permanent space in a townhouse (mama has a bedroom again! yay!). 


What's even more exciting is that our new place has a modest patch of grass out back that is all our own! We can't wait to get digging! Spring has sprung here in Victoria and everywhere you look, the markets are setting out their plants, bulbs, and veggie starts. I've been collecting things little by little without any real plan. 

{ Sweet Woodruff - one of my fave's }

As far as I can tell the space doesn't offer much more sunlight than our old patio so I may be limited to what I can grow in the ground. However the top of our fence gets longer hours of sunshine so I've put my herb planter boxes up there to soak it up.

{ remember these? they've been hibernating all winter and are just starting to show signs of life! }

There are also a couple of beds in the common area that have been converted into veggie plots which is SO exciting! It takes the pressure off of my little shady space -- rather than attempt to grow food back here we can just plant things that are pretty and help tend the communal garden. 


{ Columbine }

I haven't started digging yet, just collecting plants, and in the weeks to come I plan to map the sun as it falls on our yard to get a better picture of which areas of the yard will get the most hours of sun during the day. 

I hope this might be the beginning of regular In the Garden posts -- I have missed doing them, to me they feel like journal entries, because gardening is something I am so passionate about.


What's growing in your garden this early April? Do you have a space that requires you to think creatively? I'd love to hear how you make the most of your growing space!
   








21 comments:

  1. Yay for warmer weather! It's finally getting warmer in Edmonton. Although our planting season is still a month away (stupid winter).

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    1. I'm so happy to hear the weather is starting to break for you in Edmonton! I'm sure you're ready for the cold to be over with! And a later season just means more time to plan! Yay!

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    2. I am so happy it's actually warming up here. Even my husband is getting spring fever and wants to start planning camping trips for the summer!

      And I'm glad you are going to be doing your gardening posts again too.

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  2. I love shade gardens - especially ferns. I also love, love, love hosta plants. xo Summer.

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    1. Oh I love Hostas too!... I should add those to my list! I love ferns too but only certain "softer" varieties, not so much sword ferns or deer ferns. The maidenhair fern is my favorite!

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  3. I really like your garden posts. I've found them to be very informative. A sunshine map is an excellent idea!

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    1. Oh thank you! I never know if I'm boring people to tears with my garden posts!

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  4. Jane, thanks for providing us with a breath of spring. It's cold and pouring rain in Toronto today. Some of my early daffodils are just poking their heads through the ground but I won't be planting anything anytime soon. I'm still finding little spots of ice under the ornamental grasses.
    Peggy

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    1. Until it's time to dig you can live vicariously through me in my garden!

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  5. I have a wet, shady area in the front of my house that I struggled with for-ever. Sedum have done well as have hostas and -- my favorite, forget-me-nots. Happy gardening!

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  6. Thanks for the tips Sarah! What type of Sedum are you growing in your shady bed?

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  7. yay! I'm so excited for the return of your garden posts! I hope to get a little planter of...something going this year.

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    1. I learned last year that a little planter of something in the shade is infinitely better than growing nothing at all! You'll have to drop in once you've potted it up and let us know what you're growing! Happy Gardening <3

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  8. I love knowing that spring is showing up in some parts of Canada! We are still under a few feet of snow here in northern Ontario! But I do have faith that it will disappear before the end of the month. I don't garden much. I have Anabelle that come back every year in my shaded beds in the front. Lavender is a favorite to grow in the sun. I tend to enjoy growing things in pots like kale, herbs and tomatoes on the back deck.

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    1. I googled Annabelle -- is it a type of Hydrangea? Mr Richmond brought me one he'd salvaged from work last fall, we weren't sure it was even alive. I planted it in the front bed (it gets morning sun) and it's sprung to life in the last month! It's honestly one of the most exciting things, seeing something that looks like a goner jump back to life and begin to thrive!

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  9. Oh, how I love the smell of dirt. *blissful sigh

    Our yard and garden(s) have evolved over the 5 1/2 years we've lived here. We created a lot of garden beds and a berm at our previous house (pre-kids), and we were able to bring some of the plants with us. I tend to lean toward perennials (tulips, daylilies, coneflower, daylilies, daffodils, daylilies :), crocus, [all those other ones that can't remember the names of]). We have a bed in front of our house, though, that is north-facing and gets only the crumbs of light. We plant impatiens there, especially the double/rosebud variety.

    I could blabber for a month because it is FINALLY not winter in Wisconsin!

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    1. Erin your garden must be gorgeous with all of those flowers. I've only ever grown food so putting in flower beds will be a big adjustment for me. I don't even know where to start, I just keep grabbing things that look pretty -- I hope in the end they are all cohesive.

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  10. Garden in Winnipeg - absolutely nothing growing! Actually lots growing just not so visible yet - though you can see the buds on trees and shrubs are raring to get going! Love your garden posts - all posts!

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    1. Sharon that must make it ten times more rewarding! It's so mild here that we don't get snow and it's green all year round so the signs of spring are wonderful but not as striking as they must be after a deep winter!

      I'm so glad you like the garden posts! It encourages me to keep them going if I know that people are enjoying them!

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  11. I'm also looking forward to your gardening posts! I have a couple small beds (maybe 6' x 4' or 5') and a little patio that all get fairly good sunlight. Last year we got a bit of a late started in the garden but experimented with some herbs in containers and lettuce and carrots in the beds and had pretty good success. I'm excited to try growing some different veggies this year. I'm very much an inexperienced gardener so trying to learn as much as I can!

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    1. Oh you lucky girl! I would do anything for a few small beds with good sun :) What kind of things are you going to grow this year?! Can I live vicariously through you?

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