How Does Your Garden Grow?

Just like last year, we were able to go to a flower warehouse this year.  Because of our little babe, I talked Tom into going with me.  We ended up with twice the amount of flowers as we had last year!  So, we've been planting planting planting!

We filled in this flower bed with bright annuals.  I love the wave petunias - it is the only type of petunia I buy now.

This is a new flower bed this year.  I'm looking forward to seeing this fill in.

We have four big pots in our backyard to fill.  The bright colors make me very happy.

This is a little flower bed in our front yard.  We've filled it with mostly cosmos and petunias.

Our basket that hangs off the front porch.  Tom was really into yellow this year!

And our vegetable garden is growing.

Besides when we can finally pick the veggies, I think this is my favorite state to see!

We have so many strawberries this year, but we will be lucky if we harvest any.  The bird have a 4 am snack.  We've got to get a net!

Sadly, I didn't plant a single plant this year.  I held the baby and directed while Tom and big kids planted.  I kind of missed it!

How is your garden doing?

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Our Veggie Garden - July

A little update on our vegetable garden - it's thriving!  Everything is doing really really well.  Well, except for the strawberries - ants keep eating them.  We've talked to expert gardeners at our local nursery and they've told us that strawberries are really really hard to grow here and don't expect too much - RATS!

the cucumbers, the zucchinis, and the yellow squash

The tomatoes and peppers (and a couple of onions, for you, dad)  The tomatoes have busted out of their cages!

Cilantro, which has gone to seed already, and basil.  We have had so much cilantro!  I love it - cilantro lime chicken, salsa, guacamole, on turkey burgers. . . .  I've made cilantro sauce to put in the freezer for later and have given away bags!  We've also planted another batch that will hopefully come up when the tomatoes are ready.

carrots and beets

peas - just had a bowl on Saturday.  YUMMY!  G. will eat them straight from the garden.

Our green beans getting ready to climb

So the trellis' and the cages are not Martha Stewart looking, but that's fine.  Within a month, the plants will cover them.

coming soon

Tom planted a row of marigolds to make the garden look pretty.  We did place this garden in a prime spot and it is front and center when you look into the back yard it's the focus.  He tried to make it a little prettier for me -  I like it!

How is your garden growing?

Ka Bam!

Good thing we like daisies!  They have completely taken over this flower bed!

They are like my son's comic books - POW!  BAM!  KABOOM!

I. cut me the cutest vases of daisies.  We have so many we're going to need to start giving them away!  I do love all the other flowers in this bed, though.  The daisies are going to need to be split up and let someone else have a little spotlight!

Flower Pots

After we added the tons and tons of rocks in our backyard, Tom and I both looked at it and screamed - this needs color!  It was in the end of October, and things weren't as green around then. 
This year, we added 4 pots to our patio.  I filled them up with flowers from the other day.

Kristi helped me pick out mystic dahlias for the center, verbena, zinnias and wave petunias.  By mid summer, those petunias should be hanging everywhere!

We stuck some of the extra petunias in our flower garden by the trampoline, along with some cosmos.  Just looking at this picture now astonishes me.  This bed has grown in so much that you can't see the dirt!  It is thriving and beautiful!  We are having major thunderstorms right now, or I'd go take another picture. 

Everything we've planted is thriving!  We spend a lot of time in our backyard and this makes it much more of a fun place for me to be.  We did put flowers in the front - that's a post for next time!

Our Veggie Garden

If you haven't entered the Pleated Poppy giveaway, there is still time!  All you have to do is leave a comment - no hoops to jump through!  Scroll down or click here.

Last Saturday, we finally finished getting everything in our vegetable garden planted.  We had such great success last year and were excited to get started again this year.

We buy our tomatoes and peppers from start - everything else is from seed.

Row 1 (bottom of picture):  green beans

Row 2:  peas

Row 3:  radishes/beets

Row 4:  carrots

Row 5:  rosemary/basil/cilantro

Row 6:  various tomatoes

Row 7: peppers and one pot of onions (for you, dad)

2 hills cucumbers

2 hills zucchini

1 hill yellow squash

strawberries

This might be the most exciting stage - besides finally picking the food off!

Our kids were heavily involved this year and had opinions on what they liked.  This is a FAMILY project and they all help.  Surprisingly, M. is the best of the three - always out there with me just looking and checking.

Wow, my mouth waters just thinking of the end result!  I can't wait.

So, I Entered A Contest

and wouldn't you know it - out of more than 13,000, I made the top 100!

Backyard before

Thankfully, I have this little blog and I'm reaching out to the blogging world for help.  Let me give you a little more info:


June 2011

CSN was having a Blah Backyard Makeover Contest and about a year ago, I entered our backyard.  I told them of how hard my husband has worked to make our backyard what it is right now.  He's been out there working every Saturday, weather permitting, for the past 4 years.  We have done everything ourselves, from hauling out dirt, to hauling in bricks.  Our kids have become expert hard workers.  Now, the hardscape is pretty much done - but the backyard still looks empty.  We need to furnish it all!  We would love to use it.  I would love to win this contest and give our hard working family a break!

The prize is a $15,000 makeover and HGTV's Justin Cave's help.  While we don't really need a makeover, we really need to just finish. 

So . . . HELP, PLEASE!!

Click here and "like" CSN stores on facebook.  That will allow you to get to the Contest Corner.  Click the Blah Backyard and vote for us - it's Laurel M. from Parker!  I know it seems like a lot to do with all the clicking and liking - but it really will just take a moment.  Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you!!

35 Tons

This is what 35 tons of rock looks like:

 Actually, this is just 25 tons of rock.

 The other 8 tons came the following Saturday.  It was shovelled and moved to the backyard before I even got around to getting my camera.

 What I also don't have a picture of is the massive amount of massive men that came by and helped us moved it to the back.  I just watched and provided Gatorade (and Advil).

 I took these pictures on October 29 - and yes, my kids are in shorts.  Colorado had an awesome fall this year!

Now, we have a sea of rock in our backyard - but we are at a stopping point for the cold weather!

Mary Mary Quite Contrary

How does your garden grow?

This was our vegetable garden at the end of May:

Now, a little over a month, it's going strong.

Everything seems to be thriving.

We harvested a bowl full of peas for dinner tonight - I can't tell you how much I love that.

We've pretty much eaten all the radishes.  Well, I've eaten all of them.  They are fun and easy to grow for my kids, but the do not like the taste of them.

Our cukes and zukes:

The tomatoes:

I can already taste them.

The green beans:

Even the broccoli, which I had pretty much given up on, seems to be making a comeback:

This has been such a rewarding hobby - for everyone in our little family.  I'm so excited to see what it has become in another month.