soaphouse's Blog

Amazing what Rain does for the garden!
Jun 6, 2009 | 5:22 AM PST
Tags: garapa , hydrangea , rain , crab grass , weeds , deck , beautyberry , mountain oaks grass , black and blue , salvia , Salvias

This is the most consistent rain season we have had since we have lived in this house and it really is quite amazing! I know it does have something to do with the garden getting more mature, but things are just going CRAZY!

For the most part, that is wonderful...but, it makes the weeds grow crazy too...lots of rain with sunny, windy afternoons...well, you can imagine. So, I have been tackling a lot more weeding (and spraying) than I normally have to do. The vinca and the mint in the front bed is just going wild and has become quite the aggressive traveler...so, I have become one with the string trimmer and have been pulling a lot of it by hand to keep it in check.

I recently bought one of the Worx GT Weedeaters from the informercial. First time I have ever bought something off the TV...and I must say, I LOVE IT! It was my mother's day present and it is awesome!

It has helped me a lot in the garden, especially keeping up with all the spring growth from all the rain.

Here are some recent picts taken of the garden:

The hydrangea bed is really coming along. This is the first year that it has actually looked like something:

The black and blue salvia is such a nice accent in this bed:

I won't show you the view of the back of this bed...which is pretty much a nice collection of crab grass that i need to get out with my special weeding tool.

My purple beauty berry that was basically a stick in the mud when I planted it in the fall - is rally doing well!

<
p>And, I do love the mountain oats grass! It has lots of little seedlings sprouting and i am counting on them to take up some of the area that the crab grass seems to like so much:

The veggies are coming along very nicely and we are starting to enjoy some srawberries, lots of basil and we are greatly anticipating the tomatoes that are soon to ripen!

Hubby has also made a ton of progress with the deck! He has gotten it most of the way done. All thats left is the railing and the skirting. We are also going to put a stepping stone patio at the bottom of the steps to create a nice landing where we can put a grill and nice little bistro set. He will begin work on the railing soon...

Here is a before and after:

And one more before and after shot of stairs:

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/p>

And finally, a nice shot of the top of the deck with the Garapa Wood:

Rain, Rain, Rain
Mar 27, 2009 | 5:17 PM PST
Tags: deck , coral bark , maple , blue , red , rain , weeds , azalea , peonie

We have had SO much rain this week and we are forecasted for more. Of course we pick the week of national flood warnings to build the new deck - LOL! But, I must say, hubby is quite the trooper. He has worked through most of the rain...unless it has been just pouring. He has gotten a lot done and it is looking SO good!

Probably one of the hardest parts was making multiple trips to the stone yard and shoveling gravel to cover the bottom for drainage:

Then he got a majority of the framing done:

He is still out there as I type working by a shop light in the dark - God bless him!

Now that we have gotten both of our little ones on the same nap schedule, I am able to get back out in the garden for good chunks of time during the afternoon. SO, I have been taking advantage of the wet soil and getting lots of weeds pulled.I am also pleased to say that I do believe we will get to see the azaleas in full bloom this year. Usually, they start to bud out and our late freeze zaps them. But, the last freeze we had was early enough that they are doing well now:

And, all 3 of my peonies are peeking out:

Also, the hostas just started to show their little green tips :)

Here is a nice shot of the front. See the dark spot in the front lawn? Thats where I filled a dip in the ground with some soil:

And, the backyard:

See the coral bark maple in the foreground? When I cleaned up the driveway the other day, I took some clumps of the blue grass and put them in this bed. I think that will be so fun come 4th of july to have the red and blue together. I think I have settled on the idea to make this little berm an ornamental grass bed, with some creeping phlox on the edge by the path.

I just love the way everything looks in this rain...like its glowing...and our creek has turned into more of a river, which is neat. we can hear the sounds of the water from the house.

I still have yet to get all the mulch moved, so If we get enough dryness this weekend, I will try to finish that. Happy gardening weekend everyone!

The Weeds Have Won...
Sep 1, 2008 | 6:32 AM PST
Tags: fall , weeds , crepe myrtle , elephant ear , spinach , brussel sprouts

Now is the time of year where the weeds have won...

The perennials have done their thing, everything looks tired and thirsty, and the promises of spring have long since past. This is the time of year that I start to get excited about putting the garden to bed, tidying things up, mulching, pruning and preparing for another growing season.

It has been a good growing season here at soapHOUSE, I have learned a lot and have more ideas for the future. I also have a couple of projects planned for fall:

-Add compost to the veggie beds and plant fall crops: spinach, mesculin mix, sweet peas, and brussel sprouts. I also plan to inter-plant with pansies.

-Find a nice blue conifer that can go where we took out the tree in the back last winter

-Add some round stepping stones to the bed by the driveway so its easier to get in and out of the car without stepping on plants.

-And the usual mulching and such to get ready for next spring.

Here are some pictures of the garden as of late:

The view of my front yard as seen from my front porch:

I have been very happy with those elephant ears this year. I put them in last year and they have far exceeded my expectations. They were a gift from my late grandfather in law, so its wonderful to think of him when I come up the front walk.

Here is a shot of the front porch perennial bed. It has done well this year and the ground covers are really filling in and doing their thing:

Here is a good overview shot of the backyard:

That
sweet potato vine has done its job of providing ground cover in the berm. great weed control!

Here is a little corner that is doing quite well right now:

You wouldn't even know there was a chain link fence behind that!

And finally, a nice shot as you come through crepe myrtle alley:

Pretty soon it will be time to set out the fall decorations :)

Cooling Off a Bit...
Jun 20, 2008 | 6:17 AM PST
Tags: squash , tomato , beans , eggplant , companion planting , hot , weeds , birds , baby birds

Well, with record temps in the mid to high 90's for the last couple of weeks, the mid 80's feel cool! So, it has been a bit more enjoyable to get out into the garden lately. I am still just focusing on routine maintenance: weeding, pruning and mowing. I have decided not to do much planting this season...mostly b/c I did so much over the fall and winter and I think I should give it a bit of time to see how things fill in. Also, we haven't had much rain and I would really have to keep up on the water. Plus...time is limited with a toddler and an infant-HAH!

So,
I have enjoyed watching the results of my hard work over the fall and have been really enjoying to "fruits" of the companion plantings in the veggie beds!

The beans are producing daily and its fun to have to two different varieties. They taste about the same, but make a nice presentation on the plate :)

We have also had enough blackberries to get a bowlful daily and my daughter eats most of them before we even get inside the house!

We have already harvested 4 of the asain eggplants and there are a few more out there almost ready to go. The itialian eggplants are getting bigger every day:

We have a TON of little baby spaghetti squash on the vines - hooray!

And, here is a good shot of the companion system at work...

On another note, the crepe myrtles that were planted 4 years ago as a screen on our property line are really looking good this year and provide a great view from our sunroom and back porch:

And, our little birdie family in the dogwood is about to be all grown up...we have so enjoyed watching them! I will be sad to see them go:

This weekend, I plan to get the creek weedeated and do some more weeding and pruning. Hope you all have a great gardening weekend!

A Day of Compost
Feb 23, 2008 | 4:46 PM PST
Tags: compost , owl , herron , veggie beds , dogs , raised bed , weeding , weeds , rain , drought

(I hope this post goes through ok...with all the weird stuff going on with the site today...)

The last few days we have had a good steady rain. Great for our drought situation! Of course, I have gotten used to doing something in the yard most every afternoon. So, instead...I had some nice cups of coffee on the front porch and watched the rain :)

One morning, when I woke up...I noticed an owl perched on the fence by the creek. We hear owls a lot around here...and my husbad has named the one we hear, Norbert. Maybe this was Norbert showing himself :) . A little later, I also saw some sort of giant bird walking across the creek (might have been a white herron?) I couldn't catch a picture of him though. Here is a little shot of the owl:

It dried up enough today for my hubby to go get some loads of compost for the newly built veggie beds! Hooray!!!

And, in case there was any question as to the necessity of the chicken wire surrounds:

HAH! needless to say...the doggies had a fun day in the garden too!

While my husband was picking up the loads I also took advantage of the wet ground and did my first (of many, I am sure) spring weeding sessions! It felt good to get that done. We got most of the beds full and just need to finish up one bed. Yeah! Gotta love progress!