I look forward to planting our garden like it’s a special occasion. I just love picking out new plants and seeing them grow. For someone that’s very much an instant gratification sort, I do love the steady creep toward blooms and harvesting.
This year, we made some (small) shakeups with our garden. First and foremost, we transitioned a smaller flowerbed into a food-focused garden. There are still a few perrenials there, but now instead of being mostly hostas and autumn sedum it’s home to our blueberry bushes and a new asparagus plant. And the hostas? They’re living next to our neighbors’ shed.
I also planted a climbing rose bush to creep up a trellis on our archway. I had a handful of rose bushes before we dug up our yard and did pretty well with them. Since sending them off to a new home (my parents’ house), I’ve really missed having roses. They didn’t really mesh with the all-native, pollinator plantings we planned for our main flower area, so I just did without. But I really missed them! So I thought this little creeping rose would be a nice addition somewhere else in the yard.
Here are all the flowers we’ve planted this year. I try to stick with native species, but I think a few stray annuals in pots are a good exception:
- Begonia: Michael likes the song “Scarlet Begonias” by the Grateful Dead so I buy him a scarlet begonia every year.
- Climbing rose: We got this Crown Princess Margareta variety and I’m really excited to see how these Juliet-style roses look in person.
- Decorative cabbage
- Irises
- Marigolds
- Moss roses
- Pansies
- Snapdragons
We’ve also added a few plants to our vegetable beds. It’s only the beginning of June, but we’re already seeing some good returns here! Our lettuces are nearly out of control and our herbs are looking great. Here’s what edibles we’ve got going:
- Asparagus: In retrospect, I should have bought more than one plant, but I’m still excited to see how this one shapes up.
- Blueberries: We’ve got four different blueberries growing (you need multiple varietals in order for them to fruit—just FYI!).
- Cucumbers: Last year I made pickles for the first time and was so happy with the results. I’ve planted a few cucumber plants this year to keep us in pickles for a good while.
- Hops: My mom picked up a hops plant for us at MATC’s plant sale. We are not homebrewers nor do we aspire to be them, but I’m excited to see how this plant grows.
- Arugula
- Basil
- Beets
- Chives
- Dill
- Lettuce
- Mint (the pineapple variety)
- Parsley
- Pattypan squash
- Peppers (jalapeños and Candy Cane)
- Radishes
- Rosemary
- Sage
- Strawberries
- Thyme
- Tomatoes (cherry and Roma)
- Zucchini
This is all on top of our native plantings. That’s a lot for the city’s tiniest yard. Small space planting is possible, folks. Pots, planters and raised beds are your best friends. And don’t be afraid to mix edible plants with flowers!
