Ivy supply station, otherwise known as the front yard.I spend a ridiculous amount of time weeding our land. There are many legitimate plants and trees and bushes, but there are also huge tracts of wood-chip-mulched ground. It's pretty, it's landscaping and it helps to define the yard, but it is a pain in the rear to keep weeded. Invasive morning glories and buttercups and horsetails and lots and lots of blackberry spikes provide me with a solid two weeks of nonstop weeding per year, usually done in two or three-day bursts. It is tiring. Once I finish the circuit, it is time to start over again.
ready for transplantOne of my least favorite areas is the side slope next to the propane tank and path to the back grass area. It's a steep slope, and the mulch makes for very spongy footing. You can sink in to your ankles in some places, depending on how hard you put your feet down. Plants love this fluffy loam. When Mom was here a few years ago, she suggested taking some of the (invasive) ivy from the front yard and just shoving it in the dirt to see if it would grow. We did it in a few places, and darned if the stuff hasn't taken hold. It hasn't spread like wildfire, but it's there and it's holding the slope in place and making less room for weeds to grow.
the bottom half of the hill is buttercups, which I have given up on and am just mowing along with the lawn, since the slope is more gradual at the bottom. The older experimental ivy is towards the tree in the back.Today I decided to do a weeding run and then put in some more ivy. It's still the tail end of the summer, and it has been raining pretty frequently. I'm probably breaking some sort of landscaping law by transplanting an invasive plant and encouraging it, but it's just the right thing for the job. Most of what I put in today I yanked off of a tree that it was climbing. I'll cross my fingers that it takes hold and spreads. Perhaps next year I will have a few less days of weeding!
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Eggs laid in the coop today: 4
Eggs laid this year: 42
Eggs laid in the coop today: 4
Eggs laid this year: 42
3 comments:
If you and I lived near each other, I think we would be friends. I think I get you. I love your blog. Thanks for taking the time to do it. Judy
Against the laws of gardening? I think if it grows, you can use it. This coming from someone whose thumb is the antonym of green, the rule keeps a lot of things from being very useful to me.
~Always~
I love seeing pictures of our long-ago transplants. Hurrah for the moist, welcoming environment in Seattle. Go for more...and find some Miracle Grow to sprinkle around liberally after you get your new slips settled in. Don't you love moving perennials around endlessly? It's a gardner's lot. mom
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