I wanted to sketch out my backyard garden layout for quite some time, but the motivation to do it when there always seemed to be more pressing matters to attend to, just never seemed to hit me.
Well today was the day my friends! Lo and behold: My wild garden in colored pencil. A work of love and pure Crayola goodness.
I'm a super practical person sometimes and I love the mix of utility and beauty of a cottage garden, but also the tranquil peace of a woodland garden, so I opted to trade out all the shaded-out turf grass of my yard's former life for a more diverse, useful, and fun take on the backyard garden.
We have a quiet zen garden area, complete with mature Japanese maple and trickling water feature. A dining area and hang-out space by the grill. Raised beds for herbs and veggies. Fruit trees, berries, and flowers throughout. Native plantings in as many nooks and crannies as possible to boost insect and wildlife diversity. And in true suburban family style, we have ALL the play equipment in an attempt to keep the kids from continually doing backflips on to my couch all day.
All of this on a half acre plot with steep grading changes, boggy areas, mature shade trees, and a fairly strict HOA.
With a respectable amount of assistance from the man of the house, I have spent countless hours hauling rocks, soil, and plants in and out of this backyard. I have lied awake at night- ideas firing- dreaming up the next area to tackle. I have been the "crazy plant lady" that visits her local nurseries 5 times in a week, just to memorize available inventory in case she needs something specific for that spot by the trashcan, because when one sees a bare patch of earth, one has a duty to plant something there. Every area needed to be assigned a purpose and I'm just so happy with how it's come along.
The garden is always a work in progress, of course, but I feel like the backbones are finally starting to settle in to mine. The evolution of my little piece of earth- surrounded by so many open, sterile suburban lawns and perfectly pruned hedges, makes my heart sing louder than my teenage daughter's music and my boys' inability to quietly shut a door.