9 Pinewood Dr, Webster, MA 01570, USA
NE & False Asters, Scarlet Beebalm, Blanket Flowers, LOTS of Black-Eyed Susans, Butterfly weed, Chives, Purple Conflower (by the driveway), Fleabane, Wrinkleleaf & Grassleaved Goldenrod, Shagbark Hickory trees, Joe Pye, Lavender, Meadow Sage and more
I planted my garden in the spring of 2023, soon after moving into our house. It is 40' long and 25' wide. I had planned to do a native pollinator garden at the house, but not so large and not so soon after moving. However, whatever they planted after replacing the septic system turned into a mess so I figured I'd take advantage of the opportunity!
In the Fall of 2022 I covered the area with cardboard (from our moving boxes!) and compost, then began planning the plants. That was the most fun! I started with mostly plugs because I'm not confident about seeds and wanted some immediate gratification :-)
Everything came up very well in 2023 and in 2024 really took off, execpt the Virgina Bluebells. Not sure if they're going to make it. I'm looking forward to this year since this is the "leap!" year.
In Spring/Summer 2024 I added a path with woodchips (not mulch), an arbor for a rose I brought from my parent's house, moved a birdbath in from anothe area, and a fun red bench at the back to draw the eye into the garden. Nearby I've also planted Concord grapes from my father-in-law's house and a native clematis (both with arbors).
The biggest challenge for me has been water management. We live ALMOST at the bottom of a hill, and there has been a LOT of rain/water over the past couple of years. I added a rain barrel to take care of roof runoff, which has helped a lot. Now that the plants are established it's not such a big problem, but that first year was tough - I watched most of the compost I put down wash away.
Many neighbors asked me what I was doing when I started out, and seem to enjoy the garden (it's about 25 feet back from the street and I made sure there was lots of color at the front).