Raspberry Bush

A friend on mine has a raspberry bush that's growing pretty frantically and offered some cuttings of it to me. Since I'm a huge fan of that berry and transplants always seem to work best, I was all over the offer.



I chose this location in my yard since it was readily close to an existing irrigation system and had lots of sun. Unfortunately, I think was a former driveway or something. Note the pick axe to break through the gravel/soil. Not to worry, I left plenty of growth room.

Butterly Bush Move

So now that I have the Rhodie out of the way, it was time to take on the towering butterfly bush. I forgot to take pictures before the move (duh) but here's where it WAS:

This thing was a bear to move and I had already trimmed it down quite bit. I located it on the west side of the yard, with some future ideas in the works for that area. It looks green here but sorry to say, I think it's a goner. Or maybe it's just sleeping? Anyway, I have hopes it will come back because it usually grows like a weed.

Rhodadendrun Move

In the first week of June, I decided it was time to get back to work on the house. The first project to take on was making the landscape in the front of the house somewhat presentable. But before I could do that, I had to move some pretty large foliage. This Rhodie has never done that great where it's at now, so maybe the move will be a good thing.





Since I am on a corner, I moved the Rhodie to the planting strip to block the incoming headlights to gain a little more privacy. I really wished I would have done this years ago.

The Little Lilies

As I was waiting for the floor refinisher a few Wednesday morning's ago, I had a chance to see and capture the miniature lilies blooming in the front garden. Of course, I must take the classic shot with the house in the unfocused background. After all, it IS a house blog.

Gettin' the Garden Mo

This past week I took full advantage of the good spring weather and got my garden, landscaping, and yard off to a good start. Check it, yo:

Jumbo Peoneas

Kaboom!

This is a great plant that was in the garden prior to me living here. Peoneas are fairly common in Portland and grow well (like most things in Oregon other than cactii). This particular one is unique and blooms much earlier than the more common peoneas and the flowers are HUGE.

Wisteria

This trellis was built nearly 6 years ago, along with the planting of the wisteria. It took about 4 years for the wisteria to finally start budding. That first year it budded, it almost didn't because I almost ripped it out thinking it was defunct. Fortunately, my neighbor informed me these take awhile to take hold. Hopefully, it'll go nuts this spring because I'm getting tired of looking at that bare trellis.

Bloomin' Clematis

The first picture is from inside my fence. The clematis is actually planted on the OTHER side of the fence, but since this side gets the afternoon sun, this is what happens.

I still don't know what variety it is, despite the fact that I see it all over Portland.

Hiya Spring, Nice To See Ya Again

I particularly like this time of year not just because it gets warmer (duh) but also because it reminds me of when I got the keys to my house 12 years ago (March 8th, 1995 to be exact). In fact, I distinctly remember moving stuff with great excitement in the back of the house where the 2nd picture of daffodils was taken, and those same daffodils were blooming at the time.

This shot is of the daffodils in the front of the house. I'm digging the slightly out of focus house siding in the background.
Interestingly, I'm not sure Scully is liking the warmer weather. At the park, where she fetches the racquetball after I bash it into space with my stick, she tends to get too hot too quick. But that's kind of why I built the waterfall.

Here's a shot of the first clematis bloom of the year.

I think there'll be plenty more from the looks of those buds.

Brick Landscaping

On the north part of my house, I have a little section that's always been in need of some type border to separate it from the yard. When I did the remodel of the attic, the brick chimney had to be reconstructed. Before they could get away with the old brick, I hauled it all back to my house for future use. I really like the look of old rustic brick. And having been a part of the house at one time makes it pretty cool too.

These pictures are what I got done this last Saturday by laying out what it will look like prior to mortaring it. The chocolate lab in the picture above is my super cool dog, named Scully.

More Lily Action

This time of the Stargazer variety.

Regarding the remodel, I just got back into it early this week since coming back from a two-week jaunt to Europe. There hasn't been too much progress, only a few hours of sorting and denailing a huge pile of lathes. I'm planning on using the lathes for kindling in the wood stove, or time machine, as my brother likes to refer it to.

More Garden Pics

I have actually gotten a lot done on the dining room this week with tearing out the walls. However, there's really nothing worth posting so here are some picture of my garden that I thought worthwhile.

Red Lily

After going to St. Louis for a few days for my mom's birthday (yes, she's still 39), I came back to some pretty exciting changes, notably this lily that I planted last year. I wondered why it was so expensive. Now I know why.

Here are some other pictures of my yard. Not all that impressive, as my focus is on the dining room these days, but at least my plants are alive!