What a difference a year makes

I know that if you plant things in the ground they will grow . . . but I'll be damned if every year I'm not amazed at how much everything grows. Maybe it's because we had a townhouse before so we couldn't really plant anything, maybe it's because I have a loose grip on how mother nature works? Maybe I'm not the only one?? . . . . maybe I am.

I love flipping back and seeing how the yard looked back in 2011, and how it looks now. Here's the results:

The hydrangea bushes haven't bloomed yet but I couldn't resist sharing. I think this time next year we'll have a perfectly filled in hedge of hydrangeas, being held in by an almost formed hedge of boxwood.

I think the thing I am most excited about this year is the ferns hanging off the porch. I don't know . . . maybe I secretly want to be Southern (it's not secret I am a southern belle wanna be), but I love ferns off a porch. We bought these ones from Home Depot. We also picked up 4 feet of chain. The existing pot hangers weren't long enough . . . we considered buying new pots with longer hangers but once the ferns grew you wouldn't even see the pots so it would be a waste of money, when you can get 4 feet of chain for less than $4!

Lastly, what would a post about the front yard be without a quick paragraph about the grass. I've written about Natural Lawn care before here and here. It seems like in new build homes and developments the soil quality is terrible (our soil is 90% gravel ;) we've had to amend it with lots of mushroom manure and top soil over the last 3 years. For that reason the grass needs a little extra TLC. Our neighbors don't do anything extra to their lawn . . . they do mow it regularly but that's it. We have only used natural fertilizer like corn gluten, we make sure not to cut the grass too short and over seed our lawn once a year and the difference is dramatic. I didn't edit the photo below at all, I wanted to show the real difference. 

(btw, our neighbors don't read the blog . . . and they rent the property out so they wouldn't be offended about my comparison) The line between our grass and their grass is definitely pronounced, without the use of any chemical fertilizers. It took about a year for the natural methods to really show but it was worth the wait.

Thanks for checking in today . . . have a great Thursday!!! 


If you have a second our two . . . our little library/office is on Simcoe Street today, as part of Jen's guest blogger series: