Rows of sharin'


Okay, it's really only one row of Rose of Sharon, but that wouldn't have worked so well for the post title wordplay.

These are the the Rose of Sharon trees that separate my mother's lake property (outside of Binghamton, NY) from her neighbors (my aunt & uncle). I missed peak flowering of these trees this year, though I'm told they were spectacular (and late!).


Before.
After.
I put in a small "strip" garden for her last year, separating the gravel "patio" area of the yard and the grass that leads to the lake. My brother had put a wimpy landscape timber there to separate the two. I added a step down in the middle and symmetrical plantings on each side. It's still on the wimpy side, but makes for a more definite division between the two. Being on a hill, neither patio nor yard are level. The stone is too large really for its purpose as a patio, but it was originally added to facilitate construction of the small cottage built last year.

The strip has all deer-proof (supposedly) plantings - silver mound, hibiscus, lavender and some grasses. I'm hoping to add to it a little each year with divided plants from my own garden. There's plenty of room for more beds, though the stone you see is more than a foot deep - so it has to be dug out as best as possible and topsoil has to be added. Stone sucks to dig in.


Different angle of the same thing.


Different angle of the same thing. Mom's added decorative balls, which, surprisingly, end up in the lake when grandkids visit.


Lavender is very happy here and lasted the winter. That bodes well for its future.


Taller grasses cap the ends of the strip.


First-year hibiscus blooms portend well for the future also.


The view the plants have. Generally, the chairs are either full of people or not there - not looking so much like zombies patrolling the yard. It was a busy weekend.

Comments

  1. Rows of sharin' works for me. They're gorgeous even if not at peak bloom. Nice view of the lake. The linear planting to divide the areas looks really nice.

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  2. Nice little perennial border there, Jim. I like it so much better than the wimpy piece of wood! What a great place on the lake! It's nice to see that you leave Buffalo on occasion, too.

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  3. Lake Binghamton looks cleaner than I remember it... are things planted where the old outhouse used to be?

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  4. What a great landscaping job you've done Jim; you should be proud. The photographs are wonderful, but I'm sure even they understate what it's like to actually view it for oneself. Congrats!

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  5. Grace,
    Thank you Ms Peterson.

    Pam,
    It's an okay border. I consider it an acheivement since it's basically rock it's growing in. Drainage is good anyway!

    Teddy-Town,
    Cleaner? I don't think so. Yes, there is a flower bed where the outhouse used t be. We're expecting big things from it. Though it's behind the house where there's little light because of the street & house.

    weather insurance,
    Thank you.

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