Gardening Genes



Front berm with yarrow, salvia, sage and other assorted delights




Backyard terracing




More of our front berm. Ben and Eric actually designed and help put
this together several years ago.  It has overgrown somewhat
but keeps that cottage garden feel that I really like.




My fave - red valerian otherwise known
as Jupiter's Beard




Water feature - soothing vacation spot
at home




Decorating our tool shed




Strawberries in the stew pot along
with moss rose, another annual
favorite




A "stay-cation" spot

I was behind the door when the gardening genes were handed out.  My father loved gardens, although he had a bit more cactus than I would prefer. He did love rocks - I came by that fair and square. My mother had a weed-free lawn.  My older sister has a deck to envy surrounded by flowers and plants and impeccable beds and lawns. My twin sister actually has  DEGREE in horticulture and a great eye for design. Imagine that.  I, on the other hand, used to intentionally leave plants out to freeze, just to be rid of them. I had NO idea what to do in the yard, garden, etc. and really was not interested.  Then came the age of the "depression".  We had moved to Colorado 11 years ago from Germany and depressed I was. Extremely and seriously. So I did what every self-respecting depressed person OUGHT to do - I put my hands in the dirt.  I (along with my hard-working and amazing husband), at our former house, amended the soil, put in manure (sheep and horse), and planted.  I planted what I loved and not by design and I learned the hard way that things grow, big, and overgrow. Janet Phillips said, "There are no gardening mistakes, only experiments." But still that first year - oh my, what solace and peace! 

We moved across the street a few years ago and the labor of gardening continues. It IS labor but the fruits of it are soul food, literally.  My spirit still desperately needs and desires the solace and peace that come from being in the space we plant. I talk to the plants. I tell them how lovely they are and how well they are doing. And they understand and return the favor by bringing quiet to my soul.  

"As the garden grows, so grows the gardener."

Thanks for visiting my gardens!