Happy Monday, sweet friends! I’ve been super busy this past week keeping our precious grandson. So naturally he took precedence over my time and I loved every minute! But, today I wanted to share with you the small hayracks I planted last week! Come check them out!
It’s quite possible that I “jumped the shark” with planting some things this early, but I simply couldn’t resist after seeing some of the beautiful flowers and ferns at Lowe’s. But, I figure I can pull in the ferns if it gets too cold and the pansies can take it! So, here is where I started! There are two small hayracks on each side of this little door. (This is the one on the right.)
The hayracks were original to the house and are a little tricky to get to. But, I love them and wanted them to look pretty this spring. I hauled out my ladder and pulled out all of the old soil and coco liners, which had seen better days.
I bought new liners but they didn’t’ fit quite right, so I cut along the back outer edges and stuffed it in, pulling up the front along the edge of the rack. I cut smaller pieces of a different liner to put in the corners so the soil wouldn’t leak out. Then I added fresh potting soil and started planting! In keeping with the rule of “thriller, filler, spiller” I added the following. Lavender for the thriller! After it outgrows this pot I’ll plant it in the yard. The fillers are sweet little yellow and purple Violas and the spiller is some Creeping Jenny I had in my big urn. I simply dug out a few clumps and planted them. I need to trim them as they start to root and grown, but left them so you’d get the gist of it.
After I planted both hayracks, I mixed up a batch of Miracle Gro and watered them thoroughly. So pretty! I love the combination of the soft green of the lavender with the violas. NOTE: For each rack I used one lavender plant, four small containers of violas, and four clumps of the Creeping Jenny. Soon it should all fill in nicely!
Now the courtyard is starting to take shape with the freshened up hay racks! Still to come is a way to repair the stucco wall from where the ivy had invaded. There is also a ting of green we think from moisture over the winter, so we need to look into that. Most of which you can’t see from the road, but I’m hoping to resolve the issue soon. (It’s a little distracting.)
But meanwhile, this is a HUGE improvement! The fresh coco liners look pretty, and neatly hold in the soil and flowers. I just went outside to water them and the violas are already starting to fill in!
This foxy young lady is the overseer of the Courtyard. I bought her from a concrete supplier while visiting my sister a few years ago and I’ve been looking for her mate ever since. Doesn’t she look like she knows a delicious secret? Maybe she knows where he is?
Well, I have some serious house cleaning to do today before we play golf. The weather is gorgeous so hopefully that will influence my game in a good way. Wish me luck! Have a great day and thanks so much for stopping by! Leave me a note and let me know what you are up to! Much love, Dell
