This post brought to you by Miracle-Gro. All opinions are 100% mine.
This spring I was pretty convinced that our lawn was done for. We installed it last year and it did well during the summer, but then I didn’t water it one bit this winter and it showed no signs of life. This spring I watered and fertilized but I never got more than a few arbitrary green blades. Then one glorious day, out of nowhere, it started to hail.
And within about 10 minutes we had this…
And then, just like that, it was over….and my grass has looked amazing ever since. Ah, healing rain. If only it happened more than a few times a year.
So this spring the boys and I have been busy outside. We planted our garden…
They were actually helpful this year (mostly)…they mixed in some new Miracle-Gro with the old soil, planted the seeds, and Elijah was in charge of watering it until the seeds sprouted (then the automatic watering took over). Every day we come out to see how things are growing (Elijah tries to dress himself these days…can you tell?)…
And every day we discover new armadillo holes.
The boys think it’s fascinating…I’m a little less thrilled. I’d like to set out a trap and catch him, not only to save my garden but because the boys would be stoked about setting a trap, checking it each day, and hopefully catching (and releasing) an armadillo.
So in the garden we have green beans, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, carrots, onions, lettuce, spinach, Swiss chard, squash, and cantaloupe.
I also have a few herbs – parsley, thyme, oregano, rosemary, and basil. These are easier to grow than veggies, in my opinion.
Also, our little peach trees are producing like crazy.
Last year we got ONE peach off of all our trees. Adam was convinced it was going to be terrible, so he hesitantly tried it…and proclaimed it to be one of the best peaches he’s ever had. So this year he’s excited to see so many. I personally can’t get over the squishy texture of fruit and I mostly avoid it. Especially bananas… just the sound of someone eating a banana makes my skin crawl. So gross. I’ll stick with my crunchy vegetables, thankyouverymuch.
We also spruced up the side yard, which consisted of planting a few new plants, adding fresh much, and waiting. Lots of waiting.
Then there’s the front porch, where everything in a pot or basket died this winter. I replaced all dead plants with new (even hardier) ones, and swapped out the rotten wood planters with this metal tub from the hardware store…
What I really wanted was a stock tank filled with plants… I even bought one, but the smallest one I could find still looked ridiculously big and out of place. So this will have to do. Next house though, y’all, next house…stock tank planters will happen. Heck maybe I’ll make a whole stock tank garden. And a stock tank swimming pool (I think people also call them cowboy bathtubs?). My brother and I had a stock tank pool as kids, but not intentionally…it was actually used for watering our horse. The water wasn’t clear, sometimes we had to share it with a horse face, and there was always hay floating in it…but whatever right? Hay shmay.
ANYWAY, here is the whole porch…once every few months it’s clean enough to take pictures (though I’ve taken PLENTY of it being messy).
Notice the two little creepers in that last photo? They were chomping at the bit for me to finish taking pictures so they could hurry up and destroy it. They’re like little porch destroying villains…and sidewalk chalk, flower bed mulch, and driveway gravel are they’re weapons of choice. Although that day I didn’t actually let them go crazy, because look what I found while taking pictures…
So sweet, right? This one was fresh from the womb, all legs and still wobbly. Here is creeper #1 trying to see what I’m photographing …
So that’s that…my yard work for the year is complete. Just in time too, because now it’s June and hot. Here in Texas we hibernate during the summer, not the winter. Air conditioning is our friend, and we only venture outside for activities that include swimming or bar-b-q. Preferably both.
Want to be inspired to get planting, or to share a story of your own? Visit Gro Something Greater, a Miracle-Gro community chock full of planting tips and advice, product recommendations, and even a soil and mulch calculator. Basically everything you need to avoid murdering all your plants this year.
Miracle Grow is our go-to and always works wonders for us. I can see a lot of harvesting in your future.
..and that little fawn is just too, too, TOO sweet :))) What a treat to see.
Looks great!! I have seen quite a few people with new baby deer in their yards this year. One lady found one in front of her back tire in her driveway and there was one at our doctor’s office. So cute!!! Did you get some Moon Lily seeds? Mine are taking off!
I didn’t, I couldn’t find them anywhere! I bought that purple heart plant instead, I remember that thing taking over our flowerbed as a kid, which means it’s perfect for putting in a pot. I’m going to keep and eye out for Moon Lily seeds though!
Your yard and garden has come a long way girl and it all looks great! I admire you for your stamina and determination in making things grow in what seems to be a very dry climate. Think I may have said to heck with it and given up ;) I’m jealous, the peach tree looks delicious and is something that wouldn’t grow in our area.
p.s. Elijah’s shoes made me laugh. We took our 3 1/2 yr. old grandson to a park like that last week…one croc and one sandal…lol!!
I can’t lie to you Ellie, I’ve almost called it quits on the garden a few times. Even though we have an automatic watering I have a hard time, it’s just too hot. The produce cooks in the sun before it’s even ready to pick. Every time we get something out of it Adam tells me to “enjoy my $400 pepper”, haha.
Good job on your yard! It’s looking good. We live just down the road from Randolph Air Force Base, so have weather and soil much like yours Your rocks could have come out my yard…limestone, limestone, limestone. I have a lot of the same plants in my yard that you do Drought tolerant is the name of the game here. Peach preserves would be so tasty and you could even make them in the cute new blue or green Ball jars that I saw at HEB the other day. Fresh peaches…yum. :)
Stay cool!
Yes…so many rocks! I think they are reproducing in my yard…we have been picking up rocks since we bought the house five years ago and they never seem to actually leave. I also keep trying to branch out to new plants that every person doesn’t have in their yard, but I never succeed.. There are about 12 plants that grow here (and that the deer don’t eat) and you can forget about the rest!
I’m not used to seeing fawns on a porch or so close to a house. Did the mama come back for it?
Me neither, and this one was right in the walkway where we (constantly) go back and forth between the house and the garage. It was gone a few hours later so I’m pretty sure mama came back and for it.
How sweet is it that the fawn felt safe enough to stay there on your porch…Congrats on the peaches – they will be great for canning or even jam!!
What happened to the fawn? So beautiful to see. What a treat for you and your boys!
It was gone a few hours later so I’m hoping mom came back for it!
Those boys are SO stinkin cute!!! love the independent dressing and the window creeping, and how they just look joined at the hip for any adventure!!! brings back happy memories of my boys at that age… your fawn is so sweet too – and your yard looks great! so weird that your grass was needing HAIL to green up!?!?!?
Thank you! I (usually) think they’re pretty darn cute myself, and they are definitely up for adventure! I think me grass just needed rain…that was basically the first real rain of the year. There seems to be something about rain that makes plants grow when loads of water from the hose can’t.
That precious little fawn – where is mom? It’s very unusual it would leave mom. I hope it is ok. Yes, the peaches look yummy. I am from TX and miss it terribly we are now in GA due to work.
I don’t know where mom was, but the fawn was gone a few hours later so I’m guessing mom came back for it.
Hi! I like your garden — do you ever have problems with bunnies — or deer! — eating your garden? I have a fence around mine, and critters still get in an eat up everything! Last summer, I once saw three groundhogs scamper out of my garden!
Yes, we definitely have critter issues. The deer here are INSANE…they’re all scrawny, there’s about a billion of them, and they eat everything in sight. In other places deer are kinda majestic and you get excited when you see them, here you have to shoo them off your front porch and even then they aren’t scared of you. We actually put up a six foot fence around the backyard a couple years ago for the sole purpose of keeping the deer out and being able to grow stuff. That and it keeps my kids in…but it’s mostly for the deer. We do get some rabbits (and armadillos), but the deer…crazy.
Oh my… look at that sweet little baby lying there on your porch. I would be beside myself with glee! Obviously Mama came back and fetched him?
Your yard looks great! I will admit, I’ve never seen a live armadillo! I’d be just like your little fellas… out there trying to catch a glimpse of the little guys.
But I understand that you want them out of your garden. We have moles here, and they can take a hike in my opinion.
And I’ve never thought of using a stock tank as a planter! I’m inspired. We’re so NOT country/cowboy country – more rain/mud/clouds – but I LOVE that idea, Ashley!
You have done a great job of your yardwork! Everything looks so different to my Maine eyes. I mean, for one thing, we don’t get armadillo holes, you know what I mean?
I can’t get over the fawn on your porch. So sweet and fragile looking. Did Mama come back for Baby? Surely she just had to go feed somewhere?
We get a lot of deer around here, but I have never seen a fawn…how lucky for you.
Thanks Wendy! Yard work here in Texas is a labor of love. It is anywhere, but no rain and scorching heat make it difficult if you want anything other than cactus and rocks. That fawn was gone a few hours later, so I’m guessing (hoping!) mama came back for it.
Hi Ashley, Love that the boys help you in the garden! The yard and porch look very nice! Armadillos are nasty and they carry leprosy. I would trap them and get rid of them if you can’t shoot um. The fawn is so sweet, hope it’s mom took him back.
;)
Cindy
I agree with you….even if we get hardly anything from the garden it’s not a waste, my kids are still learning, working, and enjoying themselves. Also, the the deer here are like pets too…I have literally had to push them off my porch with a broom before.
Mother did come back for the fawn. I saw them walking behind the garage about an hour after the picture was taken.
I apparently missed this post. What a gorgeous little baby! They are just so sweet, and so small when they are born. We have lots of deer here too, but they are very tiny. Like seriously midget deer, compared to other places. The adults are about hip-height, and the babies are maybe knee-high.
Your garden and porch look amazing, especially compared to when you moved in there. Now that the porch is all done up and has the gardens around it, it looks quite grand! :D