Blue Moon Wisteria

I forgot to post about my Blue Moon wisteria!  This is the first year I have ever had a flower on my wisteria vine (bush? tree?).

It's been growing for 4 years.  It is VERY hardy.  I don't protect it at all in the winter and it's in a fairly exposed area.  So Blue Moon wisteria really is hardy in Minnesota zone 4!

This is what it looked like to start out.

I wasn't sure what it was going to look like when it bloomed, because I've never seen a wisteria bloom.

It was more purple than blue, but it shows up very blue in pictures.  I bought this vine at Menard's, of all places, for about $25.  I go back every year and ask them if they have any more.  Every year they look at me like I'm crazy - "Wisteria?  What's that?"

Painted Birdhouses

I painted some birdhouses.  I gave 3 to my parents and kept 3.  I've never painted something like this, so I practiced on the back of each one, before I tried my design on the front.

I think they turned out pretty nice!  My parent's already have birds nesting in the birdhouses that I gave to them.  Mine are still empty, but I have some other bird houses in the yard full of nesting birds, so maybe they will be chosen to raise a little family next year.

The Pond With A Few Friends

The fish had babies again this year.  If you look very closely you can see some tiny, tiny black smudges.  They don't have any coloring on their bodies, just on their eyes and the end of their tails.  Most of them are still black, but s few are already growing and turning orange/white.  This is the cleanest my pond has ever been.  I think I might be getting the hang of ponding.

We have frogs!!!  Finally!  I have been waiting SO LONG for some frogs to find my pond.

There were 4 of them.  I took a lot of pictures.

Garden Update

The garden is growing.  Rain + Heat = Green!

Tibby (on the chair) and Catty check out the fish.

Garden 2011 - Spring

A lot has changed in the backyard since last year.  I planted grass, for one thing.  This is the first time I have ever planted grass in my entire life.  I have killed a lot of grass over the years, but NEVER planted it.  Turns out it is kind of difficult to grow.  Well, if you have a puppy that insists on running across it and trying to dig it up :)

The pond.  The white trellis fell over a couple days ago.  Well, actually it was picked up and twisted around by the wind.  It was a strong wind, because that is not a light trellis. 

The water lilies over wintered with the fish in the pond.  They seem to be fine.  I replanted them and there are many leaves already floating on the water.  Soon water lilies!  I also added some water lettuce, water hyacinth and parrot feather.  I also added 40 Japanese trapdoor snails.  There is a toad that lives in the rocks around the pond.  So lots of wildlife in/around the pond.  I wonder what happened to all the salamanders and frogs I added to the pond last fall?

Only 6 garden beds.  I took out 7 beds.  I wanted to cut back, because it seems like - yes I can grow a ton of food in my backyard - but why am I doing it?  A lot of stuff went to waste last year, because I didn't have enough time to care for everything.  I want to have a garden that is productive and looks good too. 

View from the porch of the grass.

I'm really happy with the changes that I made.  It's pretty and now I have more time to enjoy it, instead of only having time to take care of it.

Can't remember what the garden looked like last year?  Neither could I :)

Click on the links below if you want to see the yard last year.

Garden Sept 2010

July 2010

June Garden Update 2010

May 2010 - easiest on this post to see the difference between this year and last year