I ran across this photo yesterday, taken in the autumn of 2005, a few months after we moved into Mockingbird Hill Cottage:
When we moved in, the two bushes on each end of the area in front of the porch were the only bushes there. Since we moved in at the very end of August, we didn’t do any planting. We did buy those 4 teeny tiny boxwoods to fill in that yawning empty space in front of the porch. I dug out a bed and planted the boxwoods. Then winter came and once we hit the spring of 2006, I started planting in earnest.
Here’s the cottage now. I tried to get a view from the same angle:
I not only pruned those boxwoods this year because they were so big, I made an attempt to prune them into a pretty shape. Ignore the little picket fences leaning against the porch. They’re holding something up until the hydrangea I just planted (just to the left of them) fills in the space. And the rocks on the right are maybe going to be used in a rock garden. Not sure yet about that.
Anyway, what a difference almost 7 years makes! The roses have grown by leaps and bounds. I added two planting beds just around the corner from that rose bush, where there are more rose bushes, an Annabelle hydrangea, spirea, purple coneflowers, the New Dawn rose, liatris, white coneflowers, day lilies, and a butterfly bush.
I hope I can find a photo of the big planting bed in its forlorn 2005 state. I know we have one somewhere from the day we first saw the house. If I find it, I’ll show you a before and after. Of course all the before shots were from my pre-blogging days. If I had been blogging, you can be sure I would have documented everything!
The great thing about being home this spring, beside the obvious pleasure I get from seeing everything burst into bloom, is that I have time to plan, to add, to tweak. I’ve added plants here and there. I’ve planted some seeds in a little area by the dog corral. I’ve pruned. I’ve weeded. I’ve added plants to the patio. In previous years, I could only prep the beds, mulch and cross my fingers until I came back home in July.
How are you on this Monday? What are your plans? (Yesterday I mowed, did laundry and caulked the tub. Today, I’m mowing again – it’s endless. And cleaning. And eating Rhubarb Snacking Cake. )
Happy Monday.
Your place is sooo beautiful. My niece has a 100 year old home in the country they moved into and 100 acres of 1and for the horses. Alot of work inside had to be done but she loves it. It was picked for a calendar. I must put it up this week on my blog. Yes alott of work but your place is beautiful. L. T. Care.
Very cool reflective shot Claudia! Your house looks fabulous.
I’ve got to make some more of that cake…Rhubarb is hard to find lately.
Love the reflection of you in the gazing ball. And haven’t you done amazing things with that yard. When new owners move in there are always such lovely changes.
Jen @ Muddy Boot Dreams
The cottage needed you! See how much happier it looks now! And I still absolutely love your header, Claudia.
The cottage looks enormous in both shots and the plants have filled in beautifully in a short time. I can tell how happy you are to be home this spring. I am resting and editing images today. We traveled to the the Great Smoky Mountains for the weekend and had a lovely time. We took Sheldon Cooper puppy and he was wonderful.
You have turned this cottage into a gorgeous and welcoming place! I’m going shopping today, maybe spend some Birthday money! Hugs, Linda
I love your last pic! Very artsy photo
I got a kick out of your directive to ignore the temporary trellises, and the information that you’re mulling over what to do with those rocks. To me, that sort of information reveals the way a veteran gardener’s mind works. We can tolerate a blank spot or a temporary solution as we wait patiently for something to grow and become what we have envisioned. It’s like we have two gardens, the one in front of us and the one in our minds. We get to enjoy both of them!
Your landscape matured very nicely! It’s lovely to hear how much affection you have for your house and property.
Today for me has already included spraying 12 gallons of fungicide in the rose garden, two loads of laundry (preparing for a trip), and giving an impromptu garden tour for a visitor. Still to do: water the pots, lay out my clothes and pack my suitcase, and head to the store for a couple of last minute things I need for the trip. Whew!
you have such a lovely home…., i want to sit on your porch and watch the cars go by, a glass of iced tea in hand and perhaps some of your rhubarb snacking cake! today,
i’m stripping wallpaper in our kitchen and dining room. not a fun chore for a summer day, but it’s got to be done :)
What a difference in the front… after your plantings in just a matter of a few years. I always think that you have to live with something for a while…until you make up your mind what you want to change. You have increased the value of your cottage so much… by your careful planting.
That rhubarb dessert looks and sounds delicious.It’s one of my favorite things to bake with in it’s season.
Balisha
What a beautiful home you have! And that porch! Lovely!
hello!
today has been nice … went to the chiropractor (long hours of sitting = a stiff back), wrote a blog post — which makes me happy, made myself a yummy lunch and the boys will be home in :30.
your house is so lovely. someday i would like to plant more things but i’m terrible at remembering to water things!
hope all is well
xo
elyse
You have come so far, Claudia- It looks just beautiful. Your vision turned out to be a really good one. You have a wonderful eye for the big picture.
I love your sweet cottage-and I know that the work is never-ending to keep t looking so good- xo Diana
I love your garden and how it has evolved since the time you moved in. I would love to see it in person, especially those beautiful New Dawn roses!
Hugs,
Jill
It’s always fun to look at before and after pictures, so that you see solid evidence of your hard work!! Gardening is so rewarding!
Love your home! That pic into the gazing ball is wonderful!!
KRIS
You’ve done beautiful work on the cottage, Claudia, both in and out. I think it’s so wonderful that you were able to be home this spring as opposed to last year. Woman’s work is never done, is it? As for myself, I need to stay in because I’m expecting deliveries. I received one today in the mail from the States and I’m expecting a major delivery from California and a very big one from the UK. Once I get these parcels, I’ll be free to go out. I need to get a bit of groceries tomorrow because my eldest granddaughter is coming over for dinner. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that the parcels won’t arrive while I’m out.
Gosh your house is so pretty! It’s a pain to constantly be doing chores in order to keep everything up, but when you see pictures like this, it’s totally worth all the effort.
Love the before and afters…it is nice to see the progress. The pictures tell the story, that life is happening here!
Cool photo of the gazing ball…Pat
Claudia, everything looks so beautiful. I can’t wait until I am able to get back out and work in the garden again.
Hugs,
Laura
Your cottage is so lovely and inviting. I have so far to go with flower beds around here – the totally blank backyard stumps me because have to consider the utilities that are buried along the fence lines (right where I want flowerbeds!)
You are making me so hungry reading about the rhubarb snack cake! I don’t even know if we can grow rhubarb here, but if we can, I’m going to plant some. In the meantime, I had to go bake a white box cake and throw some fresh peaches on the top; it satisfies my sweet tooth for now.
When your white coneflowers bloom, please post some photos! I’ve fallen in love with coneflowers after I found out how easy they were to grow last year. Since I love white because it looks so lovely at night, I may have to start searching for white coneflowers!