Six on Saturday

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After a brief hiatus, I am joining the Propagator and his merry band of gardeners for another Six.

I recently returned from a trip to visit J’s parents as well as his sister and her family in Indiana. While there, J and I set up a raised vegetable bed for his parents, and I planted a number of perennials in the bed that runs around the foundation of their house. This bed already featured hydrangeas, ornamental grasses, potentilla, iris, and salvia planted by the previous owner, but there were large gaps between these plants where weeds were encroaching. The first task was to address the aforementioned weeds. Once weeded, the beds could be planted at intervals with perennials selected from the local nurseries. Rudbeckia, echinacea, gaura, baptisia australis, verbena bonariensis, bee balm, catmint, sedum Autumn Joy, and yarrow were planted, along with several creeping sedums for groundcover. The planting process involved clearing away pebbles laid down as mulch, cutting through landscaping fabric, digging through heavy, compacted clay, and amending each hole with a raised bed mix, then replacing the rock mulch. I look forward to watching the new additions grow.