Infographic: 15 ways to winterize your home

This would have been a good thing to post a few months back I guess…

http://visual.ly/track.php?q=http://visual.ly/15-ways-winterize-your-home&slug=15-ways-winterize-your-home From Visually.

 

Summer is over and so is fall

Well it appears that not only is summer over but so is fall.

Ok so autumn isn’t over for a few weeks but it sure does feel like it. I don’t have any wintry schoolhouse shots yet but the ones from this fall are a reminder that winter is on its way.

It always looks a little lonely at this time of year.

There are so many leaves to rake. I laugh at anyone with a suburban yard!

The yard was still green when we last raked but I doubt I will find it such now.

Dreaming of spring while the frostbite sets in

It looks as though the snow will be here for a while this year so until then I will have to ponder these photos from last spring to keep my mind occupied.

I can’t remember what green looks like at this point.

And last but not least,

A small corner of improvement

I did manage to get in one improvement this year and that was to rebuild and kick-start this little corner garden around the water barrel.

Needless to say it was in rough shape. I had let it get a bit too overgrown and it was in need of some help.

I got some off cuts of rock at the local landscaping supply place for a whooping $3 and used them as stepping-stones.

Then it started to look a bit more like the garden I wanted once I got my mulch in there. Still a few things in there that have to change or be moved but I am on the right track at least.

Seeping through the edges

I guess landscaping fabric and mulch are not the miracle I had hoped for.

The goutweed has managed to find its way though the edges of the fabric though in much smaller numbers.

Nuts. I guess I know what I am doing today.

Summer woodpile

I have finally started clearing some of the brush and debris from the schoolhouse yard and am gathering some decent campfire wood.

Though my grandfather would have laughed at my casual style of piling it, I didn’t see much point in doing a stronger one when the wood will be used in a few weeks. Hopefully anyway.

The bounty of Spring’s rain

I was worried that leaving my newly filled planter and baskets would result in dried out flowers. I was wrong.
It seems that the rain looked after everything in my absence and everything has grown nicely.
Including the weeds however, so now you know what I will be up to next week!

Work to do

Well I finally made it up to the schoolhouse and I’ve got my gardening cut out for me.

My baskets have all been made up. I am sticking with simple things this year in order to make sure all survives the hot summer.
 The Allium that I planted last year seems to have done well and I like the dark purple.
However that is one of the few things that looks decent as I have to do some serious clearing out of this side garden. My not so favorite weed has returned.
The apple tree is in full bloom and I can hear the bees buzzing about so we’ll hope for a full crop of our tiny, sour apples.
I almost missed the lilac but I managed to get a couple of bouquets out of it. I hope to spread some more around next year as well.

New for the garden in 2013?

Like the new blossoms of spring, my mailbox is starting to unfurl its bounty of seed catalogues.

It’s that time of year when you can start thinking about what to do in the garden this year. I’ve got a few ideas and a few things to finish up from last year. And the year before. And the year before that…

Beyond the chronic weeding that will have to take place I want to finish off my perennial beds at the front corner and along the side of the house. It’s time to get these guys done already.

I wondered what might be new in the old garden centres this year so have been looking at some of the new plants of 2013.

Of course Canada Blooms is coming up so I can always make a trip down there. Not a huge fan of these shows but they are pretty to look at after a bland winter.

According to Better Homes and Gardens there are several new “Must-Grow New Perennials for 2013” including some new Dianthus, anemone, and the all-too popular hardy hibiscus that everyone seems to have now.

If you want to go for seeds, Stokes has a nice selection for this year. I like the lavender but I’ll go with a well-formed plant as seeds are rarely my pals.

According to the US Perennial Plant Association, this year’s perennial of the year is a variegated Solomon’s Seal. Not my cup of tea but different strokes and all of that.

Well this gives me a few ideas but I’ll spend a few days stewing on it and dreaming about spring.

More lawn to mow and whipper snip

That was the subject line from an email from our current tenant.

We are bartering some work with a friend while he stays at our abode for a few months. Hey we weren’t using it right now anyway.

He’s been a busy little bee and has left us with a tidy lawn for next spring.

Raking and burning and clearing, oh my! It is already much nicer than how I usually leave it in the fall. It’s nice to see changes and upkeep even when we aren’t there.