Thursday, September 8, 2011

Annabelle's high maintenance

Whoops, I thought fo sho I had posted this week, guess I dreamed it.  Anywho, I've been busy in the yard.  This time of year I go a little crazy and start ordering hundreds of lily and allium bulbs and then freak about where to put them all.  I'm a sucker for the pretty catalogs, I tell ya!  Before all my bulbs arrived, I wanted to get my 'foundation' shrubs addressed.  Mainly, the always-dead-looking Annabelle hydrangea in the corner here:
Why so droopy, Annabelle?!  No matter how much water it got, the stupid thing ALWAYS looked like this.  When I planted it here, it was closer to fall and there was a lot more shade at this spot.  During the earlier months though, it was baking.  So, I picked this new bright-shade spot for her, by the AC:
Those coral bells never bloom in the shade, and I don't really love them anyway, so I just got rid of them.  I got them for free from our neighbor, so I didn't feel too bad about tossing em.  We have a very scientific way of removing dirt without a wheelbarrow around here.  Observe:
Yup, Home Depot buckets and random broken plastic storage bins.  Please don't try this at home, it really sucks the big one.  Anywedonthaveroomforawheelbarrowinthegarage, here is Annabelle all uprooted and still sad:
And here she is looking slightly better still pretty sad in her new home.  I'm really psyched that one day she may cover up that stupid white downspout extender that I have yet to address.
To take her place, I got myself a beautiful sun-loving Weigela, 'Red Prince.'
I already have a stunning 'Wine and Roses' Weigela on the opposite side of the yard, along with three tiny 'My Monet' Weigelas, so this is a welcome addition to the landscape!
I guess I stick to what I like!

8 comments:

  1. pretty!

    i've been working in the yard a bit, too, over the last couple of weeks. it's finally starting to cool off a little, and it's such a nice distraction.

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  2. You have such a gift for landscaping. I love seeing your yard.

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  3. Annabelle is high maintenance, but who isn't? Your yard is looking great!
    Ps. Forgot to comment on it but your porch re-do has been on my mind ever since I read it! A few changes just made a huge difference!

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  4. Your yard is so beautiful! I wish I had a pretty garden like yours.

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  5. I love hydrangeas, but if they are this high maintenance, maybe I should steer clear.

    I've never heard of a Weigela, but the Wine and Roses one is a beauty!

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  6. I love the Weigela!! I had a Hydrangea and I put it in the shade. It was doing awesome and growing a lot, and then all of a sudden half of it died. So weird.

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  7. Have you thought about spray painting the downspout thing? Maybe a reddish color to blend in with the brick? Just an idea!

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  8. I love weigela! Except ours seems to get eaten by something. Yours looks awesome and I love the little froggy. I've never tried to grow hydrangeas but they sound like a pita.

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Thanks so much for reading....your comments mean a lot to me!
Sara