Busy Blooming Days

Now that the weather is sunny and the temperatures are mild, we have had a busy couple of days.  I wrote last time about searching for new plants to put next to the tree in the back yard, but a review of available plants quashed that idea.  Instead, Rick and I decided to take some left-over fence materials out of the rafters in the garage and to use them to fill in the spaces next to the tree.

The gap was a bit too much on either side of the tree,
so we came up with a plan to give us privacy
from the neighbors while keeping critters out of the yard.

We took out the lattice that we had used to support the bougainvillea.  Then Rick took some fence boards, attached them together in the back, and attached them to the fence.  We could not hug the fence to the tree any closer than we did because the tree continues to grow.  We think we have left it enough room, though, to expand for many years to come.

The filled areas look simple, but they took quite a bit of work
(and a few gymnastics on the ladder) to complete.

The tree looks "bare" now without the plants, so we will have to think of ways to bring color back into that portion of the yard.  We may plant more hibiscus or allamanda bushes next to the fence to add a splash of color.

While I was outside, I gave the Splattered Paint crotons in the corner garden a "haircut" to keep them from taking over the whole garden.  They seem to be doing the best of any plants in the yard. We did purchase two Aztec grass plants since two in our front garden are looking a little worse for wear.  I also bought an arboricola plant to put in the shady corner in the back yard. Our third purchase was a new podocarpus tree to replace the one that died over the summer.

The new podocarpus adds some height to the corner
of the front garden.

I planted the podocarpus tree while we still had some daylight left, but it was too late to plant anything else.  I was tired.  I knew if I left the remaining plants outside in their pots, they would be fine until the next day.

This morning, after my Friday cleaning chores in the house, I went back outside to tend to the potted plants.  I put the arboricola in its pot in the location that I intended to plant it, but I did not like how it looked.  Rick agreed that since we have three Splattered Paint crotons in that same general area, we were getting too many green and yellow plants all in one place.

Instead, I left the weary Firecracker plant in the corner, and I planted the arboricola in the big brown empty pot that used to hold something else.  Rick argued that if I put the pot in the yard, our lawn care people would chip the pot with weed wackers.  He is probably right, so I looked for a more suitable location.

The arboricola fills a vacant area next to the gate.

I decided that the area next to our north gate looked a little bare, so I put the pot with the arboricola there.  I don't know if it will survive the summer, but it looks good right now.

While Wisconsin continues to be bombarded with ice and snow, we are enjoying the moderate temperatures and warm sunshine that allows us to work outside.  We bought a house in Florida for the winter weather, and I have enjoyed working outside to make Gladys look beautiful once again.