Trees and flowers and things

Here are some new pictures of what we've been doing around the house. This weekend we planted 2 apple trees. Here's Gary with the help. Here's Alex with his cousin Alex (gets confusing sometimes!!!) and Alex's (our Alex) girlfriend, Tabitha. We planted a Macintosh tree and a Honey Crisp.

Here's the garden under the dining room window. The Azalea is blooming nicely. We added two types of hosta and a bleeding heart. Of course by the time we actually got the bleeding heart into the ground, it was done blooming. The plants in back of the azalea are waiting to be put into the ground in a different area. Just have to finish working the ground and getting it ready for plants. (which means digging up a LOT of rocks!!!!)

I've also been finding a lot of wild flowers around our house that we didn't see at Mom  and Dad's. Here is a Purple Trillium. It's also called Red Trillium or Wake-robin.

Here is a Jack-in-the-Pulpit. It was hard to get a good picture of it since it was hidden in the hosta. I'm really surprised that I actually found it in the first place. It was just a lucky accident. 

Here are a couple of different butterflies that are around. They really like these purple flowers that are all over our yard. I've looked up the name but can't remember it right now.

And here is a Columbine that I found the other day. There are some other flowers I've found but they are so small I can't really get a good picture of them. 

I've been using all the field guides I bought for classes in college. My wildflower guide, bird guide and butterfly guide. I'm having fun finding out what we have around our house. 

I put up a small raised bed garden. It's only about 4'x4'. I have tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, beans and I thought I'd try mini eggplant this year. I might try putting some lettuce in but I don't know if it will get too hot for it now. 

We still have a lot of work to do outside with the landscaping but I am starting to see what it can look like in a couple of years. It's hard because you want to do it all now but it is just not possible. We still have some projects that will take some time. Like the rock wall along the property line between our yard and the neighbors. We have a bumper crop of rocks so it will be no problem getting enough to make the wall. (and I'm sure we'll have a bumper crop again next year!!!) This will give us something interesting to plant flowers against and we will also be able to tell where our property line is when the wooden stakes Habitat used have disappeared.  

I'd better stop here and get off the computer and get some other stuff done today!