What did YOU do over the Fourth???

Here's what we did......

We dug and pulled vines from the cottage gardens. If you've been with me since the beginning, you will know from my past posts, that this cottage and garden were abandoned for more than a decade. During that time, the vines (honeysuckle, Virginia creeper, trumpet vine and poison ivy) had taken over, not only the cottage, but the gardens, too.

I've fought them for four years now and decided that they were NOT going to win!! Soooo....out they came. With shovels, picks, saws, hatchets and axes, they have been controlled for now.

We also lowered the gardens by about 18 inches of dirt. The constant movement of those vines had mounded up the soil so that watering became impossible. Every rain or sprinkling by hose ran off and did little good to the plants. Watering also moved so much soil into the paths that they had to be reclaimed each spring. What a chore that was!

I was able to save a few plants and lots of bulbs, so those will be replanted. Sadly, some of the herbs were lost, but will be replanted next year. There are still plenty of herbs left in the other portion of the garden that has not been so invaded with vines.

Here you will see the portion of the garden that we left. It is full of lavender, peppermint, spearmint, lemon balm, bee balm, Russian sage, obedient plant, milk weed (for the butterflies), black eyed susans, purple, pink and white coneflowers, delphinium and sweet william.

As you can see, the bee balm is just beginning to bloom. Believe it or not, it's taller than I am! Most of the herbs bloom in late summer and fall. Next spring, I will move many of these plants to the lower portion of the garden so we can redo this, too. I would miss the blooms by moving them now. It's just too hot here in Michigan right now to guarantee a successful transplanting.

It's amazing what two old people can accomplish, if they set their mind to it! You can click on any photo to enlarge. Thanks for visiting!!

Oh, and don't forget that the Cottage is giving FREE SHIPPING for every purchase in July. Your purchase will help replenish these gardens.