The Great Rockout of 2010: Completion


Well, it's all over but the planting ... I'm both exhilarated and terrified at the same time. Once again I find myself with an elephant to eat. So I'm taking small bites and trying not to think about how many more there are to go. I'm sure the crew felt much the same way about the 16 yards of dirt they had to shovel, dump and spread!

I spent most of today outside watering in the new soil, visiting with curious passersby and neighbors, and getting a few things into the ground. Otahal brought me a flat of Mexican sedums and I bought several other kinds at the Natural Gardener. Those went along the sidewalk to soften and brighten the edges. There are several bare ground areas that will be planted with groundcovers and I may yet remove the half-circle of lawn in the front. The Executive Producer complained that it's difficult to mow up against the stones, and he objects to using a weedeater to keep the grass shorn. Maybe it's best to just rip out that patch and plant groundcovers there, too. We'll see how it mows.

Here's how it all looked this afternoon.


























One final picture: as you can probably guess, this is my friendly garden guru, David Otahal. I've really enjoyed working with him the last couple of weeks ... I hope the feeling is mutual. I owe him many, many thanks for helping me realize my vision.

Comments

Carol Michel said…
That is awesome and inspiring. It's going to be a lot of fun to plant in all those new beds!
I just love this! It really looks lovely..and huge. I know you're going to enjoy the next part! But remember to try to eat slowly.
Annie in Austin said…
We've never even had one whole yard of anything delivered at a time here... your 16 yards at once is terrifying, Cindy!

But how cool to see the big job in progress and heading for a finish.

Annie at the Transplantable Rose
LindaCTG said…
My back hurts just looking at all that soil. But wow, it's magnificent! And thanks for the CTG plug in the Chronicle. What a major kick!
I love it, love it!! Can I come help you plant?? :)
Rose said…
The finished project looks beautiful, Cindy! But I know it will look even more beautiful once you've planted it all. That will be the fun part! My husband would sympathize with the Executive Producer. He keeps saying I shouldn't put any more flowerbeds in one particular area because he's tired of mowing around everything. Maybe I should just rip out all the grass:)
Looks great Cindy! I'm very jealous of your virgin soil. All that fun planting you get to do!
Gail said…
it's wonderful! I can't wait to see what you plant~~gail
Cindy, MCOK said…
Thanks, y'all! I need to go nursery hopping to find some plants for those spaces. With temperatures already in the 90s, I may have to hold off on planting till fall, though.
Kathy said…
It looks fantastic, like you had a garden designer at your side! I hope one day to see it in person.
I couldn't picture the final product as the work progressed, but now that I see it, I am so impressed. It looks wonderful!