Adjusting to a smaller garden space...

My son has a small area near his house that he usually gardens every year. He has graciously turned it over to me this year, and I'm teaching him some new tricks...like how to pack a LOT in a small space. I also use the Farmer's Almanac, and plant by the moon dates. I've noted (yeah...I keep garden notes each year) that my plants do best when I follow those dates for whichever zone I'm planting. I won't be planting enough to can or dehydrate from the garden, but they have a nice Farmer's Market here where I can get some nice veggies and fruits for that later.

 Peas, carrots, lettuces, radishes, and beets all coming up. Just finished thinning them out this morning.

 Though they can't be seen yet, the green, yellow wax, and Dragon Tongue beans are just beginning to come up, too.

 This is the entire area...pretty small, and mostly unplanted. I'll finish the rest...hmmm...moon dates...some this weekend, and some next week. It'll all be done then.

I've also been working on the border around my son's backyard. It wasn't cared for by previous owners, and Tommy didn't know what to do with it. He knew what he wanted it to look like...clean/cleared up...but had no idea how to accomplish that. He was pretty overwhelmed. Now that I've started it...see pics below...he's getting the idea of 'how' to do it, and pitches in. chuckles...I leave piles of brush, and bags of yard waste for him to clean up! The city here has some odd requirements for brush disposal. Anyway...it's been a slow process because it's pretty dense in there, but it's getting done. There are so many dead branches/trees/yard stuff in here that...well...it's a huge mess.

First small area I cleared out.

Cleared out, yet before things started greening up this Spring.

Cleared area with all kinds of lilies and hostas growing.

Teaching the girls how to trim things up!

Cleared area...trees and weeds were totally overgrown prior to the trim I gave it.

Beautiful trees bordering his yard.

Mostly cleared area, and part of the pile of brush the girls and I trimmed out.

This picture and the two above it just show the back of their yard where I've not started working yet. Gives an idea of what the other areas looked like prior to clean up.

There are some beautiful flowering shrubs in that mess...lilacs, some honeysuckle vines, and I don't know what the other one is, but you can hardly see them for all the overgrowth. A LOT of jonquils, daffodils, Lily of the Valley, hostas, lilies, and I don't know what else was also discovered...came up when the ground was cleared, and the lower branches of the trees were taken out. Some of those trees are growing out in the yard...lol...nature trying to take back a more natural setting. Personally? I kinda like the wildness of it, but they want it more manicured. I can do that, and it will help them sell the house when the military decides where their next duty station will be.

So, I'm keeping busy, but this is hard work! Needless to say...day working...day off...and so on.

Thanks for reading...ciao...Lu