Once I realized that all Tulips were not plain red or yellow and that I could hand pick my varieties at Halifax Seed, I became obsessed. They are totally not deer-resistant, so here at the new homestead I only have them inside the area that is fenced in for the Border Collies. I have about 100 and they will bloom every two weeks so very excited today to enter 6 weeks of beautiful Tulips and flowers in vases finally!

I’ve been growing Garlic for over 5 years now. I started at my last house in a subdivision in Eastern Passage and moved out before the biggest haul was harvested! But a chef bought the house, so assuming it was well enjoyed. Last year my harvest was not the best here as I literally planted the Garlic by digging holes into a giant weedpatch and throwing seaweed over the top. I just had no time. But small sad Garlic is better than none. We ate the last one last week. Last fall (2023) I moved a bunch of soil from another part of the yard and mixed sheep manure in and planted almost 100 bulbs. I even mulched it! And it looks great. So excited to taste if this August. Scapes first of course.

All ready to bloom. Columbine, Lamb’s Ears, Tiger Lillies, and Spurge. The area was bare when I bought the house as they had a planter box there and removed it. Lamb’s Ears and Spurge came from Dad. Tiger Lillies from someone in Cow Bay, and I planted Columbine last year from seed and it never flowered, but it never died. So very excited to see it looking all bush and promising. We’ll see in about 2 months how this all turns out but I just know it will be gorgeous darling…

Although I love my new space dearly, I sometimes miss the jungle-like feel of my small space back in the subdivision.

My little courtyard garden where I used to live was greatly limited by space and completely fenced in.  Each summer the fence would be covered when the grape vines filled in with leaves and the small space had some fairy large bushes namely Azalea, Rhododendron, and Red Currant making it super cozy and tucked in.

The current homestead as I like to refer to it, has a lot of open area and almost 2 acres to work with.  Which is amazing and I am extremely fortunate, but I do want to create another little cozy jungle where I can bask in flowers each day in summer and fall.

It was 4 months before I took possession of the property and I made many plans for the house and property, most of which have come to fruition, but some are works in progress of course.  My vision was to have a rock wall surrounding the area from the kitchen door to the patio door to give some height and definition.

So, foraging for rocks has become my obsession, and slowly building an arsenal of shrubs and perennial flowers with height.  I haven’t made much progress it may seem, but I did start with nothing.  Currently I have 4 gardens which are spreading each year and are helping me keep my vision for the rock wall.   In honesty it may not make sense there as there is no slope so I may need to rely on foliage but I am also going to experiment with trellising vegetables this year in the space so it will be fun to see what the plan looks like a year from now.

Partially due to finances, and largely because I love to garden slowly, I work with what I have and build on successes for what grows well in each area.  So, it’s a living process and evolves from year to year.  At my old property it took about 7 or 8 years to get it the way I wanted it and I believe the new tenants love it so that warms up my heart too.

My property is tucked in with a rock wall and big trees in fact which is amazing but I still want my little micro-jungle. 

Over time I will build many gardens on the property and connect them together as I go to reduce lawn and support native plants.  I already built a few down by my garlic patch, and one where the chicken coop used to be.

I can’t imagine I will ever finish them all but life is a journey.