The Wish List for My Garden...

Amar and I have plans for the garden this year - big plans.  Last year we removed a holly tree to open of the space between the garage and the house.  It's a shady spot and grass doesn't grow there very well so we've decided to put in a deck complete with a fire pit and nice long banquets to lounge on. 

Then there's the breakefast patio Amar want's to put in that's right off the back porch.  Right now a mallow and a rosemary bush occupy the spot - they've sort of taken over the space and will need to dug up and moved somewhere else.  Once we get that done we'll have a nice sunny spot to enjoy coffee during the summer. 

Our last big project is the secret garden - which will run along the northside of the house.  I'm envisioning a grove of bamboo on one side to give provide us a  little privacy from our neighbors and on the side against the house I'll plant fushias and other shade loving plants and maybe a water feature.  It will be a sweet, serene little spot for me to escape to after a hard days work.

Then there's the rest of the garden - it's divided into 4 sections:  the inferno strip (the west side of the yard, and a south facing bed along the fence line and the parking strip), the woodland garden section that's under the big locust trees, the dappled shade garden on the other side of fence from the inferno strip and the shade/part shade garden under the cherry tree and the full sun section that faces the south that's inside the fence and along side the house.  I've got my wish list for the plants that I want to put in my garden:

• Lily of the Valley - to go in the woodland and shade/part shade section
• Rudebeckia - to go in the inferno strips
• Sicilian Mint to plant between the patio stones in the shade/part shade section
• Ornamental grasses for the inferno strip
• Sages - for the full sun and inferno strip
• Violas - shade/part shade and woodland garden section
• Daisies:  both Shastas and Marguerites - anywhere they'll grow!
• Bears Breeches - in the woodland garden
• Herbs:  Lemon Thyme, Basil, Chives and Lettuce - in the kitchen garden
• Purple Coneflower - to go in the inferno strips
• Hardy Fuschias - the secret garden
• Day Lilies - for the full sun and inferno strip
• Sea Holly - for the full sun and inferno strip
• Lavendar- for the full sun and inferno strip
• Coreopsis - for the full sun and inferno strip
• Hyssop - for the full sun and inferno strip
• Hostas - shade/part shade and woodland garden section
• Dicentras - shade/part shade and woodland garden section
• Anemones - shade/part shade and woodland garden section
• Poppies - for the full sun and inferno strip
• Cat Mint - for the fun sun and inferno strip
• Geum - for the full sun and inferno strip
• Deutzia - shade/part shade and woodland section
• Crocosmia -for the full sun and inferno strip
• Chocolate Cosmos - shade/part shade section

For those of you living in the Pacifice Northwest you might want to check out this great resource for choosing plants "Great Plant Picks" presented by Elisabeth Carey Miller Botantical Gardens.  It list over 800 plants well suited for those gardens in the maritime Pacific Northwest.  To save money I'm going to try and grow as many of my flowers from seeds and/or bulbs as possible.  So I will be using this guide to help make my selections.  Bulbs are no problem - but seeds are another story - so far I haven't been able to grow anything from seeds. 

I love my garden.  It's a lot of hard work and there are times where I'd rather do something other than to go out and dead-head blossoms, weed or even water.  But let me tell you - it's such a joy to sit back and be able to see the fruits of your labor.