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Home > I Fought the Lawn, and the Lawn Won

I Fought the Lawn, and the Lawn Won

January 20th, 2007 at 08:52 pm

OK, for the purists out there I am using the term 'lawn' very loosely, as I have no actual grass to speak of. Well, I do have some, but that wasn't what I dealt with today.

Today I raked.

And raked.

Oh, and did I mention I raked?

I filled my compost heap, I covered the 8'x10' tarp, and I have another two huge piles. For the curious, I only raked 2 areas, totaling maybe 200 square feet. Got leaves?



The good news is that rotten leaves are second only to poop (cow or worm, not cat or dog!) when it comes to making good dirt. To be living in the land of Carolina Clay, I have uncovered a gold mine of rich moist loamy black earth. WOOHOO!! I'm thinking I'm going to use this lovely dirt to my advantage and plant a lettuce plot in the back yard, which is all northern exposure. I have some old lettuce seeds, but might get some new ones
Text is here and Link is http://www.naturalgardening.com/cgi-bin/shop/S-Mart.cgi?command=listitems&type=group&pos=0&pg=vegetables&group=mixes
here, where I can buy a 1oz mix of organic seeds for $7.50. In case your curious, 1 oz of lettuce seeds is about 20,000 (!!!), which means I should be able to have plenty of baby green salads for the spring and winter.

At this point, the lettuce is my only planned contribution to my yard's foliage. As many of you know, the house I bought originally belonged to what I must assume was an avid gardener. I say this because I have counted, thus far, 11 varities of camellias, and have another 4 or 5 that haven't even bloomed yet. I 'inherited' camellias, azaleas, daffy's, periwinkle, roses, mimosa, nadina, rose of sharon, and countless other items.

Here's what's showing off today. Nadina berries, periwinkle, daffodil, 2 of my camellias, bamboo, and what I think is privet. Not sure on that last one, though.



And, while I'm thinking about it, does anyone know what this is? I've got a crapload of it!

8 Responses to “I Fought the Lawn, and the Lawn Won”

  1. Amber Says:
    1169331286

    Wow were you busy

  2. Broken Arrow Says:
    1169351455

    Heh, funny title.

    I don't have a green thumb though, so I can't comment. Someday, when I'm feeling ambitious enough, I'd like to try gardening....

  3. boomeyers Says:
    1169352144

    Have fun playing in the dirt!
    I am going to start a garden this year too! Contrary1 is a great advisor!

  4. Tightwad Kitty Says:
    1169368953

    Take the plant leaves & flower and picture into a garden nursery and ask them that what we do here. Some of our garden plants are now classed, as weeds that if they get into our native forest here they will takeover.

  5. LuckyRobin Says:
    1169369469

    The white flower in the middle of the bottom looks more like honeysuckle to me, both the leaves and the flowers. Is it a vine?

    The yellow flowers look like a wild flower I've seen around here (or you could call it a weed).

  6. Joan.of.the.Arch Says:
    1169399659

    I think your mystery plant may be a kind of Mahonia. Mahonia is the genus name. There are about a dozen and a half species of Mahonia. If you live where winters are fairly warm and fairly moist, Mahonia will grow nicely there. The most widely known Mahonia is Mahonia aquifolium, or "Oregon Grapes." But I do not think yours is the most common one.

    Here's a link to a Mahonia that looks similar to your plant. http://www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/forums/showthread.php?t=1487
    The pictured one is an interspecific cross---that is, a cross between two species of Mahonia. The people on the Unversity of British Columbia forum where these pictures are posted are very knowlegeable and enjoy talking plants. They might help you with a better i.d. if you ask.

  7. tinapbeana Says:
    1169411021

    woohoo!!! i'm pretty sure you're right: a cultivar of mahonia. very cool: research says the berries are edible.

    as for the white flower, it's not honeysuckle (at least not a variety i've seen around here much). the flowers are small, about the size of a thumbnail (1/3 that of a honeysuckle in this area). and it's not on a vine, but a plant that has long slender, single branches coming from the same growth point in the ground.

    still researching that one. thanks for the info!

  8. daylily Says:
    1169592315

    Can I just say how jealous I am that you are raking leaves in January and I am shoveling snow.

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