As 9-5 workers, we look forward to the weekends, especially Saturdays. Over the years, my perfect Saturday has evolved. A decade ago, I looked forward to a morning run, an afternoon in the park listening to live music, and leading into the night hours of drinks with friends. Now, it’s a morning trip to the plant nursery, followed by a thorough patio and yard cleaning. A break for lunch at a restaurant with a glass of Chardonnay, followed up with more hard work in the yard, planting our new plantings. And finally, a relaxing night by the grill, relishing in all the completed tasks. 

Today I’m feeling accomplished and rested. We took a much-needed break from the bathroom renovation and cleaned the backyard. Leaves cleared from the crevices and flower beds. I rotated the flower beds up top 90 degrees with plans to build a terrace garden. We are adding a few new perennials, a baptisia bush, a hardy hibiscus, an astilbe, and a David Austin rose bush to the backyard. I also picked up some purple petunias to add instant color. We envisioned and discussed tearing out the brick planters to replace them with stone. It was the perfect Saturday.

Week 17 recap:

• Rearranged beds up top
• Moved sea oats to beds 13 or 14
• Planted mums
• Planted baptisia bush
• Filled front flower pots
• Cleaned and mulched the north bed

Week 18 plans:

• Soil prep companion planting bed
• Start corn, pumpkin, and sunflower seeds
• Plant Bluetiful Dahlias and green mums
• Plant astilbe
• Remove tulip bulbs
• Transplant dusty miller and Hucrucra
• Trim lelands and crape myrtle
• Paint the new back door
• Celebrate the Kentucky Derby

Week 17 in bloom:

• Iris finishing up
• Butterfly Ranunculus
• Rose-Bolero
• Allium