Cutout Gardens

I few years ago Mr. Fix-it and I sold a house or two and were able to make a pretty good profit, good enough to have our driveway paved. For some people a paved driveway is a luxury and not really required, and for us it is a luxury too, but REALLY required. No more errant rocks in the lawn and under the lawn mower, no more slipping and sliding in the puddles, and no more muddy feet and mess in the house and yard. Finally, a nice parking place for all of the cars. Not to mention the fact a concrete driveway does add value and curb appeal to a home.

Chris Wallace of Wallace Concrete did our driveway and I must say he did a great job. I was out of town on temporary duty and Mr. Fix-it was left in charge of the pour. I still can't believe I left him alone to decide where the driveway and parking area would go but I did! I am usually such a micro-manager when it comes to things which affect the yard. But between Mr. Fix-it and Mr. Wallace the two of them made some really nice curves which combines the aesthetically pleasing with the functional. Curves and wide enough turn around areas are important points to consider when pouring a driveway. There are actually formulas on the Internet one can utilize to ensure the driveway pour will adequately accommodate a car's turnaround needs. One area of the pour which was not to be, was this little cutout garden.

I asked Mr. Wallace to leave me a garden space in this area and left it up to him to decide the shape and size. No one wants a sea of concrete in their yard, but driveways and parking areas are a necessity and if you have to have concrete, why not make it pretty? One thing a homeowner should do when planning a pour is to think about how all that heat from the sun will affect the surrounding area, and how the runoff from rain will drain. A way to lessen the impact of both is to build in cutout gardens, as pictured above.

I was impressed with the way the concrete crew picked the right scale with the right curves to make everything flow and work for us. This area could've been wasted space but instead has become a lovely garden which gets alot of sun. Lots of sun in my garden is a luxury and I will take all I can get. This garden has been on my mind because I just reworked it. I had to remove a ton of Liriope spicata, aka Creeping Lilyturf, then pull the Lambs ears and Goldsturm Brown Eyed Susans from the roots of the spicata. The garden did change when all was said and done. The dwarf Alberta Spruce is still there and has grown quite large since this picture was taken, but the daylillies, begonia and oregano growing at the far end have been removed or died out. Now this garden has only the spruce, then next to the spruce five Kniphofias, aka Red Hot Pokers, then a bunch of brown eyes. I also added a few Muscari, aka Grape Hyacinths and tulip bulbs.

While I was reworking, rejuvenating, removing and replanting this tiny little garden, it occurred to me that gardening is HARD WORK that never seems to end. It is like dishes. You just get finished washing them and tidying up and you feel really content and happy. Then, if you are like me, you realize the dishes will come back again tomorrow or the next meal or whenever! Dishes do come back and washing them is a process that is neverending. Just like gardening. I guess I should be overly happy I don't have to rework a garden everyday like I have to do the dishes everyday. Could you imagine?! Now which would you choose to do on an ongoing basis if you had a choice? Wash dishes or garden? And what types of hobbies to you all have other than gardening that pull you away from household chores?

As for me, forget the dishes, I am in the garden....