This
is how the property
looked in 1992
|
And
in 1995
|
Our
garden is located in Florence, Alabama, a town that sits right
along the Tennessee River in the northwest section of the state.
We bought the house in 1992 and the garden (or I suppose I should
say "yard") consisted of a few neglected fruit trees
and a massive lawn that took two hours to mow. I had already
been bitten by the gardening bug at our former residence, an apartment
with a postage stamp size garden. I was reading everything I could
about gardening and was already planning the garden in my mind before
we actually moved in. We started work in the Spring of 1993
and have not stopped since.
Our
first plan (and mistake!) was to try and do everything at once
instead of concentrating on one area at a time. I wanted
to eliminate as much mowing as possible and I knew that I
wanted
perennial borders and lots of roses.
The major part of the garden is a wide expanse on the south side
of the house
(seen at right) which needed
a focal point. We both wanted a long pergola, so after
much debate, we decided to build it ourselves.
The
final plan called for a pergola about 20 X 6 ft. We finished it
during the first week of March 1994.
Michael
working hard
on the pergola...
 |
The
completed project...
|
Next
came planting, planting and more planting.
Other projects have included building a
fence and gate around
the front garden, as well as adding more structures for growing
roses. It
is a never ending process and a hobby that has now become an obsession!
Current
projects involve building a wall to create a "secret garden"
and adding a water feature. Here are more before
and after photographs...
