Step 1: In the beginning there were ugly juniper bushes along the cement block wall. I pulled them out and replaced them with colorful shrubs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 2: Next, with the help of my neighbor Bill Ditzler and his amazing roto-tiller I began the expansion of the flower beds.

This image shows my pickup truck, parked on the island, loaded with “composted leaf mulch” – which I combined with composted manure and sifted high quality top soil to add extra organic nitrogen and minerals to help build a nourishing and moisture retaining base within which the plants could deeply and firmly root. This “base” will continue to “cook down” (decompose) and compress which requires the addition of addition annual layers of similar organic matter (composted leaf mulch, composted manure, quality topsoil) until the site is bulletproof. In other words, if I die or move, it will take an Act of God well beyond Her ordinary rath to kill off the garden. Either that or the actions of a few hellbent local officials to screw this all up.

 

Step 3: As I expanded the width of the garden in proximity to the cement block wall I then extended the garden bed to join it to the tip of the island. (I also subsequently removed the “pile of rocks” that were part of the original “design”. Perhaps if the wall was build of river rock this might have lent harmony to the “design” but . . . )

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 4: I Keep Adding Drought and Heat Tolerant PerennialsI keep adding drought and heat tolerant perennials.