Wednesday, July 20, 2011

That Which Is Impossible

Alice laughed. "There's no use trying," she said: "one can't believe impossible things." 
"I daresay you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast." 
~Through the Looking Glass


That, my friends, is the story of my life!  I have had so much practice believing in impossible things that it has become impossible to tell the difference between that which is possible and impossible!
Five hundred boxwood bushes have been patiently waiting for me in my driveway.  Every night for a month I gave them a bath while I hummed quietly.  
I purchased them when they went on sale at Home Depot but the garden wasn't ready for them yet...so they waited.
The hardpan soil in my yard made its best attempt at being impossible but I didn't fall for it!   The soil is long gone,  to be replaced by beautiful topsoil and compost.  
The pattern I had painstakingly drawn as the template for the garden had been washed away several times by the rain.  Not to be dissuaded, I painted them over three times.  If I ever do this again I will use neon paint, not the brown and black I chose.  All the digging and activity wore the template completely off and, in the end there was no sign of it.  Neon paint. Orange. Definitely.
After digging literally tons of soil I relented and put an ad on Craigslist. I paid a contractor, gave him a receipt and he disappeared...never to be seen or heard from again.
Undeterred, I placed another Craigslist ad...
Three hours later a crew showed up.  One giant man (boy), one medium sized man and two girls (quite small).  Sigh. 
The work began...
The soil disappeared faster than the first landscaper!
Those kids were the hardest, most dedicated workers I I have ever seen!  Dave, the owner, is a real Renaissance man at the age of 22.  He can do anything!  Not only did they do precisely what I wanted them to, they were so much fun to have around! I actually miss them! *sniffle*
The heat is unbearable to work in these last few days so I am indoors.  It's time for a break, I think.  This morning I was so tired I put dog food in the cat's dishes.  The cats were not amused.  I am hanging out with them today.  I have missed them!
In the next few weeks I will tend to my other gardens.  We have a new  red rose garden around the pavillion that is blooming profusely.  We also planted a lovely white rose garden close to the house, near where the formal reflecting pond will be.


View of the left side from guest room window.  There are over 200 red tulips planted in the center diamond shape.  I am trying to figure out what to plant after the Spring bulbs have faded?

View of the right side from guest room window.

Another view of the left, showing my fledgeling lavender garden in the six foot circle...one of two.  There is more to the design but I cannot place the boxwood until the remainder of the compost soil is delivered!  There are four triangles that will be planted with white hydrangeas.  I wanted white pea gravel but there is absolutely none available in Illinois!

From a side angle on the ground before the outer section was dug...

We will be extending the concrete at the front entry to under the window,  replacing the dull column with a Corinthian style and putting a demilune patio surrounded by concrete balustrades under the Library window...
David can even replace the silly little windows abover the door with a single, large oval!

Like this!


The next project is our pond...

Can you picture it with my dolphin cherub spitter?

This photograph was not taken during the 100 degree farenheit heatwave!



Any advice would be greatly appreciated, my friends!  It doesn't matter how much research I do...I still have no idea what I am doing!



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