Selling the garden

If you know me, it won't surprise you that when we bought this property, I considered it more an issue of buying the garden space, and was happy to know that a nice house came along with the purchase. That's the reason I'm not the right guy to try to sell it. Most buyers will see it the exact opposite way.

That's why we have a real estate agent. If you want to know about the house, here's the realtor's listing. It is a nice house. The official square footage isn't huge, but a number of the nicer spaces that we use all the time aren't even included in the square footage. Here's the garden room, for instance:

There's also a huge back deck:

And in the front, there's a nice sized veranda (is that the right word?) where we can sit in the summer, and watch the kids play in the cul-de-sac. You can see it at the top of this picture here:

So, if we're so darned happy, why move? Well, my infinitely supportive wife is indulging my desire to move to a larger property, where I can spend my days in the greenhouse, tickling the private parts of roses, and otherwise indulging my green thumb. The yard in our current house is 8500 sq.ft., which is a far sight larger than most residential yards. But now that I've gardened just about every square inch, I'm eager to try it in a more rural setting. Plus, it's a definite bonus if I get to ride a tractor!

There are two groups of people I hope will see this blog posting. One will be people who know me, and check out my blog posts when I put them up (as infrequently as that may be). The other group is of people who are pointed this way because they might be looking for a house.

For those who know me, I hope you'll forgive that I spend a little more time extolling the virtues of my neighborhood and almost-new appliances. For those who don't know me, please forgive my rambling into horticultural matters. I just about can't help myself (as those who know me can attest).

I love May in this garden

This a patch of the yard that I've kept a bit wild looking. On the plus side, I never ever ever ever have to weed here. There's a carpet of periwinkle (blue and violet flowers), mixed with cerastium (white flowers) and allium (pink) that chokes out any potential competition. Top center - despite my limited photographic skills - you can see the bottom edge of a pink montana clematis tumbling from the trees above.

I think I subconsciously designed the whole garden around May and June. It's hard not to. That's when I spend my time in the garden centers, when my enthusiasm is at it's highest. Here's a shot of the top garden this time of year:

 

The white shrub is Exochorda macrantha. Sorry for any blurriness. There are a couple of lilacs and a rhododendron just ready to open at the left of the frame. It's hard to resist adding these spring flowering shrubs to the garden. They're incredibly showy, easy maintenance - just really good bang for the buck.

Here's one more near the top of the back yard:

The white flowering shrub in the foreground in Viburnum mariesii, which is just my favorite shrub ever. It's just starting to flower now, but give it a few days and then come over to see it... you'll be amazed. There's a gold leaved spirea tucked in behind, and even some good old fashioned bleeding hearts (if you zoom in real close). In the far background, there's part of our swing set. If you're looking to buy the house, the swing set, play house, and greenhouse are included in the price, but also optional. That is, if you'd rather have the yard space, and don't want to deal with having these things removed, we'd be happy to pack them along with us.

Spring is also the time for the front garden to shine. Here's a pic:

I love the blue flowers of the Brunnera floating about the white-margins of the hostas' leaves. There are a ton of hellebores in the front yard now too (hazards of working at a perennial nursery - I'm always seeing new varieties that I need to have in the garden).

Now, someone might ask if it's a lot of work to maintain a garden of this size. Fair enough. I'd answer that it's sort of a trade. If you didn't have perennials and shrubs (which are relatively low maintenance) you'd probably have lawn (which, depending on you're inclinations, can be pretty high maintenance). I spend less time weeding and deadheading than I would mowing, on the balance.

Here are a few more pics around the garden:

More hostas, solomon's seal, and the great thornless Bourbon rose Zephirine Drouhin.

A shady corner of the yard. Trilliums, Heuchera, and a tough daylily (Stella D'oro) thrive here.

These stone retaining walls replaced some older wood retaining walls. They were more expensive, but they won't need to be replaced every time the wood rots through.

Side garden. We also put in these stone stairs. At the very front is an Artemisia I'm very fond of (Oriental Limelight) despite it's aggressive tendencies.

So, if you're interested in buying a lovely garden that comes with a nice house, come and see the place or take a drive-by (the address is in the realtor's listing). Our realtor would be happy to show you around. I'd be more pleased if you picked a day with nice weather so that the garden looks it's best, but that's your call. If you know anyone who might be looking for a starter home in a great, family-friendly neighborhood, please send on a link to this page.

Thanks.