"The Berry Patch"...and A Sneak Peak at "The Garden"

First..." The Berry Patch"...

 

So far there are only five raspberry canes and a few strawberry plants, but more will be added soon.  The thing to notice here is the absence of raised beds and hoops...instead there is a path made of  hundreds of small shells, driftwood accents and a birdhouse  made out of driftwood (a find at the Belfair Farmer's Market last summer)...because this is the transition point from "The Farm" to "The Garden"....

Living on a lake is fun...and has it's own set of rules.  It has taken me six years to really "get it" that the "front yard" is the portion of the property that faces the lake (accessible only by boat or from the back yard) and the back yard is the portion of the property that is accessible from the road.  This is really backwards as far as I'm concerned...*sigh*

So for the last two years I've been building raised beds in what I thought was the "front yard". But when I started building beds in what I thought was the backyard which turned out to be the front yard (are you following this...confusing, huh?)...my husband rebelled!  He didn't want raised beds with hoops next to the lake (the front yard)...it would spoil the "ambiance"...sheesh!  I really needed more beds...Edible landscaping to the rescue!

We are creating terraced beds that will combine ornamental plantings with edible ones...the project is nearing completion and I wanted to show you a preview...and comment about how much I appreciate all I have learned from the the garden bloggers out there.  I wanted to get some of the vegetable plantings in the terraced beds started...but how to protect them from wind, rain and hail?  I tried teepees covered with plastic (that fell down) and wire supports (that fell over) and was thinking of turning all of my plastic food containers into cloches when I saw this post on Laura's  blog (The Modern Victory Garden).  The wire fence hoop she put over the bed planted with greens...YES!!  (Thanks, Laura!)

So...here is part of the new landscape (still under construction)...

And how well is it working?

That tomato plant looks  pretty happy...yes!...I've put some of my tomato plants out...seven to be precise.  If they don't make it I'll only have 87 tomato plants left...I think I'll risk it...

So...from this point on the backyard (which I thought was the front yard) with the raised beds will be known as "The Farm".  And the front yard (which I thought was the backyard) will be known as "The Garden"...and my husband is happy...and I'm happy...and planning new ways to sneak more edibles into the landscaping :)

Enjoy!