A work in progress...

Everyone has been asking for pictures of our backyard progress. Today, I planted the new raised bed planter that wraps around the deck.  I still have room to add 3 Spanish Lavendars and something else that's evergreen, one at each end next to the stairs. The bed is interspersed with flowers (bright yellow marigolds, purple petunias, vintage red stock, mixed cosmos, mixed snapdragons, purple giant empress salvia, lupine, Mama's double burgandy peony, a Kleims Hardy Gardenia, assorted oriental lilies, acidanthera) and vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, radishes, garlic, walla walla sweet onions).  The area in the background in this shot hasn't  been worked yet. I still need to repaint and relocate the fireplace. Relocate the compost bins-which are now empty. You can also see the end of the shed that my potting bench is attached to.

This is the backside of the raised bed surrounding the propane tank. You can see the access path between the hostas. The hostas were brought over this evening (by our neighbor across the street), just as we had finished planting a couple of items in the front side of this bed. I have plenty of room to transplant some tiny ferns from under the deck stairs into the corners behind the hostas. Lots of planting room left. Hmmm, time to go shopping!

From this angle you can see the front of the bed wrapping around the propane tank. In the center is a pink dogwood tree. It is in it's own seperate box within the bed to protect it from overwatering. On each end is a Snowmound Spirea that will have tiny white flowers soon and the labels promise vibrant red foliage in the fall. Between the tree and the Spireas is where my rhubarb divisions will be replanted amid the compost from my bins. I will plant a line of cosmos along the back behind the rhubarb to help hide the tank. Lots of room along the front the bed for colorful annuals. Eventually the ground will be covered with landscaping material and then beauty bark between the beds which will line the perimeter of our property line and along the front of the deck bed.
And, just this evenng, DearHusband has decided we can build a 2 foot high framed lattice screen that we can put between the plants and the propane tank to further hide the tank. The giant pot you can see behind the tank has my Multi Blue Clematis that I plan on putting to the right of the Spirea in the foreground and train up over the top of the tank. I am hoping to get two divisions from the clematis so I'll have one on each end of the tank.

Phew, it was a busy day in the garden. I was blessed with bright sun to warm me and just enough of a breeze to keep me cool. The weather promises to be great again tomorrow!