I talk about it. I blog about it. I spend hours of my days planning, watering, weeding, and maintaining it. But readers, you haven’t seen enough of it, right? Right.

Up the steps – come on in!

There are a couple of decorative pots on the steps. I picked up the pots because I liked the color. It was a rare moment for me: buying pots new at the store. But back to the tour: on the right, you see the Big Pot of Basil. I just trimmed it last week to dry some in the attic. That reminds me – I should open up the attic door and check on the drying herbs.

But back to the tour. You can also see an old re-purposed basket with marigolds growing. Behind the basket is the rhubarb. This is the third location for the rhubarb, and it’s thriving here. In fact, I was going to make rhubarb chocolate chip cookies now that it’s cool enough to work in the kitchen.

But seriously, back to the tour.

Speaking of herbs…

Speaking of herbs, here is the mini greenhouse minus its plastic cover. From the left, you see sage, thyme, and rosemary. Below is a popcorn bucket awaiting repurposing.

More repurposing!

Chuck repurposed this chair a few years ago. It’s still going strong, playing host to decorative plants this year. Hanging from the deck railing is a container of oregano.

Scarborough Fair, anyone?

More re-purposing fun: an old stepladder becomes a set of shelves next to a picnic basket full of parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. The thyme isn’t growing well. Talk about killing thyme…never mind. Back to the tour.

The original plot

When we moved here, I started a garden behind the garage. Today, that plot is mainly raspberries, with the space left over planted in parsley, cilantro (bucket), and in the back, zucchini. I transplanted a few marigolds to a blank area to attract pollinators for the zucchini.

The big plot – the new squares!

This section is new. Remember the old triangle? Chuck squared it off last fall, and we built up the soil with Buttercup’s litter boxes. I’m not kidding. The decomposing litter and waste formed the base for a layer of topsoil brought in from the garden store. The straw bales are the experiment of the year.

This post is getting long. I’ll start there tomorrow.

Directly above my planting table, my storage spot for pots and soil and tools, a few newcomers are moving in.

They’re gone now. Don’t ask for details. It was a dark night in a backyard that likes to keep its secrets. Guy Noir himself could have staged a Raid and I wouldn’t reveal the details. No one was injured in the sting — well, no humans were stung. That’s the buzz, anyway.

And when my attempt at humor gets that bad, it’s time to stop blogging, wash the dirt out from under my nails, and put down the laptop.