There are so many positive things to do now to really help with our expenses this year and in our gardens as well. Our gardens are places we can have some control over in our lives.

   

Everyone I talk to is anxious when thinking about the cost of water usage in their gardens after another dry winter. A beautiful landscape does not require a green lawn along with its heavy water usage, weekly maintenance and related costs. There are hundreds of beautiful plant selections for arid and low water gardens with the added benefit of being fragrant, colorful, and bird and butterfly friendly, too.  

 

Any time is the best time to plant many of your favorite flowering annuals and perennials. They are small and inexpensive and very easy to get started and established in your garden. Flowers always brighten up our lives. Be sure to include flowers that can be cut and brought into the house for enjoyment. My favorite perennial has got to be Alstroemeria (Peruvian lily).....bright and beautiful, and come in every color imaginable. They seem to stay fresh and in bloom forever in a vase. I love mixing them in vases with colorful roses.  

 

I took the plunge and made a beautiful change in my backyard. The lawn was removed and replaced with a flagstone patio set in rich green ground covers. This area is partly in shade and partly in hot sun so I created a tapestry effect, planting sun to shade low ground covers that all can take some foot traffic. In the dense shade, I planted Corsican mint and baby tears, transitioning to blue star creeper, and in the sun different varieties of thyme. The ground covers have just about filled in after being planted this past winter. The flagstone I selected, 'Mexican multi colored stone' is full of rich hues in coral, peach, burgundy, purple and grays. This flagstone was also used in the 'ledgestone' variety to create a curvy seat wall around part of the patio for seating and entertaining. The colored stone is very complimentary to my plants and trees, especially the flowering ones.  

This area of my backyard is enjoyed so much more as a lush and fragrant patio for relaxing and entertaining than it ever was as the lawn that always needed maintenance and the regular attendance of a gardener. My large full-grown Japanese maples, liquidambars and a flowering magnolia create the shade canopy I enjoy out of the summer sun and over my patio. It's especially nice entertaining my friends on the patio in the evening with the soft nightlighting. We usually grab a glass of wine, kick off our shoes and enjoy the soft, cool ground covers underfoot while barefoot. 

 

Beauty in the home and in the garden seem to give us all a feeling of satisfaction and serenity. When it is nice and easy to take care of, it is a vacation to come home.