Gardens | My Remodel | Outdoors

Chicken Wire and Corn Stalk, Oh My!

As I’m sitting here going through some pictures of my home in a photo album I’m drifting into a state of nostalgia,  remembering the summer after I 1st purchased my house.  That was a very interesting year, and an even more eventful spring and summer. (OK, this is where in the movies the scene cuts to a dream sequence.)

Raise your hands if you think there
might be snakes living in there.

The side of the house looked like a farm…in fact the previous owners did use it as a farm. Ok I live in a subdivision in a non rural area.  One day I looked out of my kitchen widow and I said, ‘Wow, is that a melon growing out there?’ I walk outside to the side of the yard and yep, sure enough, it was.  And there were onions, asparagus (yes asparagus), and a lot of other things I couldn’t quite identify.

It was all growing up around chicken wire and cinder blocks and a whole hodgepodge of outdoor stones.  

It was absolutely ridiculous, that’s what it was! 

Up until this point I hadn’t really been outside.  There was just soo much going on inside that I’d forgotten about the yard. But when I stepped out, I realized, I was living amid an unorganized mess of over grown “food,” I think it was all edible.  I couldn’t confidently identify everything. But there was corn growing on the side of the house and the previous owners had also planted corn in the front of the house….. “Now lemme tell you something…” (Now, I’m saying this in my most southern of voices.) There should NEVER–Eva’ be corn stalks planted in front of anyone’s house unless you live on a farm and that corn is in your garden on your 5 acre property.  It ain’t cute.  Practical, well that’s debatable, but I digress. LOL

Anyway, from March through September, I was out there slaving away in my yard (I’m really not sure if “slaving away” is the best phrase to using seeing as I am African American, but this is my yard in my home and this was extremely labor intensive, so it just seemed fitting. So if I offended anyone, you are really off topic).  


And for the most part…I did it ALONE. You try to finding someone that would be willing to help you haul away cinder blocks and bricks all in 80 to100 degree weather.  I had one friend that would help me out from time to time (Shout Out to my friend Jaime). But I think she only helped out because she felt sorry for me LOL. Ha! But she did say once that yard work was cathartic for her. I unfortunately, did not share the sentiment.   

After 2 months of grueling labor we had pulled up all the scallions and asparagus, removed the chicken wire and cinder blocks that cluttered the side of my yard. 

 It was like I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.  And it included visions of an English garden.  Only problem I had no clue how to pull of such a thing.

In fact I knew nothing about landscaping and planting or caring for flowers and a garden.  My lawn was still a wreck.  But it looked a 1000 percent better than it did when I started.

So now what do I do with all these pavers and cinder blocks?

  Stay tuned…..The life of a ToolBox Diva Continues.  

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