I know this doesn't look like much, but it was 5 hours worth of effort. I started by reinstalling the landscaping fabric in the ditch, because I started to get nervous about the rocks' ability to sit on the steep pitch of the ditch-road slope. They've paved our road twice since we moved in six years ago, and each time they've used a substantial layer of blacktop. There's a silver lining in all things; it's actually created a natural toddler barrier for us.
It took 14 bags of rocks to fill the ditch. I don't think I have a future career in ditch digging. It will be interesting to see how well I did with the overall pitch after the first rain.
I planted the three Top Hat blueberry bushes. They've already got a good shape. In doing research, I see many people use them for bonsai. I can see that, since they're so compact. These are 2 year old plants. They mature to 2'x2'. They really pack on the berries, despite their small size.
I also added 3 Green Velvet boxwoods. I like a little evergreen interest in all of my gardens for the winter time. A few daylilies found a new home in this garden, as will a few more of the Sarah Bernhardt peonies (one is in).
Each plant received a generous helping of sand and sphagnum peat moss mixed into the clay. This should help breakup the clay, provide some drainage, and add the organic matter that plants thrive in.
Typically, my next step would be to lay newspaper over the grassy area and then dump a 2" layer of mulch over the top, but I have a shortage of newspaper. It's the best weed barrier I've used. It smothers the weeds, decomposes into the soil (enriching it), and then after a few months, you can plant anything you want without the hassle of scraping sod. I did purchase some weed fabric, but I'm holding off installing it in hopes of landing some newspaper.
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