Shrubs in...

shrubs in
Originally uploaded by southsideandy

Here's the new look on the west side of the porch.

I went and bought a big ol' ax and a bow saw at Menard's this morning, sawed off a good foot of what was left of the stump and beat the rest into submission as best as I could. I then buried most of it underground, so hopefully that will be the end of it.

The rhododendron, the bushier looking shrub to the left, is supposed to get to about 5 feet tall and 4-5 feet wide, while the Sutherland Gold Elderberry will get to 8 feet tall by 8 feet wide. I also planted about 10 ferns in the empty spaces between them and scattered a box of marigold seed mix all over the barren ground around them. We'll see how they do.

The rhododendron, it should be noted, has been one hell of a trooper. I got it from my mom last spring and never planted it. I just left it in the store-supplied pot and sat it out in front of the porch, basically where it is now. It survived and came back even with the hellish winter we had. Granted, I haven't seen it flower yet, but the fact that it survived was good enough for me. Hopefully it will now respond with lots of ground for its roots to infiltrate.

But I can't wait for the S.Gold Elderberry to grow -- it will be a phenomenal focal point for this side of the house, what with the dark brown facebrick as a backdrop. Much more interesting than the evergreen tree.