Plan B

I'm still working on the design for the landscaping in our unfinished backyard. When I first began leveling and terracing, I thought it would be so cool to have a fire pit at the top of our slope, away from all trees and anything that might be flammable. I'd planned to surround the entire "picnic" area I planned to build with flagstone to make sure no sparks could ignite.

After the late December Marshall Fire in 2021, there was no way I'd ever consider even a barbecue grill in our backyard. We are surrounded on the other side of the back fence by an extremely dry and miles-long grassy field that will always be open space that will never be human-watered. That field actually caught fire just a couple of blocks south of us late this summer, and deputies were stationed on every street of our little village to enforce mandatory evacuations should they become necessary.

Thank heavens, our nearby West Metro fire department (which immediately afterward traveled to the Gulf Coast to assist with Hurricane Helene recovery) contained the wildfire in just a few hours, and our neighborhood was never evacuated. But that was just way too close, especially after two previous fires, one and four miles respectively, from us.

I've been trying to decide what to do with the upper portion of our backyard because it is so sloped and because all the snowmelt and rainwater (when we actually get rain, which did not happen often this summer or fall) from the big grassy field significantly erodes our slope, regardless of how much terracing I construct. I'm literally fighting a losing battle.

I also don't want to have to water whatever I plant there because the water drains down toward the house. I'm also trying to be water-wise in what I plant.

I got this bright idea earlier in the year to plant sunflowers along the final segment of the fence on the steepest portion of our slope. I don't get to go east to search for huge sunflower fields much anymore, and I thought it would be SO cool if I had my own sunflowers. Then all my neighbors who've never seen the sunflower fields could take pictures of MY sunflowers. And so would I!!!

I bought six more lavender plants to extend the current lavender garden about six more feet, and then I would plant giant sunflowers across the remainder of the slope. I even considered planting red sunflowers. Wouldn't it be cool to have a whole garden of gorgeous red sunflowers?!?

I haven't put those final lavender plants into the ground yet, and I need to get busy because our first snow is expected this week. End of season. End of perfect planting time. Our outrageous heat (and other unexpected life complications) this summer kept me from doing much of what I'd planned.

But, good thing I didn't carry though just yet. When sunflower season approached, I realized my planned sunflowers would all face the wrong direction. They would face the fence. Yes, immature sunflowers sometimes follow the sun. But once the blossoms open, they face east. My backyard is east of my house. I would have views of the backs of my sunflower heads.

Now I'm considering a couple of apple trees for that spot. I've probably lost the season now and will have to wait for spring. I've decided to let mostly wild sunflowers grow rampant in the front yard next year. (I've also been spreading all my red sunflower and pink cosmos seeds in the front yard for the last three weeks.) The sunflowers likely will all face the front of my house, but I'll have plentiful flowers in August and September, which I haven't had for the last several years now because everything I plant goes to seed by the middle to end of July. This year's late summer/early autumn wild sunflowers got devoured by grasshoppers in this heat.

This means my neighbors will have a great view of the backs of the sunflowers next summer, but they can always come up to my porch for a visit and a better view. Plus, I'll be able to cut fresh bouquets for them, too!

Tweet

Pin It