The Mound, revisited

Nothing to do with the mound, just wanted to remember this beautiful Lilac.  I purchased two of them in three gallon pots from Canadian Tire at an end-of-year sale two years ago for $10 each.  They have a beautiful fragrance as well.

A friend remarked yesterday morning, while on a run with me and a few others, that sunshine in winter is like a free drug. So beneficial to the soul that it could almost be classified an illegal narcotic.  I couldn't agree more!

Today, another freezing rain warning for Prince Edward County.  That means it's a heck of a lot warmer this weekend than it's been for the past few days.  It's expected to get colder again Monday night through Wednesday, then warm up again next weekend.  In other words, a fairly typical winter.

April 27, 2013 - the first of several stair cases built into it.

A month later (May 21), the Alium had bloomed

It's probably time to update everyone (LOL!) about The Mound.  You may recall The Mound is a pile of soil created by a contractor friend when he dumped (at my request) several loads of soil from a home he was excavating/building five or six years ago.  I discovered early on some surviving reminders of that original house:  beautiful Iris, Paeonia [Peony]and Hosta; most of these I transplanted elsewhere in the garden, and let the pile of soil just sit there, untended.

The wild flowers had their way those first few years and I wound up with a colourful yet unappealing mix of six foot Solidago [Goldenrod], Aster, thistle and other things I don't know the name of but had tiny yellow flowers.  Three years ago I started to tame the Mound, section by section, by cutting down dead stalks, using Round Up (sue me...) on new growth and a shovel to round off and distribute the soil a bit more evenly.  Then I started transplanting things from my Toronto gardens, planting bulbs and scattering seeds.  In 2013 I finished about 80 per cent, I'd say.

Same day, wider shot.  Notice all the branches on the Juglans cinerea 

(Butternut tree) on the far left.

There are five paths through the Mound, and I've planted everything from Hemerocallis (Daylily) to Rudbeckia (Black Eye Susan), Hosta, Sedum spectabile, Veronica "Whitley's Speedwell" and may others.

 Here are three shots from the spring.  More to come in later posts.