Beginning the New Front Garden

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I mentioned several weeks ago (a couple months ago) that I was wanting to remodel my front garden. I was mostly speaking of the area directly in front of the house but since then an additional idea popped up. There is a small area around a Bradford pear tree that I envisioned an elongated oval shaped bed. Eventually that ornamental pear tree will be removed (it’s bound to split one of these days!) and I’ll replace it with something else but a little farther away from its current location. Making this new garden bed will create a wide pathway between our front garden and the hillside in the front of our house. The pathway will direct the view toward the arbor and the self-sowing garden. It will also give me a place to move several of the plants that will be coming out of other areas.

Here’s another view of the new garden spot. You can’t see it really well in the picture so I highlighted it in black lines for you. When making a new bed there a technique I like to use with my bagging lawn mower.

  • First I drop the wheels down as low as they will go yet still be able to roll across the ground. 
  • Then I mow the shape of the bed. The low mowing height will go a long way toward killing off the grass in a chemical free way.
  • Afterward I gather grass clippings and pile them onto the new bed area as a mulch. I’ll pile them on as high as I can then let them dry. 
  • Once the grass is dry I can come back with a nicer mulch to enhance the area. I use newspapers under any layer of mulch to prevent weeds from popping through. It’s a layered bed but the technique is often called lasagna gardening.

Until I get around to it or have the time to get mulch I’ll pile on more grass clippings. Dead grass clippings make an excellent source of organic material. They decay fast and really create some heat when thrown in the compost bin. I placed two bags of grass clippings in my bin the other day and was amazed at the heat they helped to generate – and heat in the compost bin is a good thing!

I’m beginning with the preparation of the bed now so that I can plant a few things this fall. Have you started any new gardens lately?

5 thoughts on “Beginning the New Front Garden”

  1. Me, start new gardens? Ummm….yup. I'm also extending some areas; longsuffering spouse graciously dug out about a foot-wide area in my favourite front border (where all the coneflowers live) so I can extend that bed into the grass. We also have started two new areas mostly because we're joining together areas where there are trees and shrubs. My argument is that this will mean less mowing or whippersnippering for LSS, so he can spend more time fishing instead. It seems to be working, so far.

  2. I can really see how the new path will direct one toward the arbor. I am kind of starting a new garden but first have to move 7 tons of soil. Big job. Hopefully this week it will be done. Looking forward to seeing how this garden progresses.

  3. I'm in the process of starting two new garden beds. One won't require removing any grass but instead will require pulling out a lot of ivy and vinca and then building up the soil. The other does have some grass and weeds and I think I'll try the lasagna method to get rid of them. Looking forward to seeing how your new garden develops!

  4. I am not ready to get out there and dig~Next week I am hoping for a bit of cooler weather. Removing bradford pears~music to my ears~I am one of those folks that finds their fragrance offensive! I like to smother grass and build up the soil to make a new bed. gail

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