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May 29, 2008 · 3 Comments

Installing a Front-Yard Garden

How to

Last fall, I marked off the area for a front-yard garden, something I’ve been wanting to do for a couple of years. Our front yard faces east and south and while we have planted some big trees, the corner in question gets baked by sun, and consequently, required watering all the time, and still the grass looked brown. Minnesota doesn’t really have the right climate for growing turf grass, even under better conditions.

I used the smother method to kill the grass and was only semi-pleased with the results. As the photo shows, not all the grass was as dead as it should have been. Next time, I’ll used the method described at the Minnesota site, lesslawn.com, which calls for a minimum of 10 sheets of newspaper and then a heavy load of mulch on top. To finish killing the grass, I did a judicious spritzing with Round-up, which kills pretty much any plant it touches, but disperses rapidly. I’s a good choice for this kind of job. During the week or so I had to wait for the Round-up to wear off, I took care of a couple of other pre-planting jobs.

First, call Gopher State One-Call (or use their web site, if you can figure it out) to have the utility lines marked. As I suspected, wires were under my bed. This meant hand-digging very carefully in those areas. Second job: Go buy your plants!! That’s the fun part. I had an idea of what I wanted because I’d had Kristin from Knecht’s visit last fall. I swamped out a couple of the choices Kristin suggested for similar plants that were more to my liking. (As great as they are, I refuse to plant even one more purple coneflower in my yard.)

Once I had all the plants selected, I started arranging them–in their pots–on the garden site. My daughters said it looked like aliens were staging an invasion of our yard. In placing them, I thought about the ultimate size of each plant, the various types of foliage, and the bloom time of each plant.

Placing plants is tricky, but as Don Engebretson says, “It’s not rocket science!” You want variety in foliage, plants with different textures and shapes. You also want to have something in bloom all season long. Finally, you want to plant in swaths or drifts. This has long been my downfall, since I tend to pick a plant and just put it in the ground. For more on how to create interesting perennial gardens, check out this article on Don’s web site or look at the pictures of Terry Yockey’s Red Wing garden on her web site.

Once I was satisfied with the foliage, the bloom times, and the drifts, I let it sit for a couple of days. Remember, it’s easy to move pots, not so easy plants that are in the ground. I made a few adjustments, then Monday afternoon started planting.

Related posts:

  1. Garden Advice from a Pro I will be doing most of the planting and installation...
  2. The Smother Method The smother method of starting a new garden is simple...
  3. Bulbs in a Minor Key There’s more to bulbs than tulips, daffodils and crocus. Many...
« A Bouquet of New Books
Installing a Front Yard Garden: The Finished Product »

Trackbacks

  1. My Northern Garden » Blog Archive » Sedum is an Autumn Joy says:
    September 20, 2010 at 9:59 am

    […] ones, such as ‘Black Jack’ and ‘Purple Emperor’. When I created a new front-yard garden a couple of years ago, I debated whether to plant a purple sedum and ended up choosing […]

  2. Sedum is an Autumn Joy says:
    October 4, 2018 at 2:52 pm

    […] ones, such as ‘Black Jack’ and ‘Purple Emperor’. When I created a new front-yard garden a couple of years ago, I debated whether to plant a purple sedum and ended up choosing […]

  3. Right Plant, Right Place - My Northern Garden says:
    November 12, 2020 at 1:47 pm

    […] out with the grass, and in with a planting bed with prairie plants: grasses, blazing star, Russian sage, perennial salvia, sedum. Now in its third season, I love […]

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Lola is the only one allowed in the garden beds ar Lola is the only one allowed in the garden beds around here until about, oh, April 15, maybe later. It’s so, so, so tempting to go clomping 🥾around in the garden during these warm March weeks in Minnesota. The ground is thawing but it’s still soft and easily compacted. 

I did do one garden job today, pruning the Chestnut crabapple tree. This is a crab you grow for the fruit, which are like half/sized apples. Fortunately, the snow drifts around my tree are high enough that I could walk in without compressing the ground. 

Enjoy these beautiful days! We know there will be more snow ❄️ and cold ahead. 
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New podcast episode and giveaway! Dill is one of t New podcast episode and giveaway! Dill is one of those plants that brings in all sorts of beneficial insects, creating a productive, healthy vegetable 🍅 garden. On this week’s Grow it, Minnesota podcast, I talked companion planting with local food advocate and gardener Michelle Bruhn from @forksinthedirt. 

We’re both fans of a new book by @jessicawalliser called Plant Partners that looks at the science behind companion planting. A lot of it boils down to creating healthy soil and a welcoming environment for bugs, bees and pollinators. My review of the book is over on the My Northern Garden blog (link in bio) and I’m giving away a copy of the book. To be eligible for the giveaway, just comment below — do you use companion planting methods? What combinations work in your garden? What flowers do you plant near your veg garden? The winner will be chosen March 10 (US and Canada only)
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Obsessed with this water drop. . . . #houseplants Obsessed with this water drop. 
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#houseplants #boredgardener #echeveria #wateringplants #plantcare #mngardener #whenisspringcoming
In normal times, we’d be in our first week in Fl In normal times, we’d be in our first week in Florida right now, which would mean a visit to the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens on our first full day there. Always great art and gardens to see. Then some beach time and plans for our first preseason game. (Twins, Pirates, Orioles, it’s all great.) We were very lucky to get the trip in last year and hope to be in Sarasota again this time next year. Meanwhile I’m indulging in some Insta-nostalgia and feeling grateful for longer days and sunshine here in Minnesota. Which vacations are you remembering fondly these days? 
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#gardentravel #florida #sarasota #publicgardens #marieselbybotanicalgardens #tbt #mngardener #longwinter
New issue of Northern Gardener and a cup of tea— New issue of Northern Gardener and a cup of tea—great way to pass a gloomy late afternoon. This issue is full of ideas for spring from @jenniferrensenbrink @monarchgardensbenjaminvogt @gbrownhudson @seedtofork and more. Stunning cover image from @riedelphoto.  Available March 1 on newsstands or subscribe through @mnhort! 
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#northerngardener #mngardening #coldclimategardening #calibrachoa #gardenforfrogs #perennialgarden #gardentips #nativeplants #nativeplantgardening #growyourownfood #iceberglettuce #growasalad
Winter ❄️ sowing? Have you tried it? Today’s Winter ❄️ sowing? Have you tried it? Today’s guest on the Grow it, Minnesota podcast is Michelle Mero Riedel, who introduced me and readers of Northern Gardener to the concept more than a decade ago. It’s been one of  our most popular articles ever. 

In winter sowing, you create mini-greenhouses out of milk jugs and other recyclables. Perennial flowers 💐 can be planted in February and March, while annuals, vegetables and herbs can be set out in April. Mother Nature does most of the work. It’s a budget friendly way to grow lots of plants! 

For more info, check out the podcast or a new blog post over on mynortherngarden.com. Links to all in bio. 
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What is this? Like day 10 or 12 with temps below z What is this? Like day 10 or 12 with temps below zero? Time to ramble back to June when the penstemon was covered in bees and the veronica looked so pretty. June is my second favorite month in the garden (believe it or not, September is number one for me). What’s your favorite month? P.S. only 14 weeks until June! 
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Oh boy, check out the bucket hat and shades. I was Oh boy, check out the bucket hat and shades. I was digging through some old family photos and came across this one of me circa 1990s, I’d guess, weeding at our first house. I had a lot to learn (like A LOT) about gardening, and little did I know then that I’d be writing about gardening for a living someday. Lots of good thing happen in the garden. 
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#tbt #mygardenstory #mynortherngarden #gardenwriter #weeding #oldphoto #buckethatsareback
Somebody brought me a bouquet! Thank you, @resawit Somebody brought me a bouquet! Thank you, @resawithoutherspoon 
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#flowers #bouquet #flowersmakemehappy #plantsmakepeoplehappy
The latest episode of Grow it, Minnesota is all ab The latest episode of Grow it, Minnesota is all about plants with medicinal uses.  I interview author and herbalist Matthew Alfs about his new book on Edible and Medicinal Wild Plants of the Midwest. We talked about a few of my favorite plants such as wild geraniums and anise hyssop and also about what we call weeds that have other uses. 

It was a fascinating discussion with a real expert. Matthew recommends consulting multiple sources before using any plant medicinally and his book would be a good one to start with. 

Listen to the podcast at growitminnesota.com or wherever you get your podcasts. 
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I love ❤️ that my local grocery store has plan I love ❤️ that my local grocery store has plants in the temptation spot near the 10-items or less lane. They’re better for you than chips and just as enticing. I resisted this time but plant impulse buys happen to all of us! 
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#houseplants #babyplants #succulents #impulsebuy #mystpaul #stpaul #mngardener #minnesota #wintergardening #indoorgardening #toocute
Leaving plants up in winter gives you something to Leaving plants up in winter gives you something to look at, but helps pollinators and birds more. As the sun gets stronger in late January, these are a few of my favorites for winter interest. 
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#winterinterest #mnwinter #boltonia #anisehyssop #littlebluestem #birdfriendly #pollinatorgarden
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