Taking it out back

Justin took advantage of this cool Florida weekend and did some work outdoors. Since this weekend didn’t make it over 90 degrees, we were happy to be outside doing some quick updates.

If you can remember the side of our yard was looking like this…

Well, Justin thought it would be a good idea to add some more plants in this area. He was thinking that if we added some more taller plants we wouldn’t have to look at the air conditioner from the patio. So he headed to Lowe’s and came back with some supplies to make a small garden under this side window.

At this point he had already removed the sod and laid down the gardening fabric that we use when adding new garden beds. Want a closer look? Okay…

As for what plants he chose, he purchased 4 Podocarpus…

Also 4 Aztec Grass.

And 2 Super Blue Liriope.

He went right to it once we decided what the best placement was for each plant.

As you can see we decided on 3 Podocarpus in front of the AC unit and the last one in the corner. The other grasses were just spread out in between, apparently they are ground cover so we are sort of worried that they may grow out of control. I guess we will just have to wait and see. Once he had everything in the ground and the new mulch spread this is what we were left with…

And this is the view from our patio…

We are pretty pumped about our new little garden, fingers crossed that those Podocarpus grow a bit more so we see even less of the AC unit. Here’s one more look…

Landscaping Phase #3

Last I showed you our backyard was looking pretty good…

Look at all that pretty green grass.

Anywho, there were a few more things Justin wanted to accomplish out here since the new drainage and landscaping were finished.  A few of the solar lights we had previously installed were broken.  So, Justin purchased some new outdoor lights for the garden beds back here.  He decided to go with regular electric lights.  He moved the remaining solar lights that were still trucking along to the front yard.  He purchased the new lights from lowes.  Once he got home he started installing them…

Since the sod was freshly laid, Justin was able to run the cords from one garden to another right under the top layer….

While he was burying the new cords he came across this little guy…

He was just sleeping under the mulch and Justin dug up his bedding!  So he buried the cord and then buried him under the mulch again.  We saw him later the same night once the sun went down, we’re all friends now.  Once Justin had finished installing all the lighting he added new mulch to all of the garden beds…

Charlie also helped…

This guy showed up too…

Isn’t he handsome?  Love these little lizards.

After hanging out with the lizard I got some photos of the freshly finished backyard…

And you know I can’t help but give you some before, middle and after photos…

Check out how much the plants by the patio have grown!

I don’t have a before photo from this angle, but here is the mid way point and after…

We also got to see the new lights in action that night…

Aren’t they pretty?

Char man also hung out to check out the lighting…

It was already past Zack’s bed time.

We are thrilled with our backyard now.  We may have some other ideas for the the fence and possibly another little garden. For now we are just happy to sit on the porch and enjoy the unflooded yard!  It’s a far cry from this…

Don’t you think?  PS the drainage works.   Here is a photo I took immediately after a down pour…

BOOM! Do you see a drainage issue?  I think not!