Let The Planting Begin!

I was tired when I got home from work this a.m., and was tempted to take a nap. BUT, the temps rose to 68 degrees F., it was sunny and gorgeous, and I just couldn't let a day like this go to waste. And I knew I had to get some bare root raspberries planted that I'd picked up yesterday.

Before I could plant the raspberries, I had to finish preparing the "berry patch", which is on a southwestern facing slope between my garden and the woods. This, at one time, had been an old vineyard we're told, and the terraces and some of the metal poles are still in place. I just had to finish removing some old brambles, Japanese honeysuckle, sumac, and a few other things (including my favorite little buddy, poison ivy). The woods is encroaching, and there are a few trees that are a bit too close and should be cut out. I hate to cut down perfectly good trees, but these really are in the way.

View of a portion of the Berry Patch (foreground) and Woodland Garden in the background

I got six Fallgold raspberries, and six Jewel raspberries. The Jewels are a black raspberry, and Fallgold is, guess what? Gold. I've seen this one written as Fallgold and Fall Gold; I'm not really sure which is correct. The Jewels are on the first terrace up from my blueberries, then the next terrace contains the Fallgold. The third terrace will be six more black raspberries from our friends, and I'm not sure of the variety.

Bare root Fallgold raspberries waiting to be planted

A newly planted Jewel black raspberry

In the next day or two I'll be transplanting some of my red raspberries to their new home on the northern side of my garden. Again, there are several trees that will need to come down because they're in the way. This will be near the chicken coop that we'll be building in the next week or so.

Trees in the Woodland Garden preparing to clothe themselves in green

Daffodil and bee in the Woodland Garden enjoying a 68 degree F. sunny spring day

Once the planting was complete, I had to go sit on the little bench in my Woodland Garden (adjacent to the new Berry Patch) and listen to the Spring sounds, feel the warm breeze and sunshine soaking into my sun-starved skin. The sky was a phenomenal blue, the little daffodils are a brilliant yellow now in the Woodland Garden, and the trees are about to explode leaves.

Bleeding Heart emerging

The bleeding heart (Dicentra formosa) is popping up through the leaves and looks a lot like some kind of weird reddish-colored celery, or perhaps some sort of sea plant.