Tearing out Shrubs and Planting New Flowers

The people who landscaped our house will probably weep if they drive by our house.

That's because yesterday I yanked  out everything they planted in our front landscaping, save for the sago palm.  

It's amazing how spoiled we have become with this house.   

This is a picture of our first house.  

When we first moved in, there was NO landscaping.   As in none.  

Chris planned and created the retaining wall landscaping all by himself.  (I was so proud of him.)  We were completely broke with the down payment and moving, so we had to wait to the following year to landscape.   Until then, it looked sad and barren.  

I had always wanted to have lilacs, and these lilac bushes on the south side of our house FINALLY bloomed the VERY LAST YEAR we lived there.  

We lived there just shy of five years.   I loved my lilacs, and honestly, I was so sad to leave these shrubs.  I knew lilacs don't do well in Florida and they are my favorite flower.  

Now, jasmine has become my new lilac.  

Before closing.

Early summer...getting settled.

Adding more to the front...see the bistro?  Probably mid-late summer.

 As I said,  we have become really spoiled.

We were presented with this beautifully landscaped house and I ripped it all out yesterday.    It was driving me bananas, and I realized why:  there was no color!

I have set the plants out in the places where I intend to plant them, but they aren't officially in the ground yet.  That is tomorrow's project.

(Sidenote ~ I'm driving my husband completely bonkers because the inside of the house remains unpainted.  He has asked me to finish the painting "project" before I start others like landscaping, decorating, making windchimes, etc.  But painting just isn't as much fun.)

I took pictures to show my mother today when I visited.  I thought I would share them with you, too!

All set out.

Hibiscus "tree" and the Imperial Blue Plumbago 

Imperial Blue Plumbago & pink double knockout roses! 

Hibiscus

Roses, Imperial blue Plumbago bush and the yellow Verbena

This was the most interesting petunia I have ever seen...it is pink on the inside, with green around the outside.    They are also the "wave" variety, so they will cascade out of the hanging basket.  So cool!

This was the prissiest little bougainvillea plant for the longest time.    I honestly thought it was dead.  It has finally perked up,  grown like wild and has gotten flowers on it.  I am going to buy a trellis soon for it so it will climb up the south side of the house.  

 

I am a dumpster diver!  Someone threw this almost-dead aloe plant out in the trash....with a little TLC, it has come back and is ALMOST healthy.  

These climbing roses are getting SO BIG!

I tore out the regular grasses and replaced them with varigated grasses instead.  

I'll update the pictures when I am completely finished and my landscaping is complete.

Actually...scratch that.  Knowing me, it will never be complete.  I'll keep fussing with it.  I'll never be settled.  Changing things out/adding to/taking away from the landscaping is what makes owning a house so fun.