Over the last few weeks, we’ve been busy in the backyard. Yes, while also preparing for family houseguests and the wedding. Needless to say, our home has been very active over the last month.

We wanted to do something in the southwest corner of our backyard – the shadiest part, too. We called up our friend who also designed our home to help us pull together some ideas. These are the “before” shots.

Here’s where we are now:

Our poor friends… the clay soil was really tough to work through. They also ran into some leftover construction debris (stones, concrete scraps). I’m so glad they were able to help. Patrick is laying out the patio where most of the flagstone came from “Freecycle”.

Pretty arbor – the doorway to the shade garden.

Fencing to keep the critters out – have to add the chicken wire.

The raised beds are bordered by our leftover brick from original house construction. We have a few more details to complete and then we’ll be done for the season which is a good thing… it was a balmy 30 degrees (or less) overnight. Hopefully the plants will survive since they’ve been in for almost a month now.

Shade Garden Plantings: Henry’s Garnet Sweetspire, Viburnum “Winterthur”, Jack Frost Brunnera, ferns and other steppable plants interspersed within the stone patio.