Sharing my yard and garden plans for this year including adding a wish list native plant, a barrel planter fruit container garden, bird-friendly landscaping, luffa gourd plants, and more. Grab a discount code at the end of the post to save on new plants for your yard and garden!
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New Jersey just dug out from our first blizzard in years. Then, we continued digging out because more snowed got dumped on us. I, for one, am beyond over winter this year. And being so close to the official start of spring now has me itching - no, aching - for a perfectly warm and sunny day. I can't wait for the first official visit to the local greenhouse to shop for early spring flowers. This year, I especially cannot wait to start working on quite a few new yard and garden projects that I have lined up.
My list of gardening projects - and I do have quite the list this year - started when I finally found one of my wish list native plants - the New Jersey Tea Plant. During the revolutionary war, this plant was used as a caffeine-free substitute for tea. The leaves, when brewed, are said to taste similar to green tea. The plant also produces beautiful white flowers that attract a variety of pollinators. I have three of these plants coming and cannot wait to add them to our yard, along with many other new plants!
Yard and Garden Plans for This Year
Since I'm a visual person, I decided to snap some pictures around the yard and create mockups of what I hope these areas will look like once things are planted and established. It's safe to say that seeing my new plants just in a mockup scenario has me even more excited for gardening season this year!
Back of Garage Landscaping
Let's start with the New Jersey Tea plants. As I said earlier, I'll be receiving three of these plants from a native plant nursery. One is going in a large pot on our deck. The other two will be planted behind our garage on each side of our white crape myrtle tree. While I flirted with the idea of adding some color, I really like the monochromatic moment the white flowers create.
Barrel Planter Fruit Container Garden
Last year, we added two large barrel planters to the side of our vegetable garden. One contains a blueberry bush and the other contains a fig tree. I had quite a collection of herbs planted in pots between them. But this year, I decided I wanted to add more fruiting plants. So we're going to be adding two more barrel planters to create a small fruit container garden.
Thanks to my newest brand partnership with FastGrowingTrees, I'll be receiving a Pink Lemonade Blueberry Bush and Stevens Cranberry Bush (yes, cranberries!) to add to these barrel planters and complete our little fruit garden. The Stevens Cranberry Bush is currently sold out, but there are plenty of other berry bushes and fruit trees available on their website.
Bird-Friendly Shed Landscaping
The side of our yard that connects to the shed has a slope to it. So last year, my husband added a rocky area on the side of the shed to provide a better drainage solution. That side of the shed has also become my area for the birds - complete with feeders, birdhouses, and a birdbath (unpictured).
The trouble with that is, the bird seed can make quite a mess and it's hard to clean between all of those rocks. So we're taking the rocks out. Instead, I'm adding Prairie Blues Little Bluestem Grass. This ornamental grass is a native plant and also bird-friendly - when it goes to seed in fall/winter, it provides a good source of food for the birds, plus shelter.
The leaves also change color in the fall and is described as a low maintenance plant. The grasses add a much more natural look. It'll also be much easier to clean up after the birds.
Planting Luffa Gourds
I will also be planting luffa gourds. I decided that I wanted to try to grow my own sponges this year. We're going to try and grow them upwards on one side of our deck since I'm already running out of growing space. I also want to create an open space under the deck. We have wild raspberries and blackberries growing under there and will need access to them. Our hose is also connected underneath the deck and we'll need access to that, as well.
Save 20% on New Plants
I also have plans to create new garden patches - including an in-ground herb garden and strawberry patch. I'm also going to try growing Midnight Cascade Blueberries in hanging baskets. I'll be transplanting some things into different pots, as well. And I also want to create a scent-sory experience on our deck (I'll be sharing more about that idea in another post) that I think will be really fun!
If you're itching to start adding to your yard or garden this year, visit FastGrowingTrees for a variety of plants including fruit trees and berry bushes, tropical plants, house plants, perennials, and more. New customers will receive 20% off using the code FGTHOLOKA20.
Mockup photos were created with photographs and AI generated images.
