David’s Cash for Grass Project

Much work done on the project over the long weekend. First, Rose and Calvin planted a couple hundred wildflower seeds carefully in seed trays in the backyard, which turned out to be a very labor intensive way to feed premium seeds to finches.

For round two, I protected the seeds with plastic netting, and also hung a bird feeder with finch seed nearby to try to distract them. ($27 for netting, feeder, and seeds, not counting wildflower seed losses)

Seeds with finch fence

I also managed to get all the rock mulch spread. Phase 1 is almost complete. All that is left is to put in the last handful of small plants, and finish the border, which will require about 20 linear feet of additional border rock.

The down side to buying all very small plants to save money is that they are so small at this point that it is hard to see them among the rock. The yard looks more like a zen rock garden than a living landscape. (If you are a zen master, I understand that a rock garden is also alive in its way, but it is not, therefore it remains noisily in silence.) I hope the plants not only survive but will fill in by late spring and give the appearance that I knew what I was doing.

Can you count the plants in the area which used to be lawn in the photo below?

Zen Rock Garden Replaces Lawn

Wrong. The correct answer is way more than that, and two of the ones you counted were actually boulders…

No, not quite that many, I still have to buy some, and the wildflowers are hopefully going to grow in the seed trays to be put in later…

Yes, that’s about right. Nicely figured.