Flowers on the Table

Our front yard in 2005

And the front yard in 2008

We live on the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains.  It doesn’t rain much and Kentucky Blue Grass just isn’t right for our arid, sunny climate.  When we bought our house I was inspired by our next door neighbors, the Kings.  Their front yard was more garden than lawn.  I designed new beds and we installed 7 tons of strip stone and 10 yards of mulch.  The only grass left is on the new paths – we just haven’t had the money and inclination to lay the stones yet.  I’ve planted native and drought tolerant shrubs and perennials and now we only have to water once a week – and I do it by hand so I can check in on each of my plantings.

You can probably guess what drew us to the house – our amazing crabapple tree (and the 6 other mature trees on our little suburban plot).  We’re so grateful to the original owners who also loved to garden and had the foresight to plant so many awesome trees.  We have a shadiest yard in the neighborhood.  And now, our front crabapple tree has been nominated as a Colorado State Champion.  We’ll find out in December if we’re winners.  Stay tuned.

2005 Grassy Lawn

2008 Mulched Beds