Wow Liz! So glad you had professional help for this!! I can't wait to see more photos.

It's been very hot here, and I wondered about you and Jeff down there. I know that you have to be happy seeing your dreams coming together!!

I always fancy those gabion walls, they look terrific in landscape! How deep are those posts in the ground, Liz?

The gabion boxes are 34" tall and will be around 8" underground once backfilled. Depending on how soon they hit rock the posts are 2-3' buried with around 24" exposed so more below ground than above

Still a ton of work to do next time we go out but the first 2 boxes are semi-filled! Needed to get a load of small stones and I didn't, there are more small gaps than I want so will have to adjust those next trip and fill the rest. Will also eventually put a 2x10 plank cap on top of the boxes to finish them off and will decide then if I want to stain the wood. Have already ordered post caps with solar lights for all of the posts going up the stairs and plain caps for the rest. Think it's going to be even better than I imagined!
Only got half of the beds I put in last year weeded and drip lines added. Ordered really large shade cloths for those beds too, will figure out installation next trip as well as get the rest weeded and drip lines installed. Only took around 700 ft out, don't know what I was thinking there. Tried to get more tubing but none in stock so had to order it....nothing is easy this summer. Fungus is going to be a major issue there and it'll be even more complicated since we won't be there full time. Thinking of using something like Bonide Infuse granular as a pre-emergent, has anyone used it? Haven't had to deal with fungal issues here in CO...

Wow, Liz! Already a lot done! It is definitely hard to work on the house/landscaping when you are there for a short time. It's going to be wonderful!

It looks amazing, Liz!! That is a lot of hard work, but I know you will love it when you are there full time!!

I don't use a fungicide, so hopefully someone else will know.

I must say from the pics that you provided, your contractor did a superb job. I am so glad to see that your dream home and landscape are falling into place. Can't wait to see the finishing touches on this project. Do you take videos of the various stages of the transformation?

Thanks for all of the kind comments, everyone! Super excited to get back out there and get the boxes filled so I can backfill with planter's mix and get the beds ready for fall planting!
Karen, I absolutely agree that my contractor is doing an excellent job! He had to finish up part after we left but I know it'll be done just as well as the part done while we were present. It's really hard for me to turn loose of anything to do with my garden—I've had too many "experienced" contractors destroy plants to be comfortable—but I trust Anthony and his team. And his wife has made sure I had pics and videos from breaking ground through construction; it's better documented than the house build for our current home!

Liz,

I'm so thrilled to see how far your project has come! I'm so excited for you and your family, now that you have AC, and running water!

I hope that everything continues to go smoothly, and I looking forward to more pictures of the progress of the garden!

Thanks Annette! Finally got all of the grow bags out of the garage and on weeper hoses on timers, finished late yesterday evening. I'll post some pics of the mass today, it's a bit intimidating now that I can see all of them together. Probably only half are peonies as the beds that I'm doing away with were mixed perennials.

Liz,
very nice

I have been so awful on posting this summer!!! I'm so sorry, I do check in and drool over all of the pics you all post. I had a truly terrible peony season this year. Missed the few peonies that bloomed in AL then managed to miss most of the season in CO as well going back and forth to AL to work on the gardens.....hoping this will be the worst year and will start getting more blooms there next spring. Here's the pics I promised of the pot village out front in CO, waiting to go to AL





I'm back at work every other week now, just got back from AL in time to go to work on Wednesday. We spent a week there and I did manage to get the 2nd bed of 300+ peonies weeded and drip line laid. I was actually dreading the emitters, my fingers were so incredibly sore after installing them for the first bed....I searched online for a tool to help but couldn't find anything that said it worked with the flag emitters that I prefer, bought one that I thought might be finagled to help and it did!!! Hole and install in 1 action, probably 3 times faster than installing by hand. If anyone uses flag emitters and want to spend around $35 to get a tool that puts them in easily let me know and I'll share the name and where I found it. Also got shade cloth over both beds, hopefully it'll stand up to storms!

Did more of the rock wall as well, 31 of the 43 installed boxes are filled! Walked off the area for the last 2 rows and think there will be around 75 boxes in those toward the bottom of the hill. Here's what it looks like now. Got solar post lights to go on the ones by where steps will be but they're laying off to the side when I took the pics. Still have to install steps and planks on top of the boxes to finish them off.



And Jeff surprised me with the first garden art for my new space! These are the kind of deer I can deal with in the garden, they don't eat or step on anything! The standing one is right at 5' tall from base to the tip of the tallest antler and they are very heavy, wish i could've put them in permanent spots but none are ready and I was NOT going to complain about a gift! The shade cloth behind the deer has grow bags full of peonies that I moved out there last fall that I didn't have time to plant. They overwintered in a protected spot but I wanted to make sure they were put on a drip line before it gets dry in case of another summer drought. There are 6 new tree peonies in there from Simmons NZ that came in while we were there in May, already have foliage on 4 of the 6 and leaf buds on the other 2. There are also a bunch of irises, daylilies and a few lilies, trying to take more out every trip.

Sorry this is such a long post this time, waited too long between! I'll try to do better next trip!

Your AL home and garden has been transformed so much since you posted the initial pictures of the land. It looks great, Liz! Congrats on getting so much work done. Looks like the fun of planting should begin soon. Hopefully, you will get all the plants planted this fall. Your DH has a great sense of humor - gifting you the deers for your garden space. Hopefully, these deers will scare the real ones away!

Liz, your new place is going to be a wonderland! Your hard work is creating a paradise garden. Deer look so natural, I would get scared if saw them at night in my garden

Thanks Karen and Anya! Jeff actually made the comment that they might look pretty realistic from the road! Our neighborhood is gated so there isn't much traffic at all but I decided to cover them with some extra shade cloth after that pic was taken just in case....wouldn't want some opportunistic hunter to take a shot at them! Hopefully no one would that close to the cottage but you never know with people. Would never think that people would have the nerve to dig plants out of gardens but several here have experienced that! And we had the crazy turkey shooter here in CO a few years ago, stopping basically in front of our house to shoot turkeys in the field across the road.

It looks amazing, Liz. And I just love the deer Jeff got you! I'm glad that you covered them. You could buy them some orange safety vests! 😂

Thanks for the update. It has been very fun to see the progress.

That's a great idea, LG! Orange vests would be just the thing!

Lol. It would be very whimsical.


I used to put a bright chartreuse safety vest on my big red Doberman when I turned him out to run. I didn't want some good ole boy to take a shot at him.

Liz,

Thanks so much for the updates, and I too love the gift from your hubby! They're so realistic!

I've been the worst about posting, busy with work, and still adding new plants to the garden!

You all have made fantastic progress with the new property, and your new gardens are going to be phenomenal!

Could you please explain the legal aspects of shooting a deer on someone else's property? Assuming that I own some land and forest. Are people/hunters allowed to shoot animals on my property without my consent? Are other people allowed to forage for plants without my explicit consent? Please advise.