My favorite time of year is when the gorgeous gardens of the Cup of Joe community come into play. Native wild flowers are in full bloom! Towering sunflowers! Candy colored ranunculus! I’m happy to see all the photo posts. So without further ado, here are 11 readers’ gardens.
Both photos above: “Five years ago, my partner and I turned our front yard into a native wildflower meadow. There are over 40 different types of flowers, and the meadow is 2,000 square feet (larger than our house!) People walking or driving by always stop and tell me how much they love this meadow. Strangers have even dropped seed packets and notes of love for the meadow in our mailbox!” — Annalisa, New Haven, CT
“It’s been a tough time for families this year, but I can’t help but smile every time I see these happy ranunculus on my doorstep.” — Laura, Northern Ireland
“The garden is magical for kids. We grow lots of cherry tomatoes (great for little kids to pick), fairytale eggplants, blackberries, and pink lemonade blueberries that turn rosy when ripe.” — Sarah, Ridgefield, CT
“Last year, we added chickens to our garden. My 2-year-old son named them Cashew, Evie, and Pumpkin. He loves feeding them and collecting eggs. But hens are voracious eaters, so I always chase them away from my crops.” — Naudia, Nyack, NY
“My pride and joy are agave plants. They’re big, bold, 5 feet tall, and they’re the centerpiece of my front garden. They typically live about 25 years, flowering only once, and then dying.” — Lisa, San Jose, California
“We moved to a remote island off Vancouver Island three years ago and bought a little yellow house that was 100 years old. A friend said it looked like the old Miss Honey’s Cottage.” matildaFrom then on, it became the blueprint for the garden. It’s all a work in progress, but my hope is to continue creating and growing this garden until I’m 100 years old. ” — Jess, Cortez Island, Canada
“People often don’t realize that gardening takes time. You can’t create the garden of your dreams overnight without spending a lot of money, and no amount of money can create the feel of a well-maintained, mature garden. That’s why I try to take things slowly. I recently built a gravelled fireplace area and breakfast nook. I love the feeling of physical labor, and it’s so satisfying to see it come to fruition!” — GabbyNashville
“When my husband and I moved into our house, my parents brought cosmos, zinnia, and marigold seeds from the garden. We got married in our backyard that summer and used the flowers in our bouquets. My father, an avid gardener his whole life, decided last year, just after our daughter was born. He died two weeks later. I will save the seeds from that summer and plant them together this spring. I will use the watering can that my parents gave me. And when the flowers bloom, we will think about him. ” — Chelsea, Ottawa, Canada
“Four years ago, my lovely adult daughters gave me peonies for Mother’s Day. Their large, fluffy, fragrant blooms are now the greatest joy in my (mostly vegetable) garden.” — Sasha, Belgrade, Montana
“After a long, dark winter, it’s so fun to see what we can bring to life: sunflowers, cucumbers, watermelons, Actinidia for the cats, and tomatoes for the dogs to eat straight from the vine. Some years are more successful than others, but our garden makes us happy every summer.” — Lauren, Columbus, Ohio
“We’re so lucky that our neighbor’s cherry blossoms and azaleas have continued to grow under their care for about 40 years. The colors are incredible. We had stormy weather this weekend, so it was raining pink petals. My toddler loves flinging those petals into the air like confetti.” — Emma, Philadelphia
Thank you for sharing! What does everyone else’s garden look like? I would love to know.
PS 14 more readers have shared their gorgeous gardens, and Abby Nova’s Connecticut home is filled with plants and books.
(Photo by Gabby Llewellyn: mary caroline russell. )
Source: Cup of Jo – cupofjo.com
