Winter Wonderland

My backyard winter wonderland ... it was beautiful to look at, but it caused so much devastation!




The back porch

Time to Mow the Back 40

It's getting close to time to mow my one acre backyard. The wildflowers have been beautiful, but most of them are now going to seed. I usually mow this area in late September, then I use the "hay" to seed bare areas in my meadow garden. The hay is full of wildflower seeds and this is an easy way for me to increase the size of the meadow garden.
This photo shows the grass pathway I keep mowed through my meadow garden.
This photo shows some of the drying grass in another area of the meadow garden.

Tending the Back 40

When our riding lawnmower broke down this past spring, my hubby and I made the decision to not mow our one-acre backyard this year. With the exception of the trails I mowed throughout the backyard, we have allowed the native grasses and wildflowers to grow unchecked, along with many new seedlings of maple, walnut and oak trees.


We have many different varities of grasses that grow in the back 40: Kentucky Bluegrass, fescue, wheat, oats and millet. After the grass has completely dried, we will push mow the grass and rake it into piles for the birds and rabbits to live on this winter.


I do have one section of the backyard that has many different types of wildflowers: Black-eyed Susans, purple coneflowers, goldenrod, daisies, yarrow and several different types of asters. During the month of August and September, the backyard will be filled with many varying colors and textures of flowers.