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| Christmas fern replanted after rescue in Buford |
We have reached the one year anniversary of moving into a
new place. I have always cautioned new homeowners to watch their new space for
a full year before making significant changes. I have tried to take
my own advice here and I’ve been pretty successful. Here are some of
the things I’ve done over the last year.
First, I cut down all the Mahonia bealei shrubs as they are invasive and spread by fruit.
Since then I’ve dug up some of them. Two of them required careful herbicide
treatment as their roots were impossible to dig out. My neighbor was very
supportive and I’ll eventually help remove hers. Kneecapping invasive fruiting
plants gives you some control over spread immediately. I have also pulled
dozens and dozens of mahonia seedlings.
I took an inventory of what is already here and marked plants to watch or protect. I have found a few new plants since my original assessment, including a nice drift of Solomon’s seal (Polygonatum biflorum).
Throughout the year I’ve evaluated sun exposure of different
areas around the house by watching the sun movement during the day. I have some
dense shade areas so I have identified some
trees to remove to bring more sun to increase the diversity of my plant
selections. I haven’t removed any trees just yet and will be doing
so with caution so as not to cause erosion.
I’ve evaluated water flow during average and extreme rain
events; we’ve had both 2-inch and 3-inch rain events and the 3-inch one revealed
an issue from the neighbor’s yard washing into ours. Addressing water flow
issues is on my list of things to do quickly before winter rains get here.
In the woods: I’ve made paths, dug out daffodils, shored up low
spots and filled holes (which are potential areas for yellow jackets), removed
invasive seedlings (privet, Japanese honeysuckle, mulberry weed, beefsteak
plant, stiltgrass, mock strawberry). I’ve also used my battery weed-whacker
against the biggest patches of stiltgrass
(Microstegium vimineum), allowing
me to hand-pull the stragglers. While I’ve made good progress against the
others, I know the stiltgrass seedbank will be here for years.
We created a dead hedge to deal with drop off at the creek and create more support for wildlife. It was fun to build and a good use of the endless supply of sticks we have.
And I planted some things! Again, I’ve been cautious while I figured out if the deer would be aggressive. I’ve used light fencing, deer spray, and Milorganite granules to protect the new plants from deer and curious squirrels.
But we discovered a new pest: armadillos. We haven’t seen one (they are mostly nocturnal), but the damage has been significant and we’ve seen dead ones on a nearby road. I’m hoping the Milorganite deters them as well since they are sensitive to smell.
I also recently realized that we have a sizable population of
hammerhead
flatworms, especially by the front sidewalk. In the morning between 7 and 10
am they can be found crawling on the sidewalk. I’ve destroyed close to 50 of
them so far.
Local plant rescues allowed me to get some ferns to address
light water flow areas. I specifically used Christmas ferns (Polystichum acrostichoides) on a natural
berm in the hopes of getting the same lush effect I saw at a garden years ago.
Green & gold (Chrysogonum repens)
and low St. Andrews cross (Hypericum
stragulum) came from the same old home site and will help with lawn
replacement in the part-shade front where I’m removing half the grass.
I’ve made several pollinator areas, again using light fencing to deter the deer. I think I bought out my local store's whole stock, but I consider it cheap insurance. So far it has been enough, with a light spritz of Liquid Fence initially. Again, cheap insurance.
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| A rosinweed leans out, waiting to be planted |
It’s been a pretty good year, I’m happy in the new space, and this next year will bring a lot more changes on this habitat: old shrub removal, more lawn reduction, tree thinning and lots more native plants (some of which are just waiting to be planted)!
If you’re looking for more advice on dealing with a new
space, I found the
guidance in this article to be useful.
