Morning run in the neighborhood/suburban.

Plants for the front yard

Ok, That is a lot of plants. Maybe I got carried away a little, but I have to follow the HOA's guideline for how many plants I need in my front yard. 

This is going to be interesting. How to get the tree into the hole. The best way to get the tree in the hole is to cut of the bottom of the plastic pot and open up one side of the pot. Then roll/lift it into the hole and after that you just pull of the plastic pot.                                                                                       I have learned since I bought this tree that you should not dig a round hole because then the rots keeps follow the hard soil around and not expend out while if you dig a hole with angles it keeps going due to that it can't do a 90 degree turn.  

It is important to dig a big hole so the rots have a easy job growing in the beginning. You can put the same old dirt back, but there is different kind of soil and nutrients you can mix into the old soil to help the tree get started. The most important part is that the soil around the tree now is soft. 

Front yard, watering system

The first step when you are landscaping is figuring out the watering system. I am going to need a drip system in both the front yard and the back yard for my plants. 

Time to plan the drip system. 

Where does the water come from and where will the valves and the control box be. Are they on the same side of the house? Of cause not, that would have made it too easy. 

To be able to get the water from one side to the other side of my front yard, the water has to go under the driveway. The builder put a thick pipe going under the driveway so now I only have to find where it is. They said about 2 feet. From the bottom or the top? After some digging it is found. 

Next I have to plan where I want my plants so the pipes will cover that area and I also need a pipe going to the back of my house. I am not going to worry about the back of my house right now but I need to prepare for it.                                                                              It is pretty hard to dig in a straight line so I put up a string to follow.

Time to decide where the valve box is going to go. More digging. 

The watering system is going to have one valve for the front yard and two for the back. One will be for the trees and one for the bushes so I can regulate the amount of water they get after their needs. 

To get to the back yard I had to dig under the gate. There was a block of concrete I had to dig under. 

Cotton balls

Picked up some cotton balls that were left behind after the harvest. They are so beautiful. 

New Back Yard covered in weed.

HI

It has been a while since my last post. I have moved to a new house with a new backyard to fix. From just having dirt in my backyard I got this lovely green backyard when the rain and warm weather hit Arizona. So should I let it die in the heat or some how get ride of it?

How to built a pool - Shotcrete

They start with putting up shields around the pool because the concrete is actually shot on the walls and it splashes a lot. I asked if they should do a thicker shell because of the expanding soil here and they thought that was a good idea. Especially since this area has been farmland before.

The steel bar are a little more than 3 inch up so we decide to just add that extra inch. So the bottom will be around 7 inch instead of 6. They start with the steps so they can dry a little till they need to walk on them. Then they take the benches and the walls. The last thing they do is the bottom of the pool.

3, 5 hour after they arrived they are done and now it is only cleaning up to do.

When the shotcrete dries it cracks. There will always be surface cracks but you have to look out for bigger cracks. If you can fit a quarter in the crack it is too big.

You can test if it is a surface crack or a deeper crack. Pour some water in the crack and if no water is coming out from the crack even if you add more, it is probably not a surface crack. Call your subcontractor and they send someone out to check it up for you.

The shotcrete company will give you some instructions how to keep your pool from drying too fast, follow the instructions. Keep watering the pool for at least 5 days. 

My steps. I'm satisfied with the shape of the stair but the first step is very small and the second step should probably been a little bigger. One more thing with the steps is that the shape is making a corner, and that's never good in a pool. If there is a corner then there is a place for sand to get stuck.

The pool has finally got a shape and with all the four steps. Now I can go down in it and feel how deep it is.

Jasmine

Jasmine is a lovely plant. It has a fantastic fragrance that is especially strong in the evening. I have two different jasmines. They are both vines but you can find jasmine in bush form too. In the beginning I was just winding the branches back into the plant but like most plants it gets bushier if you cut it. The gardener takes the bush saw and just sweeps it over the bush and since the plant is a complete mess with vines going in and out it gives probably not the best result but in a couple of weeks the plant has regrown and it looks great.

My yellow Jasmine blooms first and when it is all over it is time for the white one to bloom. The yellow jasmine is also called Carolina jessamine because it is South Carolina’s state flower.

My jasmine is easy to care for and they can take both heat and cold good. I have mine in full sun and they have never burned. They have never been covered and they haven’t taken any damage so far from those few cold nights we get here in Gilbert, AZ.

Read more about jasmine:

How to Care for a Jasmine Bush Plant

Outdoor Jasmine Plant Guide

The Fragrant Jasmine