The Ugly Little Planter

There is an ugly little cement planter sitting by the back steps by the old carriage house entrance in the house where I live. It has been sitting empty for the third summer now- the only thing planted in it has been cigarette butts. Tonight I decided to fix that emptiness at very little cost.

'My house', which was built in 1870, is surrounded by a collection of wildflowers and ferns and cultivated heritage perennials that have been allowed to spread- some of these are good alternatives to lawn. Some of the non-natives are: forget-me-nots, lungwort, goutweed, Scottish Bluebells, and Scilla- (a bulb.) There are also fiddlehead ferns and fall asters. There is always colour and lots of lush greenery around. All that is lacking is a tiny patio with some stepping stones leading up to it and I would have a private oasis to catch the western sun that wouldn't need mowing. It takes a lot of foresight on the part of my landlord to leave this greenery. Most people would weed-wack everything in sight. Actually his origins are from the UK and they are more tolerant of what makes a weed and what doesn't.

Anyways, back to the planter. Tonight I stuck in some forget me nots, a lungwort or two, a couple of fiddlehead ferns, a fall aster and some Scottish bluebells and a few pansies for colour. It is quite shady there and it will blend in with the rest of the surroundings of the house. The end of ugliness! Well, it's still a bit ugly but once the plants start to fall over the edges, it will be hidden a bit.