Things are looking pretty good in the front of the house. The Indian Hawthorn and both Leyland Cypress shrubs I planted earlier this year are still alive two months after the fact, which is a good sign.

Whatever is planted in the two large planters on the front porch is blooming.

They were in place when I moved in. I don't know what they are. But they look nice.

I can thank the yard maintenance crew for a job well done.

I found this guy hanging out on the wall of the garage.

This guy was hanging out on the back porch.

Good job by the yard maintenance crew.

Everything is turning green in the backyard for the summer.

The Mr. Goldstrike and Heavenly Bamboo nandina plants all seem to be doing well. My neighbor tells me that the nandinas are basically indestructible, as in cut-them-off-clean-at-the ground-and-they-should-grow-back indestructible. They are also very hard to get rid of should I ever want to do so.

The mystery bulbs given to me by my friend, Heather, are green and growing. Maybe they will bloom next spring and I'll get to find out what they are.

The grass I planted seems to be doing ok.

Whether or not it establishes itself is another matter. But for now, it's looking good.

Now this is interesting. I appear to have a host of weeds growing in the cracks of my new patio.

How is it that I can plant an actual plant in the ground, add potting soil, and water it, and I still have to cross my fingers and hope that it grows. But I can take NOTHING, "plant" it in the sand in between the bricks, add no water of any kind, and I have a forest growing in a short amount of time. This is one of the great mysteries that I just can't seem to wrap my mind around.

Everything is green and growing in the backyard.

The backyard is divided into two halves. The grass on the left side of the photo above is some kind of ornamental grass. Once it appears in the spring, it hardly needs mowing after that. It will actually produce small blooms in the fall, which is nice.

The right side of the yard seems to be mostly weeds and English Ivy, with a large area of bare dirt thrown in for good measure. The tree on the right side of the photo above is enormous and produces a lot of shade.

To this point, I've had some success planting a few things out front, (rose bush, Indian hawthorn, Leyland Cypress), and in back, (boxwoods, bulbs, grass). Hopefully, this is a sign that maybe I can add some more color in the future.

But for now, I'm going to continue to do what I do best - keep the grass cut, the bushes trimmed, and everything watered that needs it. We'll see how this goes.