Spring is in the process of sprung-ing here in Richmond and we’re boiling over with excitement. Warm weather? Yes please. Green trees? Bring it. Flowers blooming? Duh, winning.
So to those of you who aren’t on the brink of spring yet, we thought we’d send a virtual dose of the season – courtesy of some photos of what’s starting to happen around here – like the little buds that are showing up on the hydrangeas that we’ve inherited.
Spring is especially exciting this year because we get to be surprised by whatever magically decides to pop up around the new house – and we finally get to see what our property looks like in all it’s bloomin’ glory. The daffodils are already on blast. Holla.
Oh and for those who don’t recognize the house above, it’s the back of ours. It’s definitely different than the original brick ranch facade in the front, right? We think it’s really funny that the addition was only built about 10 years later (in the 70’s instead of the 60’s) but it has such a different vibe. Someday we hope to unify things. Not sure how yet, but maybe it’ll come to me in a dream. Sidenote #1: I once had a dream about tiling our old shower surround with white subway tile about a year before actually deciding to embark on that adventure (and to use white subway tile).
But back to the weather. Even Burger is itching to get outside and kick off what will be many months of bug hunting in a new backyard. Here he is gazing longingly out the living room window. Sidenote #2: This shot of the bushes makes Sherry twitchy because she wants to trim them like crazy.
As for the temp, the daily highs around here have been wavering between the mid-50s and the high-60s, even stretching into the 70’s a couple of weeks back. And that means yard work is quickly creeping to the top of our to-do list (especially since we got started a few weeks back). Which reminds us, we owe you a more official “tour” of the exterior of our house. So put that in your “stay tuned” folder.
The only bummer that spring has sprung on us has to do with the tree in the front of the house. It has grown (or was planted?) crazy close to the foundation…
… and stretches up the side of the porch, sort of feathering out over the walkway to the front door. We’ve always known it probably has to go (aka we should take it out before it takes out any of the house). But it’s charming, darn it.
Especially covered in white blooms. See them below? Sidenote #3: I just typed “see them blow?” which was oddly entertaining to me (I dunno, kinda like “thar she blows”), so I stopped writing this post and told Sherry about it. She only found it marginally funny. Maybe it was a you-had-to-be-there thing.
Anyway, don’t those white flowers in the picture above (not blow) make you love it? Maybe white flowers are the tree equivalent to sad puppy dog eyes. Seems like a shame to remove that sweet little tree now. Especially since we don’t think we can save him since he’s basically on top of the house (so we anticipate a crazy root situation when we start digging). Oh and while we’re on the subject of said tree, does anyone know what it is? We have no idea.
Despite our little tree drama, we’re ready to enjoy spring to the fullest (holy buckets, it’ll be Clara’s first birthday before we know it). I wonder how good she’d be at mulching. Hmm…
Is anyone else getting a good dose of spring fever yet? Are temperatures up and flowers out in you area? Who’s shoveling snow today?
Erin@His & Hers says
Your house is appearing on craigslist furniture ads here in Rochester, NY….
http://rochester.craigslist.org/fuo/2263493133.html
Not sure if the ad is legit or not, but that is most definitely your old den. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Crazy! Off to check it out…
xo,
s
Stacey says
Love this time of year–if only the snow would go away here!
Alicia@ eco friendly homemaking says
It looks like a Camellia but I am not sure. I am new to your blog and I love it! I am so glad that I found it. I am new to blogging and love finding great blogs like yours to read.
Paige Cotney says
Hey! I recently got engaged and I am looking for a place to order invitations. I was wondering if you guys could recommend a site that is affordable and of good quality. I’m not sure if you guys have a sponsor that does that kind of stuff or if you have personal experience ordering from a particular place. Any suggestions would be wonderful! Thanks so much!
YoungHouseLove says
Congrats on your engagement! We would definitely suggest checking out etsy since they have so many awesome vendors. We printed our own invites at home, so we don’t have a specific company to mention – but if anyone reading does, feel free to toss it out for Paige!
xo,
s
Lindsay says
I used this place and loved them! http://www.tgkdesigns.com/ Not sure what you are wanting to spend, but I was looking for something specific, and I was able to design my own invitations here. I actually just wrote a post on my blog on Friday about my invitation search. You can check it out here if interested. http://thesherbertreport.wordpress.com/2011/03/11/the-green-kangaroo/
Nicole says
I just couldn’t resist letting you know that I have been reading your blog for a month now and I am seriously addicted! It’s such a fun read and I find it getting more and more exciting watching your house turn into something extra special! You two (and a 1/2!) are amazing and I look forward to seeing what is yet to come! Thanks!!
kristen says
Grrrrr! It’s been two days since you posted……J/K…oh, how I do LOVE y’alls posts! Keep um coming! :)
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, thanks for the love! We typically take the weekend “off” (although we still do projects and write posts, Sat & Sun aren’t usually posting days since we try to spend time with the family and enjoy some time without the laptops). But sometimes we get crazy and toss one in there every once in a while. You never know. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Linda says
Definitely a camellia. I used to have a bunch of them on my old farm.
It’s getting to be winter here in Victoria, Australia, and I for one am super excited. It doesn’t snow around here – certainly not like you guys get, but it does got frosty and I do love a good snuggle on the couch under a blanket.
Linda
Amanda says
I love your blog. Read it everyday at work. Just from the pictures and using http://cnre.vt.edu/dendro/forsite/key/intro.htm I’d say you have a magnolia as well. Also you are just thinking of the foundation damage that can occur, but don’t forget about the bugs that can crawl all over you roof and find their way with the branches hanging over the house.
pam says
Gorgeous camellia! Definitely worth the effort of trying to transplant. They do need to be planted in a protected site – but not against your house!
(Down here in NC) I built another layer onto my little square foot garden making it nice & deep (for carrots). Planted carrots, leeks, spinach, swiss chard, peas, lettuce, parley & cilantro. Next weekend I plan to build another square foot garden (they’re traditionally 4′ x 4′)to have it ready for summer veggies (which take up much more space).
Wasn’t this weekend beautiful?
YoungHouseLove says
Yes! Gorgeous. Ah spring. Nothing like it.
xo,
s
Karri says
If its a Camellia, it can be planted 3ft from the house— the roots are fine. And the house actually protects the tree (it needs the warmth to thrive).
YoungHouseLove says
Three feet would be awesome. Right now it’s not even 3″!
xo
s
Andrea says
Trust the Landscape Architects. It’s a Camellia. It looks very leggy to me, so if you’re going to save it, prune it back a bit and hopefully it will fill in a bit better. There is literally tons of info on how to grow Camellias. Read up just a bit to find out what she needs and she will reward you with blooms and evergreen foliage. (Large Camellias aren’t cheap, so you’ll want to save this one.)
Amanda Jean says
No spring woes from the last frontier! This is my favorite time of year :) It’s still below zero at night, but our days are in the 20’s. We got a few feet of snow just last month and it makes for perfect snowmachining conditions. Not to mention, the daylight we get for a solid 12 hours a day. So nice to have it back…We won’t get any blooms until May/June, but I can wait.
Cathy says
Definitely jealous of your spring weather. It’s still in the 30s and 40s in Chicago. Though the weatherman says we should be hitting the high 50s or low 60s on Thursday! So thanks for sharing the sunshine and flowers until then.
Lea says
Hi there! It is most definitely a white Camellia (probably Camellia sasanqua)and because Camellias are very slow growing and usually don’t get larger that 10′ tall, I’m guess yours is pretty old! It was also pruned into a tree form and looks nice, and might I add, truly ‘spring-ish’! Camellias aren’t known for invasive root growth or being particularly dangerous trees up against house foundations, so if you can live with it, maybe let her be for a few more years? Thanks for the spring love!
Ana Silva says
I can’t wait for spring to get here! I just love how flowers make anything look beautiful. BTW I had to cut down a beautiful tree (fig tree I believe) a while back and even though it hurt, it had to be done. It wasn’t as bad as yours but it was rubbing up against the house (roof part too) and not letting sun hit that side of the house which can cause moisture issues later or damage the house itself. So yeah, you might want to transfer it or remove it completely.
Amanda says
We’re in the same boat as you all weather-wise up here in DC. Just enough warmth to get the weeds growing, and we’d pulled out some bushes after the first hard freeze because they’d become home to some *gasp* black widows, so we have some serious clean up and sodding in our near future!
Yay! Spring!
Rebecca says
We just got 6 inches of snow last night here in Missouri! I am thinking of going back to bed and not getting out until about June. Beautiful pics, can’t wait for our Hydrangea bush to start blooming!
Ally says
Hey,
Love your blog, I think the white flowered tree is a camellia, it was my Mum’s favorite. Keep up the amazing work
Anne (no longer in Reno) says
I know you’ve already heard this eight thousand times but I thought I’d chime in. It’s a camellia, and around here they are really commonly seen planted that close to houses. They are big awesome shrubs and with careful pruning I think you’d be able to keep it there. It just needs to be cut away from the house once a year, they are slow growers and I would try pruning before I’d transplant. Too bad it looks like it was trimmed up to look like a tree.
Suni (Sunny) says
As my mother would remind me “it’s not a puppy – pull it out!” And in reply I’d say “yes it is!!!!” And would tenderly transplant it. I don’t know about that species nor that region, but most things that bloom in the spring transplant best in the fall. So maybe you enjoy it this year while you explore the splended flora surprises in your yard and plot it’s next home for the fall!
Krystal says
I’m catching up on old posts and was so excited to see one on plants and springtime! Coming from two expert gardener parents, I’ve become well versed in landscaping over the years…which makes me unable to refrain from commenting on your mention of mulch. I’ve noticed that you used mulch at the last house as well, and I’ve always been kind of surprised at that. Mulch is a breeding ground for bugs, vermin, and gross (sometimes toxic) bacteria. Personally, I’ve always found rock more aesthetically pleasing, but I know many people shy away from it because they believe it is too expensive. The only reason they believe that is because they are getting ripped off by buying bags of rock from stores like Lowes and Home Depot. If you go to a supply yard, you can buy it by the yard or ton for dirt cheap. Not to mention, rock is a much better environment for your plants. The nastiness growing within the mulch make your plants vulnerable to pests and disease, and really it is just more costly in the end. I wasn’t sure if you were aware of this and just thought I’d mention it :)
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks so much for the info! We’ve actually never heard that. We’ll have to keep it in mind. Our yard will probably be a 4+ year evolution like our last one, so who knows where we’ll end up!
xo,
s