It's really good for you.
We often hear from clients that their yards stress them out. They find it challenging to maintain them, are irritated by insects, or can't find beauty in their properties.
I hear you. It's a challenge. There is a lot to keep up with, but there are many ways to build efficiency, function, low-maintenance, and pleasure into your property. Sometimes it requires some initial effort but over time you can find that your property becomes much more manageable. (We can help!)
Our property felt really out of control. We had trees that were ready to fall on our neighbor's houses. The first big effort was felling those trees. We were sad about it, but we had to be pragmatic about being responsible home-owners. The up-side is that the loss of the trees created ample sunshine to feed our now bountiful garden. We kept the trees on the property by using the logs to create raised beds. That way we didn't have to pay to haul them off-site, but could keep them around. The soil was so compacted from rescue dogs that used to trample it and all the tree roots, that it would be years before we could have had a successful garden directly in the soil. Now we have a productive garden, thanks to the service of the trees framing out raised beds.
We tried to keep as many trees as possible and we also planted new fruit trees along the creek bed at the back of our property. They'll help prevent erosion of the soil and they're far enough away from the houses to not pose a threat of falling in a storm. Plus, fruit!
So now for taking pleasure in our surroundings. Years ago we purchased a hammock in Panama. We simply loved the woven hammocks that we continued to find in Central America. We knew it wasn't practical for us to hang a hammock at that point, but we figured we'd hold onto it for whenever the right circumstances emerged.
This year we kept looking around. Where was it going to go? Obviously, we want shade, and we now have less shade. We wanted some privacy.
A friend posted a photo of a hammock strung between the V branches in a tree. Yes! Now I started looking more closely at our trees & we identified the perfect spot.
Under the magnolia!!!
No nails. Kevin cemented in a post & hook. He then wired together a few pieces of bamboo to slide in the V of the branches. The magnolia was not harmed in the process of hammock hanging.
This hammock is woven, so we store it in a waterproof box under the bush. Safe from the rain, inside during the winter, & easily accessible on a warm day. (I can't wait to purchase a few more hammocks as back-up when I go back to Guatemala this winter to lead a yoga retreat!)
And the view. Sweetly enjoying the lovely land around me. Finding pleasure.
One day I opened up an instructive YouTube video from a permaculture specialist. I expected to find a lot of content on maintaining mutually supporting systems in a garden. This highly lauded permaculture specialist walked the viewer to the little havens he had created in his garden. He laid down by a swale and began plucking berries off a nearby bush. He shared that here he could hide from his chores, and his wife, a little while longer. I was so happy. It is credible content to think coherently about enjoying the space that you inhabit.
