Buying the house where we now live was a significant change for us. When we decided that a move would be part of our retirement, we had different criteria for a house than had been the case a quarter of a century earlier when we purchased a family home in the Black Hills of South Dakota. We wanted to downsize a bit. We were just two people and did not need the space we had when raising teenagers. While we had enjoyed our half-acre lot in South Dakota, I was ready to have less grass to mow.
Furthermore, land prices here in northwest Washington are much higher than in South Dakota, so we had to be realistic about what we could afford. There is a housing shortage in our area, and we had to learn a new way of shopping and making the big decision about a home. The first couple of homes in which we had interest sold while we were trying to decide whether or not to make an offer. The house we bought was on the market for less than two weeks, with multiple potential buyers making offers exceeding the asking price. We worked with an astute realtor who helped us make an offer the day the house went on the market. We got lucky to find a home inspector who did a preliminary inspection right away, so we could waive the inspection from our offer. The price was a guess for us, but it has turned out to be a good deal. Home prices have continued to soar, and we were able to lock in a very favorable mortgage rate.

Our small yard was a compromise for us. We wished for more space for a vegetable garden. So far, I haven’t minded switching from a yard that took two hours to mow to one that I can mow in 20 minutes. And we have a very productive cherry tree that yields an excellent harvest each year. The cherries are ripe now, and we pick a couple of gallons daily. Last year, we froze over 50 pounds of cherries, and it looks like we will have a banner harvest this year, too.

From our perspective, one of the drawbacks to this house is that the neighbors are very close. Our house faces the street to the south with a front lawn barely larger than our driveway. The neighbors to the east and west are close enough that there isn’t room to drive a car between the houses. Our backyard is a bit bigger, but the view out of our patio door is of a six-foot privacy fence that separates us from the neighbor to the north. We’ve spoken to that neighbor, but don’t know them well. One feature of their yard is a row of Arborvitae right next to the fence. The trees are all dead. They were dead when we moved into our house more than four years ago. We assumed they would remove the dead plants and perhaps plant something else, but the dead trees remain one of the visual features of looking out of our house. Last year, they dug up their lawn and planted new grass, and we were hopeful that their landscaping would include removing the dead Arborvitae, but so far it has not.

I have joked that I should use our paint sprayer to paint our side of the dead plants green to improve our view. That idea is impractical, so we’ve worked at improving the view in other ways. I painted the fence. We put hooks for hanging plants and fill those baskets with annuals that give a stash of color. I built raised beds beside the fence where we grow herbs, vegetables, and flowers. At the back of those beds, I plant sunflowers each year. We always had sunflowers in South Dakota. I had to plant them inside our fenced vegetable garden to keep the deer from eating them before they bloomed, but the plants were well-suited to the climate. I told people that I planted sunflowers each year because I couldn’t afford a Van Gogh. The joke is partly true.

I was very successful with my sunflowers the first couple of summers in this house. They grew taller than the fence and produced giant heads. Their bright yellow blossoms distracted from the dead Arborvitae on the other side of the fence. However, last year, fewer of the seeds I planted germinated, and I transplanted established sunflowers from the nursery. I doubled the number of seeds this year because of last year’s problems. I have no sunflowers. The beds are producing other plants. We’ve got healthy tomatoes on the vine. We have herbs and annual flowers growing, but no sunflowers. Although those beds are not the main dahlia beds in our yard, I did plant a few tubers there, and only one produced a plant.

I discussed the lack of sunflowers with our daughter-in-law, a very successful gardener, yesterday as we were all picking peas in her yard. She theorized that slugs had gotten into my beds and eaten the sunflower seeds. It is possible. We do have slugs in our yard. However, I’ve put copper around our raised beds and thought it kept the slugs at bay. I have also applied a " Sluggo " product to keep them away. I’ve never seen a slug inside the raised beds. Whatever the reason, we have no sunflowers. Our yard is beautiful and makes us happy, but we don’t have any Van Gogh going, which is disappointing. Since I don’t have the artistic ability to paint sunflowers on the dead Arborvitae, I will likely visit the nursery to purchase at least a few sunflower plants.

I’ve gotten used to the view of the dead Arborvitae. I hardly notice them any more. I’ve learned to train my attention on the beautiful cherry tree, the hanging baskets and the thriving tomato plants. I have beds closer to our deck that will produce dahlia blossoms from now through September. And, in a few weeks, I plan to have at least a few sunflowers. Nursery plants are expensive, but a lot less than purchasing a Van Gough.