New member saying hi

[kaylyred]

Greetings everyone!

I just wanted to wave hello and introduce myself. I'm Karen, known here and on the Dave's Garden forums as KaylyRed (the Kayly part is a nickname my husband gave me when we were dating, and the red is because I have auburn hair). I'm a fairly new gardener, having just gotten into gardening full swing when my husband and I stopped renting and decided to buy a house.

Unfortunately, my husband and I separated, and when we did...we had to give up the house. It was tough for me losing my gardens, which would have been going into their third season that spring. But I ended up getting my kids and I a cute little Victorian farmhouse on a large 1/3rd acre city lot. We moved in in the fall, and it wasn't until spring that I realized my lot was an overgrown weedy jungle. Last year I did what I could with limited funds, but I have a very long way to go. This year...my husband and I are (happily!) back together and I'm looking forward to tackling another spring clean-up and revamp. It's time to get the tarps out and do some serious lasagna gardening! I've started some perennials from seed, will be starting annuals soon, and shopping for nursery bargains wherever I can find them.

Since the house I moved to is on a shady lot with many mature trees, I've become a certified hostaholic. I had no idea how crazy I would be for hostas until I picked up a large 'Krossa Regal.' My oldie-but-goodie was so pretty there in the shade that I started looking at other hostas more closely and was amazed to find that there was a lot more to them than the old timers I saw at big box stores. I picked up 'Twilight,' and 'Pineapple Upside Down Cake,' and 'Blue Mouse Ears,' and...I was on my way to becoming a hosta collector. I'm still a newb, and I still have very few plants, but I think I'd probably be embarrassed to admit how many minutes (okay, hours) of the day I spend browsing catalogs, websites, forums and books looking at hostas.

My introduction got longer than I intended, so I guess I'll just conclude by saying hello again...and I'm looking forward to getting to know you all!

[Ginger]

Hi there Kaylyred! You will love it here, and you will be even more addicted to hosta by the end of the year I guarantee!

Lots of great folks and lots of good information can be found, and hopefully you will make some good friends along the way.

Ginger

[Chris_W]

Welcome to the forums Karen. Nice to meet you

[newtohosta-no more]

Awww....Karen....your story is oh so familiar to many of us. It's starts with one or two really great growing hostas and before you know it you've got hundreds and are quite obsessed. Not a bad thing, imo.
Welcome to Hallson's. We're happy to have you join us , especially when Spring is just around the corner and pretty soon pics will start to appear of things that are growing all over the place. Please do join in! We love to see pictures of works in progress and the people here are always willing to answer any questions you might have. Congrats to you and your hubby for getting back together and on your new home. May you love and happiness also grow over the upcoming years.

[Linda P]

Glad to have you join us! I'm a neighbor to the south, in Northwestern Illinois.
I'm a long-term certified hosta nut, and many of the people here on this forum are responsible for fueling the fires of my hosta craze.
Please show us pictures of your garden. It's really fun to watch how things grow over the years.

Linda P

[BackerBunch]

Welcome to you too, Karen!

[kaylyred]

Thanks for the welcomes! I've got some photos in the link in my signature now. My yard has a very very long way to go, but it's a start!

I'm thinking of moving most of my hostas to my (also shady) front yard. Our puppy (well, he's 9 months old now) likes my gardens way too much, and I don't know of a good way to deter him. This winter, he ate my small Japanese pieris. I think the poor shrub is a goner; it's broken way down near the base.