The transformation begins - 2019

“Thank you so much for my perennial beds. I just can’t stop staring at them.”

When we met Yvonne, a PFC Army veteran at the 2019 Bear, Delaware Library Veterans Fair, we quickly learned she is a plant lover. 

“Plants and books are my friends. I can live without just about anything, but I must have my plants and I must have my books,” Yvonne says firmly.

 By the end of 2020, Yvonne could relax on her patio, surrounded by  a wide border of perennials, new trees and shrubs, and a soft line of tall ornamental grass along the back fence.

Read how the project evolved...

This maple was wonderful at one time. Yvonne loved the shade. Unfortunately,  our friend and consulting arborist Peg Schofield  said the tree had to to go.   

It  was dying, because a previous homeowner “fixed” a damaged trunk with concrete. 

 Yvonne had no place to sit, nor little appealing to look at. The beds along the back fence was filled with poison ivy and weeds.

Time to reclaim and rebuild. 

High temperatures, and humidity to match didn't slow volunteers, though board member Dawn paused a moment to show off the new Heroic Gardens banner.

Among the items found in the back yard were these dog and deer figures. We said goodbye to the  dog, but Yvonne  decided Bambi could stay - after we suggested a coat of spray paint in her favorite color - red.  

it was a summer of wicked storms, and each time, we worried the tree would break or fall, bringing down utility lines or damaging Yvonne's house.

But we didn't have someone to tackle it.

 And then...

That's Joe behind that big limb and spray of sawdust, dismantling the tree. Joe, thank you for making it happen! But there's  more ahead...

Our volunteers were all smiles, despite a long to-do list. 

Who knew there would be so much football trash talk? Turns out advisory board member Teresa is a big fan of the Dallas Cowboys, who had demolished the Philadelphia Eagles 2 weeks earlier.

 Thank you Olivia, Michael,  board embers Jason and Dawn, advisory board members Teresa and Heidi for your hard work!

After Kristen and advisory board member Pete cut out the foundation, board member Jason levels the gravel base, sets the borders, and lays  the pavers, using those great construction skills every Marine learns.

Our projects often turn into a little "urban archeology." This time, Dawn, Teresa and Olivia dug up everything imaginable under the tree Joe and his family took down, including horseshoes, cement and even more river rocks. 

Planting season is over, but the backyard still has bright colors, with this planter donated by Enliven Planters. And ornamental maiden grass donated by Enliven made the back fence worth looking at. 

Just as we geared up for spring planting,  COVID-19 quarantines put on the brakes.

But we knew the clock was ticking to get trees in the ground.

When restrictions eased, a few board members got the job done, with masks and lots of social distancing! 

Board member Heidi assembled the new patio furniture in no time flat, despite a confusing direction sheet!

The location of an unwanted clothesline post was the PERFECT spot for that Eastern Redbud. 

But who knew that post was anchored in 2 feet of concrete!

 That's when this volunteer family poured on the muscle power to get the post out.

Thanks, guys!

As board member Heidi tends a flower bed, Yvonne gave the patio set  its first official use.

  It's the perfect place for a break from the blazing sun.

After a long battle, Dawn finally conquered the roots left over from the now-gone Norway maple. In it's place, a white crape myrtle donated by Sam Brown's Wholesale Nursery.

Two families - and a lot of power tools - came together to tear down what appeared to be a dog house behind Yvonne's garden shed. 

It took 3 hours with sledgehammers and saws to cut through corners reinforced with 4X4 lumber. 

Joe and Heidi prep the bag for pick up. 

Heidi's handcart has the massive cement footer for the clothesline!

 This dog house is history! 

With the eyesore dog house gone, volunteer Tricia sifts through the remaining debris,  preparing the land for grass seed and a Deodar cedar tree.

The new tree will anchor this corner of the yard.

A sweeping perennial bed will make the patio an outdoor room with colorful blooms and foliage from spring through the last days of fall.

Dawn worked with Yvonne on the layout, while Heidi prepared the soil with a rototiller.

The redbud in the foreground was green through summer, but turned to a soft yellow in fall.

The crape myrtle was full of white blossoms for most of summer.

And the planter's new home anchoring the patio bed was ideal.

It's October, the project is done, and Yvonne has the perfect place to rest at the start and end of her day. The sun is still warm on the south-facing patio.

“Even though it’s open, it’s a private space – more mine,” she says.
  “I just sit there in the peace and quiet – ta da!” 

 Thanks to our sponsors, Enliven Planters & Sam Brown's Wholesale Nursery for supplying the beautiful flowers, evergreens and trees that will frame Yvonne's oasis.