Hello! Introductions, or my big garden adventure, part 1

Hello everyone!

I've been lurking for a while and thought I'd introduce myself....
Comments, feedback, questions all requested and appreciated.

I'm taking a break from working (a job) to do a bunch of work on my
house. I've
included a bunch
of details here in case something's of interest. Apologies if this is
too off
topic or
otherwise uninteresting...

I live in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Zone 4, on an 90 x 70 city lot with
moderately heavy clay soil. I have WAY too much ambition for one person,
(as
you'll see) :-)
(Any locals, Minnesotans???)

I'm going to be tilling my yard away and going with a complete landscape

of my lot. Just a little 12 x 30 oval of bluegrass lawn in front. Should
keep me
busy for a while
;-)  I've decided to ignore the wise advice to do this a little at a
time,
except the
planting which will never really end.

Landscaping first, (there's my plant interests after)... Sorry this got
rather
long...

I'm about to start work on a bunch of landscaping: putting in some
electric and
lighting,
and water lines for easier watering and future irrigation, some walks
and little
walls. Perhaps
some 24-30" boulders if I can figure out moving them.

I think I should mix in as much sand and compost as I can, up to 4" each

would be nice, though I think this would require some 20 yards of each,
and till
it all in.
And mulch heavily to slow the weeds, because it'll take the next 5 years
to do
the planting and
growing, I'd say.

I've been trying to plan a pond, maybe 6'x 8', but this is a complicated

thing to me. It might have to wait but I think it would be easier now,
before
there is stuff in place that
can't be damaged. Right now there isn't much of that.

I've been starting seeds for about 4 years now under a collection of
scrounged fluorescent lights. I've got about 12 flats I started this
year from
seed in the basement. I switched to much more perennials this year.
Here's what I'm growing:

Achillia millefolium  Common Yarrow, White Milfoil
Achillia millefolium Fernleaf Yarrow
Blue fescue
Bunny grass
Coreopsis lanceolata
Delphinium, giant pacific   These didn't germ. well at all.
Dill Long Island Mammoth, NK
Four o'clocks
Impatiens Dwarf Scarlet baby, Ferry Morse (newly bought)
Impatiens Dwarf White baby, Ferry Morse (newly bought)  These two didn't

germ. well at all.
Impatients from gathered seeds  These did do well!
Liatris Kobold, aka gayfeather
Lychnis  Malese Cross
Marigolds
Mint
Monarda punctata Bee balm
Ocimum basilicum Sweet basil
Poppy oriental
Salvia, red
Sunflower, teddy bear
Tomatoes, Sweet 100, yellow pear and early girls

Out in the yard I have,
Hostas
Peonies
Siberian iris
lots of weedy weak grass (who days are numbered)
a mature maple, blue spruce, arbor vitaes, buckeye and hickory(?)

I plan to plant these outside from seed this year....

Balsam
Cleome Spider plant
Morning glory

Glad to have found this list. Already, I've gotten some good ideas and
helpful information.

-Allan
(soon to have blisters)




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