The Hank Tree (and other landscaping fun)

So back in January, after Hankertime decided to try his luck in the next step of being (see blog entry for January 30, 2008), my (Charlie's) mom had an idea to plant a tree in his honor at our house, and she gave us $200 to do so. After much debate about whether to plant a fruit or nut tree, a huge-growing tree, a long-lived tree, etc, we decided we would plant an oak- one that would give us color during the fall and remind us of home during the fall when everything else around here is still green. Also, when we move from here, we'd be able to take acorns from the tree and continue the legacy. So after much searching around our usual tree stores, I came to find a place with much larger and seemingly healthier trees for sale with decent install prices (if you're interested, let me know and I'll dig up the info for you). So we picked out a large Nuttall Red Oak (I think also known as Texas Red Oak) and designated it our Hank Tree. We also got several other trees, including a huge Cedar Elm. So when we bought the Hank Tree, it was still winter and so it didn't have leaves yet, though the Cedar Elm was starting to leave already. So we secretly made the Cedar Elm the backup Hank Tree, just in case the oak didn't take.

Though now we're into spring and the Hank Tree (the real deal- the oak) has started to grow it's leaves, and thus is the officially designated tree.

Jaime's also been in the market for some Redbud trees for awhile, and we were also able to make that happen at my new favorite tree store.

As if that weren't enough, we also have a new flower garden, complete with creative dog-repellant devices, as well as a growing herb garden, both thanks to Jaime's green thumb. The herb garden comes complete with a boatload of rosemary, some basil, sage, & thyme, and an onion plant. We had an onion start to sprout leaves when it was left in our pantry, so instead of throwing it away, we put it in the ground, and it really seems to be thriving. Though we're really not sure what happens next with it.