Garden after rain

I have been a bit hesitant to show you our garden around the house as it's been destroyed by the renovation works and I have to start it from scratch. We had almost a year of heavy machines working on the house and the grounds too, digging deep holes for drainage, cable work, and new pipes, so it took its toll on the grounds. We had some soil brought in the garden, but most of the property is still waiting for its plants. The plan is to build a cottage garden, so let's see how it goes. For now, I'm studying a lot and creating a plan as the biggest work will be done this autumn (hopefully). I thought it would be nice to share this progress here, also for me to see how the garden develops as I tend to forget how something looked like as soon as they're finished. But let me show you what I've done so far... I'm not a big fan of tacky garden decorations, but I couldn't refuse this stone snail from my mom. And now I kind of love it! It got its place on top of the stairs, next to the terrace that will be placed in a month. If it would be up to my husband we would have the garden full of dwarfs, stone mushrooms, birds and other things that I cannot stand. I'm scared that one day he will bring all those things from his father's garden, but that's a problem for another day.  ---- The first plant that I ceremonially put in the soil is *Kamchatka honeyberry*. It was a gift from my aunt, another one that I couldn't refuse. For now it's just a tiny twig, but it should grow to 1.5 - 2 m. I can't see it right now, but this is what I was told. It could bring some berries next year, but it should reach its potential in the 5th year, so I have to start training my patience. The berries should be sweet-sour and great for juices, jams or compote. However, knowing me and my husband we will eat them straight from the bush.  ---- I don't know what variety this is though. My family is great in growing interesting plants, but the variety name is not so important to them, so alas, I might find it out once I have some berries.  ---- A part of our garden goes steep down, and this is where I'm going to plant my herbs. Not only, it's next to the kitchen, but they will also grow bigger and stabilise the soil. I can't wait when all my herbs will cover that area. This will be one of my proudest moments. My first choice was *Thyme*. I don't have it in my second garden, so I couldn't miss it here. I placed some stones on the side that goes down to help the plants grow without sliding down the hill.  ---- This *Sage* will survive everything. It was removed from the ground and replaced several times during the renovation, always without putting it properly in the soil. It looked so poor after winter that I thought I lost it, but it started shooting some new growth and couldn't make me happier. I even found one tiny baby sage in its original location, so I'm taking care of it now and hoping that it will survive and grow in a monster size like its mother.  ---- In my other garden I have tons of lemon balm, but I always wanted to have *Lemon Verbena* for its healing properties. I must say that I didn't expect it to be so difficult to grow. It is such a dramatic plant. When it is a bit dry it looks like it was dying, its leaves turn yellow and it makes me feel guilty for forgett […]