The most ambitious DIY project I’ve ever taken on? That’s easy. Landscaping my yard.
When I moved here, the yard was dirt and weeds. It looked okay because the weeds had been cut down to make the house look good when it was put on the market, but still, just weeds. I hadn’t planned on doing anything to improve the property because I didn’t want to have to take care of a yard, but there were things that needed to be done, such as rocks laid around the house to protect the foundation. Then, when I found out I was tripping on all the holes and rocks among the weeds, I decided I needed walking paths of crushed rock to keep from falling and breaking my neck. Or a hip, anyway.
Admittedly, I didn’t do any of the rock labor, but the finished work gave me a sort of yard pride that seemed to demand further work. So gradually, I planted a few bushes, a few flowers, filled in some of the gardens that were created by the walkways, and things escalated from there.
I had a lawn mower, so I put in a bit of a lawn since I didn’t want the mower to go to waste (a silly reason for a lawn, I know, but it’s the truth). I had sod put in, but when that all died (the people I hired put in the wrong grass), I dug it up and planted a more heat-resistant strain of grass.
And so it goes . . .
What makes this DIY project so ambitious is that there doesn’t seem to be an end to it. There’s a lot of work just involved in maintenance, so that keeps me outside for a couple of hours each day, which makes me see how much more I can improve. I can see spots that need to be filled in or bits of color that will improve the looks of one of the gardens. And then there are container gardens and hanging pots to be replanted every year.
Yep, an unending project when in fact, what I had wanted was a yard that took no work.
Oh, well, there are worse things than a garden demands attention. And truly, I can’t think of a better use of my time than creating this peaceful place.
Besides, there all are the surprises I find, like this morning. Look! Crocuses!
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Pat Bertram is the author of Grief: The Inside Story – A Guide to Surviving the Loss of a Loved One.
Bertram's Blog 
February 26, 2026 at 4:32 pm
Now I remember why I am going to put in pavers and just one flower bed and one vegebed.
February 26, 2026 at 4:50 pm
It’s a good way to spend time outside, at least for me, since I’m not one to just go out and sit. Best of luck with your projects!
February 26, 2026 at 5:11 pm
I thought about the pavers so that I could put my pation furniture below the deck. Then I will put the vege garden on the deck to keep the rabbits out. The flowers will be against the chicken wire fence because I want to stop my dog from seeing the cars and trucks and barking endlessly.
February 26, 2026 at 6:10 pm
I like that — practicality as well as beauty. Everything does double duty.
February 26, 2026 at 9:19 pm
Your garden is beautiful Masha Allah
February 27, 2026 at 4:20 am
Eleven years ago I spent the first year after my husband died improving my house property to get more money when it was sold. We had started the project together then he died so I finished. He was a skilled carpenter which I wasn’t so I combined what I could do alone with hiring professionals. I often did hard grunt work like scraping paint or pulling up old tiles or applying new paint or deep cleaning long forgotten closets and nooks. The profit was modestly achieved. It was to have been spent in a retirement home on a small lake. It wasn’t. I moved to a condo where I have done very little DIY because my heavy work for modest profit was enough NOT to have to purchase a “fixer upper”! I am glad to leave house fixing in the rear view mirror.
February 27, 2026 at 6:26 am
It’s been eleven years? I knew it was a while, but I didn’t realize it had been that many years. That’s a long time to live without that special person. It’s funny how life took us — you away from a house, me to a house.
February 27, 2026 at 4:48 pm
Yeah it is a long time “without” for both of us.