Place Profile by Rachael

Cochrane

LOCATION:

My Yard!

In Farmington, MN

Hi, My name is Rachael Cochrane (you probably gathered that from the last page!)

My place profile is actually my yard- which is like a giant garden… and also my greenhouse where I grow over 1,000 plants each year!

I love gardening and growing things- and this is why…

You can bury a lot of troubles digging in the dirt. ~Author Unknown

Can you see the cardinal on the fence?

So many weeds,

so little thyme…

Bird house made

from recycled

wooden

pallets and fallen

Birch trees…

Strawberries in a raised bed.

This type of bed allows for

better drainage…

Organically grown

Asparagus stretching

out to the sky…

Dwarf apple trees

set fruit years earlier

than full size trees

and are perfect for

small yards! Don’t

forget, 2 or more for

better crops!

Grapevine

beginning to

bud out.

In early spring,

the heavy

sweet scent of

cherry

blossoms fills

the air.

Beautiful hyacinths

also perfume the air

in a bed filled with mulch

made out of leaves from

the previous year.

Close up you can

see the beautiful pink

streaking and individual

bell shaped flowers that

attract many beneficial

insects.

Irish moss growing in the

cracks of a brick path

Beauty can be seen

even in a “weed.”

Garlic Chives

grow freely

Honeysuckle

vines glisten

after a rain

shower.

Serviceberry

bushes have

fruit similar to a

blueberry with

intense flavor.

A vibrant

cranberry bush

makes an

excellent hedge.

A violet growing wild

beside our house…

We split our own wood

and heat our house in the

Spring/Fall and use it for

supplemental heat in the

winter as well.

Even our cat loves it

out in the yard- or on

the driveway.

Wow, that was all just the

backyard! Now onto the

front yard! This is a side

view of our garage.

First though-

one of our

hobbies…

Volkswagens!!

1968 VW

Beetle

Back to the front

yard… solar

powered lights!

Bright colored Spirea

Bunny visiting last spring

Wait a minute!!...

What the heck!? That’s a four-eared

bunny! Makes you wonder what could

cause this mutation… It’s reminiscent

of frogs with two heads, and fish with

two tails- weird & sad!

Off to the greenhouse!

I grow all of my plants in

a pop-up solar structure.

I then sell these

organically

grown plants each spring

to neighbors, friends, and

anyone passing by!

Heirloom variety

Tomato

Chamomile & Asters

Colorful young

Coleus!

Pumpkin

Sprouts!

Thanks for stopping by, but before you go-

A couple of sayings about gardening…

Earth is here so kind, that just tickle her with a hoe and she

laughs with a harvest. ~Douglas William Jerrold, about Australia,

A Land of Plenty

The kiss of the sun for pardon,

The song of the birds for mirth,

One is nearer God's heart in a

garden than anywhere else on

earth. ~Dorothy Frances Gurney,

"Garden Thoughts“

God made rainy days so

gardeners could get the

housework done. ~Author

Unknown