Wow…it is 9:59pm and I just got home from my last client meeting…it’s May and in the landscape business, it’s a busy time.  Are you in the industry?  Are you busy? Business here has shifted a bit….less big projects and more little projects.  I think I might actually like it better right now.  I have shifted my services a bit and I actually like the quick in and out that more consultation based work allows, it’s a nice break from the generally long drawn out design and installation projects.

Nonetheless, the summer is short and I  want to make the most of it.   Here is is my list of To Do’s .  I am chronically optimistic…and fear that this might be too much.  (I don’t plan to hire much of this out).

I am posting here, because I am hoping that maybe I can force myself to be slightly more accountable.  Also, almost all of them have to do with the garden or outside of my house.

Oh and , Spread giant mound of  wood chips (abt 15 yards) to level out parking area in front of barn

Too much???

I also want to get out and experience new things.  Here is a list I found of various events in New England (or at least Massachusetts and RI)

BOSTON, MAY 21 The 80th annual Hidden Gardens of Beacon Hill Tour will feature 12 gardens, four for the first time, open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Advance ticket purchase, $30, at (617) 227-4392 and beaconhillgardenclub.org. On May 21, tickets will be $35 at booths at Charles and Mount Vernon Streets and at Charles and Chestnut Streets. – Drat – I already missed it…Why did they do this on a Thursday!! Did you go? Was it good?

NEWTON, MAY 31 Eight houses will be open from noon to 5 p.m., including an 1865 Mansard Victorian, four Colonial Revivals built between 1903 and 1925, and a 1920 Arts and Crafts house. The tour, sponsored by the Newton Historical Society, will take place in five historic neighborhoods. Tour tickets, $30 (members, $25), will be available at the Newton History Museum, 527 Washington Street (Jackson Street). For advance tickets, $25 (members, $20), and information: (617) 796-1450 and newtonhistorymuseum.org.

BOSTON, JUNE 20 Roof decks, patio spaces, backyards, neighborhood parks and community gardens will be part of the 16th annual South End Garden Tour from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Proceeds benefit the South End/Lower Roxbury Open Space Land Trust, which owns and maintains 16 community gardens. Tickets, $20, will be sold at the South End Branch of the Boston Public Library, 685 Tremont Street (Rutland Square). Advance tickets, $17, and information at (617) 437-0999 and southendgardentour.org.

SHEFFIELD AND ASHLEY FALLS, JULY 11 Seven private gardens will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the Hidden Treasures of the Berkshires tour, including a site in a former quarry, with pine trees and stone deer lining the path to the small lake; the grounds of a Federal house, which is shaded by old-growth trees and lined with perennial beds; and a quiet country garden with a variety of plantings centered around a waterfall and koi pond.

Advance ticket purchase, $30, is recommended, by check and a self-addressed, stamped envelope to the Lenox Garden Club, Box 552, Lenox, Mass., 01240. Box lunches, reserved by June 30, are $20. Tickets, if available on the day of the tour, will be $35 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Trinity United Methodist Church, 1156 Ashley Falls Road in Ashley Falls. Information: (413) 298-3089 and lenoxgardenclub.net.

RHODE ISLAND

PROVIDENCE, JUNE 6 The 30th annual Festival of Historic Houses, sponsored by the Providence Preservation Society, will take place 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eight houses in the Queen Anne, Victorian, and Colonial Revival styles will be featured on the tour. Tickets, $35, at the Baker House, 217 Hope Street. Information: (401) 831-7440 and ppsri.org.