Acid lovers unite!

My soil test results are in. My overall pH is 5.3, which is slightly on the acid side of neutral (7.0). This is good news for the bahiagrass, azaleas and camellias in my yard, since they're all acid lovers.

Speaking of camellias, my Camellia sasanqua is blooming right now. I don't know exactly what variety it is (maybe 'Jean May'?) since I inherited the bush when I bought the house.

In fact, at first I thought the bush was just some annoying ligustrum. Then one day it started putting out these beautiful, pale pink blooms. Good thing I didn't cut it down!

This is exactly why experts recommend that new homeowners not undertake any massive gardening projects within the first year of owning a house. Instead, just try to observe the yard and see what you've got to work with. You can also gain a thorough understanding of the amount of sun exposure that different parts of your yard receive. It's amazing how much sun exposure can shift with the seasons.

Case in point: the bed that I'm redoing was mostly shaded during the summer, but now that the sun is lower in the horizon, the bed is getting several additional hours of sunlight each day. It's a good thing I didn't plant those variegated gingers yet--they'd be getting sunburned if I had.