Blueberry Bed: Before, During, & After

A year or two ago (I think? I'm not really sure when it was), I decided to turn this triangular flowerbed in the back of our house into a bed for blueberry bushes...

 ...because I'd rather eat blueberries than look at flowers.  ;-)  As our weather has warmed and our recent rains have replenished the earth, there has been a lot of growth in this bed...

 ...mostly of weeds.  ;-)  So with nothing else pressing on my agenda this morning, I decided to enjoy the beauty of a glorious May morning outdoors and weed this bed, as well as give it a fresh blanket of mulch.

 David captured me in the act.  :)  When I got done, it looked much better: no weeds...

 ...but precious little else!  My blueberry bushes have not flourished like I was hoping they would.

 I originally planted five bushes (although "bushes" is speaking optimistically when it comes to the seedlings I put in the ground), but one has completely died and returned from whence it came.  Four remain; and of those four, this is the biggest and appears to be the healthiest...

 ...followed by this one.

 This next one comes in at 3rd place.  What do you mean you can't even see it?  It has at least seven leaves visible! You must need your eyes checked.  ;-)

 Far in the back of the pack, at fourth place because it's the lowest it can go, comes this fine lousy specimen (see the sticks poking up? that's the blueberry bush).  Although I think it really is dead, I'm reluctant to pull it out because I don't want to give up hope yet.  Right now I'm praying for a resurrection.  ;-)

Even though my results aren't likely to impress anyone, I did find it therapeutic to get my hands in the dirt this morning and work up an honest sweat.  While digging up weeds and spreading mulch, I pondered the long-term nature of planting things.  Some things we plant produce fruit very quickly, and we who plant are the harvesters as well.  But then there are other things--blueberry bushes among them--which take much longer to mature and produce the desired object.  As I carefully tended these scrawny little shoots this morning, I wondered whether I would live to eat any of the berries from them.  Even if I don't, however, there will be some who will--provided I don't kill all the bushes between now and then!  :)

Some quotes that go along with my ponderings...

Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.

~ Warren Buffett

He that plants trees loves others besides himself.

~ Thomas Fuller

The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago.

The second best time is now.

~ anonymous