Garden Projects # 15

Is the Patio stone? If so what kind of edging. Wall to contain patio so it stays put? Figure out your furniture placement & BBQ, planters, etc just as you would with an inside room before you start. So much to think about before you get to the fun part. Patti

Hmm, yeah. I am asking for Goshen stone flagstone patio and slabs for six steps set with a landing in the middle and on top. The price is comparable to bluestone, and brought from the Connecticut River Valley about an hour and a half away. The walls can be NE fieldstone that is found in tailings to keep it more affordable, but a slab as a seat set into a low wall beneath the water, and they will border the patio on two sides, and the deck from our dining room on the other side. We are still thinking about where our up ramp will go for heavy machinery (and our humble wheelbarrow) to get up the hill in the future. Probably the ramp will skirt the whole thing, accessible near the garden gate, but that will be a pain to get to. In addition to the view from the patio, view of the water has to be attractive from inside our house which looks down a bit onto the patio area and across to where the water will go and the steps will climb.

I am thinking really hard about how to keep everything organic looking and not overbuilt, but there is a steep hill that can't be allowed to erode into the floor of the patio, and it is an aquafer that currently drains along the side of our house during bad rainstorms.

The falls shown on the Houzz site had lots of ferns and moss and no trees nearby which looked nice. On a hot day like today I also wonder how I will feel without the awful shade trees nearby. Course I'd replant them with JMs that aren't as tall. Guess we're tired or the decisions wouldn't seem quite so hard.

the beginning

Thanks for the reminder. We all have to start somewhere. I had a friend over who hadn't seen the garden since last year. She assured me I have made progress since she was here a year ago. My kids' Suzuki music teachers always said, "Progress, not perfection."

Patti had some great advice! I would check that place out.. I personally am a DIYer :) Zen would most likely do an awesome job they have a beautiful portfolio on there website.. they are probably very expensive though.

worked on the wall for almost 6 hours today and only got 5' done. Had a tough time getting rocks to fit early on and when I finally got going the afternoon sun hit the area - that was enough for me - off to a local river for a dip.

pickle juice

Wha, great work being done at your place despite the heat. Pickle Juice would be good just because of the vinegar. When very hot, I drink a mixture of apple cider vinegar and honey with water.

1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and 1 tablespoon of honey in 8 oz of water, but I make up a pitcher to keep in the refrig. I also make it stronger than many do. I will heat it up and add candied ginger when I am sick in the winter. I have never sweetened it with anything but honey nor have I seen oatmeal added to it which sounds awful. I have added lemon to it when drinking it hot.

We spent yesterday out trimming and pruning trees. We could see dead branches up in a Quercus robur Fastigiata or columnar oak that we had not noticed this winter so DH got out the chainsaw and one branch lead to another and pretty soon we had cleaned up a mess of Viburnums, High bush Blueberries, Forsythia, Lilacs,Liquidambar, plus a few others. It was a good day to work in the shade. We had to haul all the stuff out to a pile we use to stash the woody stuff that we will burn next March. That was the hot part.

Today I did some general deadheading and weeding while DH had to go out and escort and move the old Nantucket Lightship into the harbor to a mooring. Tomorrow we are going out for a picnic and my first swim of the season, so I am not planning on doing anything in the garden. Taking a day off. Patti

I don't know how you worked out there, Bill....the heat has gotten to me...sitting in the AC & not moving!

I drink beer.

Love the Zen Associates website. The pictures there are bigger installations than we can afford, but dreams are free. My problem is can the little guys do a good enough job?

Yes the pictures on the site are all there big jobs, but I'm pretty sure they do smaller stuff. THat wa sone of the reasons my husband didn't like working there. They aren't into the pools like he is used to. They do way more ponds and walls, indoor stuff for businesses. etc.

got more done today as it was not as hot - when the sun hit in the afternoon I was off kayaking again - have 5 or 6' left to do - not sure I will get it done tomorrow of or not.

Sounds like a great day. Grumbling here cause while sitting in a cafe, a woman tripped over my chair and steadied herself on my head. It really wrecked working in the garden until the neck joints stabilize.

That sounds horrible. Feel better soon. Whiplash by crashing lady is very weird. I took the day off and went for a boat ride and a swim. Patti

Thanks, Patti. You'd think she could have at least set her hands on my shoulder. Thank goodness for my chiropractor! Chiropractic was the best mother's helper ever too. Then when we were in the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit later, there she was!

Boat ride and swim sound like the very best things to do on a hot day.

I hope she apologized. It doesn't make your head feel any better, but at least she would think that you are a person & not a chair.

Well she did, and she offered me an Advil. Still no fun.

Wow....what a way to get injured! You never know!....I'm wondering if I should drive the 40 min. up to the farm for a swim....maybe not...

Wow that is awful! Next thing you know we are going to need insurance on ourselves like we need on cars!

Ha ha. Well good excuse for to to take a drive. Marilyn I say go enjoy yourself. Never know where funny business will happen.

Decided to take a friend out for ice cream instead......glad I did.....sky is dark now & thunder is rumbling!

Did a bee visit you again? That was awful! Yum, on the ice cream!!!

Posting this now, as I have to get to an overnight. Not completely caught up on this thread, but maybe I can catch up tonight on my phone after my client goes to bed.

Everyone is deep into their projects, I see. I have done nothing, as it's been too hot, and weeding, watering and potting up plants to sell consumes all my time this time of the year. Go figure. But I have 2 weeks off, as I usually do in July, and I plan to get a lot of weeding done at least. Some of my projects require waiting till the bloom season winds down (e.g. moving daylilies, renovating gardens). Other projects require money I don't have, unless I either a) win the lottery or b) make money selling plants. The latter is more realistic, but hey, you never know about the former.

Patti, I thought that was funny what you said about there being no such thing as "some or a few Japanese Maples". LOL! Unless you're short on money, like myself. Daylilies are much more affordable for me. I would have more JMs if I didn't have so many bills. I have about 3 JMs now. Would love to have more. BTW, it was nice to see the progression of your endless stream from start to finish to fixing the leak.

Rosemary, I don't see anything when closing my eyes. I can make myself see images I'm thinking of, but they don't come normally. I do, however, see what I'm thinking of quite clearly when my eyes are open. When I'm reading a book I can see things happening as if it were a movie. I noticed that many years ago in my teen years. And when I'm thinking of what I'm going to do for projects in the gardens, and how I want it all to come together, then that's not a problem. My problem comes when I am thinking of things while driving, and I'll just forget all about where I'm going and go right past where I need to turn. Always been that way for me.

I'm still paying on student loans. I feel like it will never be done. I'm really hurting now because of it, too. It's getting tough to pay all my bills.

Patti, I love that mini excavator. That would be nice to have.

Jen, love the mini garden that you posted the link to. I have been wanting to do some mini gardens. Someday...

Karen

got the wall done today - pretty happy with how it came out - may change one stone if a good substitute shows itself. will plant it our next week.

next wall project - needed to thin the space between the stone posts - and will take apart this curved wall and straighten it our to match the one in the distance - I like the curved look, just could not do it with the other one because of the horse shoe pits

Karin, we're having lots of heart to heart talks with our kids about the costs of college and student loans. it is a tough thing, but i have hope that the economy will improve.

The question of what you see when you close your eyes gets some dramatically different answers. The answer that I believe is most unusual is if one perceives constantly moving images that morph into other things and that are not necessarily the same as a consciously held thought, but it is also possible to remember them consciously.

Bill, I love your garden work as always.

Bill the wall looks wonderful...but it's to hot to move rocks!!!

Agreed, pixie!

Wha, I think we will soon read that Pepperell has just sunk by a few feet. I can't image how many tons of rocks you have moved. I want you to weigh one of those rocks and then measure the length, width and height of your walls and figure the total amount of rocks you have added to your breathtaking landscape.

After viewing the shots of Wha's garden, I am now thinking we should have concentrated more on trees and shrubs in our garden with flowers as an accent. However I am getting a bit too old to change my ways and wait for conifers to mature. Here are some shots I took on the 4th. Patti

A few more pics from the 4th, before I venture out to see if I can work outside today, though Nantucket is much cooler than the mainland. We only got to 82 yesterday but it felt like in the 90's with all the humidity, though it seems much nicer this morning. Patti

patti I do not have a tape measure that long:) I am guessing 100 ton at least.

Patti, I love your yard too!!!!

No, Jan, no bees because we went to a different ice cream place & ate indoors! Karen, hang in there....hopefully, the interest on those student loans will roll back! Bill, & Patti, you both have awesome gardens.....each one is different, but both beautiful in their own right......

I am in awe! You must be done? I suppose you could knock the house down and fill in that area with walls and more gardens and move into a double wide in the drive though Cindy might object. Patti

Bill if you ever want a work vacation you can come visit me!

Patti, that's such a funny picture......please don't give Bill any more ideas! Jen, He's closer to me...he could stop here first....

Lovely gardens all & Patti you have a great shady spot to sit in your garden. You will notice that I was concentrating on sitting, rather than working. Great flowering garden walk.

I have done nothing today except id garden photographs. Lazy me. Patti

No, smart in this heat......

I could be lazy in Patti's yard, considering she's done so much work. Beautiful combination of hard and soft landscape.