What I did this past weekend . . .

Hire Harper and have her paint all the things on your wish list on large stones. Zero maintenance and the garden will be there for posterity - whoever they are.

Good plan, Victor!

Seandor - looks like you and your neighbors had a busy weekend. Looks great!! Eleanor

Amazing - well done! I hope your neighborhood enjoys and appreciates all the hard work that was put into it. You should have an annual garden party out there. Maybe every year everyone can bring a plant and before you know it...

You know, I am such a control freak . . . the idea of trying to plant random plants . . . well, greater minds than mine might be able to do it and have it look like something.

The plants around the fountain are just going to be a hodge podge this year. But I have all summer to think about what would look good. There are yellow rudebeckia already planted there. So oranges and blues should look good. So maybe Blue Butterfly delphinium and orange marigolds . . . Is there an orange perennial? I am going to the plant files and check this out.

Michaela, I am slow getting here, but I want to congratulate you on this project. It's quite impressive! and I absolutely love the name...'Gang Green'. very creative!!

I would defintely try to work in some of what I consider the 'tougher' perennials...coneflower, rudbeckia, shasta daisy.

edit to add: how about some helenium for fall color?

This message was edited Jun 22, 2007 8:16 AM

I recognize the others - what is helenium? I will look this up in the plant file. I have magnus coneflower seeds to winter sow and I have pink coneflowers in the back yard - so I can collect seeds there. There are rubeckia around the fountain now, and I have one shasta daisy - so I hope I can get seeds there.

The key is - we have very little money - so far. I suspect if we have some success we will be able to fund raise a bit.

Re: Fund raising ~ actually Victor had a good idea about the painted rocks . . . People could "buy" a rock by exchanging the plant on the rock for the rock. They would donate the plant that the rock pictured and get to take home the painted rock for their garden. Michela - you would still get to be in control as you would designate the placement of the rocks and the plant they represented. You could make it a fun "Rock Party" - without the band, of course - unless Victor is willing to put his boy band back together for a short tour. :)> If you can't afford Harper for the painting you might get together a boy or girl scout troop for a rock painting party.

What a brilliant idea! I like the idea of a "rock party" - and I could probably get a live band (someone on the block).

Well, this requires more thought . . . My daughter is extremely artistic - she could probably paint the rocks.

Hummmm - go online - find needlework patterns for the different flowers . . . use them as guides for rocks. - this has real possibilities!

Hey, I heard my name! I once painted two rocks that I wanted to flank my doorway. One of Jesus and one of Buddha. They were going to be my 'protectors'. After a year in the snow and freezing weather, Buddha's face flaked off and Jesus is bubbling. Oh well! I thought I primed the rock, but I'm not sure.

I enjoyed painting rocks. I just have to figure out how to make it permanent.

Harper

Wouldn't a stone sealer do the trick??

Probably! I'll give it a go again after gardening season is over. Now I'm up to my eyeballs in outdoor activities!

You're not complaining about that though, right?!

Budha flaked and Jesus bubbled?

Seandor, What a wonderful neighborhood project! Did everyone already know each other or did this improve the neighborhood emotionally as well as physically?
Echinacea (purple coneflower) and rudbeckia both grow easily from seed and spread well. I think they both may be native too. long flowering too but not until summer.

Most of us knew each other to wave and say "hi" - We hold the monthly block watch meetings at our house because we have this great Victorian games room complete with Victorian bar on the third floor and because we don't have little kids to worry about. So most have come to a meeting at one time or another.

We are also in the process of getting City Hall to dead-end our two streets (each one block long). These streets are now zoned "historic" but we are surrounded by marginal streets, and we would like to limit some of the illicit activity from our streets as well as the speeders who use our broad streets as cut-throughs.

There is a real sense of everyone trying to pull in the same direction, to maintain and improve this neighbourhood of fabulous old homes and mansions. (I have a fabulous home - neighbours have mansions!)

We have some real keeners who are very supportive. Most people seem to understand that improving the terrace is a long-term project, not something we can knock-off in one year (well, not unless we hire professionals!)

As long as we maintain it, and don't ask too often for money or labour, I think I pretty much can do what I want (of course, I have to give the "appearance" of seeking input from others - basically, I just sketch something and say "do you think this will be alright?" Since nobody else generally has a clue, they go along with me. That's why I need DG - so you can point out where I am going wrong.

The fountain has rudebeckia already - and i have purchased echinacea Magnus which I will winter sow along with lots of other stuff.

sounds like a nice place to live! We have our annual block party the weekend after this one. I like knowing neighbors.

Re the coneflower & rudbeckia, I was just trying to confirm that your idea was realistic.

Oh . . . thanks. We have a neighbour that has a open-invitation party usually on July 4.

michaela,
i see maintenance, invasive plants and weeding as your 3 biggest challenges in maintaining this garden over time. a good deal of thought and plant knowledge will help you in avoiding these pitfalls.
have you thought of using preen on your new garden beds? best thing i do for myself every year. very minimal weeding.
i have some echinecea magnus maller plants if you'd like.

gott go a momma robin is feeding her two babies in my yard.
debi & franklin my little gardening doggi

Since it's a community / neighborhood project, I would ask local nurseries to donate stuff - plants, mulch, etc. You can put a little sponsor sign somewhere acknowledging their support. Never hurts to ask. You could also get some free advice as to what's best for your area.

Those are great suggestions. Here is my plan - this fall rototill the first additional garden. Let it lie empty over the winter. Plant bulbs around the fountain. Winter sow perennials/ hardy annuals

Year one: In the spring get the free compost - rototill that in - then water. Then after initial weed seeds germinate, use Round-Up. Then plant perennials seedlings in garden one. Probably this first garden will be used as a nursery for baby plants during their first year. Plant hardy annuals around fountain.

In the fall, rototill second and third gardens. Let them lie fallow over the winter, winter sow perennials/ hardy annuals

Year two: get more free compost from the city - rototill into gardens two and three. spread across garden one. allow weeds to grow on gardens two and three. Spray round-up. Now start planting 1 year old perennials with design in mind in gardens one, two, and three and around fountain. Plant hardy annuals in all gardens. Keep one end of garden one as a nursery.

I think 3 additional gardens, plus the woodland garden and the fountain will be plenty. :-)
I am hoping that allowing weed seeds to germinate - then using Roundup will help reduce weeding. I am trying to pick plants that are basically foolproof and that will reseed after year two.

The goal is to have all five gardens looking pretty good in 2010. The biggest challenge will be water. There is a hose hook-up on the terrace, but the soaker hoses seem to have limited use so far, so I will have to buy two long hoses and probably a wave sprinkler to ensure that every thing thrives. Meanwhile, I don't really have to come up with the definitive design until spring of 2009 - when the 1-year old plants will be moved to their permanent position.

Year three:

Good idea, Victor! :-)

Year four - major physical therapy.

could be! :-)

Michaela, I woud use round up in the fall, then again in Spring if needed. Good plan!

Before the Fall Roundup??

Hummm . . . okay Dave - the soil is pathetic. We rototill in the fall - wait for the weeds, then roundup, then in the spring spread about 4" of compost, and rototill in. then wait for the weeds that came in the compost to germinate - then roundup again. THEN we get to plant the baby perennials.

Sounds like a plan. :-)

Do you guys mind if every once in a while I run an idea past you? I don't promise I will do everything you say - but I will pay attention, and I will always give you the pleasure of saying "I told you so" if I fail to follow your advice.

I'm not into rototilling, but some people still believe in it.

Trust me - nothing rototiller will do could possibly harm this dirt. Believe me we are going to be basically starting from scratch making soil. first job is to break up the dirt. Then, rototilling 4 inches of compost - then several years of mulching with compost - we will end up with a soil to be proud of.

Michaela -

What a lovely job you are doing to beautify a public space in your neighborhood; congratulations on how nice it looks. You can use some of the town's free compost to mulch around your hostas to help improve soil quality and preserve moisture (though with all those trees, you may find that all the water gets sucked up and you still need to water quite often.)

Back up on June 21( the one with the poppy picture) you asked for suggestions for a good edging plant. One that is easily started from seed without any special equipment is Iberis sempervirens, perennial candytuft. It has many small white spring flowers, and the foliage is relatively small and tidy, 6-8 inches high, and a nice glossy evergreen. You'd need to trim back the spent flowers and cut back tattered foliage in very early spring; otherwise I've found it trouble free.

Good idea - I have been given some violets for the shady side. Now all I have to do is try to round up bodies to help with the plants I received at the ru. And I have 36 irises now on their way! Sure hope the weather cools down before I have to tackle those :-)