Ok... so I've been doing a lot of yard work, and this is really my first attempts at all this.... Here are a couple pictures of the front yard. In the corner by the driveway, there's a planter I've just built. Glendann just identified the viney plant for me. It's a virginia creeper. So I'll have to keep my eye on that.... The goal with the planter was to make the tree stump attractive. It was previously surrounded by weeds, and someone had the brilliant idea of nailing a fence to it rather that installing just one more fence post. Probably what killed it in the first place.... Planning to clean up behind it some more. Also, the top of the tree stump has an opening in it from the inner layers splintering away. I'm going to plant a seedum in there. In the corner by the house, you can see a semi-circle of woodchips. Someone offered me a few clippings of gooseberry and in the process tricked me into taking a potted black currant bush that was hardly alive. So I planted all those things there. The gooseberries are alive but barely large enough to be visible in the picture. The black currant didn't make it. I also redid the walkway that you can see. Someone put the concrete stepping stones in without laying gravel first. They shifted all over the place and it looked aweful, so I redid them. Didn't put gravel down, though. Too much work for a rental. ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) Future plans for this area include the seedum in the trunk, a garden bench, and possibly some bushes on the outer edge of the walkway to seperate my lawn from my neighbor's. And here's some more pictures of the planter. I can't take credit for any of these flowers, though. I just bought them two days ago. My mom is moving here in July, and she's bringing her greenhouse, so her and I will seed stuff together for next year. (In the planter: lupine, three varieties of columbine, celosia, petunia, pansies, delphinium, myrtle, woolly thyme, and lobelia) ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) ( photo / image / picture from egoreise's Garden ) This last one is my VERY fav.
Your yard is looking lovely. I love the fact that you left the tree trunk and planted around it. Lovely choice of flowers.
Thank you, Jewell! It's a shame that the tree is gone, but I would hate even more for that space to be bare. So I'm beautifying it! I love the way the dried bark makes the colorful flowers pop. Oh yeah, and the planter was made from free scraps. Treated lumber. Very easy to come by. My boyfriend used to work for a company that built trusses, that's how we got it. I'm sure you could call up just about any construction supply company like that and see if they have scraps.
I loved the texture of the bark. I've really noticed with a couple of cherry trees that died in my yard, that their trunks provide such a great insect condo for beneficial native bees here in my region. Fun to see what happens as the trunk ages.
Yeah! It has a really interesting ripple pattern in some places, and furthur up, it has exposed termite damage. Really a natural art peice. I think it grounds the planter, making it look like it belongs there. It also allowed me to shape the planter like the border was spiralling out from the stump.
As the planter wood ages it will match the trunk. Ever think of adding a small/medium/large water feature in this area? With the vine in the background you are already creating a fine focal point.
Oh how I long for a water feature! I don't know where to start though. Additionally, I share the vast lawn area with my neighbors. And they have five children and a large, untrained dog running rampant in the yard. It would need to be something sturdy and tall, maybe. You know the neighbors that every gardener gets in their lifetime? The ones that end up surrounded by neighbors planting tall bushes and building tall fences cuz nobody wants to look at their mess or deal with their offspring or pets? I share a lawn with those people. My side yard is their back yard and my front yard is their side yard. I don't mean to be crude or anything, but it's absolutely true. A complete nightmare.
Your yard is lovely already, egoreise. You've done well. I like your old trunk and your edging there. I'm amazed at how long they take to rot. We've got one too, covered in honeysuckle. Good luck with trying to live with your neighbours, and good luck on developing your yard.
You've certainly made a great start with your garden. :-D The path looks lovely now and must be so much safer to walk on. The tree stump planter is a real feature with those offcuts built around it. The plants look very pretty at its base as they're such bright, cheery colours. Good luck with tackling the rest of your garden and dealing with those rowdy neighbours.
Yeah, I love my Buddha, too. I'll probably find myself out in my yard, drinking tea, focusing on Buddha while I try to block out the neighbor lady yelling at her children. ... I'm definitely going to plant something tall along the walkway to separate this area from my neighbor's side yard. I'm actually very excited to see how the wood ages. I want to get some dried moss and shove it into those little holes, though.
I agree that your yard is already lovely. I can really emphathize with the neighbor problem . We planted a laurel hedge 20 years ago to overcome a neighbor problem. It worked wonders and helped create a peaceful place. We stayed longer in the neighborhood then they did. We finally took the hedge out this last winter/spring. Plants are marvelous things and help to make good neighbors in many ways. (I exchange plants with the current occupants :-D and enjoy visiting)
Yeah, my neighbor tried to do some flowers last year, but they were all very small and she didn't take care of them for very long so they are gone. All that's left is a pretty ground covering plant in this big stone thing in her backyard/my side yard. I think I'll talk to her about transplanting that so that it lives. Cuz I just got the most lovely idea. The stone thing I speak of is this big round "planter" against the fence. The wall is made from layers of stones held together with cement (someone had a passion for making everything out of cement here, it gets rather boring), and it's got a giant lilac bush on either side. Wouldn't it be lovely to dig out the dirt and build a pond with a waterfall there? From here on out, I'm working on a really tight budget, so I'll mostly be relying on materials I can come by through friends or the local freecycle group (I see landscaping supplies offered on there sometimes). My money will be going into helping my mom get well established when she moves here next month. You guys are great. The encouragement really keeps me going!
