Before and After ~ Lower Garden Area

The lower patio area had been created about 8 years ago so it was in pretty good shape. There was a sweet bay magnolia and some beautiful hydrangeas. I moved the concrete statue to a spot near the hydrangeas since the white of the statue looked pretty with the white hydrangea blooms. The sweet bay magnolia was trimmed up a bit so its branches didn't take over the entire patio area.




There was a very small perennial bed in the middle which was the only sunny spot in our entire yard so it already had some sunflowers and clematis planted there. This before picture was taken in April so not much had popped up yet. There was a blue hosta which was waaaayyyy too big for the spot so Dwight and Bruce moved it and split it into 3 hostas. We moved a smaller hosta to its place and added a few annuals for color.






I wanted a purple and yellow combo so I used salvia and marigolds to go with the sunflowers and purple clematis. Well as with many best laid plans...the marigolds don't seem to be blooming and the clematis bloomed once and then quit. I think the clematis needs more sun ~ not sure about the marigolds. But the sunflowers are awesome. Really I am thinking of taking out the little hosta and putting in some more perennials such as coreopsis.






















For color (and to try to hide the electrical box and gas meter) we put in some shepherd's hooks with annual baskets ~ my favorite is the three hook one shown above.

The after photo below shows the entire area. The only thing left is to put some impatiens under the hydrangeas. I would eventually like to put some lily of the valley under the hydrangeas (my neighbor has a bunch that might need to be thinned out one of these days....)

Special Touches ~ The Fountain

The fountain was a special touch that I wasn't too sure about at first. When Andrea suggested we place a fountain on the large brick wall of the garage I was pretty lukewarm on it but Dwight was all for it. I kept picturing a mossy old stone fountain full of algae scum. Yuck. But Andrea was right - that wall needed something and a fountain seemed like just the thing.






Andrea picked one of the newest finishes which is rustic looking but more modern than a plain old cement fountain. The color of the fountain is set off well in front of the big expanse of brick.



We also ordered large flower urn planters in the same tuscan finish to coordinate with the fountain. We finished up the fountain area by planting ferns around it and adding lighting. It is quite pretty at night and the sound of running water gives some nice ambiance. I guess I can say I am digging the fountain now.

Before and After ~ Patio Hardscape

The Challenge ~ Create a very low maintenance hardscape in the very shady area surrounded by the house and new garage. The area was heavily covered in vinca and other ground covers and was always a hard area to keep looking good. The Ground Cover had taken over.

The other challenge was to be sure that the hardscape would blend in with the rest of the house and not look too cold and hard. Andrea's solution was to make the hardscape area two levels and to create two circular areas with pavers.

The Process

The two level patio started with pavers laid at a 45 degree angle on the upper level.







The Final Product more than exceeded our expectations. We especially love the double circles.

Before and After ~ The Bird Bath Area

Challenge ~ Make the concrete bird bath that we have owned for many, many years look more in proportion and integrated into the garden landscape without looking too formal. Before the birdbath was set in the middle of a bed of hostas and liriope with impatiens planted around it due to the heavy shade. One of the problems was that the impatiens were overshadowed by the larger liriope and hostas.




Andrea's Solution ~ Make the birdbath the focal point as you enter the garden from the driveway. In a smaller area the birdbath takes on a better size proportion in relationship to the bed surrounding it.














The Process ~ Andrea surrounded the bird bath with Fox Red Sedge Ornamental grasses which give an interesting color contrast. The Fox Red Sedge was also used along the path leading from the driveway so it ties it all together.




I added some scented Coral Geraniums to coordinate with the Red of the Ornamental grasses.





The Result ~ Now the birdbath is a lovely focal point as you enter the yard.

Before and After ~ Back of the Yard Behind the House

BEFORE CHALLENGE ~ New construction of a garage and parking area dictated that we redirect foot traffic from the driveway around the back of the garage along the back of our property. The main problems were making it look inviting for guests and most importantly giving us privacy and blocking the neighbor's yard.
The back of the property was all mud and weeds due to the recent construction. Once some old overgrown shrubs were cleared out you could see right into the neighbor's yard at the back of their house. The goal was for the neighbor's yard and back door to be shielded as much as possible.


















Andrea's Solution ~
SkyRocket Junipers were planted in an arc across the back to mimic the circles ahead of them. They give wonderful privacy and are a beautiful backdrop especially when lighted up at night.


The rest of the walkway/driveway is bordered with a succession of Red Twig Dogwood Shrubs, Magnolia Trees and Arborvitae. Right now the shrubs and magnolias don't really block the neighbor's house but they say that they will grow quickly so hopefully we will get more privacy each year.














Challenge ~ Not only provide privacy from the neighbors but we want it to look beautiful and inviting as people drive up to our house.



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My sister-in-law Karen let me show off her beautiful double planters with Martha Washington geraniums in them during the anniversary party which inspired me to try to add some color to the area in front of the arborvitae. This year it will probably be planters of my own and maybe in the fall we can add some day lillies or other colorful flowers to match the bed on the side of the driveway planted and maintained by my garden afficiando neighbor Helen. I am sure Helen will even share the monkey grass and day lillies (well I can hope..._

Below are Helen's beds which we get to enjoy on our side of the yard! Good thing she likes to share!

After Photos - Welcome to our Garden Oasis

After literally months of planning, waiting and watching while the hardcape was installed and then working every night and weekend clearing, planting, transplanting, cleaning, digging, hauling, raking, sweeping, mulching, potting, hanging, building, moving, spending and dreaming we now have a beautiful garden oasis that we are so thoroughly proud of and utterly in love with. The next posts will be the before and after photos of each of the areas each of which exceeded all our expectations. More than anything this blog is my reminder of how much we worked for this beautiful garden oasis and a way to watch it change and grow. Welcome to our garden...

Never finished

Wow that's the fun thing about gardening ~ even when you are finished you really are never finished. The hardscaping is finished, the rain garden is finished, the pea gravel patio is finished, the vegetable garden is finished - or is it??? Dwight came home with three lettuce plants and a couple of peppers. Yeah that's the fun thing about gardening ~ there's always room for one more.

And I am thinking of moving some things around. Clearly my clematis and coreopsis aren't blooming becauses they don't get enough sun. I thought they were getting several hours of afternoon sun but there are absolutely no blooms on them so moving seems to be the only option. Anyone have a better idea??