Herb Garden: Furnishing

No, that did not read 'finishing.' I'm still a LONG way from that. Then again, is a garden ever 'finished?' 

A long while ago, we were out antiquing (yes, we like to do that), and we spotted this table set that had a lot of potential. Granted, the paint had all been chipped off, the seats didn't have any sort of covering, and the glass table top was rather... opaque. It was a diamond in the rough. Some spray paint later, it was stored in the basement until we actually got the herb garden in, and there it sat for many years. 

Now that we have the pergola up, I thought, 'Hey, we could bring that out of its dark cavern and actually use it while we're out in the garden!' I just needed to cover the seats. Oddly enough, Joann's was having a sale on outdoor fabric. BOOM! Some left over batting, gorgeous teal striped fabric, and a staple gun later, I had a completed table set. The table top just needed a rag and some rinsing. 

And now we have somewhere to sit in the shade while...hardly working. :P

Until next time!

SG

Herb Garden: Let There be Light!

No outdoor setting would be complete without some fun lights! :) 

I found these awesome solar/LED/battery operated/light sensing hanging jars at the store. And they were on sale. SCORE! The solar panels on the lid collect the sun's energy and store it in a rechargeable battery that then powers the LED light once the sun goes down. Pretty cool, huh?

BUT... I still wanted a chandelier. :P

I scouted craigslist to no avail. I knew what sort of light I wanted, but I couldn't find anything that fit the bill. If I were to buy one new, it would be much more than I intended. Then, I stopped by the repurposing place in town. There it sat, rather, hung. I will confess that I wanted to jump up and down very excitedly. My sister kept me in check. :P 

But the idea of running electricity through an indoor chandelier in an outdoor setting wasn't settling well. Even though it became a family event that turned into a comedy show, we finally figured out how to crack open a chandelier and pull out the wires. Once you take the electricity out, how will it light? Again solar technology. And an idea that I found on Pinterest. :P Solar path lights to the rescue! At $3 a pop, the price was right.  

No, that annoying stake isn't permanently attached.  

See? 

Stick the lights onto the chandelier, and... 

Voila!

I'm actually rather surprised that it all worked out and looks like it's supposed to go together. ;) 

Until next time!

SG

Herb Garden: Retaining Wall

Because of the slope on the property, the west side of the pergola was rather steep. To remedy this problem, Dad suggested that we put in a retaining wall to prevent a land slide. 

I was surprised at how quickly my brother put it in. I think he has a future in masonry. :P 

Until next time!

SG

Sweet Susie

The summer days go on, and our little Susie is getting bigger every day. 

Little trouble-maker knows where the good stuff is.

My little garden buddy. Just need to make sure that she doesn't eat the marionberry and wisteria. ;) 

Herb Garden: Building the Pergola

Funny how a kink in your back will stop you in your tracks. With all the gardening that I've been doing - rather... dirt moving, rock hauling, sand shuffling, more dirt moving, compost mixing, etc... my back has decided that it's time to see the chiropractor. ;) So, while I'm giving my back a break, I'll catch you up, step by step, of all that we've been doing to the latest addition to the property - the herb garden! 

I've been scheming and planning for years, and all those thoughts and ideas have jumped from paper into the real realm. The herb garden is actually going in! 

But first things first. Gotta get that hardscaping in. Don't want to run over your plants with a tractor. ;) 

So Dad graded the plot with the tractor, then he and Jake built a pergola. And quite the lovely pergola at that. 

Some friends of ours wanted to come out and help on the farm, so we put them to work with the floor. They leveled everything out, put sand down, leveled that out, figured out the brick pattern, and went to town with it all. Honestly though, the most tedious part of paver laying is the prep work. Once you get going though, the pace picks up. Until you run out of bricks. Which happened just a few rows shy of the entire floor. Back to the home improvement store we went!

Where was I in all of this? 

At my job. 

Otherwise I would have been working in the garden. That's where you'll find me these days. ^_^ 

They did a mighty fine job, if I do say so myself. :) 

Next up - Retaining wall!

Until next time!

SG

Garden Harvest: Peas

Even though I got the seeds in the ground very late, I still got enough to have a mini feast.  

Don't worry. I shared. :P  

How does your garden grow?

Until next time!

SG