Wednesday, May 21, 2008

The Big Bed




I have been yammering about landscape timbers for weeks, and finally can reveal the results of all that waiting. This is the long awaited Sun Garden. We hope.



Since we live in a bowl surrounded by tall trees, and get a lot of shade, I have tried to find a spot that gets enough sun to really do the trick for sun loving plants. The pondside or west side of our house is the best bet. The yard drops off precipitously into the pond, so a raised bed is needed.
The P.O. left us a lot of freebie timbers, but not quite enough to get the job done. It was a trick to get the size we needed and get them home. Dave's La Bamba was a necessary ingredient, and once it graduated from the fix-it garage we went shopping for timbers. Then the rains came and we couldn't do much but watch movies and wait. Sigh.



The bed was LARGE and we needed lots of Moo-nure, which weighs a ton, believe me. 40 bags at 40 pounds each, plus the weight of the timbers, that's alot. But La Bamba was good for it.



And here is the Sun Garden... in the shade. Well, it was five o'clock by the time I was done planting, so the sun was low on the horizon by then. But I do expect more sun, earlier in the day.

The finished size is something like 16x4 feet and about 16" deep. I had to have a place for my long desired hydrangeas. I have planted two reds and a purple. They are advertised at those colors. Not that pink-that-should-be-blue-in-acid-soil-Nikko variety. We'll see if they are true to form. I did add lots of peat to acid up the mix.



To fill in the big space I added red geraniums, red New Guinea Impatiens, white regular impatiens, and then more dang hosta, as a rescue mission. These are Pearl Lake and were languishing at Wal-Mart in the $2 bin. I put them in the back as filler. Then there was a big empty in the middle and I realized I had saved up 8 big Autumn Joy Sedum for something, somewhere and this must be the place.



The tall stakes behind this bed function as foundation supports, and will be the supports for the two trumpet vines planted in front of the them, one yellow and one orange. I may regret having these vines in this bed, but I ran out of places to put them. All gardening is experimental, so time will tell if this was a good idea or not.



The very steep bank of the pond is mere inches from the edge of this bed, and I held on for dear life as I planted the back row. There was a moment when I slipped a bit and had I fallen, it would have been a disasterous event. Raspberry sticker bushes and icky pond water could have ruined my triumphant planting day.

So for now I will arrange my lawn chair, grab a stimulating beverage and just revel in the view.

13 comments:

  1. Anonymous8:37 AM

    Mel, it's been wonderful to watch the transformation of your yard. You & Dave have created a masterpiece. Enjoy!!

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  2. Oh how you're going to enjoy this spot! Just give it a few weeks and it will be even more beautiful than it is now. There's nothing more relaxing than sitting by water. I love your sun garden!

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  3. That looks really lovely. The Johnson Botanical Gardens is coming along nicely

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  4. The more yellow the hosta leaves, the better it will survive in the sun. Your green ones may burn unless the other plants shade them. I wish I had a sun garden. Yours looks so pretty.

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  5. I wonder if the P.O. would even recognize their yard.

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  6. The garden looks great and what a lovely spot for it!

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  7. Anonymous12:24 PM

    It looks like you had a great, productive day! I'm looking forward to seeing it this summer when everything has grown up.

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  8. Anonymous5:15 PM

    I fear you will regret your location for the trumpet vines. They will be large, and very invasive. Maybe not this year, so you could look at it as a temp spot, laying them in until a real home is found. The garden looks wonderful~ Bev

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  9. Anonymous6:32 PM

    Very nice, it's going to be beautiful once it all starts growing.

    Dave made just the right purchase with that big van! Sometimes we just have to let them be, those men, and it works out for us too...LOL..

    Now you need 2 more of those planting beds around the pond.

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  10. Wow, some major progress going on at Chez Johnson. That bed looks fantastic!

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  11. My goodness you must get quite a workout planting all that landscaping. You two must be in great shape carrying all those timbers. Your efforts are beautiful.

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  12. I knew you'd come to appreciate La Bamba. Having lived on a farm for 23 years I learned the value of a good truck and tractor. And I sure miss that tractor!!

    I am still trying to get a &^%*%^$&^%**& surveyor out to find out where my property lines are. HOA warned me that, if I fenced the back in I would be responsible for mowing it..so who said I planned to have grass back there (except ornamentals)??

    Looking great!!

    teri

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  13. You just go on and enjoy that beverage along with the view of your new garden.......it's going to be great!!! Looks good now if you ask me! Live it up in your new place and do it in good health, my dear! Pat at birdnestontheground

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