In-love with our garden

Added this beautiful rustic LOVE sign to the flower bed infront of our patio. It just adds charm and character.

Summer Sunflowers

Our poor little sunflowers are growing, but very slowly!!!!!

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So, we moved the bird feeder and bird bath closer to the house. It now hangs in a tree really close to the lounge and bay window.

Our gardener had a little oops with our furr trees. We decided to make the best of the situation.

Also planted some pink and blue flowers in sequence below the other furr trees.

The pumpkin patch has gone crazzzzyyyyy

Wow, look at this!!!

Before, during, now and our first little pumpkin is showing off!!!!!

New tree - make believe banana tree

Planted right next to the forest entrance. I hope it will grow big and make lots of lush leafs!

New addition to the patio

This is our latest addition to our patio plants. I call this one "Klokkelaan". I think it's real name is Fucushia. Just beautiful!!!! This is the small version, there are bigger specie that grows into a large bush.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Veg - Spinach and Rocket

Just two more before and after photo's for now.

Below: Spinach - We have had some and there's still plenty for us to use over the next week or two. And if you are wondering, the sticks with the plastic bags tied to them is great for recycling/reusing BUT are really there to chase off unwanted mouse birds that eat my crops.

Below: Rocket - Our bearded dragon loves the Rocket so much!!! In the after photo below it has already made flowers and started producing seed. Will be taking them out and planting some petty pan pumpkins.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Portager Pathways

So our portager started off with just plain soily paths with some natural looking stepping stones. But this is rather messy and not all that nice. Portagers are somewhat more formal and hence the decision to start dollying up the paths.

We have only completed the one pathway so far. Will have to do it piece by piece as the pebbles can work out rather expensive depending on the size of the area one wants to cover.

So firstly we lifted the stones already layed down. We then layed a weed sheet down to stop weeds from growing in the pathway. We then layed down the stones again and filled it with white pebbles. I love the combination of the brown stones and the white pebbles. We also placed some solar pannel garden lanterns right at the entrance and built a focus point cirlce in the middle with spebbles and a little garden girl catching butterflies! And she helps to keep the birds away from the spinach and lettuce.

Next to the pathway in sequance we planted rosemary, mint and red basil on either side.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Veg - Granadilla

Our latest addition to the vegetable and herb portager is this beautiful granadilla plant and finally it has something to creep up against now.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Herbs - Chives

Our CHIVES have gone bushy!!!!

And they are so yum!!!! They have gone into quite a few home baked breads, stew dishes, our house warming party meals, brinjal dishes, etc. And there are still plenty left. So, I conclude, it is true - Herbs produce more and more as you use of them.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Veg - Artichoke

Before and after archichoke - they are still growing. It is the first time I am trying to grow tehse and I am not sure at which point we will see "fruit", but keeping an eye on them patiently.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Salad and Parsley

This is a beautiful before and after example of the eco-circle gardening method from start to finish. We used take away bear mugs that we found at a expo where we enjoyed our lunch. Everyone wanted to know what we were collecting them for, they were just being thrown in the trash. Everyone also loved the idea.

Here you water into the containers that have been prepared with little holes to allow the water to seap throught to the roots of the vegetables.

Below: Butterlettuce and parsley.

BEFORE AND AFTER: Vegetable Portager Garden

Here's a few photos of the progress that we have made from the time of layout and up to a week ago.

Below: Portager resting spot

BEFORE AND AFTER: Forest entrance

Will load more photos of our small forest at some stage.

Below: Before and NOW of the forest entrance.  

                            September 2012                                              November 2012

BEFORE AND AFTER: Garden around the patio area

It is time for some updates on the garden. The garden all the way around is truly becoming so beautiful! The summer rain and weather is helping for sure. No more brown winter lawn!


Below: The garden planted on either side of the steps leading up to the patio. First photos taken 3 months ago as soon as we planted. Just look at it now!!!!!

This garden was specially planted for our bearded dragons, it is filled with their veggies, salads and herbs and a few flowers here and there. The white daisies will be blooming soon.

Below: Pineapple sage in a pot. I cut this one down every winter and let it come back to life in the summer. It can grow into a very large bush and makes beautiful red flowers that the humming birds love!

Below: A beautiful pink creeper rose - finally we have roses!!! 

Below: A plant we found at the back of the house when we moved it. It was just about dead , really just a stubble. My husband gave it water straight away and whala, 3 months later we have a beautiful addition to our patio plants.

Below: In addition to the lettuce down in the vegetable portager garden, we decided to plant some lettuce in a container on the patio.




 Below: We have 3 pots with strawberries in. Just adding photo's of the one showing from both sides. See the little creepers going down!!! We will leave it to kreep and see where it goes.

 Below: The garden outside the bay window with white and purple irises, lavendar and some other flowery bushes, not sure what they are called.

 

BEFORE and AFTER: Kitchen Scullery

Yeah, our kitchen scullery has been partially modified to fit our appliances and a new basin. Still need to replace the counter top all the way through. We will do that when we modify the remainder of the kitchen.

Below: Before and area of the basin close up:

Below: Before and area of the appliances now fitted.


Below: Just another view

We will need to think about replacing the floor as well at some point.

IDEA: Designer Pool?

Yeah, we finally found the coolest idea for the pool we want to buid!!!!

Tel me what you think of this. . .

IDEA: Green Garden Furniture

What do you think of this - an awesome green, eco-friendly, reuse idea. And what perky pretty this will add!!!

GARDEN: Portager Phase 2 - Let the games begin

Phase 2 has been tiring and is not even nearly finished, but here's what we did get done in one day!

Below: Went of to the Nursery on Sunday and got some square steppings tones and plants for the portager.

Below: The plants packed out in the shade.

Below: Start of the resting area / portager patio!

Below: Just some details on the stones. 4 squares making one big square in the same patterns. Example below. Surrounded by 6 square other with various designs, not one of the 6 are the same.

Below: Deciding what goes where opened up a can of worms!!! Clearly this garden is muuuuccchhh bigger than what I thought, look, not even half the beds will be filled. From this photo you can also see the stones we started laying in the pathways leading in and down to the resting area.

Below: Revealing the secrets. We got these take away beer mugs at an expo on Saturday and we collected them. No, we did not drink that much beer!!!! They will work great in our eco-circles, which is the eco friendly garden style we decided on for this portager. More on this eco-circles to be revealed in good time.

Below: Planting decorative grass and ground coverings in between the square stones.

Below: The concept of the eco-circle is to have one large plastic plant container in the centre, planted in the circular bed. Or 2L coke bottle with the top cut off. Drill holes and plant it. I have planted 3 of the beer cups after we drilled little holes in them. Just to see as a test how this will work. I may make some of the other beds slightly different. When you water, you only fill the container(s) in the middle as appose to spraying water all over the plants.

 

Below: you can clearly see the 3 circles where I added compost to the soil. I counted about 15 circles in my garden. HEEEELLLPPPP!!!!! What was I thinking.

Below: Finally - one bed done!!! Butter lettuce and parsley mixed in my first eco-circle! And my only eco-circle for now. I think it will take a while to have the entire garden planted, but THIS is part of the journey, seeing it grow, and appreciating every step for what it is and for what it teaches us about ourselves and life in this world as we know it.