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Tue 9 May, 2006 04:24 pm
Buoyed by the sunshine, the fact that my professional landscaper of a neighbor owes me $500 that he can't pay back and the fact that George Bush has a clear strategy for victory in Iraq, I have the delightful opportunity to do some real yard stuff to my front yard right now.
My front yard is niceish - I have a raised bed that runs the lenth of the house that is well planted and a bit along the driveway to the sidewalk that is well planted too. I also have two huge lovely trees.
I having a hard time figuring out what to do so I need $500 worth of low maintence ideas to do to it. I'm thinking the parking strip could use some jazzing up.
Most of the parking strips around here have trees planted in them but I understand that you have to get the city to okay such planting and I don't want to deal with all that.
Any ideas?
Something that can take some pollution and sometimes brutal sunshine (is there such a thing in Portland?).
How about an herb garden: rosemary, thyme, mint, lavender.......?
I hope I stimulate you with this post, Boomer.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/gardening/design/
Lord knows there's to be no stimulating Boomer in public! Geez!
BM
Brutal sunshine is a bit of a problem in the summer but it isn't a real hot sun. I doubt that Texans would call it brutal but it lasts from 6 in the morning till 10 at night.
It certainly has to be something that can accept the sunshine.
That is a great link, LordE! I shall investigate fully.
Luckily I am stimulated in the privacy of my own home as I do not have a portable computer.
Lavendar sounds really nice. I love that smell. An herb garden most likely smells good too. Maybe I could grow some of those little rosemary trees.
I have tomatos, corn and catelope growing in the front yard this year so I can handle some unconventional planting.
Okay, LordE, what might they call a parking strip in England?
Here it refers to the little piece of lawn between the street and the sidewalk.
Here's sort of what I had in mind, but more linear than square......
I see a few taller herbs like rosemary or salvia, maybe even a blueberry bush or three......
What does your existing front garden look like? How big is the curb garden space?
Oh that is pretty littlek. Now I'm thinking I ought to just have him rip out my small yard and do some low planting.
Most of the things in the raised beds will grow high. It is the third year for the camelias and they should really grow; they're about 4 feet tall now. It is the second year for the hydrangeas so they are still smallish but they grow like lunatics here so we might have a good year with them. The whatchamacallits are going gangbusters -- in their third year too -- they are relatively low lying.
If I just had him till up the whole damn thing, put in a little gravel path, and plant it with some wildflowers or some low lying plants I could most likely have a nice little funky cottage garden.
The pic littlek posted is strikingly like the long, low planting hamburger has done at the back of his house to prevent the erosion of the slope there.
Succulents seem to hold up well to heat and sunshine - and the varieties are wonderfully entertaining.
Then you wouldn't have to cut the grass....... But, $500 doesn't go that far in the landscaping business.
I can do the planting though. I just want him to do the grunt work.
Typically I plant with seeds but for something like this I would probably do some actual started plants. But I was thinking wildflowers too which I could do from seeds.....
I'm patient enough to watch stuff grow.
I know $500 is not a whole lot of money but I think it will go pretty far in the "just dig it up" arena.
I like to mow and to dig and to move stuff around so my yard is always a work in progress.
Herbs are easy. And, depending on how much traffic your street sees (or how much parking is done along your curb), you can eat them. Thymes come in a multitude of leaf and flower color, some grow taller, some hug the ground. Mint comes in an array of styles too. Lavender comes in shades that are almost midnight blue and some that are almost pink. Salvia and rosemary are very erect for height.
If and when you do decide, I can help you with plant types...... if you want help.
Errr....
Why don't you just come to visit your sister and help me plan and plant!!!!
Boomer, it would be a pleasure, but I can't due to life.
curb appeal
to stretch the $500 , have the gardener do heavy work , the landscaping - without the plants .
ask the local gardening club when they'll have their next club sale . you can usually pick up plants at a club sale for "a buck and change" , and they'll throw advice in for free . you'll also know that those are plants that have been grown in your location and should do well .
click here for
...GARDENING CLUBS...
green thumb up ! hbg
How's this for some fancy photo-shopping! At least it'll be good for some chuckles.....
I could only get a black and white image to work, but if you go to Google and type "curbside garden" under the image search there is also a color picture. I think a meadow garden is a nice idea and I like the use of rocks in this one. Check local road restrictions concerning heights.
boomerang wrote:Okay, LordE, what might they call a parking strip in England?
Here it refers to the little piece of lawn between the street and the sidewalk.
The term "parking strip" refers to an action, rather than a thing.
A parking strip takes place, immediately prior to car naughties in a dark country lane.
A little piece of lawn between the street (I think you mean the road, that cars drive on) and the sidewalk (I think you mean the pavement for pedestrian traffic) is usually called a verge, or grass verge.
Hey Boomer, just out of interest....how big is your front garden?
There's me, thinking of front gardens with my English brain in gear, forgetting that half of you have front gardens that could possibly be a plot big enough for a small town over here.
My front garden? Well, I'll take some pics of it today, as the sun is out and everything is good with the world.
I'll post them here later.
<hastily runs to shed, grabs mower and tidies up front lawn>
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