Swimpy's Landscaping Thread

Ha... I saw the title and said "oh boy!" (those exact words), then opened it up...

I loved following your kitchen remodel, looking forward to this.

And I may actually be able to contribute!! I have a super-shady back yard and have been actively researching what to put there for the past couple of years. I'm still far, far from being an expert but I can share some of the things I've figured out.

Yeah!

This should be fun.

Looking forward to it.

Study the plan vigorously. Spend time staring at it and "walking it off", seeing how it feels as you picture where things will go. Moving some lines around now is the easiest time.

Yea, I think it's going to be fun. The kitchen remodel went great. It's hard to believe that was two years ago.

Good point, osso. I have a very good feel for what he's got planned. It's pretty much what I had envisioned except he's added a couple more retaining walls.

There will be a fence replacing some of the arbor vitaes that screen our house from the neighbor's house. the tow houses are very close together. the fence might need to be 8-9' high. I can't imagine what that's going to look like. I think it will open up the pathway on that side of the house because the trees are huge and eat up a lot of space. I'm looking forward to hanging things on my fence and dancing naked in front of the window of course.

Re: Swimpy's Landscaping Thread


Sounds interesting, Swimpy!

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come along for the ride

hell we want to sit on the patio

good luck in your endeavour

8 or 9 feet high? Is that code there?

In my old city you could go over code height if you asked for and were allowed a variance.

Anyway, glad his plan fits what you wanted, that's terrific.

6' is code. They'll let you do 7' but he thinks that's not going to be high enough. If we need 8' we'll have to go to the zoning board of adjustments. We're going to have to do some experimenting to se how high it really needs to be.

Re: Swimpy's Landscaping Thread


You're welcome on my patio anytime, you know that.

Olga, Thanks. I hope you give me some tips.

One other thing I want to make room for is an herb garden. I've grown herbs in pots on the porch, but never had any place in the yard for them.

be careful with herbs in the yard

that's what you will end up with, herbs respect no boundaries

it's kind of cool in some respects, we have something called a pineapple basil that regularily escapes it's plot, but it smells so nice when the lawn mower runs over it

There is a weed that grows around here that smells like pineapple. It's little flower even looks like a pineapple. I can't remember what its called. Probably pineapple weed.

I think I'd have to put the herb garden rigght outside the side door. I don't know how much sun it's going to get there after the trees come out, but it would be restrained by concrete.

we have that weed here in ontario

now i'm curious to find out what it's called

at a plant exchange a few years back i got a plant from somebody, and all they could tell me was it was called eau de cologne, when you break the stems it smells like perfume (chanel, sort of), it grows like an herb and spreads everywhere

it's also nice to run over with the lawn mower

You may know about this site already, Swimp, but it looks useful. I'm not sure of your exact region... so I didn't go that far in looking at it.
http://www.iowalivingroadway.com/NativePlants.asp



Consider herbs in BIG pots. A french lavender, for example, bought big enough, can get pretty big pretty fast. As the season passes, rip it out and put in some winter amusement.. but you'll have already hung lavender to dry...

My business partner, more of a mad gardener than I, or maybe more of a mad spender, always had large pots planted with various bulbs... magazine photo ready when they bloomed. Well, that is with a relatively small yard. What size yard do you have, Swimpy?

I admit to stupidity in dealing with freezes, as it didn't happen in the places I lived for decades. Well, occasionally, but not to knock off the plants.

The areas somewhat away from us that did have freezes had good plant lists in the Sunset Western Gardens book. So, I'm spoiled.
For example, in my Venice garden, I could plant chrysanthemums of various types, and cut them back as the year waned. then the same plant would fluorish the next year. I'm kind of glad I didn't plant out my yard yet here in ABQ, since it's been freezing for weeks now - I might have killed half of it by poor choices. I did plant a buddleia a while ago. Have no idea if it is dormant or dead as a doornail.

In LA, we often went for the cottage garden look - depending on the nature of the property and the nature of the owners. Lots of natives, lots of inground herbs, often roses, salvias up the kazoo... what could be quite the fulgent/rangy look, but often/sometimes arranged fairly formally given that the yard might be quite small and our sense of it was an almost formal layout right near the house. Basically formal disguised by verdant growth. Sometimes with a short slightly hedgy (or trimmable in a linear way) perimeter, say of ilex vomitoria.. or teucrium germander. (I'm just talking, I don't know your zone.)

Not saying you have to like that look - but now's a good time to think about what kind of garden look you do like - or develop it, if you've already thought that out.

Your goal may be low maintenance, which adds another twist.

Pineapple Weed

Eau De Cologne

<gustav pulls up on his tractor, leans back, puts his feet on the wheel, hands behind head, and waits for the action to begin>

Another landscaping thread! Weeeee!

Osso, what I like may have to take a backseet to what I can maintain. I definitely want an easy yard. I'm looking for flowering shrubs and low maintenance perennials. Right now my yard is pretty wild. I want it tamed and opened up. You'll understand better when I get some pictures up. I might even be able to post a short video, that is if it doesn't snow this weekend like there saying it will.

DJ, pineapple weed it is! Is the Eau de cologne the pineapple basil?

Hey, gus. You may be just the guy I need when the destruction begins. What's your rate?

Welcome, littlek. I'm glad you're here.