Patio Project Ground Zero

On Tuesday I was flung back to reality from my first Garden Blogger's Fling. What an adventure it was touring fabulous gardens for three days around Washington DC, MD and VA with an enthusiastic crowd of like minded garden geeks. Meeting some of the people behind the lenses and computers of the best garden blogs in cyberspace was icing on the cake.

Prior to the Fling, I met up with a few long time friends from my old Gardenweb days and spent two days touring gardens in the West Chester, PA area. Five full days of garden touring is a lot even for me but I returned home full of ideas and ready to hit the ground running.

Back in February, I wrote about plans we had to install a patio at this house along with the proposal from one of the garden designers we consulted. You can read that post HERE.

Scott Hokunson of Blue Heron Landscape Design was the second designer we consulted. Both Dave and I were impressed by Scott's design process and his vision for the space. After some revisions back and forth, we ended up with an exciting design that was also surprisingly budget friendly.

At just a bit over 750 square feet, this patio with be about 50% larger than the one I had at my old house. We've chosen irregular blue stone to reflect the casual, country feel of our home. The final design does not include sitting wall A. Sitting walls were one of my wish list items. That extra rub on the Genie's lamp apparently paid off.

 

The fountain from my other house is making a comeback. You can see it just to the left of the third sitting wall. I often gaze longingly at pictures of it in my old garden. I'm so glad we made the effort to move it here.

We decided to deep six the original fire pit/fireplace idea. The precast units just weren't doing it for me and custom built was a budget buster. Instead, we will be resurrecting an existing fire pit just off the back lawn at the edge of the woods. Okay, I admit the pictures in this post require the reader to dig deep on the imagination front. But it's going to be great! Trust me.

An existing fire pit that had been overgrown by trees and saplings makes a comeback.

Speaking of tree removal, kudos to Dave for single handedly felling at least a dozen medium to large trees. Selectively removing trees opened up the space significantly. The backyard now receives a healthy dose of my favorite morning sun. Never fear though, even without these trees a large portion of our two acre lot is still heavily wooded.

Much to my delight, patio installation work finally began yesterday. Weather permitting, construction is expected to take three weeks.

Looking east from just below the deck.

Soon I will be relaxing here every night with a glass of wine. After working my ass off creating all the new gardens.

We (I mean Dave) still has to center the breezeway door and install a French door in place of the double window.

The concrete footings are for an 8' x 4' deck step that will transition French door access to patio level.

 

 

Dave had such a fabulous time installing those footings. Aren't DIY projects the best?

 

 

Imagine the mixed border I will be planting just beyond the patio. As soon as the backhoe comes along and scrapes off all the existing roots, stumps and vegetation and I spread 100 yards of topsoil I can get to it. It's going to be great!

Look at this great pile of rocks that were uncovered during excavation! Some will be incorporated into the design.

 

So we're off! Sometimes I get tired when I think about all the work that still needs to happen just to reduce the exploded bomb look back here. But I began the process with a vision for this space and am so beyond thrilled to finally see it start to come together.

 

 

~Sue~



Patio Plans in the Making

Last year I missed the entire spring and most of the summer garden season due to my move.  At the time I was too busy to dwell much on what I left behind at my old garden, but once the dust of the crappy soil in my new garden settled, I realized what I missed most was my patio.

After all I moved hundreds of plants, all the garden ornaments, patio furniture and both of my fountains.  I moved just about everything but the patio.  Well, and all of my unusual specimen shrubs and trees that were too big to dig but those I can replant.

At the new house, I inherited a small deck and a couple of acres of overgrown gardens and scraggly lawn, but no patio.  For the entire summer and fall my former patio fountain lay sadly scattered in pieces on the driveway and along the side yard.  I arranged the patio table and lounge chairs on the back lawn in the approximate area of a new patio.  Not only did they look sad but became annoying obstacles for the lawn mower.

Just after the holidays I contacted a landscape designer who I had been stalking on Houzz, Jennifer Noyes of Creative Contour Landscape Design.  In January Jennifer came to the house for a design consultation.  A few weeks after our initial meeting she came back with a design concept.  Could the patio of my dreams actually be within reach?

Current view of the back of our house.  Yes, the deck needs TLC but it is level.

Proposed view from approximately the same angle.

For most of my life I've been longer on ideas than cash so the end result may be a bit less grand than what you see here but with some sweat equity I believe we'll get what we want.  Blue stone is my first choice for material and the most expensive and I'm not ready to compromise on that front yet. Also, I don't need design help with plant placement or selection.  The plants illustrated in the design would likely be far different than the end result.

In this design view, a double window has been replaced with french doors.  The new doors would enter into the breakfast area of our kitchen.  Swapping out that window was an eventual change we had been tossing around in conjunction with a kitchen remodel but figured it would be a few years down the road.

Once I saw the way the patio design came together with the addition of the door, we reshuffled the priority list.  Fortunately my other half is extremely talented in most areas of home improvement and will install the door this summer.

A precast fireplace would replace the fire pit and we'll be relocating the grill from the deck to somewhere near the new french door.

Current view of the breezeway

Proposed integration of the breezeway and patio

The garage is attached to the house by a breezeway.  Currently the breezeway is unfinished space. Originally we envisioned the main access to the patio to be through the breezeway.  Now that the decision has been made to install french doors in the kitchen, that will no longer be the case.  The breezeway will be finished as an unheated screen porch.  The proposed window on left wall is also part of the eventual kitchen upgrade and when completed will flood the kitchen with much needed morning light.

Before the patio is installed, the door from the breezeway will be relocated to the middle and will be swapped out for something more weather tight and secure.  I would prefer to narrow the steps and patio space here to provide for larger planting beds in this south facing alcove.  A protected spot like this may be my only hope of ever growing a crepe myrtle or Musa basjoo here.  What was I thinking when I moved from zone 6 to zone 5?

Access from the patio around the back of the house to the driveway is likely going to have to wait or be scaled back to stepping stones to keep the budget in line.  The pergola isn't a feature we're wild about.  Incorporating my old fountain is important since it was such a focal point on my old patio.  Naturally, dining and entertaining space is high on the list as we enjoy outdoor eating, drinking and general merrymaking on a regular basis.

From this perspective, you can look back into the proposed patio space.  Due to budgetary constraints this part of the design will be scaled back.  I think we can DIY this area to my satisfaction and have enough money left over to fund a lifetime supply of ibuprofen.

Due to Jennifer's schedule, late summer would be the earliest she could start work.  I'd like it to be sooner, but we still have so much to do in advance of the installation and as industrious as we tend to be, things like work and life often get in the way.  But this is a start.

~Sue~

Help!

Just before I left for the beach in August I was forced to shut down my large patio fountain because it was leaking like a sieve.  I was adding six or eight gallons of water to it every day.

A few years ago, hairline cracks developed in the main bowl.

I used epoxy to seal them which seemed to do the trick for a year or two.  At the end of last season I noticed some slight dripping again from the base.  When I opened the fountain in June, naturally it was still leaking but I kept an eye on the level and added water as needed.

Time is at a premium around here and I was anxious to have all aspects of the patio up and running for the height of garden season.  In retrospect it was the wrong decision.  Once the fountain was drained, close inspection revealed numerous additional hairline cracks.

The fountain is the focal point of my patio.  Although still imposing even when empty, I have no desire to turn it into a large succulent planter.

Or an elaborate bed for the resident feline flea bag who has apparently already decided otherwise.

I want a fountain.  Water is soothing.  Even a gurgle somehow manages to block out background noise and rinse the burdens of a stressful day away.

So what do I do?  Patching what I can see with epoxy seems like another temporary fix.  Should I call in a concrete contractor?  What if I just painted the whole lower bowl with a concrete sealer like Thompson's Water Seal?  Any and all advice is welcome.

Sue~

Fall Cleanup Begins

Here in central CT we were gifted with absolutely perfect fall weather this weekend.  After spending the previous week wallowing in self pity over losing the majority of my garden to an early frost, I built a bridge, got over it and was ready to get down to business and let the fall cleanup begin.  You know what "they" say-"make hay while the sun shines".  Good advice.  Who knows what the weather will be like for the upcoming weekends or what alternative activities may develop to distract me?




My garden helper, the Twerpinator agrees.

Leaf removal is a huge part of fall cleanup here.  Sometimes the weekends don't cooperate and I have to take days off from work to get it done.  A couple of years ago three of my neighbors banded together and removed many old trees but the neighborhood is still well shaded. Fortunately the town collects leaves at the curb and I take full advantage. For some reason though, the first pickup this year isn't until the week of November 12th so for now leaves are on the back burner.

Compost manufacturing has never been a strength.  Usually I toss the majority of fall garden waste in with the curb leaves and let the town do the work.  With the extra time this year I decided to chop up most of my container garden waste, add a few bucket loads of pine needles from the driveway, and toss in the bags of grass clippings and leaves from the final mowing of the rear lawns.  Here's what I've got so far,  With any luck, in my one compost bin I may be able to fit about 1% of my leaves and additional garden waste.

So with leaf pressure off, I decided to focus on cleaning and storing my containers.  Usuallly I clean out the plants after they get frosted (anywhere from late October through mid November) then run around like a nut in December hauling all the pottery to the garage or shed before winter sets in.  Not this year.  At the close of business Sunday night, I had 95% of my pots cleaned out and tucked away in the garage.  In all my years of gardening I have never been so far along with fall pot cleanup.  Not ever!

One of my biggest challenges used to be moving heavy pots around the garden.  A few years ago I modified the strap on an appliance dolly so I could use it to grip pots just long enough to get them tipped back and balanced on the rails.  With the exception of a couple of odd balls, I can now move everything I need to move by myself.

Much to the cat's dismay, carnage corner in the garage is now cleaned up and ready for pot storage.

My new favorite toy.  Argh, argh, argh!

A few odds and ends waiting to be prepared to spend winter somewhere in the house.

My succulent collection all cleaned up and ready to be moved into the house.  I'm still thinking I should send them all to live with Denise.

Semi annual car washing was also on the agenda.  I like a clean car, really I do, but I don't often have one.  Maybe next spring I'll get to the inside.  Or in the spirit of election year job creation maybe I'll just pay somebody else to do it.

By the end of the weekend things were looking up for the garden.  Not so much for me.  Normally I wouldn't classify myself as a klutz but somehow I managed to slice a finger open with pruning shears, twist and bruise my wrist in a closing gate, and take multiple slams to the shins and an ankle from various weapons of garden destruction.  Be careful out there!

As much as I like a tidy garden, I don't relish fall cleanup.  So is gardening in colder zones.  After spending months and months creating and nurturing it all, in just the equivalent of a couple of weeks you tear everything down and throw it away.

No one will be clamoring to enjoy a glass of wine on these chairs for a while.

Where did everything go?

The "rear lawn" mowed for what will probably be the last time this season.

The back lawn freshly mowed for what may be the last time.



Despite the early progress, I still have much to do.  Cannas and dahlias have to be dug, dried and stored.  Plants need to be moved and new acquisitions planted.  Next weekend I'll start cutting back the perennials and moving leaves to the curb.  One thing I won't be doing though is moving pots because I'm DONE, DONE, DONE with that nonsense!  Come December I'll be sipping wine under twinkling lights while toasting that early frost.

East garden-yikes!

Sunday dinner-a reward for all the hard work.

Happy Fall!

Sue~

A Patio in the Making

With patio season quickly coming to a close, I thought it would be fun to take a trip back in time.  Back to the days when the patio and backyard gardens at my house were non existent. 

My house was built in 1941 but I've only owned it since 1995.  During the home inspection I took a series of pictures of both the inside and outside of the house.  Over the years those pictures have occasionally come in handy and have been fun to peruse.  I think you'll agree that the change has been dramatic. 

The back of my house in August 1995

The driveway and west side of my house in August 1995



For the first seven years I developed gardens in the front and side yards.  Believe it or not but at the time I really wasn't much into gardening.  I started by removing the sod around the lamppost to plant a few annuals.  Then I removed sod from around a shrub or a tree.  Then I connected the areas by creating pleasantly curving beds.  What fun!  Before long, turf grass became accent plant.

Throughout these years, the back yard remained untouched except to install some fencing to contain the dogs.  Due to the placement of the attached garage, the only direct access to the backyard from the house was through the screen porch.  In the spring of 2003, the house underwent extensive renovations to what was a dark cramped kitchen.  Walls were removed and the attached garage was converted to a breakfast room extension of the kitchen.  Finally, the back of my house was open to the outside!

  

My garage in March 2003

Side entry and garden in summer 2005



The main goal I had for this particular part of the renovation was that a visitor who had never been to my house would never know that the breakfast room had once been a garage. From looking at this recent picture, what do you think? So far I've yet to find anyone who believes this walkway used to be a driveway and the back room of the house had been a garage.

Side entry and garden in September 2012

But back to the patio...Fast forward to spring 2004.  A new free standing two car garage had been built behind the house in the fall and winter.  A photo album of that project can be viewed HERE.  It was time to create the backyard space I had been envisioning for many years.  After the dust settled, this is what I was left with as a starting point.

Site of the new patio





The patio contractor had also done the stone facing on the new addition.  Impressed by his attention to detail and work ethic, he was also contracted  to build a 75 foot stone retaining wall along the new driveway and rebuild the chimney from the roof up in addition to the patio.  From the spring of 2003 and continuing into the spring of 2005, nobody could accuse me of not doing my part to stimulate the economy..



Progress at the end of day one





The work zone





Day three



Finished patio

Next the fence contractors arrived.  In addition to the privacy and aesthetic benefits, my dogs (at the time there were two) are the nosiest creatures on the planet and require a secure boundary.  By the time all the contractors were finished, I was left with a compacted clay mess that doubled as a graveyard for large chunks of shale in the areas that were slated to become lush gardens.

Fence is in but what a freakin' mess!



After a failed attempt to use a rototiller, in the fall of 2004 I resorted to hand digging this area with a garden fork. One extruded disc and a ruined ski vacation in Banff later, I decided to order a truckload of compost and raise the grade. That was the best decision I could have made.  Occasionally if I need to dig a deep hole in these gardens I have to punch through the clay layer or extract a bucket load of shale but building up was definitely the way to go.



Fence is stained and grade is raised using bulk compost

Same fence area a few months later in summer 2005



A privacy fence was also installed along the property line.  I am the last house on a cul-de-sac and only have neighbors on one side.



New patio garden in May 2005.  The fountain was installed and planting had begun.





Patio September 2005

Patio August 2012

Back to the beginning-the back of the house October 2012



When I look at this series of before and after pictures, I'm of course amazed at the transformation.  But what amazes me the most is how close the finished garden areas are to the vision I had through the early years of home ownership back to 1995.  It took a while to get here but as far as I'm concerned it was well worth the trip.

Sue~