Sunday, September 29, 2013

Evolution of the Veggie Corner

I am guessing that those that read my blog regularly remember that back in June I got a hankering for a veggie garden. This little plot (click to see the beginning) ended up a great success despite the near drowning it had in June to the drought-like weather in July, August and September. 

A bit of success has spurred me to expand my options. As you can see in the photo below there were big sparse lilac shrubs at the back of the garden area. This is the corner of the garden I used to call 'the neglected corner'. I can't say that any longer.
You can also see that the tall fall asters are thick and takes up most of the space on the left. My DB dug out the lilacs. They didn't ever do well what with all the trees behind them. Then this second year of drought really took their toll.
They only thing I don't like about this is that I can see the neighbors pool and house too well. I will have to work on that.
I needed more upright growing space so I have put an arch of cattle fencing onto fence posts. I plan to plant a grape or two. Then the cucumbers can grow up these instead of inside the raised bed. 
To raise the bed we bought some 'planter stones'. This is a dandy interlocking system. I didn't want to use wood because I was afraid it would rot too quick and this way I can sit on the sides to weed or harvest.
St Fiacre watched over the veggie garden this year. His watchful eye was most appreciated. This was his view of the garden. 
Now he is elevated so to have a better view of the raised bed. With his new paint job he ought to last another 10 years.
The compost pile has sat here behind the barn  for years. It started out with a wire surround. Talk about not lasting long. The surround didn't last long at all. I wanted to neaten it up a little bit so... 
We used the same planter blocks to surround the compost. If I find I need more room  I can add layers to the blocks. I think this will do for now anyway.  I can also throw a piece of fencing over it when dogs come to visit. They love to forage in the compost. If they only ate leftover veggies it would be ok but they like noshing on corn cobs and spaghetti squash skins. Things that don't digest well... if you have a dog you know what I mean.
In the opposite corner is a nice shaded spot. This is where I have set a bench to have a place rest. I left a big swath of the asters. They are one of my favorite fall bloomers.
The only thing left to do is to figure out a way to block/stop the view to the neighbors boring garden. I thought about more shrubs but they take up too much room. I like being able to get around the garden easily.
I sat here and decided I wanted a bit of formality. I placed a row of small boxwood along the edges both sides. This view is as I sat on the bench taking the picture. We also need a load of soil to raise the level inside the blocks. I haven't had the heart to tear out the tomatoes and green peppers that keep on giving although at a slower rate. Enough to keep us in salad tomatoes for sure.
Sitting there you can see the compost pile. Left over shrubs. I am sure I will find a spot for them. To the left of the compost has become the wheelbarrow parking lot. 
As you can imagine I am not all that formal of a person. Certainly not in my garden. I couldn't help but to use a bit of whimsy too. My DB had brought several pair of these wooden spoon & forks home with him from his deployment in Vietnam. You can imagine how old they are. I thought they would be a nice touch as salad fork and spoon to crown the garden entrance.  
So here is the neglected corner transformed into the VEGGIE CORNER. 
I can't wait for next spring to get another round of veggies growing. 
I want to thank my DB for being the backbone of this neglected corner make over. Without his help I would still be working on it next spring to get it all accomplished.

19 comments:

  1. I am very impressed with the evolution of your garden! I like a veggie garden to taste good and to look good, too. I love your decorative accents, especially the spoon and fork.

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  2. You may not be a formal person, Lisa, but this is certainly the neatest looking vegetable garden I've seen in awhile! Where did you get your planter stones? I've been wanting to make some raised beds, but my skills with a hammer are pretty limited:) Stacking stones sounds a whole lot easier to me.

    Maybe you could grow vines on the fence to hide the neighbor's pool? I have a friend who plants tomatoes next to a chain link fence and uses the fence as her "staks." Love the spoon and fork on the entry arch!

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  3. You have the neatest, nicest looking vegetable garden, and I just love the fork and spoon arch over it all. Perfect!!

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  4. Rose, I got them at Lowes. They are heavy but easy to maneuver.

    Thanks for the compliments all. I can't say how long it will look that neat.

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  5. Oh nice.. I wouldn't get done what needed doing with out my hubby's help either. We put a tall chicken wire stuff around out compost bin and it opens on one side so we can put lots in it and turn the pile.. and no critters can dig it out. I should take a pix of it. Also some bamboo screen would be good along the fence. Holds up in rain here. Or lattice with small holes in it. In fact we put up a single lattice small hope panel from Home Depot or Lowes with the bamboo matting on it for privacy from our neighbors.Takes up little room and Con built a frame for it. Works nice. Fun to fix up a neglected area. Nice job. Oh and got the bulbs all planted. Just in time for tons of rain. Come on Spring. :))

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  6. OOps.. I meant OUR compost bin.. and we used plastic lattice.

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  7. You and your DB are some hard-working, creative garden-builders. I like the adaptive reuse of the cattle fencing. And crowning the entrance with the spoon and fork is perfect whimsy.

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  8. LOVE it! My favorite part is the salad spoon and fork...what a great addition those are. :-)

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  9. I love the fork and spoon arbor! What a great use for them.

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  10. Lisa, It looks fantastic...Loved the arch and it's even more fun with the fork and spoon! How difficult was it to build the arch? gail

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  11. For Gail and anyone else that would like to know how easy it is to make the arch...
    Easier than baking pie to make the arch. Purchase four 6' fence posts, our TSC gives you a bag of clips to hold on the fencing. One section of cattle fencing. I get the cheap one that has all big square holes. To bring the 16' fence home I have to bow it in the middle to fit into the back of our truck so it gets a somewhat natural bend before I even get home. Drive the posts into the ground a couple of feet. Easier to do after a rain. Try to get them straight. It makes it easier to attach the fence to the posts if you have someone help you. Attach one side then the other. You can eyeball how high you want it. The closer the posts the higher the arch can be. I wanted this one wide enough to have a path down both sides of the veggie bed. Fence and posts cost about $36. Will probably last until I get tired of it for sure.

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  12. Love it! The fork and spoon along with the wire overhead trellis is perfect!! You could block the neighboring view with a nice pretty fence. Those raised bed look like they would feed an army!

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  13. Oh my, you have turned your neglected area into a work of beauty! I see a spot for serenity as one watches their veggie garden grow! You have given me some inspiration as I have gathered some ideas from you today!

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  14. Looks DANDY. I love the idea of the wire arch!!! Never thought of that.

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  15. Dear Lisa - thank you for your visit to my blog...ah your veggie corner is fabulous. I so enjoyed seeing your garden. The interlocking raised bed looks super. Thank you for sharing. Hope you have a beautiful day. I will stop back again real soon.

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  16. What a wonderful garden, it appears to have seen a lot of love and very thoughtful hands...the accents you used in your garden are really special.

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  17. What you do is totally incredible!

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  18. Your creativity always shines though, Lisa :-D Good job, I especially love to see how a practical idea and use has evolved all the way to a raised bed with seating area and box hedging, a decorative entrance (brilliant use for the fork and spoon) all the way to matching planters adorning the entrance (I noticed that these were on your patio when you were building your rose arch - my eye caught what I thought was creeping jenny cascading).

    Wishing you a very productive veggie garden for many years to come. A thought (you've probably had - a decorative bamboo screen behind your seat? I'm certain you will come up with a creative solution :-D

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  19. Oh what a glorious green space you have Lisa, impressive. But I agree, you do want privacy too. Shouldn't be too hard to fix that issue! :<)

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