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In a get 'er done fashion usually not observed in this household, I bought stain and had the deck chairs stained in a matter of days. Perhaps it happened so quickly because I hired it out to my brother, whom I've not paid for the job...sucker*! Anway, the chairs were a satisfying before and after project - going from a weathered finish that was flaking off to a nice looking charcoal opaque stain - and he did it all in an afternoon. I've officially decided projects you don't actually have to do, but benefit from are the best.
But now that the chairs are spruced up and set out, I've got a few other things on my upper deck to-do list before this fortress of solitude has reached maximum solitudity or optimal solitudeness.
{Resources}
Bench and cushion . World Market
Planter . Brookstone
Climbing plants . Moonflower vine, though the ones in this pic were added in [ via]
Chairs . CB2 (previous season) in Olympic stain Deep Charcoal
Bench & chair pillows . Crate and Barrel (both real and added in ones)
Ceramic planters . Tuesday Morning or Home Goods
Topiary . Lowes
*Also, Happy Birthday today to my brother Drew!
In my master design scheme, I had grand plans to whip up a bench using my construction know-how. Slight problem: I don't have construction know-how. I quickly realized that other parts of this plan were lacking: 1) were the planters flanking this bench going to crowd the ever shrinking deck space? 2) was this bench going to be wide and sturdy enough to nap on? 3) who was going to make the cushion for this bench? me? heh. The arguments against the whole DIY plan were stacking up (I know, in the blogging community it is all about DIYing. I am an anomaly, my friends.)
Enter World Market and their selection of very affordable furniture*. I just happen to be wandering into my local store branch and found their Laguna deep bench with cushion to be exactly what I needed: wide enough to nap on, a similar grayish color tone of the Sawyer chair and reasonably priced. I sat on it, I laid on it - my germaphobe self doesn't want to think about how gross this really is - I took a picture, I walked out the store and convinced myself to think about it and get the buy-in from Daniel.
Fast forward to me being totally set on buying the bench - coupon printed and tucked into my back pocket - only to find the bench is on super sale. Done. Bought. Soon to be in my possession. The deck gods want this, I can tell.
*Though you would never know it, this post is NOT sponsored by World Market. However, they know where to find me if they want to lavish me with free goods...
This weekend Indio helped me plant some flowers on our front porch. It went about as well as you'd expect...
Indio scattering dirt to sweep up. The look on his face is because a plane has been heard. To a 20 month-old boy, this requires a serious amount of attention and awe in order to spot the plane once its been heard. If you think about it, this is awe-inspiring - I mean, people are in a large canister of metal FLYING through the air. So I guess we should all stop what we are doing and try to give airplanes the respect they deserve anytime we hear them.
Indio is taking expensive potting soil and throwing it over the porch into plant beds. I'd like to say I stopped this, but I've come to understand that sometimes sacrificing a little potting soil is an excellent parenting technique.
Indio sweeps up all the dirt we've dropped. Actually, he spread handfuls of it (his hands are small) on the porch so sweeping would be more purposeful.
Hang on to your container gardening hats, my friends, I am about to open this post with one of THE MOST EXCITING LINES that a blog post related to container gardening has ever experienced.
Wind and squirrels have wreaked havoc on my terracotta pots in summers past, but no more!
Did I not warn you? Compose yourself and read on.
I swept up one too many shattered pots last year that something had to change. The plants fared no better: most recently evicted plants were thrown into a nearby garden bed to take root or wither, with the latter option being the more popular of the two. A majority of the sustained damage was from pots resting on a metal planting rack and one day, while thinking of nothing in particular, a solution to this issue popped into my head: bolt the darn things down. I'm not saying everyone has this problem, but maybe you have a similar real-life situation, maybe you'll read this question on a standardized test and now have the answer, maybe you'll be a better person for knowing it. Just sayin'.
Just a few words to the wise:
- Make sure your washer is big enough that it will be clamped down on both the pot and your surface (the red and teal squiggles in my diagram).
- Once you have your nuts and bolts locked down, put a little water in the pots and make sure they can still drain. If they don't, loosen the nut a little bit.
- I put the bolt on the inside of the pot so I could still loosed the nut from the outside easily, if needed.
 
In case you aren't hip to the Midwest weather forecast of late: we are having unseasonably warm weather. This is great for my garden; bad for my paranoia of global warming. Last year the big project was the deck, but this year I am focusing on landscaping the yard. All of it. Front, back, side - because my mind knows no focus when it comes to landscaping.
Backyard
Having gone through a short course in landscape considerations through the Missouri Botanical Garden and lusted after some yards in my neighborhood (the grass is greener, in some cases), I started piecing together what I think will work in the backyard. I present my master plan, as sketched out on a pad of paper. (Hover over the sketch for a little clarification on some key features).
Backyard layout
Forget that there's no compass or legend, it doesn't really matter for the sake of this post. What's important is the new features we're gonna put back there. The main features I want are: a cutting garden (decorative flowers you can cut for indoor bouquets), shrubs to soften the edge of the deck, a large container planted with shrubbery to flank the deck stairs, and a playhouse for Indio. I adore the playhouse seen in the sketch, but no way I am splashing out that kind of cash. That means I need to learn to build a structure that is safe enough for Indio to play in...or hire someone to do it. Let's just put that on the back-burner for now.
Front and Side
For me, landscaping can be an expensive hobby. I am really trying to rein it in this year and make the most of what we already have and adding just a *few* new items over time. To this end I have decided to work with the existing brick edging of our beds to create new planter bed layouts. Additionally, I am transplanting a few items, adding some new green and, in the fall, planting more bulbs for denser spring flowers. Totally lost and/or board with my master plan? Okay, I'll just show you some pictures of where we are at currently. Once I start whipping things into shape, hopefully I'll have some awe-inspiring before and after pictures to show you.
 
 
Now that I've got everything sorted out on the upper deck - at least on paper - I am ready to get the lower deck all figured out.
The lower room is an outside dining room, screened in so none of those pesky mosquitoes can crash our fine dining experience. We also took onboard some sage advice and had a ceiling fan and light installed, as well as an outlet. All we need now is a few items to make it dining room ready:
Drapes >
I have to confess I love outside drapes. They just seem so tropical and luxurious, like a little taste of resort style. In our case, the drapes would also serve to diffuse the summer evening sunset that hits right around dinner time. I am eyeing these drapes from Pottery Barn pretty hard.
Table and Chairs >
A girl's gotta eat. These chairs from Crate and Barrel (last season) are simple, bright and durable. I love the lines and storability of this table from Ikea. Though we have a table now, it is a stand-in until we can take the plunge and upgrade to a outside table.
Rug >
The simple design of this outdoor rug has me smitten. It doesn't look like a faux heirloom and you can hose it off to clean it!
Accessories >
I got a heavyweight tablecloth on sale last year from Anthropolgie, originally to put out on the deck dining table. I am really rethinking this because it looks fabulous on my inside dining room table and - let's don't be silly - who puts something from Anthropologie outside?
Last summer's major project was tearing down the existing back porch and building a bad mamma-jamma double deck. If you want to split hairs, we actually hired a deck company to do it and this isn't going to be one of those DIY kind of posts. The only thing I know about deck building is best techniques for hounding local government offices for a building permit approval, staining the wood and picking out furniture. The hounding part is pretty self explanatory - I suggest being annoying enough to get your your permit approved quickly, but not annoying enough to make them do a bureaucratic equivalent of spitting in your food. As for the staining, my expert advice is to plan for it to take more stain and time than you thought. With two topics down, we can now focus on the best deck topic of all: picking out furniture!
As of today the deck has 2 chairs and a cat on it. The cat is temporary. I envision the upper deck as being a 'fortress of solitude' with lots of plants and a decent amount of privacy. Behold, my master plan:
Planters >
Sprinkled throughout the corners and along the perimeter will be assorted planters with flowers and herbs. I may invest in a few self-water conversion kits to place in the bottom of the planting pots to help with keeping the plants less dead.
Bench >
This is a bit of a wish list item, but I would love to recreate this bench as a daybed. I envision the same design with a cushion on top for encouraging cat naps. The legs are sturdy ceramic planters that will bring more greenery to the deckscape (is that a word?).
Self-watering plant trough >
This investment has me feeling pretty darn smart. The plant troughs will line the west side of the deck with taller plantings for privacy and the self-watering feature will definitely help with maintenance since getting water to an upper deck isn't the easiest of tasks.
Adirondacks >
I snapped up two Sawyer chairs last summer from CB2 because I liked the modern take on the familiar adirondack design and the cool, gray stain.
Umbrella >
No fortress of solitude is complete without some reprieve from the sun (well known fact). Naps are so much more enjoyable when one doesn't get burnt to a crisp.
Push those garden daydreams aside, it's time for action! I am totally geeked out ( if you didn't notice), to get my seedlings going for this spring and summer's vegetable and herb crop. If nothing else, my brother-in-law is also very into gardening now and we can do a seed/seedling exchange...or start our own nursery.
Careful planning has given way to impulse buys at local and big box garden centers for a collection of veg and herb seeds I hope will be winners. Once home with my bounty of seeds, I did online research* on when to plant for my location (St. Louis) and made notes on all the seed packets. Ahhh, organization can be so invigorating, no?
I have taken a very low-tech approach to the seedlings by putting them in seed starting pots/pellets and letting them bask in the sun on south-facing window sills. Now comes the hard part of remember to water the seedlings, which proves to be my undoing (and the death of plants all over this house) more than I care to admit.
Seedlings started:
- Basil, because I am sick and tired of paying $3 for 4 measly stems at the store
- Fennel
- Cauliflower
- Tomatillos
- Heirloom tomatoes
Straight in the garden next month:
- Arugula
- Spinach
- Carrot
- Beets
Over wintered - because I'm awesome, or they refused to die:
*Bowood Farms, a local nursery, has an awesome tip sheet on planting vegetables in St. Louis.
Bowood Farms, located in St. Louis' Central West End neighborhood, is one of my favorite nurseries. I walk in the doors of the old brick building that was once a auto warehouse -- take in the plants, seeds and sundries on offer -- and breathe in inspiration. Just take a look at the pictures and tell me you don't zen out. And this place isn't just a summer draw - they brilliantly have seasonal items year round (terrarium plants in the bitter months of winter) and host weekend talks from all kinds of experts to rev up the home gardener. All this poring over products and contemplating garden design can take it out of a girl; fortunately, Cafe Osage is there to provide much needed delicious sustenance.
   
Ambiance
Unique architecture, massive windows and greenery everywhere...awesome (read that in a high-pitched vibrato, please). The cafe is in a different room from the main floor and the outside gardens and has a nice, cozy vibe. On warmer days the cafe sprawls into the outside courtyard and a green rooftop grows herbs for the cafe (this is periodically open for tours, though I have yet to take a tour).
Service
I can say I've ever had a bad experience with the staff of Cafe Osage. They are friendly, informative and make the beverage rounds in a timely manner.
Food
The totally yummy seasonal and local breakfast and lunch menus haven't failed me. They tout vegetables grown right across the street and bison meat from their farm just outside of St. Louis. For our latest trip Daniel and I ordered the two daily specials (him: potato and egg skillet with loads of cheese, sun dried tomatoes, bacon and topped with micro greens with toast and housemade jam, me: salmon flatbread with herbed cream cheese, onion and capers) and we split an order of berries with lemon curd yogurt that was tasty and surprisingly large.
If I had to have a complaint, it would be that I spend a lot of money at this place. I *do* need those seeds and plants and pots and soil amendments...and looking at all this tasty food has made me hungry.
Five months in to my new vegetable and herb garden and I haven't had much to show for it. Granted, the endless weeks of heat and me neglecting to water probably didn't do much for anything besides my rosemary, but let's not forget the squirrels. The damn squirrels. In real life I mutter a string of obscenities at them that would make a sailor proud as I ponder why Farmer Brown got such a bad rap in Peter Rabbit. Sure, I had a nice go of it early on when I was picking arugula from the garden daily, but after that my beets were a meager yield, the green onions were microscopic and out of my 4 heirloom tomato plants I haven't gotten to one before the squirrels carried it off. Damn squirrels.
When I went to harvest the carrots at the appointed time (per the back of the seed packet) they were teeny-tiny nubs of nothing. I have seen weeds with better roots than my carrots. In defeat I abandoned them...which turned out to be a happy accident. After several months of ignoring I pulled one to find it actually resembled a -- wait for it, wait for it -- carrot. I tried another one and it also looked like a carrot! In a matter of seconds I had a bouquet of carrots. Ah, yes...this just what this downtrodden little gardener needed.
Planted this year in the veggie patch: arugula, chiogga beets, green onions, multicolored carrots, shallots, pickling cucumbers, acorn squash, butternut squash, tomato: purple Cherokee, tomato: black krim, tomato: green zebra, tomato: Aunt Ruby's German green.
Planted this year in the herb garden: flat leaf parsley, basil, oregano, Mexican tarragon, lemon thyme, rosemary, chives, marjoram, cilantro/coriander.
Worth repeating: arugula, beets, shallots, flat leaf parsley, basil, lemon thyme, cilantro
Probably will pass up: green onions, carrots, tarragon (we just didn't use it at all)
Do differently: Next year I need to 'cage' the tomatoes so maybe I can enjoy one or two myself. Some herbs I think I am going to grow in other planter beds and containers.
Now I am off to consider my plantings for fall and next year. Please standby with bated breath.
Does it get any cooler than going out to your backyard to pick fresh lettuce, wash it and immediately serve up a salad? (Rhetorical question)
If you need a visual, I pretty much think this or this is what I look like when I walk out to gather my salad crops. All delusions aside, my smugness levels reached fever pitch when I had to thin out the arugula sprouts. I collected all the sprouts that didn't make the cut and made a small salad with them for lunch. I am sure I was completely annoying that day since I was so pleased with myself, but I don't care, I was pleased with myself. Don't worry, I took a picture of it for posterity:
Anyway, the raised planter beds my brother-in-law Joe built are starting to produce a lovely assortment of early spring crops. Right now I am harvesting the arugula regularly so it continues to produce and the leaves don't get bitter. Beyond arugula, I have also planted carrots (a multi colored assortment of purple, orange and white), red shallots, green onions and chiogga beets. An overview of the plantings:
I just want to make a quick note on using your lettuce and the importance of washing it. Think of this as a fable, but without animals. If you are eating a salad, or have plans to eat a salad, don't read the rest of this post. I am serious.
When we were much younger, my brother decided he wanted to have a garden. My parents indulged the idea (probably encouraged it) and a salad garden was produced. One night, the kids were tasked with collecting, washing and making salads for dinner from the garden. We were enjoying our salads, joking that my sister did a horrible job washing the lettuce anytime we got a particularly gritty piece of lettuce. Jumping to the end of dinner: we almost all had clean plates and my mom was finishing her salad when she sunk her fork into a piece of lettuce...and a small slug. I kid you not. To this day my sister is not allowed to wash the lettuce and I still shudder thinking about it.
On that note, I am off to go make a salad. Bon appetit!
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