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Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

There's Good News and Not so Good News this Wednesday

First, the good news:

Look what was waiting at my door when I got home from work last night. To non gardeners, a box of paper bags might not seem very exciting but for a gardener, a box of bags full of bulbs from Brent and Becky's is a reason for celebration!  These contain a few different varieties of colchicum to add to my collection. 
 
 
But wait, there's more excitement.  I'm really pleased with this combination of plants that came from Vassey and Watson's Nurseries all on sale.  This will look good for the whole winter.  The chrysanthemum will only bloom through fall but the rest is evergreen.  Maybe the mum could be replaced with a purple flowering kale when it's done blooming.  Now they just need to find a pot so that they can get off of the patio table.
 
You may recall this gate which was one I found that I put up many years ago too keep people from coming into the garden and stealing everything (really, one time, everything that wasn't a plant was stolen from my garden, including pots which were unceremoniously emptied on the ground and people would come in and vandalize the plants.)   It later got painted blue as was one wall of the garage in what Tom calls my blue phase.  It was in such bad shape this spring that pieces of rotted wood came off in my hand when I closed it.
 
So Tom replaced it with this temporary gate that he built.
 
On Sunday evening, we replaced it with this gate which Tom built. The idea of a window in the gate was stolen from my pal Alison's garden.  Should we stain this or leave it alone to fade to gray?  Maybe paint it that bright blue color of the first gate?
 
 
 
I was going to build a glass panel for it but didn't want to take the time to do something really intricate that would take a lot of time, I considered buying one but the dimensions of most that I liked were too big.  Then I remembered this panel that Tom started when we took our first stained glass class together about 15 years ago.  It was never finished as he wasn't all that fond of the craft.  Thinking that it would be sweet in the gate, I finished it just in time for the gate to go up.
 
 
It's a rather sweet panel and looks lovely in the gate.
 
Still more exciting news - We finally have a contractor and a date to replace the roof and a wall of our garage with polycarbonate so that it can be used as a greenhouse.  I'm elated.  What could be be not so good about this?  Well, they'll be working two weekends to get the project done and can't start until September 27 which means that on the next weekend, October 4 & 5 they'll be finishing the job at exactly the time that the Oregon Garden  Bloggers' Plant Exchange is scheduled to take place at Alison's garden with dessert at mine.  Because the entire contents of the garage have to be removed for the job, it will be sitting all over the garden.  "My what a lovely foliage combination and that table saw covered with a bright blue tarp really makes a statement."  I had hoped to have this done before the exchange and started working on getting the project going in July but with various schedules, things kept not happening.  
 
All in all, a pretty good day!




 

43 comments:

  1. I love Brent & Becky's Bulbs. Great business, I have ordered from them for years.

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    1. I've only heard good things about them and the quality of the bulbs in this shipment was excellent! Looking forward to getting the tulips I ordered from them!

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  2. How fun... we can all help in the building project. That stain glass panel is very sweet !

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  3. Minor inconvenience but it'll be worth it with the garage being converted to something very plant friendly :) Love the idea of a glass panel on the gate, and what a fab panel you have there!

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    1. It will be exciting to have a greenhouse as I've never had one and the house gets crowded with plants in the winter and sometimes a few in a far room get forgotten and perish. This will be so much more convenient!

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  4. You know if you want to just have the entire exchange here that would be fine with me, but I know those Portlandian bloggers would be disappointed not to see your garden even in a state of dishabille.

    The gate turned out very nice. I would leave the wood natural, it really makes that window stand out, even more than it would if the gate were blue.

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    1. It will be fun whatever we decide to do. The garden may be pretty full of junk. Let's plan on still doing both gardens unless, once we get everything moved out, our paths aren't passable.

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  5. Dear Mr. TOG
    I was shaking my head in utter disbelief when reading about how things were stolen from your garden ! OMG how horrible people can be never ceases to amaze me.
    I would be excited too with the bulbs in brown bags ;-)
    I actually have not planted any Spring bulbs this year ... just so much going on I can't concentrate on it ... so better off not doing a shoddy job , right ?
    I love that amazing blue and YES ! I would paint it blue with that gorgeous window pane .. it is beautiful and would look so fantastic in total blue .. be darning and do it ! LOL
    Joy : )

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    1. The gates have decreased the theft quite a bit and recently the only vandals in the garden have been the racoons. I hadn't planted spring bulbs for years, relying on the ones already scattered around the garden and then last year I picked up a few at a local nursery and we had such fun planting them that I ordered a lot of bulbs for this fall and we'll spend a day planting them. Lets hope we have some warm clear days this fall!

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  6. The important thing is that the project is moving forward! And maybe they'll be faster than you expect? One can hope. Either way you know we all know what it's like to have projects going on and we'll be excited to see the progress, that is if you still invite us over.

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    1. There are a couple of things about the project that make me want to call it off until next year but it will be fun to have one place for all the plants this winter and I can play with getting the inside put together for months. It will still be fun to have everyone over to see the garden in a shambles. It'll make the next visit even better, right?

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  7. I love that stain glass panel. It looks perfect for a garden gate. I'm super impressed that you guys did that yourselves.

    Since you're asking for opinions, I would stain the gate gray so it looks weathered already :-)

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    1. Stained glass is a hobby of mine and I teach classes at a local studio. After some of the restoration jobs on the outside of the house that we've done, this was small potatoes but it's nice to finally have a proper gate there.

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    1. No, just a little melancholy about summer ending. (Oh, you were voting on the gate color:)

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  9. I am so sorry about the garden thieves! As much as I love the blue gate I think stained will make the window more of a feature and the gate becomes its frame. As to your dilemma...not to worry...gardeners understand process and as long as you have plants and dessert they won't mind a bit of construction! They will want to return to see it finished : ) and probably more dessert!

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    1. The big theft that required a truck happened years ago before there were gates at all. when we moved here the yard (all lawn with some big old trees and a bed or two) was open to the streets on the front and side. The gates and enclosure help quite a bit with not finding homeless people sleeping on our back porch etc. Good advice about the gates and the visitors. I feel much better now that I don't have to make things look presentable and can blame the disarray on the project.

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  10. Blue, too. But I'm known for my tacky lack of taste. The greenhouse changes for the garage sounds like a dream!

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    1. Sorry to hear that you're feeling blue as well. Chin up, you'll get rain soon. I thave a similar dearth of taste and like the idea of blue but it'll probably just stay this way until I get a bee in my bonnet to do something about it. I will be thrilled to have a single place to winter all the tender plants that I stupidly insist on growing. A less expensive alternative would be to simply take all the tender plants to the plant exchange and vow to grow only what is hardy in my zone.

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  11. I love you stained glass window in the gate. What a novel idea. A box of bulbs and some new plants- what more can one ask for to make a red letter day?

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  12. The best laid plans sometimes need adjusting. I hope all goes well with the plant exchange in spite of the disarray. The gate and its inset glass piece are wonderful. For what it's worth, I'd be inclined to paint the gate blue again as well.

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    1. I'm leaning toward blue myself as I love the way plants look against that color. Plant people and plants - we'll have fun whatever happens.

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  13. I love the window - what a great idea. And def. blue! Yes. Definitely. I know that while the blue tarp will loom large in YOUR eyes, it will be small compared to the pleasure the fortunate folk who tour your property will experience. It's ALL good!

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    1. You are so kind. My property is a small urban garden and I'm actually wondering if there'll be enough space for people to safely walk the paths with the contents of the garage taking up so much space.

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  14. How disgusting that people would vandalise and steal from your garden.
    I really like your new gate. The colours are picked up in all of your plants and decorations. And I think it will look great either stained or left to age naturally. I hope your contractors are quick and have the job finished before you have everyone at your house and it all works out. But even if there is some stuff around, I'm sure everyone there would agree that the end result is worth a bit of stuff lying around :)

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    1. People are what they are and we haven't had big problems for a while. Glad you like the gate. The contractors will be working on weekends as this is a side job for them. One weekend for tear down and the next to hang the polycarbonate roofing and siding so the visit will take place as the siding is going on. Fun. I had hoped to have the project done in advance of the visit so that I could concentrate on tidying up the garden a bit. Now I'll just blame the mess on the project and relax.

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  15. I love your glass panel! I can't imagine someone coming in and stealing your garden things! I would paint the gate blue again! And finally, Having your own greenhouse will be wonderful..Maybe you can use this as an opportunity to lose some of the stuff in the garage to make room for plants!

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    1. This summer I did a big clean out and gave away a lot of stuff (Love Craigslist!) but there are some necessities like garden and other tools, lawn mower, plant pots, etc. that will still need to live in part of the garage.

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  16. Beautiful glass panel decorated gate! I vote for leaving it natural so the art work takes center stage. I also enjoyed seeing the brick path in your photos. It is good to see the wide shots of gardens to see how it all goes together, especially since I am a novice gardener and need to see examples to help me see the possibilities in my own garden. Of course I also love all the macro images that really show off the plants.

    Thanks for sharing your garden.

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    1. Thanks for stopping by and commenting! Sharing our gardens with each other is one of the joys of blogging!

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  17. Your glass panel is stunning, a really beautiful addition to your garden. It was so sad to read that people could come and vandalise your garden, unfortunately a sign of the times.
    I'm sure your garden visitors will understand about the work being done, it will be the plants that they are looking at, I hope it all goes well for you.

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    1. Thanks Pauline. The thieving also has to do with where we live as well as the times. It will be such a joy to have a greenhouse, a dream of mine for years!

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  18. I love that new door, the glass art looks incredible. I think it would look pretty painted in blue but if you let it fade to gray it will look very good too.

    I can´t believe people steal and do that kind of things at your neighborhood...too sad.

    And you are going to have a greenhouse!!! I´m jealous!! that is great!!

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    1. Thanks Lisa! I'm very excited about having a greenhouse!

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  19. I've been waiting for an update on the blue gate, and my patience paid off: it's beautiful. I'm a fan of blue, but this gate will be gorgeous no matter what color it is. I only know your garden from pictures, and this corner of it is my favorite, hands down.
    Am I to understand that the annual plant migration will now be directed to the remodeled garage? Because I'm left to wonder on your plans for the stained glass room...

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    1. The stained glass room will be an overflow area should the greenhouse get too full. Mostly I'm looking forward to cleaning out that room, painting it, getting a better door and perhaps using the room for something. It cold still have a few plants inside. You are welcome to come see my little garden in person sometime.

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  20. Oh my, what a pretty gate with such a pretty window! And how lucky you will be to have a green house! I wouldn't paint the gate blue because then the window won't show up as nicely. I second the commenter who suggested staining it gray.

    When I lived in the downtown area of a small city, someone once stole the flower baskets right off the iron grates of my sub-basement apartment windows. I later found the empty pots a couple blocks away. Things that make you shake your head!

    Just yesterday I was excited to receive a box full of damp paper bags! (and 20 new plants!) Must get the bulb order placed this weekend!

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    1. I think sometimes kids just grab things on a whim and don't think of plants as being important to people. Still, it feels awful when it happens to you! Hooray for 20 new plants!

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  21. The transformation is remarkable. I loved the old gate but the new ones is great too. Congrats on your new garage-turned greenhouse. It'll be fun. You'll be among friends.

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Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! I love to hear your thoughts.