I have been wanting to add progressive garden photos here for a while, I usually add them to my blog here on ATP but thought this more fun for multiple follow -ups throughout the seasons.

We moved here in late March 2011 and the garden was just overgrown shrubs on a 1/2 acre lot. Coming from a tiny city lot, this was almost overwhelming to me, to actually have room to plant larger things! I brought over 600 potted plants with me, 1 gal. sized on up! Yes, I am a nutty plant collector, ask my family how bad it is, they helped with multiple truckloads of just plants, a 95 mile trip each time! I even left many pots behind for the new owner, who promptly let them die. I still regret leaving them.
The garden had some bones though, pathways and a sprinkler system, but last owner neglected everything. We had several of the overgrown shrubs removed to open things up.





Now since I am a plant collector coming from a small city lot, I have become a plant crammer too and despite a larger area now, I still tended to plant things close together. Hey, my philosophy, no room for weeds that way and it quickly becomes a jumbled cottage garden I love.
This was March 2012, exactly one year after moving here. And the second pictures was taken exactly 2 months later.



These were taken a couple of days ago, after 4 years here.

Some of these posts are copied off of the blog so may be repeats for some.

We like to recycle some fun things into the garden when possible.

In Aug. 2011, hubby & I sprayed the recycled satellite dish (after posting a request for one on Freecycle) an olive green to match the poles that it will be placed on. I got this idea from Janet (imapigeon), hers is a much bigger one. I kind of wished I had waited and found a larger one too but hey, free is free and this will look cool once it's done.
My Cubits post of a few pics of Janet's garden showing a couple of shots of her pergola: http://cubits.org/Califliving/...
Her blog that documents it's creation: http://satellitedishgazebo.blo...


And when it was done, up it went. The bench was already here, I love how it's curved back match the spokes of the dish.


It's filled in quite nicely, this was taken 2 days ago. A yellow Graham Thomas rose has reached the top of the satellite pergola, it should look great once it gets into full bloom. One vine in the back left has also reached the top, front left lavender trumpet vine is slowly growing. Front right has a newly planted clematis and the back pole has a lavender 'Ramona' clematis. Behind it is a tall blue blooming salvia and the white blooming shrub with the golden foliage is Choisya ternata Sundance.

That is only a half acre? Wow, it looks so much larger. I love your recycled items. Very imaginative.

I love your gardens and I love the satellite dish idea! I think I'll have to post to CL and see if I can find one.

So glad you started this thread. I love seeing the progression, especially with the dishy gazebo (didn't even try to resist that one ). Will be like a magic cottage within the garden when all the vines and climbers fill in completely.


This "plant" off to the right, here, is my favorite one of all, though...

Calif_Sue said:

Debra, that's one of my daughter's dog, Kona. They lived with us the first two years until they could get back on their feet and get a place of their own. Once I started planting, we had to fence them off as she was a great big digger after the gophers. She did more damage than they did.

Leslie, it looks bigger than 1/2 acre as the tree line in the background, a stand of redwoods, is on the other side of our fence in the green belt, so it seems to actually extend the garden. Bonus!

Sue, beautiful beautiful beautiful - a wonderful combination of plants, colors, shapes, and garden art. I love the idea of the satellite dish! You did a lot of work and it certainly shows.

Beautiful,..a very Cottage Garden appearance,...full of blooms and plants plus your Banana Plant,..that satellite dish looks fantastic,..i would never have thought of using it like you did and i did see one thrown out and couldn't figure out how i could use it,..dang!.

I love it all. Thanks for sharing.

Another recycling post.
We found some old clay chimney pipes at a salvage yard before we bought this house. I had seen them used in landscape projects in magazines, and landscapes shows and images online, so I have been keeping my eye out for some.

Here they are added into a new retaining wall the first year.



and a few months later, sedum and a purple bacopa filled in nicely.

It got switched out to 3 different sedums the next year, 2012. They are perfect for when the clay pipes get hot in the summer.


Then another ATP member saw those shots and asked if I wanted some more clay pipes. They had been on an old Victorian home in San Francisco and she didn't think they would ever use them. Sure, we'll take them! They stayed stashed against the fence for 2 years. Last year, my brother-in-law was visiting and he's a work horse so he dug up these large rocks from an old retaining border and created this curved wall, incorporating those clay pipes at both ends. He also added a rusty fire pot we found on an old abandoned homestead. Once we filled it in with soil, we added a row of 5 eating grapes. The clay pipes were planted with sempervivum and sedum to spill over the sides like my other pipes.



Here is hubby adding the grapes and stakes.


I have iris, blue lithodora (Glandora prostrata) and sedum planted around the grapes and need to add some spillers for over the rocks and a ground cover to prevent weeds from developing.
The grapes are getting large enough now that we will add a second wire along the top of the stakes to train them along, we want it to look look a mini vineyard.

Hubby is such an handy dandy guy!

Within a couple of months after moving in, this was his first project. 2 raised beds near the house for veggies, both with hardware cloth at the bottom so gophers can't get in. He added some copper pipes between the poles and an entry arbor. I added a climbing rose, 'Autumn Sunset with a clematis. An annual climbing vine Cup and Saucer Vine (Cobaea scandens) was added to the left side for fast fill in. I have another clematis planted there this year.

In July 2011, we had spent a couple of hours with a wheel barrel loading the pickup truck and the back of the Jeep with large rocks from a friends property. Yeah, free rocks!

Brad then build a small retaining wall where we had raised the bed, adding a step. You can see the newly planted Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia 'Frisia') which is now a glowing star in the garden.

Now this is what I am working on now. I started it in February and then was delayed in doing any more work on it for several weeks after a car accident in March but I am back out digging and planting & it's coming along. I have a stack of rocks I need to bring up from the back of the property to finish lining the beds.


This is what it looked like in 2011.

This is the bed by the driveway and front door. I planted it last Sept. I am afraid the plants may be slow growing here because the redwoods lining the driveway send their roots out quite far. Redwood tree roots are very shallow, often only five or six feet deep. But they make up for it in width, sometimes extending up to 100 feet from the trunk.
But the new iris are looking good so far, they are mostly in the reds, to match the deep red huechera seen in the front left side.



I also have a couple of abutilons planted there, they bloom almost year round here.

Between the iris now starting to bloom, the roses, clematis and soon the daylilies, there is always a riot of color.

This is an Austin rose, Summer Song.


Heaven on Earth


Distant Drums, always so photogenic


Helen Hayes rose always are big and blousey, with a beautiful blend of colors.


Teasing Georgia


late blooming daffodils, because I didn't get them planted until Jan.


Fruit Stripe


Plum Pretty Whiskers


Crystal Fountain


A large pineapple guava bush is in bloom, the petals are sweet enough to eat, especially by birds. I have a robin visit it daily.


And an unknown LA iris

Sue, you have such a great eye for design! LOVE everything you've shared!

The hardscape design for the veggie area is so clever and attractive. Did your husband design that?

Hi Neal, yes, that was his design. A chicken coop is his next project once he finalizes how he wants to put it together. We've been collecting odd pieces of used lumber, old windows, old door, gate and corrugated metal roofing material. It will be a puzzle to put together somehow.

You're a great pair! I love re-purposed items used artfully- you two have done a marvelous job of that! I unearthed a section of clay pipe in the garden; your use of them has inspired me to find an attractive use for it.

Yeah, take progress photos! You can probably paint them too.

I like this idea too
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/...

and would love to find some these:
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/...

Oh yes, those are both wonderful! I love ways of giving some elements with height to the garden that are present in winter and early spring.