DIY Pond Ideas

For as long as I can remember, I've wanted a water feature.  The sound of running water is so peaceful in a garden!

This article has a bunch of pond ideas and links to their tutorials.  You have to check it out if you need inspiration for a new project for your yard!

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Inspiration for a Beautiful Back Yard

My once peaceful and beautiful back yard is still in shambles, mainly since the long recovery from Hurricane Irma.  I could really relate to this article about starting over again.

Check out the article if you are in need of inspiration like me!

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Landscape Inspiration

Love this landscape makeover!  You would not believe the transformation from the "before" photo.

The DIY Channel has posted a very impressive gallery of landscape makeovers that will inspire you to start on your landscape project.

Click here to go to the gallery.

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Flowering Perennials

Bursts of color all over the garden can be a spectacular and soothing sight. One of my favorite things to do is color-coordinate sections.

Click here for an article on Flowering Perennials from Better Homes and Gardens.  Plan for continuous color by mixing perennials and annuals.  It is fun to experiment!

Happy Gardening!

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Container Plant Inspiration

Some beautiful container plant gardening inspiration!

Source

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Small Garden Inspiration

Even though The Captain and I have a large property with way too many future projects, we decided to start in the Carport Jungle.  Now that our tomatoes, peppers and herbs are on their way, it is time for us to concentrate on landscape design.

Even if you have a large area that needs landscaping, start small or you may overwhelm yourself.  I speak from experience!  Better to concentrate on a small area at a time rather than nothing because of overwhelm. It is something I have a problem with in every area of my life . . . overwhelm!

One of my favorite things to do is browse the internet for some garden inspiration.  Love the small garden in the photo, which is from the Fine Gardening website, sent in by one of their readers Lily Jacobi.  Love the layering on different levels and the use of container gardening along with the visual pleasing rocks.

I've always loved container gardening versus hard landscaping.  The problem is that when my first husband passed away and I neglected the massive gardens on the property, the container plants grew out of control and took root into the ground.  Anyway, tackling that problem is a future project!  This year, The Captain and I have been transplanting our grown seedlings into containers since we could not decide on exactly where to put what.

Click here to go to the article at Fine Gardening.  Other readers have sent in their photos for more inspiration.

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A Cozy Spot

There is no better therapy for stress than to have a cozy spot outdoors to enjoy the sights and sounds of nature.

Back in the day, we had "rooms" set up in the garden for different times of day as the sun would hit the area a certain way.  Then we had the spots that were perfect for watching the stars at night.

We are blessed to live in Florida when we can enjoy a meal outdoors just about any time of the year.

Fine Gardening is a great website to gather inspiration for creating a new spot in your garden.  I love spending time going through all the awesome photos of gardens from all over the world.

This photo is from a garden in Connecticut . . . so comfy and cozy, yet very simple.  To see more photos of this beautiful garden, click here.

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Toss the bare lawn?

Our once gorgeous and lush green grass in the front yard has turned to bare spots and mass plantings of a variety of weeds.

When I saw the photo of an interesting and beautiful non-lawn yard scene, I thought "why not?"

One of the why nots is that succulents don't do well in our climate and that is one of the things that I really like about the scene.

With a little imagination, I guess one could set out those pavers, do some research and find a ground cover that would thrive in these conditions.  The flashiness could come from the colorful tropicals that can be planted and do so well in our climate.

The area in the photo is small and our front yard is huge.  One paver section at a time I guess!  Another idea would be larger structures here and there, like bird baths and benches to take up some space.  Large containers strategically placed would also take up space and add to the texture.

Anyway, when I found the photo, I thought it was a good starting point for inspiration.  I'm sure we are not the only ones who are wanting to get rid of the lawn!

Click here to go to an article, "How to Use Ground Cover to Cover Bare Spots in the Lawn" . . . which is where I also found the photo.

Click here for another article, "Lawn Replacements: Kick Your Yard in the Grass" which includes a slideshow of many non-lawn inspirations.

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Secret garden

This part of Westbury Gardens in Vermont reminds me of a secret garden.  I've always wanted a little pathway that leads to a secret garden in my garden and in my mind, it looks very similar to this one . . . except mine would have more color and maybe a water feature along the side.

Very cool idea for a large property!

For more photos featured on the Fine Gardening website click here.

Click here to visit Westbury Gardens' website.

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Around the garden world in 365 days

Container gardens like the one in the photo is what we are striving to do in our garden that includes lots of concrete and container plantings.  Much easier maintenance than the wild look we currently have.  Love the tropical feel of this colorful garden vignette!

This photo was taken at Birmingham Botanical Gardens, Day #32 in "Around The Garden World in 365 Days," Barbara's fabulous blog series that takes you on a trip to a different garden every time with lots of photos and inspiration for your garden.  Click here for Day #32 where you will find many more photos from the gorgeous and inspirational Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

Barbara Peake Wise describes herself as a plant nerd who works for Landscape Service, Inc.  You can also follow her on Twitter.  She is one of my favorite garden enthusiasts on the internet!

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Beautiful container plantings

Seems like I love container planting more and more as time goes by.  I love being creative and taking inspiration from other gardeners to come up with my own creations.  

Although there are many wonderful websites to inspire us, my latest favorite is Fine Gardening Magazine's website.  Of course, the website is my photo source!

Today's inspiration is a glimpse of Chanticleer Garden.

Looks like this gorgeous and unique container is more of a mini raised bed, put together with pieces of slate, cut in various sizes.  My idea is to make the pieces made of concrete . . . the forms would be super easy to make.  

Two of them placed diagonally would be awesome looking!  Wouldn't it?  I would love to see this exact design on a larger scale, placed diagonally, as the focal point of a front yard.  Awesome!  We are looking for ideas for raised beds as an alternative to way too much grass in the front yard and this design would be great.

Color variations are endless by using concrete tints or by painting them.  Anyway, love the design!  Who knows?  We may gather the energy to get this project done after the huge tree stump comes down!

Want to see more from Fine Gardening's article and many

 more ideas for container planting?  Click here

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Elegant Garden

The elegance of this garden immediately caught my attention when I was browsing through Fine Gardening's garden photo section for some garden inspiration.  

Photo: Courtesy of Barbara Nuffer via Fine Gardening

Since our property is so large and we really don't want to be a slave to the garden as I have been in the past, the general thinking has been to design raised beds around large paths.  Barbara's garden in upstate New York is exactly what has been going through my mind.  Click on the Fine Gardening link to read the entire article featuring her garden and more photos.

An excerpt from the article . . .

"This garden is a raised bed. The shape is a 20-foot-diameter circle with a gravel path at ground level leading to a fountain in the center of the circle, and continuing to a bench. The outer perimeter of the garden is a 2-foot-tall stone wall. The interior wall is pressure treated 1 x 6s cut into 3-foot lengths and sunk into the ground 12 inches. Since portions of this wall are curved, we used metal strapping nailed to the back of the pieces of wood to hold it in place. They are slanted slightly back towards the bed. The shape is really pretty in winter as the sun sets behind it. A natural stream is down the hill behind the garden so you hear running water as a backdrop.

We lined the bed with black plastic with some drainage holes punched in it. My soil mixture included 6 cubic foot bags of coarse texture vermiculite. We mixed this with potting soil that contained lots of peat. This was suitable because I was planning to use acid-loving plants. We also mixed in two parts of topsoil. The proportions were one part vermiculite to one part potting soil to two parts topsoil. The bed was well moistened and mulched with finely ground cedar bark."

Awesome inspiration!

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Bamboo accents and incredible lighting

This yard reminds me that you can decorate the outdoors as you do the indoors.  Love the uplights to highlight the awesome bamboo accents.  Love this yard!

Click here to see more photos.


Photo: Courtesy of Susan Wawrzynowicz via Fine Gardening

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February Bromeliads

The massive plantings of bromeliads with their red blooms provide a burst of color in this gorgeous tropical scene.  The water garden runs along a pond that is complete with fish, turtles and different types of birds who love to hang out in this area.  Do you blame them?  

This is one of the most serene and beautiful scenes at Busch Gardens!

We will get more photos from this area next time we visit!

The landscapers at Busch Gardens have cleverly used a mass planting of similar bromeliad plants in yellow and red to really provide that pop of color, bordering them with another mass planting of a variegated variety.  They bring excitement to an otherwise green raised bed.

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Creative Garden Design

Michelle is "consumed by seeing art and design in everyday life."

It is apparent in her awesome landscape designs that is a mix

of gardening and art with awesome and unusual results.

Her blog, Garden Porn, is an art gallery for the gardener who

loves putting an artistic touch in their garden designs.  It is a

delight for the inspirational senses!

The above photo from her blog features an awesome staghorn fern

planting that is mixed with a variety of succulents displayed in a way

that we will definitely be doing for our carport jungle.  I've already

decided to cover the wire container with staghorn ferns since those

succulents don't do well in our humid climate.

Here is what I have done with staghorn ferns . . . they are featured

in a discarded book rack trash to treasure project that is still thriving

in our garden after a decade and survived some very harsh winters.

I started the staghorns as babies in the book rack that

was lined with chicken wire and gardening moss.  It has

grown in a semi-shady area and basically left alone for

at least the past 8 years.  This photo was taken four

years ago.  It is still thriving and growing in the same 

spot . . .  definitely a survivor!

We may scatter some baby staghorns around the sides of

the rack, which should make a spectacular feature in

 the garden.

More recent photos to come as soon as we refresh

the bald spots!

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Grassless Wishes

I already dislike grass in the landscape . . . then the lawn mower decided to quit working with flowering weeds looming in the midst of a sparse lawn.  That was it for me . . . no more grass . . . it is history!


The more landscape design research I do, the more I am loving large winding paths, raised beds and structures in the garden.


We have been thinking about different landscape designs for the front yard and my thinking is that a circular driveway nestled in between a cactus rock garden is the current winner.  It may take a while to get to this project, but the grass is definitely history.  The good news is that we have tons of cactus that the cold winters didn't kill from my days of massive propagation with hopes of a nursery business.


With a huge property as a blank canvas, half the fun is planning the landscape.  Unlike the last landscape design for our paradise, the new design must be as low-maintenance as possible.  My 24/7 gardening days are over . . . I want to enjoy, not work myself to death in the garden.


Click here to go to an article that addresses Low-Maintenance Alternatives to Lawns.


Something that I caught on one of the home and garden cable channels was artificial turf . . . I have not researched pricing, but I'm sure it carries a high price.  It is a consideration for small areas where a little patch of grass would be attractive.  I'll report my findings when I get to it . . .


How about you?  Do you love or hate lawns?

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Landscaped borders

The older I get, the more I like landscaped borders with large paved living areas as opposed to huge planted areas.  This idea works great for large yards with way too much maintenance.  It also accommodates those gardeners like me who are not fond of grass or spending way too much time mowing the lawn.

These photos come from DIY Network's website, where you can get all kinds of inspiration and instructions for your outdoor projects.

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Floors for outdoors

Love these pavers!

Stephen Orr’s Tomorrow’s Garden (Rodale, $25) showcases the
 latest trends in sustainable gardens from Brooklyn to Los Angeles. 

Click here for his ecofriendly picks for outdoor flooring.

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Finishing Touches

You would be surprised at what a little paint will do to brighten up an area.  Just like in your indoor areas, painting an object can make the difference in bringing life to an otherwise dull area.  The photo is from Fine Gardening . . . I would have painted the terracotta containers to match the little table and the plants.  I love using coleus in the landscape to bring color into the garden . . . it is one of my favorite plants.


Click here for an article from Fine Gardening about finishing touches . . . it does make a huge difference in bringing our outdoor spaces together in a festive way.  One of the things I love to do is bring lots of red into the outdoor areas.  The boldness of the red against the greenery of the plants is just awesome.

This is a sign that I made in a section of my garden that was designated for cuttings and a place for me to get away when I didn't want to be bothered.  Appropriately named Hermitville . . . it was my place to relax.  Anyway, the point I want to make with this photo is how the red pops against the foliage.  A new thing I have started to do is paint most of my containers red . . . if they don't have a red background, the painted flowers are red.

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Paver borders and walkways

This wide border framing a perennial garden 

 comes from Toledo Botanical Gardens.

The use of pavers in the garden is one of my most favorite things.  It leaves a clean and natural line that serves as both border and a walkway.  

I love wide paths and walkways that leave plenty of room for a wheelbarrow or a large garbage can to make maintenance and moving around the garden more efficient.  Many of the paths that I put together many years ago were designed in that manner for ease of maintenance and we will be utilizing the same paths in our future garden design.

The design of the border, placing pavers in a pattern also brings another dimension to the total look of the garden.

Photo credit: Michelle Gervais, Fine Living Magazine

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