Wish List

Here's how my patio is supposed to look. Trust me, I"ve got a loooooong way to go.

Now that the first weeds have been pulled, and the sweet smell of spring is in the air, I'm pumped to get busy in my garden.

Oh sure, there's all the usual drudgery to be performed.

Weeds to be pulled.

Leaves to be raked.

Furniture to be washed and cleaned and put into place.

Grass that is begging for fertilizer.

Slugs that are begging to die.

Just kidding. My backyard slugs don't want to die and I don't want to kill them. But those wicked little gastropods inflict ravage and ruin upon my plants, so we've reached a happy compromise in which I throw them into my curb-side composting bin, and the trash man hauls them away. Good riddance.

But I'm itching for more than hard labor with a hoe. My imagination runs wild with ideas for transforming my tiny corner of the world into a more interesting and enjoyable place to spend time. 

I have an obsession with wooden docks and a nearby industrial neighborhood that seems to have a limitless supply of pallets. This walkway seems like a no-brainer must-do. 

source

Usually I find empty frame arrangements a little too kitschy for my tastes, but this one is growing on me. 

source

 Let's see, do I have a place for a new trellis? Check. A good source of small-ish branches for the raw materials? Check. A no-nonsense workman in overalls to do my bidding? Surprisingly, yes. Well. Minus the dandy bibs. 

source

I find it hard to believe that you could actually spray paint those gigantic, cheapo plastic supermarket balls and have them turn out to be this awesome, but I feel almost obligated to find out. 

source

At least ten years ago, we built one of these for the backyard. I painted it purple and it still stands, proudly bearing a load of purple clematis. Sometimes, when I am daydreaming about the billions of projects I'd like to do, I need to remind myself of something that I have already accomplished. Helps me keep my head on straight.

 source

Way back to the early days of my life as a homeowner and a gardener, I've dreamed of trying my hand at espalier. Translated from the French, that's a term that means tying a tree up against a wall and forcing it to grow flat. Sounds mean, but it looks so cool. Maybe this is the year I actually give it a go. 

source

When I look at these rustic columns, I just imagine some gentleman farmer who was out plowing his back fields, and suddenly was consumed by his passion for Greek architecture and improvised these gems. And that little fantasy makes me want a pair of my own, really badly.

source

I've seen these giant allium flowers a million times, and they usually strike me as a gaudy gimmick. But throw a cute and curious toddler into the scene and I find them charming and incredibly cool. Sign me up for a handful of these enormous purple spheres and a darling little boy to be dazzled by them.

source

Mirrors on my fence. Hung in rustic window frames. Yes. Indubitably.

source

Here in my little plat of land, I've been digging up rocks for decades and trust me, I now have quite the stash. With a few of these cool sculptures, I could organize my rocks into efficient, space-saving towers.

source

Since I have already heaped every horizontal surface inside my home with succulents, it only stands to reason that I should continue my efforts outside and go vertical. There will be no stopping me.

source

There is a part of me that dares not even try this project for fear that the result will not be as simple, effective, and soul-satifyingly cool as it looks here. Yes, I DO want marbles in my fence, and as soon as I can lay my hands on some marbles and a drill, I am all over this.

source

* * * * *

So there's a sampling of my wish list Looks like my garden-related journey for this year may be considerably more than the anticipated one thousand steps, and you know, I am totally fine with that. 

* * * * *

The story of my gardening season:

My Furry Philosophers

The Second Step

Patio Pets

The Primrose Patch
My Fairy House