Series: Setting the Scene for Year-Round Enjoyment. Part Eight: Completing the Garden

Hello, all in the bloggersphere and beyond!  Thank you so very much for popping in to say hello.

Recently, in this post, I shared a tutorial of how I built these Spanish-style raised garden beds.

  

In today's post, I will be sharing the elements I added to complete the garden.  I hope you enjoy!

Prior to the build of the raised beds, I had decided I wanted the garden to be its own space.  Here are the details of how I accomplished that goal.

I wanted lighting in the garden, so in each corner of the square I delineated as the garden area, I placed a large post.  I used Simpson Strong-Tie EZ Spikes for each post.  They were purchased at Lowe's.  You can view them here.

First, I ensured there were no irrigation lines where I placed my posts.

I used an auger to predrill the hole for each post, then used a sledgehammer to push them into place.  To avoid damaging the post as I placed it into position, I placed a small piece of 2X4 over the heads of the spikes and hammered the wood rather than hitting the spikes directly.    I used a level to make sure they were placed correctly.

The auger I used was part of the Vasgor Auger Hex Drill bit set I purchased from Amazon.  You can view it here.

After I painted each post charcoal grey and measured each to assure they were all approximately the same in height, I set them in the post anchors by drilling heavy duty wood screws with washers into the posts.  Next, I added a waterproof solar light to each post.  I used smaller wood screws to attach each light to each post.

If you look closely, you can see the screws I used here.

The lights I used were found via Amazon and are made specifically for wooden posts.   They are manufactured by GreenLighting as part of their Victorian Collection.  You can view them here.

Next, I added the gate and fencing around the area, closing off the garden so that now, it is its own space.  After a bit of trial and error, I found it was easier to saturate the area with water, allowing it to soften the hard soil, then I utilized an extra-long drill bit to pre-drill where the fence stake would go.  Next, I gently tapped the fence in using a rubber mallet so that I would not compromise the integrity of the decorative metal.

The auger bit I used to drill each fence post hole is similar to this 18"  Irwin Speedbor auger bit available from Lowe's.

The fencing I chose was part of the Montebello Collection from Plow and Hearth.  Some I bought direct, and some from Amazon.  I loved the scrolled detail!  I used a combination of pieces to fashion the whole of the fence.  Some of the sections I used were longer than others, and others, shorter. Please note that I measured and ordered based on those measurements prior to ordering.  I ordered from both vendors, because at one point during my build, they were backordered from one of the sources.  

I also bought a section for the back side of the garden area so that it would also have its own gate.  That specific section of fencing also came from Amazon.

I added an arbor that included a gate to act as the garden entrance.

I love the detail!

I also purchased the garden arbor with gate from the same collection via Amazon.

All of the pieces I purchased were manufactured in the burnished bronze finish.  All of the pieces have this brilliant sort of hook-and-eye design, so they were very easy to attach to one another.  The only piece that did not have the hook-and-eye was the gated arbor, so I made sure to place the fence pieces and the gate piece in ground in extreme close proximity alleviating the need for the hook-and-eye.

For the sections of fence that needed to be attached to the posts, I created my own hook-and-eye apparatus.  I purchased some eyes, and used the hooks on the fence piece I was attaching to act as the hook.  First, I measured where I would be placing the eye, then using a small drill bit, predrilled the hole.  Finally, I twisted the eye into the wood, and hooked the fence piece into the post.

The eyes I used were purchased from Amazon.  You can view them here.

I must say that getting the pieces even and level with one another was the most difficult task, and it did take quite a bit of trial and error!  Even though I measured where to drill and where my fence would be positioned, sometimes the earth would give in different ways, causing one side of the fence piece to be too low, or to lean more to one side, causing the hook-and-eye not to line up.  I even had to re-drill some of the holes.  This took a great deal of patience (and some frustration, lol) until I finally got the fence in!!  I love the end result!

Simultaneously while I was adding the fencing, I decided to build a couple of new planters.  I also planted some panicle hydrangea in each planter.  This whole project took a bit of time...they weren't quite blooming here,

but as you see here (I'm still building the fence,) they had come up quite lovely.

 

I decided to build them flanking the front of my hand-built pizza oven.  These are the same as the Versailles-style planters I had built prior a few years back, but this time, I built two smaller planters rather than one larger size.  I painted them a coordinating color.

Left.

Right.

A few shots looking from the garden area toward the rest of the yard.

If you would like to see the tutorial to build these planters, you may do so by visiting the post in the archives here.

On each of these planters, I also placed solar lights.

These lights by LeiDrail are fantastic!  They are waterproof, made of metal so they are very sturdy, and cast such pretty light when it is dark!! 

They even have changeable color settings.   I bought them from Amazon.  You may view them here.

Night time among the planters.

Here is a shot of the garden in winter after the hydrangea had gone dormant.

I eventually will be adding pea gravel to complete not only this specific area, but the rest of the whole yard as well.  It will be much more water efficient, which is truly needed here in Southern California where it is quite arid.  The final step will be planting the plants!!  Should it be a cut flower garden or an herb garden?  I cannot wait to start seeding as soon as the frost alleviates this year!

Until next we meet,

--Y

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

The Marvelous Maison, a lifestyle blog hub and 

Frugal Fab Fashionista, my fashion blog hub. 

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Thank you for stopping by! ❤

 

Series: Setting the Scene for Year-Round Enjoyment. Part Seven: DIY Raised Garden Beds

Hello, friends, and thank you so much for taking time to spend a few moments with me!

A bit ago, (most likely during the pandemic, ha), I decided that I would one day like to grow my own food.  

Considering the fact that I had recently built this outdoor pizza oven (you can read about the full details in the post here),

and coordinating fireplace details here, 

I quite fancied the idea of a close-by outdoor herb garden where I would have veggies readily available to make pizzas with, or simply to nosh on.  I immediately set about building a garden area that coordinated with the aforementioned structures.  Today, I am sharing that process.  I hope you enjoy the post!

The first step I took was to clear and grade the area.  After ensuring the area was flat, I spray-painted a line to designate the footprint of the garden area.  I removed the grass as much as possible, tilled the area, and sprayed it with a heavy-duty vegetation killer.  

I covered the whole area with cardboard and then heavy-duty freeway fabric.

Before building the planters, I made a mock-up of where each planter would sit, where the garden entrance gate that I'd be adding later would be placed, and where the fencing and lighting would be placed, measuring so that the garden would have a symmetrical footprint.  Initially, I planned to build four planters, but I decided to build six in the end.

After measuring and delineating where each planter would be placed, I set about building each planter. I used cinderblocks and cinderblock caps to build each planter.  I used heavy duty construction adhesive to adhere the blocks to each other and the block caps to the blocks themselves.

Just as a sidebar, before this build, I did a bit of research, and I found that new cinderblocks manufactured in the US in the last 50 years are not made with fly ash, a byproduct of burning coal that can be harmful to your health.  Fingers crossed that these will be fine for planting food.  Also, I am using cinderblocks that are typically used for masonry, and those tend to be safer and less toxic, as they are universally used for building material.  I recommend checking your supply store if you intend to build planters and inquire about the contents of your material prior to your build.

The planters are completely built, and now it is time to add ornamental elements.  Here I am testing out sections of decorative fence that I will be adding to designate the garden area.  You can see how I completed the area by adding the fence and lighting in the archives of my blog here.



Wherever the blocks were uneven (as shown in the previous photo), I used a grinder to grind down the masonry to make them as level and even as possible, because unfortunately, no two blocks or block caps are exactly the same. 

After that, I skip-troweled each planter with Quikwall. Quikwall works as an excellent bonder, and also makes for a lovely, smooth surface indicative of the Spanish Colonial effect I wanted.

Skip-troweled planter side view.

I painted the outside of each of the planters a bright white.  The paint I used was indicated for exterior use, and is weather-resistant.

Once the sides of each planter were skip-troweled and painted, I created decorative caps by adding a mosaic tile.

I placed the tiles as close to the edge of the outside of each planter as I possibly could,

then used a heavy-duty adhesive grout to attach the tile.

A bit of trial and error.  In the early stages, shown here, I decided not to add tile on the inside of the planter, because the gap was too large...

so instead, I decided to add a small lip of the Quikwall to the inside of each planter where the tile had a bit of overhang rather than cutting each tile, or adhering uneven tile.

Closeup.

Completely dried and set...an almost seamless finish.

After allowing for dry and set time, I painted midway down of the inside of each planter.  

After the tiles were set, dried, and the areas of the planters were painted and dried, I used a grout and tile sealer to add additional protection from the elements.

Next, I added an additional layer of cardboard to each of the planters to hopefully help prevent any grass regrowth.  Cardboard biodegrades over time, so it makes an excellent barrier.

Adding the soil.  I can't wait to get planting!  At this juncture, I still had not decided whether this will be a cut flower garden, an herb garden, or a combination of both.  

Thank you for your visit!  Do you like to tinker in your garden?

Until next we meet,

--Y

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

The Marvelous Maison, a lifestyle blog hub and 

Frugal Fab Fashionista, my fashion blog hub. 

Follow me on Pinterest!!  Please be sure to kindly follow the board guidelines!  Thank you!  

Thank you for stopping by! ❤