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 predrill 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 gate, 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.
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.
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
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