potato tower

I got sucked in by a pin on pinterest. I was innocently scrolling through pins when I came upon a picture of a potato tower. I visited the website and the project seemed easy enough and I happened to have extra galvanized wire fencing on hand so I figured this was a sign that I should make my very own potato tower. I also thought that the tower would save me space in my garden and prevent rogue potatoes from popping up in unwanted places the following growing season. This pin should have come with a warning: do not attempt on a windy day, it didn't. You are supposed to place straw around the inside perimeter of the wire fencing to keep the dirt from falling out.  When I attempted to place the straw it was flying everywhere, it didn't help that I had positioned the planters next to my chain link fence and had neighbours not only watching me fight with the flying straw but also giving me weird looks like what is the crazy gardening neighbour doing now.... It was about this time that I realized that digging a trench and throwing some potatoes in the ground is much easier than trying to make a potato highrise. Eventually I got my two towers built and planted. The potatoes are growing like wildfire and I'm looking forward to the first fresh creamy nugget potato. The verdict is still out as to whether I will plant potato towers next year.

Yellow spreads in my garden at an alarming rate

It seems yellow is a theme that can't be stopped in my out door space right now.  The yellow poppies have arrived in my east border.  I also received an outdoor toss cushion for my birthday with a mod yellow pattern.  Then I scored another free outdoor chair left at the end of a neighbours driveway.  It was a rattan style chair that I washed and sprayed a bright yellow which perked it up considerably.

Now if anyone has an organic solution to rid my grass of buttercups please let me know!  For now I'll try and appreciate them as another yellow addition to my yard.

diy corten steel planter/bench

Back when we tore down our old shed, we found a large 3"X11" timber shoved in the back corner. I immediately started imagining what I could do with the  big chunk of wood.  Around the same time I had been dreaming up what I could make with Corten steel for the garden. I decided I could combine these two components into a single project: a bench with an attached planter.  First off I had to find somewhere to supply the Corten steel.  This proved more difficult than I had thought but eventually I found a localish supplier that would take a small order.  I combined my order with Lauren's under her deck stair riser project.  I found out later that Corten steel is also called weathering steel by engineers and if you refer to it as that to the supplier you get a cheaper price.  In case you're not familiar with Corten steel, it is steel that's composition allows it to form a protective rust layer that doesn't continue to rust.  It is often used landscape projects and sometimes as cladding for buildings.  My dad still doesn't understand why anyone would pay extra for rusty steel! The planter consist or four pieces of the steel welded together to make the planter box (it is open at the bottom end). HH and me both had a welding lesson from my dad and took turns welding the tube together as our first ever welding attempt.  The welds may not have been the prettiest but it is holding together and the welds are covered by dirt!

HH joined the wood corner of the bench together with biscuit joints.

We connected the bench to the planter with flat bar that we had welded on and with lag screws from the inside of the planter into the end of the wood.  We also sealed the wood to slow decay. I bought a dwarf fountain grass (Pennisetum alopecuroides "Little Bunny") and grabbed a few plants I had on hand for the planter, the plants will likely change at a later date. I'm now waiting for the rusty patina to happen.  Below you can see the completed project with my mini-assistant as the model.

Now when I find the time to take a break from gardening, I have the perfect place to sit....so far I haven't found the time!

  It can also be used to jump off of in case that's what you feel like doing instead of sitting!

diy retro concrete block pad

 So we built a bench (for another post) and then discovered we had no where appropriate to put it.  I thought we could place in front of the new shed, directly on the grass, but was informed my multiple people that the wood would wick up the moisture from the grass and rot in a hurry.  We needed some sort of pad. My husband thought we could use some left over bricks from another project but that seemed too boring and really not special enough for the awesome bench we are going to bestow upon it! I decided the solution was to find some used decorative concrete blocks that were common in the '70's  and fill the voids with pea gravel. I knew my only chance of keeping HH on board with this plan was to not spend too much so I needed to find the brick for free or really cheap.  I scoured craigslist for the concrete blocks but nothing was panning out until I happened to spot a pile of rubble next to the highway at an old motel.  I contacted the motel and they gave me the concrete blocks for free. Lauren had some left over pea gravel that she donated to the cause.

We dug out the sod and then put in a couple inches road mulch (gravel) as the base.

Next we placed the concrete blocks with a couple inch gap between them and filled the voids with pea gravel.

After some tinkering with getting things level the patio was complete!

DIY Grass Couch

I have a grass couch in my backyard.  This is something I don't share with everyone except on the internet.  It all began in the fall when I had a lot of dirt and a husband away on a business trip.  In trying to dig out under our deck I had run out of places to off-load the extra dirt and thought I could be more creative than just piling it up in a corner.  After searching the usual websites I did come across some stock photos of grass couches - some looked rather less than organic, i.e. sod thrown over old couches.  These images looked great but I'm sure they were really only meant to last the day of the photo shoot.  Can you imagine an old couch in your backyard rotting beneath a layer of sod with springs and wood poking out?  I did find a public garden in the UK that used  bales of hay to make their grass couch base, this idea looked like it lasted for sometime, but I had soil, not hay to work with.  My idea then evolved, I picked up 20 cardboard boxes from the liquor store and filled and stacked them to make the couch structure.  I was pretty sure my husband would not be onboard with my engineering plan and I didn't feel like justifying my crazy idea so I had to work pretty hard to complete the project before HH arrived home.  You can see the soil filled and stacked liquor boxes below.

The image below shows the backside "support" for the couch backrest.

 I mudded (not sure if this is a real word) all surfaces with a dirt, water and grass seed mixture.  You can see below it had started to sprout before winter arrived.

 At the end of winter, to everyone's surprise the cardboard box and dirt structure had held together, grass was growing, even on the vertical surfaces but it was pretty patchy.  I ran out of patience and decided to speed up the process with a trip to my local turf farm (bet you wish you had a local turf farm too).

Pictured above is the final version of the couch draped with fresh sod.  The kids don't look particularly impressed in this photo.  Let's hope the grass couch holds together a little longer and that I can capture all the fun that a grass couch adds to ones life.

Thank you to my local liquor store for helping to make this project happen in more ways than one.

DIY paving stones under the deck patio: part 2

This is the continuation of our project to create a patio under our sundeck. 

With the concrete retaining walls complete it was time to lay down the paving stones.  I wheel barrowed in 3/4 yard of road mulch (fancy gravel that compacts well) into the area.  On another snowy March Sunday we rented a plate tamper, the snow helped us slide the heavy machine down into the base.  After tamping down the road mulch I wheel borrowed about half a yard of sand and raked this out.  The next step involved a term I've recently learned called "screeding" which is a method of pulling a straight board over two one inch boards inset into the sand to create a track that aids in pulling the sand into a perfectly level surface. You can see the method pictured below.

Finally on another rainy Sunday we are able to lay the pavers, using Shannon, her HH and handy paver saw to lay them down.  Pictured below is the new yoga pose: downward facing level.

HHs' completed the paving stone patio by  sweeping, spraying and hand tamping in special sand to fill in the cracks and keep the pavers in place.  Below you can see the results of our labour.

Pictured above: I filled up my cortan steel steps 3/4 of the way with road mulch, tamped this down and then filled to the top with pea gravel.

Shannon just completed an order for some plants for landscaping and I have a few other pieces of furniture I'm looking for to complete the space.   If anyone spots a vintage bar cart suitable for the outdoors in their travels, please let me know.

Thank you to all our family members whose time, effort and skill made this project happen!

Some of you may recall this area was once dubbed the "pit of despair".  I think we need a new name for the pit, please comment with  your suggestions.



DIY concrete retaining wall and patio

For several years a half dug out area underneath our sundeck has been an eyesore dubbed the "pit of despair".  Our sundeck is about 6 feet above ground with a support beam bringing the head clearance even lower.  We I decided at the time of building our sundeck that it would be great to dig down to get full 8 foot height and also allow for a "walk out" from our downstairs area. Tired of telling kids to stay out of the pit and explaining the situation to visitors, near the end of the summer I jumped down in the hole and resumed the digging that I abandoned several years prior.  I had thought only a few more wheelbarrows would do the job not realizing...well a lot of things.



Below you can see the beginning of the dig out.  I was able to find spots to deposit the dirt in all my various beds and also utilise the extra soil to build a grass couch (the grass couch will be featured in a future post).

The footings were poured and rebar tied together before Christmas.  We've been working the last month to put together the forms to make a 27" concrete retaining wall. 

Below you can see Shannon and Dad putting navvyjack and cement into our heirloom mixer.

It was a bit of an intense process as we had to work quickly so the mix wouldn't harden and there was also a risk that the forms could pop apart making for disaster.  Prior to pouring the concrete I was instructed to rub old olive oil on the inside walls, I'm told this was so the concrete didn't stick to forms but I'm pretty sure this is not standard procedure.  We rented an industrial concrete vibrator, which apparently if you don't use enough can result in empty craters in the wall, use too much and all the aggregate will sink to the bottom compromising concrete strength.  Yes, I did have to call various rental companies and ask if the had any vibrators available for the weekend.

My father in law and HHs dump concrete into the forms below. 

We had to wait to the following weekend to pop of the forms and see how the concrete cured. We're very pleased how the walls turned, the forms popped off without sticking and experienced only one major first aid incident.  The walls are smooth as a toddler's bottom, with just the right amount of air holes and Shannon's HH is walking despite the nail puncture wound to the foot.

Below is the completed retaining wall.  You can see that corten steel is embedded within the retaining wall to create the kick plate for the steps.  Corten steel is often used in exterior architecture and develops a nice rusty patina over time, it will also withstand the constant eroding drip from being beneath the drip line of the upper deck.

Thank you to all our extended family for all your hard work and expertise - we could not have done it without you.

Now all that is left to do is lay the paving stone floor/patio, landscape the surrounding area and decorating the newest addition to our yard. We'll also have to come up with a new name for under the sundeck as it will be "pit of despair" no more!

craving spring!

Christmas is over, the New Year's resolutions have been made, the sun is out and I'm craving digging in the dirt. I obsess over where I want to move plants around in my garden but the ground is frozen so I will have to wait a little longer.  For now I'm getting my spring/gardening fix indoors.

Tulips caught my eye at the store the other day and came home with me:

I also bought some miniature daffodils (narcissus tete a tete) at the grocery store and planted them in a couple glass containers along with a few huckleberry branches.

And I finally resurrected my hanging terrariums that had dead plants in them and a layer of dust on the outside of the glass. I planted them with air plants and moss.

I borrowed a cow from my daughter although she claims that cows don't belong in there!

DIY Maple Slab Coffee Table

We try and keep our posts on DDS focused on  yard and garden topics.  Though you might say a DIY coffee table does not fall into the general scheme I will attempt to justify my DIY coffee table post as follows: 1.  Technically the Maple Slab came from a yard (my parent's actually) and it is indeed organic. 2.  The ground is frozen making time spent digging in the yard more challenging right now!

Though a natural coffee table is not everybody's style I am very pleased at how it all turned out.

i

 

Several year's ago Dad had to take down a large Maple Tree in his back yard that was diseased and beginning to rot.  I requested a hunk of wood be saved  to be reborn as some form of furniture.  Dad chainsawed me two eight inch slabs from the base of the trunk where the tree "v"d into two.  The slabs then sat in my garage getting in the way for several years, drying and curing while I procrastinated from starting to work on them.  Finally last year I started to literally chip away at the project, first planing off the deep rough chainsaw cuts with a power planer. I then used an orbital grinder, starting with an 80 grit sand paper and working up to a fine 240 grit.  Finally, I gave it a coat of Beeswax polish (Clapham's Beeswax Salad Bowl Finish).  The legs were pre-cut and threaded galvanized pipe from a big box store that I just screwed together with half inch fittings in the plumbing aisle and then spray painted black.  My HH helped me with the tricky part of attaching the legs to a very unlevelled underside which involved much shimming  (this is adding little wedge pieces to level out the leg where it is to be attached).  Overall this project cost less than $30 for the galvanized pipe legs and spray paint.  Shannon loaned me the beeswax which is about $16, though I had to promise not to use too much. 

 

 One winter project off the list!

-L.

diy modern shed -finally complete

The old rickety shed that came with our house is past its expiration date.  The roof leaks, the floor is rotten, and it leans...so building a replacement shed has been on to do list for a while.  Of course I had grandiose plans of a cool westcoast modern looking shed with a green roof.  As usual, my original plans have changed because of cost.  According to my HH, the structure would have had to be much stronger to handle the weight of the green roof which would have ended up costing considerably more and Lauren pointed out that you wouldn't really be able to see much of the roof anyways.  So I let the green roof dream go.... at least for this project!

As mentioned in a previous post, we poured a concrete perimeter and used left over concrete paving stones for the floor.

Next we framed up the walls.  As I held the front wall upright so HH could level and secure it I kept thinking, man this seems really tall, I need to step back and take a look at this.  So when the wall was secure and I stepped back, there was no getting around it; the front wall was GIANT!  Somewhere in HHs calculations he thought we might want to put a asphalt shingle roof on it instead of a metal roof which would require a steeper slope, apparently this is how the front wall ended up so tall...  After reiterating that I prefer a metal roof he agreed to cut the front wall down by 15 inches, I think he was also worried what the neighbours would think of the GIANT.

Framing:

 

 

 Our 3 year old decided she was going to help, she strapped on her tool belt and headed outside, I caught this picture of her checking the squareness of the wall....maybe she has been subject to a little too much diy?!?

 



We decided to clad the shed with one side good exterior plywood and use pine trim to cover the plywood joints and to make an interesting/modernish looking exterior on the cheap. 

The metal roof was a bit of a pain.  Since I had conceded on the green roof, I was determined to have a good looking metal roof.  Of course the roof I wanted was one of the pricier options...  Ordering the metal roof proved to be painful, after getting quotes and talking with numerous sales people at big box stores and a local hardware store, it became apparent that none of them could answer questions about the correct flashing and installation requirements. Eventually after contacting the manufacturer and numerous special orders, we ended up with all the parts we needed and put the roof on before winter...whoohoo!

 

Here is the completed shed (minus a few touch ups) in all her glory:

We added windows along the top row of the front wall to allow light to enter the shed but still allow for lots of wall space for storage.  HH made the windows from old glass and wood from his dads.  I think they turned out great.  I painted the door yellow as I had left over yellow paint from when I painted our backdoor.

 

 We used 5 inch tongue and groove cedar for the soffit. 

The black metal roof.

 

Now to move the stuff out of the old shed and attempt to organize it in the new shed!  Anyone have any good shed organizing suggestions?