Rusted Steel Scrap Yard Plant Trellis Wall and Bench

When we turned our attention to the inside of the house, our goal was to bring the themes of the garden indoors. We’ve used stainless steel troughs and rusted steel panels and pipes throughout the garden. So, we took our second trip of the year to the BBC Steel Scrap Yard located in Canby, Oregon to look for some smaller pieces to use indoors. It felt a bit daunting, but we came home with a stack of options. And a random rusted pedestal to add to the garden.

I was originally going to paint a mural on the dining room wall, but a trellis filled with plants sounded like more fun. Squares or circles? Which do you like better?

We opted for both. My Pirate, inspired by the plant benches that Patricia at Plant Lust improvises in her garden, put together one using a metal screen on top of two IKEA pots. The screen is hung on big black hex screws mounted into the studs in the wall.

And the Monstera ‘Thai Constellation’ at the bottom of the image was purchased at Costco for $40. What a deal! I was skipping a plant swap at the time because, well, I have too many plants, but I couldn’t help myself. A lady beside me was looking at them and her partner said that she could only buy one. So, I gave the partner an ugly look until they said, “This is a really good deal, maybe two or three?”

That’s more like it…And I gave them a big smile as a reward.

Bella helped.

Here it is all put together. Mid-century modern with jungle vibes.

I only went to IKEA for a rug. I almost stayed on task.

An Orchid Reward for a Garage Door Mural

Last fall, we painted the exterior of our 80’s ranch house in the last mild window of dry weather before the rainy season started. My Pirate did all of the heavy lifting and I followed my lifting limit at the time of 15 pounds. My surgeon has warned me that lifting anything heavier than that means certain death. Great.

When we reached the garage door, I felt tempted to paint a mural on it. I’ve always wanted to add a mural to our garage door and in August I had added a 9 koi fish hopscotch on our front sidewalk. My Pirate looked mortified at the idea of the garage door mural. And I knew that I didn’t have much time to get it done and that the ladder was too heavy for me to move alone. But, after a couple of days of brainstorming I decided to trust myself and try it. I’m grateful that I did.

I constructed a life size cut out of Bella’s profile using a combination of her measurements with a projector image from a photo for her profile. I might add her somewhere else in the garden, I don’t know yet. Then, I hand drew all of the rest in about fifteen minutes with a sharpie pen. I painted the mural with exterior house paint from Sherwinn-Williams. I used their Latitude series because it was later in the season and it worked in cooler temperatures and dried faster allowing me 2 coats a day.

Here’s Bella looking out through a six pane window at the Tetrapanax papriferus ‘Steroidal Giant’ and a bomarea inspired vine in the garden.

It took almost 40 hours to complete due to the wooden garage door absorbing so much house paint. Looking back, I would have added a second coat of primer before starting the mural. It would have saved me hours and many coats of paint.

(The biggest surprise of this project is how much the neighbors and pedestrians love it. We’ve received so many compliments. So, if you’re thinking about adding one to your garden, I would. And I’m happy to answer your questions about it.)

To reward myself on the completed mural, I went to Trader Joe’s and filled a shopping cart with orchids. And that purchase kicked off the great indoor plant hunt that has filled this winter. Five of those orchids planted in the chunkiest mix are still blooming and that observation has led me to wanting to learn about making my own soil mixes. My orchids are about to receive a glow up of a new soil mix and terracotta pots. My Pirate hates the look of terracotta indoors, so we’ll see what solutions I can come up with. Maybe aging the pots outside first? Any suggestions? 

Thanks for stopping by!    

Hot Mess

Here I am in a mess of my own making, again. Plants in four inch pots surround me on every available surface, there is spilled potting mix on the carpet, the new IKEA terrarium is already propped open because the Philodendron verrucosum has decided to GROW, and my Great Dane Bella is snoring beside me on her dog bed. The temperature in my studio turned indoor greenhouse is 69 and the humidity is 51% according to the new ThermoPro thermometer stuck to the side of an old metal stool that my Monstera deliciosa is sitting on.

My real mess in an 18 year old herniated gallbladder incision. One that I herniated and had repaired and herniated again. Because, I’m not good at sitting still. Thus, gardening.

In April 2022, we had a late wet snowfall that caused a branch drop of all of the North facing branches on the mature Douglas Fir tree that shades our back oasis garden. They fell while I was taking our dog out at 6 am and we raced inside just in time. (I’m still grateful to be alive.) And while I cleaned up the 19 pick up truck loads of branches, I also herniated some bowel into my 16+ hernia mass. So, I’m a mess.

A hot mess that needs to lose enough weight to get the repair surgery done right. I’m hoping to get it done by September, if not earlier. I’m still selecting and drawing out the tattoo of a moss pole and plant leaves that will decorate my future 19 inch scar line. My surgeon says that it’s a miracle that I’m still alive and that he wants to wrap me in bubble wrap. The bubble wrap comment always reminds me of the scene of Kathy Bates in Fried Green Tomatoes. No bubble wrap for me.

The hernia has become unstable and life feels more ephemeral and precious. My life’s motto right now is life is short, buy the damn plant.

And right smack in the middle of this mess, I have fallen madly in love with houseplants. Specifically, anthuriums and philodendrons. But, any tropical with cool leaves catches my eye. Less than a month ago, I found the book Welcome to the Jungle by Enid Offolter and it opened me up to a whole new world of plants and plant lust.

And that is how I have grown my houseplant collection from six plants in October to over 150 plants. Let me tell you all about it.

10 Things that I Miss the Most about Mr. Barnaby

On Valentine’s Day, Mr. Barnaby died suddenly. My Pirate had stopped to pick up some macarons at my favorite bakery for a gift. He asked for one of each flavor not realizing that they have over 30 flavors. He had just handed me my gift and we were laughing at the huge amount of cookies. Mr. Barnaby was racing around the house with his joyful zoomies as we laughed and clapped and cheered him on. Then he suddenly collapsed. We both ran to him and held him in our arms telling him that we loved him as he breathed his last couple of breaths. And then he was gone. Just as quickly and joyfully as he ran into our lives, he had run out with us cheering him across the rainbow bridge. 

Here the ten things that I miss the most about Mr. Barnaby. 

One

Mr. Barnaby was my lap dog. I wasn’t a big fan of this at first and always wished that he was My Pirate’s lap dog. But, he chose me. Now, I miss sitting on the couch without his head on my lap or chest. He snuggled in tight and always made me feel safe. And he’d always put his head on my feet when I was writing at the table.

Two

Mr. Barnaby loved to putter in the garden with me from the first day that we brought him home. He’d help dig holes with me, carry around sticks and pinecones, and supervise my projects. The patio furniture footrests were one of his favorite spots.

Three

He loved to steal my garden hat and hold it hostage for a treat. He could fold the whole hat up inside his mouth.

Four

I miss his company in the bathroom. I didn’t pee or shower alone for almost 7 years. And he loved to request a drink out of the bathroom sink while I was in there. 

Five

Every morning, he would place his face a couple inches away from mine and look deeply into my eyes. It was like he was checking in with me to see what kind of day we had in store for us.

Six

Drool. I can’t believe that I’m saying this, but I miss all of his drool. On the windows, walls, my clothing, and the car. I still haven’t been able to bring myself to scrub his drool off of the patio door. 

Seven

He loved the cardboard TP roll. He would keep an eye on the TP roll just to know when he was getting a new treasure. And when he did, he would race around the house like a bucking bronco and hold onto it until just the right moment to chew it up.

Eight

Zoomies. I loved how he would race around the house and I’d hold onto a piece of furniture for cover. A couple of times he knocked me over like a bowling pin. He was so joyful. And the greetings that he gave My Pirate were epic.

Nine

Everything was good in Mr. Barnaby’s world when he gave me his bottom toothed grin. He loved to watch The Great British Bake Off and would sit on the footrest and grin at me. I couldn’t see the whole tv screen, but I didn’t care. 

Ten

I miss his evening bark. Every evening he would go outside and bark and then listen to the responses of the other dogs in the neighborhood. Just like in the 101 Dalmatians movie. 

I miss Mr. Barnaby. He brought so much joy and many new friends into my life. We adapted our garden to fit him and now we’re left with a beautiful oasis filled with wonderful memories of him. I’m so grateful that he came into our lives when he did. And I just wish that we could have had one more summer with him. He was an original. 

7 Tips on How to Successfully Garden with Your Big Dog

A dog friendly garden design enables Mr. Barnaby, my 200-pound Great Dane, to help me tend my garden without hurting the garden. In the morning, Mr. Barnaby helps me water by holding the water wand and plays with the weeds and sticks that I add to the bucket. And when we’ve completed our chores, he collapses on the patio furniture with crunchy fir cone or ‘hides’ in plain sight in his favorite spot in the back garden under the dogwood tree. 

7 Tips to Gardening with Your Big Dog

1.    Create dog paths around the perimeter of the garden. From the day we adopted Barnaby, I walked him on the dog paths to train him. So, start young and be consistent. 

2.    Use dog friendly mulches in the garden paths and patios. We’ve added pebble bark on the perimeter path and have added more hardscape and quarter-10 gravel to prevent muddy footprints in the house.

3.   Expect some plant damage and select tough plants. If a plant doesn’t stand up to daily dog damage, I compost it and try something new.

4.    Plant densely. Plant in masses so it is clear where the dog paths begin and end. 

5.    Container garden. I grow the plants that I adore in large containers up above Barnaby’s big feet and his pee line. I also place containers up on stumps and wood blocks. One of my containers won the Fine Gardening Magazines 2016 contest, proving that dog friendly design can still be visually interesting.

Fine Gardening Container Contest Winner in 2016

6.    Provide places for your dog to enjoy being a dog. Mr. Barnaby has cushions to lay on, water to sip, a high spot to overlook the garden, stumps to mark, and a grass buffet to snack on.

7.    Enjoy spending time in the garden with your dog. Mr. Barnaby and I putter in our garden daily. 

My Favorite Dog Friendly Ground Covers

·     Three-leaf Bittercress (Cardamine trifolia)

·      Barrenwort (Epimediums)

·      Creeping Raspberry (Rubus rolfei)

·      Inside-out Flower (Vancouveria hexandra)

·      Jack Frost Silver Siberian Bugloss (Brunnera macrophylla 'Jack Frost') 

Mr. Barnaby ‘helps’ me feed the fish in the water feature.