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Drought tolerant plants

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 11:45 pm

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I finally finished my bathroom remodel and decided to treat myself to some new plants. I've been wanting to plant drought tolerant plants and so I went to the local garden center and bought several pots of different plants. We have an upper ledge to our yard that has dying grass and on one end is a palm and the other end is a small banana tree grove. In the middle is a lemon and cherry tree.

I plan on putting different gardens in between these focal points and will include a lavender garden, day lily garden, a shade garden with mixed plants and a sun garden with mixed plants. I'll fill it all in with mulch to cover the grass. I don't know how it will all look in the end but I love planning the gardens and buying the plants!

This blog entry has been viewed 68 times

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Photos of my kitchen makeover.

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Mon May 25, 2009 10:14 pm

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Here are photos of the makeover. The previous owners had installed brick facing on the walls. It was horrible as it had jagged edges and was uneven around the windows. The outlets hadn't been moved to the top of the bricks and so were recessed and hard to use. The cabinets were yellow with age.

I removed all the bricks by using a hammer and pounding them to pieces. I did that on and off for a couple of weeks as I had to rest a lot. Once that was all removed I had to sand and clean the walls. A nice coat of blue paint brought new life to the kitchen. I rested a few more days before tackling the cabinets and they took almost an entire week as I worked slowly. The final touches were the new hardware on the cabinets, painting the stove hood, and installing stainless steel tiles. I bought a navy blue curtain for the window. I love the look. But most importantly, I was able to work hard without my back hurting and for long periods of time. I did wear my back brace throughout most of the work. I know now that my physical therapy worked and my stamina's improving. I'm thrilled to be able to do things that I haven't been able to do in many years.

We still have more work to do in the kitchen. We need to replace the counter top, lights, sink and faucet and get a disposal and dishwasher. But until we can afford to do that, we're happy with the makeover. I'd like to mention that this is a 30 year old double-wide mobile home. The kitchen is very small - more of a galley. I think the white really brightens the kitchen and makes it look more roomy. Also, I did all the work by myself (Hubby's helpless when it comes to being handy.) And I had spinal fusion surgery a year ago. So, I'm doubly proud of myself and the work I did. Oh, and I'm 59 so the spring in my chicken left a long time ago ~ LOL.

Here are before and after photos.



BEFORE:


Kitchen before photo ( photo / image / picture from EileenT's Garden )




AFTER:

Kitchen after makeover. ( photo / image / picture from EileenT's Garden )





This blog entry has been viewed 443 times

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Yards a mess!

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Thu May 21, 2009 6:28 am

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I've been so busy remodeling the house that I haven't had a chance to keep up with the garden. I have weeds everywhere and many of my plants need trimmed. I feel kind of overwhelmed at the moment as there's so much to do both inside and outside the house. At least my back's doing well. I've been working pretty hard and haven't had any pain just the normal old age stuff. I'll be glad when I'm caught up with the yard so that I can enjoy my garden again.

This blog entry has been viewed 80 times

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Inexpensive Bench Cushion

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Sat Apr 18, 2009 3:20 am

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I needed a 5' cushion for my glider and didn't want to pay $30.00 or more for one. I had old memory foam I was saving and decided to use it for a cushion. I bought a vinyl tablecloth, cut the foam to fit then wrapped the tablecloth around the foam, just like wrapping a present, and then duct taped it in place. For $3.50 I have an easily made, nice, comfortable and weatherproof bench cushion for my glider.

Here's a photo. It's not fancy but it does the trick. (Don't look at the weeds!)




Inexpensive Glider Cushion ( photo / image / picture from EileenT's Garden )





Last edited: Sat Apr 18, 2009 7:11 pm

This blog entry has been viewed 229 times

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Proud Grandma alert!

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Fri Apr 10, 2009 3:49 am

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My granddaughter was at the World Irish Dancing championships in Philadelphia this week. This is the biggest international event in Irish dancing and the first time it was held in the United States. Well, my granddaughter competed in the girl's figure dancing for her age group 11-13. And they won first place! Out of all the groups from all over the world, they won! Here's a photo taken right before they went out on stage. My granddaughter, Alara, is on the bottom row, second from left.

Eileen




World Irish Dancing Competition( photo / image / picture from EileenT's Garden )





This blog entry has been viewed 116 times

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Garden Bench

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Sun Mar 29, 2009 8:02 am

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Garden bench ( photo / image / picture from EileenT's Garden )

This is a little bench that someone was throwing out. I recovered the seat in vinyl and it sits in my garden. I love the look!



Last edited: Sun Mar 29, 2009 8:03 am

This blog entry has been viewed 164 times

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I want a pergola.

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Sat Mar 21, 2009 7:26 am

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My patio needs a pergola. I've been trying to think of an easy design for me and hubby to build. I can't do much and hubby is about as handy as my blind dog, so it has to be really simple. I was thinking about using lattice as the roof and just nailing the lattice to 4X4 poles. I'm wondering how sturdy that would be. It doesn't have to be a big pergola but I would need side and center supports. Maybe I can find a ready-made pergola that just needs put together. If anyone has any ideas I would really appreciate hearing them!



This blog entry has been viewed 220 times

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Spring like weather

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Wed Mar 04, 2009 8:40 am

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It was so nice over the weekend that I was able to get out and do a little gardening. I basically moved around some plants and dis some weeding but I enjoyed being in the sun and getting my hands dirty. I feel bad for all the folks getting so much snow right now.

I'm going to physical therapy twice a week right now and I feel very positive about my back being completely healed. It will be a year next month since my spinal fusion and it's been a long year but well worth it to be pain free. I have a lot of plans for my garden this year and can't wait to get to it!

This blog entry has been viewed 94 times

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Destroyed Calla Lily

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2009 8:16 am

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Something very heavy crushed one of my Calla Lilys. I'm really not sure what to do about it but I'm hoping the stems will magically straighten. I don't think it was Joey as he's blind and never crosses over the garden borders. This looks like something heavy fell on it and I think maybe a raccoon fell off the roof as that's happened before, although, I didn't hear any fights with the local cats.



So, tomorrow I'll spend some time out in the gardens and stake up the Calla Lily, clean up the limons that have blown off the tree and sweep up the patio. We've had very warm windy weather and I even had the air conditioner on for awhile a few days ago. They say this weather will continue a few more days.

I had to have x-rays of my back as I was experiencing pain and thought it was from the hardware in my back. It turns out that the arthritis in my hip is acting up. I can handle that and will begin aquatic therapy next month. I'm still taking it slow working in the yard but can do a lot more now and am really itching to put some new plants in. This false "summer" makes me want to get out and do some work.

Last edited: Fri Jan 16, 2009 8:48 am

This blog entry has been viewed 247 times

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Nice Weather And Yard Work

Category: Garden Novice | Posted: Fri Jan 09, 2009 1:11 am

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It's been very nice out the past few days so it's a perfect time to clean up the yard. There are several areas needing weeding and I can do that as long as I keep my back brace on. I also want to transplant a few plants and move some Creeping Charlie over to a bad spot that won't grow much else. I need to get hubby out there to prune the lemon tree, Bougainvillea and a palm that's taking over one corner of the yard. I'm happy to see that the Calla Lily is taking over 2 of my flower beds that border the path into my back yard. I can't wait to go out and buy some new plants.

This blog entry has been viewed 112 times

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