I was very fortunate to have spent lots of time at my grandparents house (on my mom's side of the family). Oh the memories of lots of kids playing and all the treats my grandma had for us kids! Hurricane Rita (2005) did alot of damage to the house. And instead of just letting it sit there and fall apart, it was given to a neighbor to remodel. It was sad to see it go, but the neighbor did a great job of fixing it up... so it's not totally gone... just relocated. Anyhow... here's a photo of the house taken probably in the late '90s (after my "Lil Mom" passed away). grandparents house ( photo / image / picture from cherylad's Garden ) Now... for the reason behind this posting. Take notice of the gate/archway. I don't know how many spankings I got for swinging into the yard on it! So when the house was going to be moved, I set claim to that gate and tucked it away. One of my cousins claimed the archway. So fast forward to 2010. We start to upgrade fencing and stuff around my parents house. My brother asked if he could use my gate over by his storage building. I said sure. Then he remembered that a matching back gate was still over at my grandparents. So we went over and claimed it. Decided to make a double gate so the riding mower could easily pass from the yard to the pasture. The center pole is easily removed. gates ( photo / image / picture from cherylad's Garden ) And while we were getting the second gate, we noticed that the archway was still laying out back. Called my cousin who originally wanted it and he said that I could have it instead. Hubby finally got around to refurbishing it and he & big brother put it up yesterday. It will lead from my garden area to the pasture. archway ( photo / image / picture from cherylad's Garden ) Big brother asked if I wanted my gate back to put with it. I declined. It's all ready set and besides... I have a plan for a gate that hubby is going to build that will allow my dog access to & from the pasture. I can hardly wait to get vines growing all over it. Here's to you Grandpa and Lil Mom!
What a great arch, what will you plant to grow on it? Old fashioned Morning Glories? Moonflowers would be pretty too. Probably a good thing you didn't take the gate, every time you swung on it you would most likely feel one of those spankings.
I've got Confederate Star Jasmines all ready to go into the ground. But upon some research... it may not be the right vine for the arch. Maybe better suited to hide my "ugly" fence. Perhaps a Clematis would be better for the archway? I've been wanting one of those anyhow! I'd love something that would bloom for a long time, but not have so thick of foliage that it would hide the archway completely. So maybe, like Toni said, Morning Glories? I do have a bunch of seeds from last year. I'd better do a tad bit more reading.
It really is such a great idea to reuse old things, then to buy new stuff all the time (thus wasting money)... All that these things require, is just a little bit of fresh paint. And they are as good as new!
I love your arch and double gate Cheryl. I'm all for recycling things like that as they always look so much better than brand new, modern ones in my opinion. They're also FREE which I'm all for for. I'm really looking forward to seeing the arch covered in flowers. :-D Another two jobs well done!!
Thank you for the story Cheryl, it's great to hear stories that bridge generations. From oral history to written history to digital history, our experiences keep us connected with our past and enrich the lives of generations to come. Jerry
It's so great that you were able to re-use the gates and arch from your Grandparent's home. I liked the story you told too. I'm sure you'll have them all decked out soon! P.S. I am still jealous of your warm weather....
Thanks everyone. I just can't describe the warm feeling I get when walking through those gates. Notice I said "walking" not swinging! And I know I'll get that same feeling when passing through that archway. Now I just need to decide on what vine to plant. My choices out of the stuff I already have in containers that's ready to go in the ground are: Orange Trumpet Vine Yellow Trumpet Vine Confederate Star Jasmine Pink Jasmine Mandevilla (I kinda have a place already picked out for these) Morning Glory (have seeds from last year) What do you all think?
Why not plant one colour of the Trumpet Vine at either end of the arch so that they'll grow together and give you a beautifully colourful archway? Orange and yellow would be lovely strong colours together. Then again, if you prefer, pastel shades with your Confederate and pink Jasmine would look terrific too.
