The Garden of Eden

Well if I am going to live on an ark, I might as well have a garden of Eden! My front porch spent the winter being a depository for construction material but with the advent of spring, all that had to change. Now that it's warmer, I want some outdoor space to relax in. Over the last two weeks, I have been picking up plants from the local nursery and trying to create some colour and beauty in this dusty, industrial area I live in. Here's what I got so far. A lot of these plants haven't started to bloom yet , so it should be looking a lot better in a few months, I can't wait to see how it comes together!

Yes, that's a banana tree in the back corner, can't wait to see how big that will grow!

The window boxes are filled with purple petunias and blue trailing flowers that haven't bloomed yet. The standing triple planter has small pink fuchsias and the planter to the right of that is a Chinese Lantern plant that survived from last year and is making a healthy comeback. I love that plant, they remind me of my childhood where they grew wild in the playground.

A pretty pink Cala Lily is a sight for sore eyes, a rock with the word dream on it , reminds me that dreams do come true!

Just barely visible behind the fireplace is a lilac bush that won't flower this year, but I can't wait to see how it fares next spring. In the planter on the left is sweet peas to grow up the railings with some marigolds for bright colour. The hanging planter contains the most intense purple -blue flowers I have ever seen. I would love to have eyes that colour.

My front door is flanked by two graceful bleeding hearts, probably one of my  all time favorite plants

That poor old wood stove... I had high hopes for refinishing it and using it, but closer inspection revealed the whole side was rotted out and so unusable. I am going to look for some bricks to prop up the back end and put all it's components back together and just leave it as a rusty, garden ornament on my porch.

Another splash of colour, vibrant purple flowers.

On the far right is a honeysuckle vine which I am hoping will grow up the wall to my bedroom window , for some late night summer scent. The purple flowers under the window is Scented Night Stock, another perfume plant for the senses.

Sitting on the BBQ shelf is my small herb garden, some thyme, cilantro, pineapple sage, basil, dill, rosemary and tarragon , ready to add some flavor to my favorite dishes.

I found those brass planters the other day and plan to paint them before I look for some thing to plant in them. The lantern on the floor is one of four, two are already hung on the front of the house, the other two will be hung on the back.

A long shot of the balcony, it's six feet wide and twenty eight feet long. In my perfect dream world, this would be a covered balcony with screen windows in the summer and glass for the winter. There would be a smaller balcony on top of it coming off my bedroom upstairs. I have a 20x 25 ft concrete dock that I want to use as my "backyard" where I would put things like my hammock, a hot tub and seating for outdoor dining.

A pretty in pink Dalia surrounded by small mosses that I bought to eventually make some terrariums with.

A closeup of the Scented Stock

The rather non-descript looking plant beside the chair is one of my all time favorites. If you have never seen one of these before, keep your eye out for it and next time you see one, rub the leaves between your fingers and smell them. It is the most amazing smell ever. The plant is called Scented Geranium and is grown for it's delicious smelling leaves as opposed to it's flowers. I had never seen one flowering before but mine has a few tiny pink ones blooming at the moment.

I love the glass bead details on these window boxes, I have been waiting patiently since last year to plant these boxes, can't wait till it all blooms!

I LOVE these planters. I found a matching pair of them at the thrift store and have some lavender plants to put in them.

Well there you have it, my tiny garden of Eden. I'm sure I will continue to add to it over  the growing season and am looking forward to seeing it all in bloom. I didn't really have a plan when I started it, just kept buying all my favorite plants that I have always wanted to be surrounded by. When I look back at my choices, I see that smell is a big consideration for me as many of my choices are highly scented. Pink and purple seems to be a recurring favorite colour as well. I had to consciously pick some blue, yellow and orange flowers just to have some contrast. It's so wonderful to have an oasis to go out and sit in when the chaos of the interior Reno's starts getting to me.

What are some of your favorite plants?

 

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