Block Beautification Day
Ok. So this post isn't about food. Sometimes food blogs talk about gardening and sometimes garden blogs talk about food. Really the two go hand in hand. Though admittedly I wouldn't eat the plants we were out there planting on Saturday.My block decided to enter the Greenest Block in Brooklyn contest this year and in preparation the block association went out there Saturday to plant whiskey barrels and rake the treepits.
Sounds easy doesn't it? But in reality it required weeks, no actually months of planning. Small on members, we really had to pull together and get everything we needed. In the end since the whole block benefits, people are nice enough to give us monetary donations.
What we did in a nutshell:
- Raised money by selling raffles
- Bought 11 whiskey barrels, bags of gravel and top soil to mix with the compost
- Rented a U-haul truck, drove to the city's compost site on designated dates for the free giveway. Then we loaded up 50 heavy-duty trash bags with glorious compost. We stored them in someone's garden until the time to plant.
- Planned the placement of the barrels and decided on the best types of shrubbery
- We ordered iron stands for the whiskey barrels, but they didn't come through on time, so we improvised with bricks. Not the most elegant solution, but it looks ok.
- Finally, after so many weekends planning and preparing, putting everything out there!
My side of the street.
The other side of the street. Oh yeah and that big silver machine is my car.
This is our treepit. We planted purple salvia and some orangey-yellow flower that is supposed to be one of the hardiest perennials. We also planted a climbing rose. We're hoping it will grow up the tree. In the city, treepits are an extension of your garden (if you're even lucky enough to have one!)
Someone was smart enough to think to put the bricks underneath the barrels so you don't see them. So the barrels look like they are floating. When the bricks stick out like legs I think they detract from the overall look.
This one has a jasmine in it. There seems to be some controversy over whether this is an annual or a perennial. I'm betting the poor guy won't survive the winter. We also planted vinca vines in all the barrels.
posted by EFB at 7:38 PM
3 Comments:
You should write about gardening more often. I love your pansies. So pretty. And your planters and tree-pits look amazing. How cool that everyone worked together. It will look so great in a month when everything is filled out.
12:35 PM
Thanks for the comments! We are also growing nasturtiums, moon flowers, sweet peas and morning glories, just not in the front of the house.
we'll see how everything goes with the treepit and barrels. unfortunately people like to vandalize or steal the plants. i had a gorgeous clematis growing along the gate to the house and someone came along and ripped it in half. it was just about to bloom too. major bummer.
11:21 AM
You should def. write more about plants, including herbs and vegetables. I am a big fan of perennials and vines. Annuals are gorgeous, but they do require a lot of care and many of them stop blooming once they set seeds (sweet peas and morning glories are a good idea though, as they add color and scent). Morning glories look awful when thirsty though. I would suggest a climatis as well. Purple would combine amazingly with a red, white of prink roses. Most climatises are are slow growers though and any passerby who cuts a piece of it would set you back for years in terms of growth.
11:30 AM
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