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The project:
Little did we know, but hanging a house sign as a gift for my friend was to be the beginning of a mass yard and garden restoration – transformation. It also became the theme which influenced the revolving door of our quest to return my friends yard and garden back to its former glory and then some.
- Materials:
On a very strict fortnightly budget, we re-used, recycled and upcycled what we had onsite and utilised and obtained most of the bricks and old concrete pots for a bartered price at the local trash and treasure weekly markets and dump shop. We dedicated 3 hours each Friday, rain, hale or shine towards our mission, which always commenced with a quick 10 min drive down the road to Bunnings, which became known and referred to as ‘The Green Shed’. Our trolley was usually filled with soil, plants, mulch and weed mat. And on occasion, decorative rocks, pest control and spray paint.
- Tools:
Our mattocks featured heavily to remove overgrown grass and weeds from existing gardens and to create new patches to compliment our designs. Basic hand tools and the watering can were used for planting. Our own bodies resilience, determination and belief brought it all together each week.
- Step 1:
Our goals and weekly steps undertaken were simply to tackle one section at a time. As our ideas were laid out and agreed upon, we created and / or stripped, restored and prepared each site, and carefully selected the plants. We not only had to consider the positional suitability for each species, but its growth and flowering capabilities in order to compliment the overall themes.
Also considered was the requirement for low maintenance varieties and ones with longevity to avoid having to constantly replace or maintain. Perennials were a favourite and worked perfectly and become our target each shop.
As each garden was completed, cosmetics such as statues and solar lights were placed to finalize the look.
So far after 7 months, we’ve successfully and proudly restored 3 former plots and added to and introduced 2 new gardens.
With two sites to go and some final touches in the rear yard area we will finish the journey!
- Step 2:
Also considered was the requirement for low maintenance varieties and ones with longevity to avoid having to constantly replace or maintain. Perennials were a favourite and worked perfectly and become our target each shop
