Toward the end of our patio project, we were SICK of the infrastructure work and needed a little "gratification". Luckily, we were headed into the home stretch and the project transformed from construction site, to oasis, in the final few days.
But first we had to get Pond A...
But first we had to get Pond A...
...to meet, Pond B.
And that required more digging and fussing with pumps and water and stuff. Plus a whole lot of stone. The stone guy loved us!
In case you think we know what we are doing here, this is actually our first pond. We learned a LOT from the internet and a pond book we bought. The lady at Menards gave us the tip about melting the plastic tubs to create the spillways. Cool, huh?
In case you think we know what we are doing here, this is actually our first pond. We learned a LOT from the internet and a pond book we bought. The lady at Menards gave us the tip about melting the plastic tubs to create the spillways. Cool, huh?
Finally, it was time to head to the mothership. This nursery has EVERYTHING.
This is where Farmer Tom took charge. His vision for the patio was Serenity, and in his mind that meant flowy grasses and subtle color changes, not a bunch of prissy flowers. I was on-board with that concept, so, a big debit to the checking account later, we headed home with a truckload of plants.
We did a quick test layout, before heading out to the back field to our secret rock stash. Farmer Tom is a collector of big rocks. You never know when they will come in handy, right?
Welcome to the People Coop!
Start to finish, it took us about 6 weeks and we have continued to tweak here and there as we go. Our plan is to add more landscape and fence lighting to define the space at night. Eventually, we will build a permanent pergola, to replace the gazebo, to make it a year-round structure. Because, believe it or not, we are out here in the winter, trekking through the snow, to enjoy the hot tub. For now though, we are pretty happy with how it turned out.
For us, this patio made sense because sometimes the farm chaos can wear you down. It's nice to have a place to retreat, where you can still keep an eye on everything, but where you can also rest, regroup and recharge. We were out here just about every evening this summer, doing just that.
Costwise, we spent about $3,000. Quality of life factor: priceless.
For us, this patio made sense because sometimes the farm chaos can wear you down. It's nice to have a place to retreat, where you can still keep an eye on everything, but where you can also rest, regroup and recharge. We were out here just about every evening this summer, doing just that.
Costwise, we spent about $3,000. Quality of life factor: priceless.
I hope you enjoyed the patio series. I put the pictures together as a scrapbook for us, but also to serve as inspiration (just as we were inspired by Krista and Jim) for anyone looking to attempt something similar, but didn't know where to start. As you can see, it was baby steps. A whole bunch of them. The hardest part of a project this size? Sticking with it. The easiest part? Enjoying it! :)
Be sure to stop by and say hello (like, comment and share) at fb.com/thepocketfarmer or you can find me on Twitter @thepocketfarmer.
Hope to see you there! :)
Hope to see you there! :)
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