Tuesday, August 14, 2018

New Garden Metal and Crackedpots

When last we saw that rusty metal piece on the left I had just planted it up with a pair of Obregonia denegrii I found in Austin. The container was purchased at the Crackedpots show at Edgefield last August.

It's been part of the far-off focal point when you enter the back garden.

Along with two galvanized containers filled with Agaves, and the drama-queen Ensete maurelii.

The Obregonia denegrii have settled in well, and taken on a slightly sun-stressed tone.

But the subject of this post, at least the first half of it, is this tall, thin, rusty bit.

I found it at Metalwood Salvage. And believe me I thought long and hard about whether or not I wanted to share that name here on the blog. They're a neighborhood treasure, I kind of want to keep them my own little secret. Then again, I want them to succeed so, I share.

Unlike the other piece — which has a welded on bottom — this was just an open tube, so I shoved a couple of small plastic pots, cut in half, in there to hold the soil. It seems to be working.

The tiny Agave plugs were a score at Pomarius Nursery. I knew I'd find something fun to do with them.

Speaking of fun. This lazy Eryngium agavifolium bloom caused me a moment of confused awe when I walked in the back garden and thought the Agave striata was blooming in some strange non-Agave way.

Moving to another part of the garden this trellis was supposed to be covered in Sweet-Pea vines about now.

But the Clematis recta 'Purpurea Select' became such a monster (that's it, green now, in front of the lower half of the trellis) that it shaded out the Sweet-Peas and they became a mildew covered mess — you can imagine how long I put up with that, bye-bye Sweet-Peas.

I eventually trimmed the Clematis recta in half and planted a striking Passiflora 'Snow Queen' at the base of the trellis. Impatient me could not wait for the passion-flower to cover the trellis so I came up with this metal trio.

You might recognize the ladle from this post, I think I like this use best of all.

This half-moon shaped piece also came from Metalwood Salvage. I have no idea what it was in a prior life. I asked the helpful guy at the shop to drill a couple of holes in back and I used tiny S-hooks to hang it. Once I decided to plant it up with these Dyckia 'Pale Ryder', I pounded a drainage hole in the bottom.

This cup with a hook came from the same shop. The Tillandsia seems at home.

I'm all sorts of excited about this week's Crackedpots show at McMenamins Edgefield, it runs just two days, today and tomorrow, Tuesday andWednesday. If you like this kind of stuff you should check it out (info here). Be warned it's a little bit of a madhouse though.

Weather Diary, Aug 9: Hi 91, Low 60/ Precip 0

All material © 2009-2018 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

25 comments:

  1. What a bummer that your sweetpeas got swamped. I hope you try again next year. They smell so wonderful and I loved having them for cut flowers this year. This was the first time I've grown them. If I hadn't just been down there I might have been tempted to go to the Crackedpots show. I think I'd love all the stuff they have to sell, but the madhouse warning does put me off.

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    1. I'm usually out there at opening and it's CRAZY. You would be very unhappy. I will be watering this morning though (it's supposed to be over 90 again today, and I haven't watered since Friday), so we'll see what it's like in the afternoon.

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  2. I am the exact opposite of you. If I have an ugly hole I let it go forever while I decide how to fill it. Usually something dying makes me decide to rip out and redo a whole section of the garden — which is my typical August project. Maybe it's because Mark is not crazy about pots with plants in them as part of the garden design or to fill in while something else is growing. We differ (he and I) on that point. Since it is one of the few things he ever has negative comments about in terms of all I plant and do in the garden, I go along with his view. But every time I see your rusty containers and things on walls, I am lustful.

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    1. Redoing a section of the garden in August is not something that could happen here, since it is bone dry. Maybe that's part of our different approach. If a hole develops late in the season here (and you don't want to just live with it) then you must do something temporary. Planting something new in the ground, or even worse digging something established, is the kiss of death...unless you are committed to treating it like a newborn and caring for it 24/7. I guess I am lucky that Andrew likes planted containers.

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  3. Sorry about your sweet peas. I love them, but I've never had luck with them. I so enjoy all of your creative re-purposed containers. Thanks for sharing.

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  4. The passiflora makes a nice substitute for mildew-laden sweet peas. I love your creative use of metal stuff and am bummed that I've never been to Cracked pots. One of these years I'll get there.

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    1. You'd love it! (Cracked Pots) You and Tom should make an adventure of it, come down on the first day, spend the night at Edgefield, you'd be there for shopping both days!

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  5. Oh, I'd love to transport myself to that show! I seriously need a metal salvage fix by August. I can't stop planting empty tubes and flues too, and now I see you're moving into rust! It was only a matter of time ;) Funny that the clem never purpled up. I tried to keep it alive years ago, a selection called 'Lime Close,' and it never purpled for me either -- never got much growth at all, actually.

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    1. The new spring growth on the Clematis is purple and it stayed that way until the sun got super intense and it turned green, maybe into July? (just guessing). My "lust for rust" isn't very high, I don't anticipate adding much to the collection.

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  6. The Pale Ryder Dyckia looks like part of the half moon pot. I took a second look the first time the picture rolled up on the screen. Such a pretty plant. Your rusty collection is nice. I hate empty holes in the garden. I fill em up asap.

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    1. Interesting! I can see that now that you point it out (the Dyckia). Empty holes are wasted space!

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  7. You come up with some great innovative solutions, Loree. Inspirational!

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  8. Love the rusty pipe pots. You are so lucky to have a good salvage place near you, I can understand your resistance to share.

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    1. And actually it's only 1 of 3, we Portlanders like to recycle and reuse things.

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  9. Passionflowers love your garden! I've yet to have one of these plants look that happy in my own garden. I'm envious of both the Crackedpots show and your metal salvage store. Maybe there are such shopping opportunities here but I haven't found them.

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    1. Hmmm...metal salvage in L.A., there has to be pretty good places out there..

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  10. Metalwood Salvage! Can we go when I'm in Portland? Hint, hint.

    When's your book on creative upcycling coming out? I'm serious!

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    1. Yes of course we can go. Guess I'll have to self publish that one...

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  11. Very creative uses of the containers and the plants. I especially like the rectangular pot with the agaves, the trellis plantings, and the hooked cup with plants. Crackedpots seems like a place I'd like to visit.

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    1. Oh I think you'd have a blast there Beth!

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  12. Patiently waiting for the Passiflora to grow is a waste of time when you have pots to repurpose and put on display. The trellis looks groovy. Obregonia denegrii and Dyckia 'Pale Ryder' are very striking.

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  13. Generous of you to share that resource. Thanks!
    rickii

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