Hoppy times in the back yard

It's been a while since I posted anything about the yard.  The reason is that not much is happening there since I have been preoccupied with the basement and all.  One nice thing that is going on is the hops that have grown over the pergola.  I hope they have no problem coming back next year because I like the look and am still holding out hope that one day I can make a batch of brew with them.   

Also, I don't think I mentioned but I added another line of slats to the pergola.  It seemed a bit too open and I  like the new look of it.  I still hope to tackle de-uglying the garage this year and then doing a better blog entry on the pergola construction.  

Pergola Completed

I didn't have a lot of hope this morning as I started out the day putting a coat of clear sealer on all of the wood.  I would typically forgo this as I like the the patina of grayed cedar but the major beams on the project, the ones salvaged from my former office, are made of pine so the sealer is necessary in this climate.  As I was saying, I started with the sealer and it started to rain.  Luckily it didn't rain long but long enough so I could plant some plants (see tomorrow's post).  It also didn't ruin my seal job.   

The rest of the day was perfectly sunny and warm.  A perfect Father's Day.  I was able to get all of the remaining wood cut and worked out the final details of the top cross pieces.  Since there weren't many of them, I could lay them out without fastening them and see what I liked.  I figured it out and then screwed everything into place.   

I was just about finished with only three more pieces to fasten and my portable screwdriver died.  Instead of doing the last by hand or changing out bits on my drill (I was pre-drilling all of the holes), I decided to let the screwdriver charge during dinner.  After dinner, I finished installing the last few pieces and cleaned up.  I am very happy with the outcome but can't wait to tackle the new light fixture on the garage, removing the trellises and attaching the clematis to the pergola, and finally painting the garage.  I also have a great idea for my outdoor stereo speakers.  I can tackle these small projects over the next few weeks at a more leisurely pace though.  

Here is a before shot so you can see how far it came.  Once I get all of the landscape re-done and the herb garden is grown in a bit, I'll have to do some before and after shots.  I have some "before" we moved in and the change is dramatic.  The project didn't take too long either.  Due to the rain, it was not as quick as I wanted but at twenty three days from start to finish, including a week vacation during that time, I am happy.  

Finally, I'll end the post with another gratuitous hollyhock photo. 

The Home Stretch

I didn't think that adding the cross-pieces would be so much work but notching and putting the sixteen foot long foot beams into place took the better part of a day.  It didn't help that I mis-calculated the size and originally purchased fourteen foot boards and had to run back to the store to exchange them.

The notching worked out well except for one area.  I made a small error where one the the large beams bows  and creates a smaller space so I now have a gap at one of the notches.  Luckily it is on the neighbor's side of the pergola and will likely be covered by vines in the future so no one will ever see it.    

I laid out some boards to determine the spacing of the final top lattice and I think I have figured it out.  I will have to go to the store and get two more boards for it to work but I think I want a tighter spacing than what I initially figured on.  I am going to rip all of the 2x4s in half as I couldn't find any 2x2s in the lengths I needed.  I also need to seal the big beams and may do everything else while I am at it (the beams are pine and won't make it long in the Chicago winters).  

An entertaining back story: my wife didn't want me to take this project on because she felt I had too many balls in the air when it came to the house already.  I think she's come around to my thoughts that I didn't want to spend another summer NOT enjoying the bad patio that we had before.  I think she actually likes the new one as we ate here, half-complete, last night.   I learned yesterday though that she has bet against me on the project.  I guess that she and another OP friend are betting whose project gets done first.  They are doing a large deck.  Incidentally, they are home all day and have significantly more hands at their disposal for help.  Why shouldn't they be finished before me?  It's always great to have a vote of confidence (sarcasm).  Anyway, if the weather continues to cooperate (which it has not the past few weeks), then I should be done today, except for the modifications I want to make on the garage.  I'll have to call over and see how that deck is doing and then work out my share of the winnings with the wife.

Working Late

I really wanted to get the patio in before the weekend so that all I had was trellis work on my days off.  I barely made it but was able to lay all the pavers before the sun was completely down.  I have a couple that are still a little uneven but I will fix them over the weekend.  I am really liking the new patio location but can't wait to get the project wrapped up this weekend so we can actually dine out there.  I wonder how long before the ugliness of the garage gets the better of me and I re-do the siding there...  

Rule of thumb: 1/2" of space should be allowed for every 12' of patio length if you are placing your patio between two static objects.  Then again, you may want to make that 3/4" as this sucker barely fits.  

I also want to give a shout out to Jay over at Humphrey House.  He gave me this awesome hops plant for the garden.  Hopefully it will be taking over the pergola in no time.  

Taking shape

My company moved its offices last year. I lucked out in that I was able to get some salvaged beams, some VERY BIG salvaged beams, from a pergola constructed over my bosses desks (don’t ask). They have been sitting in my garage all winter and now I am able to put them up in a new configuration on my pergola.

The design is pretty simple: I am attaching everything with massive lag bolts and cut a few brackets to act as “supports” for the huge beams. Once the beams are up, I am going to add cross pieces and strips on top to complete the pergola. I also have some ideas for a couple counter-weight hanging planters.

Except for the weather, things are going smoothly so far. Once finished, I will repair the siding on the garage, add some sealant, and then re-paint the entire garage. I think it will be a dramatic improvement.

Digging it

Prep work for the new patio:

While prepping the patio, I had to relocate all of my daffodils.  I swear I only started with 35.  They have multiplied big time and I have well over 80 now.  The next issue will be what to do with the clematis.  They will surely be in the way for the pergola construction.

Rain delay on the patio work

Today was a wash.  Literally.  It rained from about 10:00 until 3:30 so most of my day was blown.  I didn't get the patio dug out but I spent some time at the hardware store, okay, I spent some time at three or four hardware stores and nurseries and picked up some plants, got some stuff to fix my myriad of hoses, and a lot of other miscellaneous crap I really didn't need.  As it sits right now, I am pretty happy with the decision to move the patio.  I think the yard looks a lot nicer and I like the landscape coming up to the house.    

After it grows in a bit, I bet it will look great.  I did have one nice find today.  While at Lowe's, I was looking through their "distressed plant" area (I strongly recommend this for people that love bargains and don't care what their garden may look like in the immediate future).  They have racks of stuff for a buck - today they had a lot of nice stuff.  I was a little surprised.  While browsing, I saw this tiny thing that looked like a bonsai that just got mugged.  I checked out the tag and it was a doublefile viburnum.  I knew the plant would be a beauty if it could ever be nursed back to health so I just had to get it.  If it dies, big deal, I am out a buck.  I always wanted a dogwood or a magnolia up front but this is the next best thing.  It is a very Asian-looking plant with a horizontal character.  Just check out some images on Google and you'll see what I mean.  We have a less attractive viburnum out back that seems to be doing well.  Hopefully this one likes the yard also.  I just wonder if this little guy will make it and what it might look like in four or five years.  

Day 2 on the Patio and Pergola

The second day was a moving day.  I spent a good chunk of time getting all of the soil out of our concrete sink and then lugging the sucker across the yard.  I then moved some plants around it and added some sod.  this is ironic since I typically loathe grass.  Hopefully it perks up.  I am not so sure putting it in on a 90 degree day was a great idea.  We just need to get some new flowers for the sink and I think this part of the yard is pretty much done.  I can always move some more plants to this part of the yard at the end of the summer.  

Hopefully I can make some headway on the new patio area tomorrow.  Now that the sink is gone, my repair work for the garage is a lot more apparent.  First things first though, I'd like to get the patio and pergola done.  

I also promised an update on the hollyhock.  The sucker seems to grow a good 6" each day.  I put our rake next to it for scale - it is about 4'-6" tall.  The peas are looking pretty good too.

We also had a pretty cool visitor out front today.  A nice swallowtail (and countess other smaller butterflies) have been hanging out.   

Patio and Pergola

I have let the back yard go this year.  I haven't done much planting, weeding or cleaning because I knew I'd be taking on a project this weekend.  I am moving the patio.  There are a couple reasons for this.  First, the existing patio is jammed in the corner of the yard, against the house and it always "feels" crowded.  It is also only 9'-0" by 14'-0".  The corner it is in is also occupied by our AC unit and is adjacent to the neighbor's dog's "toilet".  It is loud and doesn't smell so great in the summer.  Finally, I always thought it would be great to dress up the garage with a pergola and eventually connect the garage top the patio with a large barn door, making it more amenable to entertaining.

One part of the job was to remove all of the existing patio pavers so that a new landscape and lawn area could be created.  The next part was to stake out the new patio location (making a larger 12'-0" x 12'-0" area next to the garage, and digging holes for the main pergola columns.

The columns are huge and sunk into the ground pretty deep.  I was able to bribe my friend Mark to help me on the first day so we got a lot done.   

I hope to have the patio and new grass and landscaping done by the end of the day on Memorial Day and then tackle the remaining components of the pergola next week.  I am still not sure what I am going to do with my large concrete sink that I typically plant with flowers.  Also, my clematis are absolutely huge this year.  I would love to eventually get wisteria growing over the pergola but maybe I just train these to do so.  I haven't made a decision on that one yet.  I am sure I'll be posting more tomorrow.  I also need to give an update on the "Hollyhock That Ate My Garden" - I swear that sucker is pre-historic.