Privacy Trellis Progress Update

Red and I got the trellis poles set in the ground last week.  I went out this morning and tried to wiggle the posts and they feel pretty sturdy despite the height and diameter of the pipe.  Yay!

How did we get here?  Read the two prior posts on this project:
http://my1929tudor.blogspot.com/2012/04/privacy-trellis-construction-begins.html

http://my1929tudor.blogspot.com/2012/04/trellis-post-caps.html

We* dug the holes 20-21 inches deep on Tuesday, and then mixed the concrete and set the poles on Wednesday.  We learned in an unfortunate way where the sprinkler line runs -- can you guess what that means?  (And then I got a short sprinkler line repair lesson.  That will come in handy since I had attended a workshop on that which was a "fail" and my system definitely needs some love.)  As a result of that encounter, we moved the poles a foot further away from the house - now they are up against the cement wall or "curb," which is sort of where I wanted them anyway...so I guess that worked out all right.

We mixed the concrete one bag at a time in my happy orange wheelbarrow.  Then we put a handful of stones in the bottom of each hole, put a glop of concrete on top, and stuck the poles in.  We used a level to get them straight in both directions, and topped off the holes with concrete.  We also strung one line of wire between each set of poles as a guide for sinking them the same depth.

When we finished we agreed that it all went a little too smoothly, and wondered what we did wrong... LOL

Livingroom window trellis poles

 It's difficult to tell from this photo angle, but the poles are set in a width that is one foot wider than the set of windows.  And then they go a foot taller than the middle of the window.  My house sits quite a bit higher than the neighbors' house, so I literally look down on them; that's why I gave the trellises such extreme height -- 11 feet!



Dining room trellis poles

In the photo above, if you look closely at the height of the foundation, you can see the orange string tied on the one guide wire.  I thought we'd better mark it so that nobody strangles themselves with it before the rest are added and they are more obvious!  (Also in this photo: Unfortunately you can see that I need to clean the brick in the outcropping corner - it got discolored from rain, pre-gutters.  Waaah.)

I am really pleased with the color of the poles - after trying two different paint colors my goal of matching my gutters was met...

First vine wire attached as guide wire

The lines for the vines to grow up will be attached by wrapping around these bolts, and then we will tighten the bolts to hold it in place.  Which way we'll wrap the wire (which is actually braided fish line that will support 65 lbs) is up for debate.  We talked about alternating it front and back, and not alternating it at all, and we talked about not going around the pole... I guess I won't know for sure until it's time to string them... I plan to get that done this weekend, along with prepping the new beds between the poles. 

I am going to try to remember to do the bed prep before I string the bottom lines - otherwise I'm sure I'll mess up the bottom lines with my shovel and pitchfork.  I could use my tiller, but I am afraid of the aforementioned sprinkler lines... even though now I do know exactly where they are and how deep they are.  Theoretically it would be safe to till.

And then the fun part - the planting!  I have emailed with Randy Johnson at The Butterfly House at Texas Discovery Gardens, inquiring about vines that are green all year round and that attract butterflies and hummingbirds.  He suggests these two, with an aside about crossvine:

Passiflora caerulea (passion flower):  an evergreen vine that hosts the Gulf and Variegated fritillaries.

 Photo Credit:  http://www.treknature.com/gallery/photo206219.htm

Lonicera (honeysuckle) both the coral and yellow:  attract hummingbirds and are evergreen.

http://allthedirtongardening.blogspot.com/2012/01/honeysuckles-are-lonicera-love-them-or.html

http://elmostreport.blogspot.com/2008/05/yellow-honeysuckle-lonicera-flava.html


Crossvine (trumpet vine): it is evergreen and hummingbirds like it but it can get aggressive.

I am  definitely skipping the crossvine - I've dealth with it before and indeed -- aggressive is a good word for it...

I also thought about jasmine - because it is evergreen and the blossoms are so fragrant; but it doesn't attract butterflies or hummingbirds, and I have it in my backyard in two places already anyway...

Ironically, before I looked up the common names of the two suggested vines (which I did just now), I had asked a friend for some slips from her passion flower vine -- not knowing I'd be in the market for it this weekend.  She came over last night and brought me 5 cuttings... how's that for fortuitous timing?  And another neighbor/friend has an alley fence covered in yellow honeysuckle -- I'll ask her if I can take a few slips from that.  I may buy a few established plants as well -- I'll price them and weigh my impatience...  :::grin:::  I'm really excited to learn that I can continue my front yard theme of blue/purple and yellow/orange blooms and follow Randy's recommendations.  I think the passion flower is just gorgeous!

Once planted, these vines are going to be the most pampered vines in my yard - they have a daunting task ahead of them.  I'm extra happy that I have a rain barrel close to each of the trellises: bonus.  Realistically I don't expect them to even reach window height this summer, but who knows?  Maybe they are really fast growers - I don't know.  Time will tell.

*  Okay, so it was mostly Red.  He told me I was wimpy with the post hole digger.  But hey!  At least I own a post hole digger, right??

Weekend Update

Wow, this was a busy weekend...  here are the high points -- I will try to post some photos tomorrow.

1)  I volunteered at the butterfly plant sale on Saturday -- so much fun!  I spent the majority of the day chatting with two Master Naturalists while we tended to customers.  I picked their brains all day long about becoming and being a Master Naturalist, and a Naturalist vs. a Master Gardener.  I also bought more plants... although no, I hadn't yet planted the ones that I had bought on Tuesday at volunteer orientation. 

2)  Sunday morning I spent puttering around in the yard.  I removed pansies from an old bed and planted some of my new plants in it, and then put the pansies back in around them.  I set two areas of pavers as stepping stones -- part of my on-going battle against mud. I planted two new plants back by the fence, and while I was there did some weeding around the yoga platforms and raspberries.  It was a blissful day of playing the dirt.  Saturday night I watched the basketball game -- GO MAVS!!

3)  Sunday afternoon my neighbors helped me get a 1/2 yard of decomposed granite!  Much longer story there -- but for now, it's fab, and it was just in time for quite an unexpected rainstorm this morning.  Yay!  I'll probably need 2 more loads to have it cover the way I'd like. 

4)  A neighbor put out a big garbage can to catch rain overnight and emailed me this morning, thrilled and amazed at how much water she collected with so little rain -- and she's definitely committed to a rain barrel.  Love that.

Butterfly Plant Sale

This weekend -- Friday, Saturday and Sunday -- is the semi-annual butterfly plant sale at Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park in Dallas.  Through my volunteering at the Butterfly House there, I was included on an email last week asking for volunteers to work the plant sale.  I jumped at the offer -- and signed up for Saturday.  Last night was the volunteer orientation.  What I didn't know?  As volunteers we would have the opportunity to pre-shop.  Oh.  My.  Gosh. 

The evening began with an explanation of how the plant sale would operate -- customer traffic flow, different volunteer positions.  Then it moved on to what would be for sale:  16,000 plants.  Sixteen Thousand.  These are plants that a mere seven people started from seed since .... January.  You do the math.  We were asked to rank a list of volunteer positions as to which we preferred to do.

Next we were given a tour of the plants by Randy Johnson, Director of Horticulture, who of course is a Master Gardener (a life goal of mine) and who is the main man at Texas Discovery Gardens.   He had on old work boots, jeans, sported a pony tail and one of those straw pointy-topped Chinese hats that you see in rice paddy photographs.  I don't have to tell you that we all followed him around like ducklings behind the momma duck, slack-jawed.  I truly wished I had brought a dictaphone.  (And well yes, I have one, but just because it's an occupational hazard.  I have a laminating machine too, but that's probably another post.)  He would show us the seedling in a pot, and then take us to the garden area where that same plant was 2-3 years old.  Along the way he described the benefits of the plant (host or nectar) and if it was an annual, a perennial, or a native perennial.  All of them were caterpillar/butterfly friendly, obviously, and all of them were draught tolerant.  And the prices!  Rock bottom, baby.  And all organic.

Randy Johnson, Director of Horticulture, Texas Discovery Gardens

And then... we were turned loose with clipboards and plant lists to shop.  Not surprisingly, of the 20 or so volunteers, I was one of the last 2 people there.  If I could have spent the night I probably would have, despite the presence the purportedly very unfriendly black cat who has residence there.  When I left, the backseat of my little Mini was full of pots.  I don't know exactly where they will all be planted, but I'm betting that I'll bring more home after my shift on Saturday -- thank goodness I drive a small car.  More on the plants I bought in later posts...

Friday night is members only (but you can buy a membership!) and Saturday and Sunday the sale is open to the public.  Come on out!  http://www.texasdiscoverygardens.org/.  From the website:

Our annual Butterfly Plant Sale is back! Mark your calendar for Saturday, May 21, from 10 am to 2 pm. We have hundreds of herbs, perennials, host and nectar plants that will attract pollinators to your garden. We have gallon and 4-inch pots, as well as limited larger sizes. Members receive a ten percent discount and a chance to shop May 20, from 4 pm to 7 pm! You can buy your membership at the sale. Come early for a Plant Safari where you see established butterfly plants at Texas Discovery Gardens and learn about their light/water needs.