You know, I’ve found that along with the worries of not having a green thumb and potentially killing every plant you put in the ground, a lot of people pass up the opportunity of gardening because they don’t want to have an eye sore in the middle of their yard. Well, I’m here to inspire you today. I want to share with you some things we have done in our backyard to bring in some fun & funky into our edible landscape.
Be creative, garden beds don’t have to be in rows. Create curves, seating areas, mix in stuff for the birds, like bird baths, feeders, houses.
Here we have taken recycled wine and beer bottles and created borders around our herb beds. We contacted The Salado Wine Seller and asked them if we could have their empty wine bottles from tastings ~ and they said yes! We call them periodically to ask if they have any empties ready and we go by and pick them up a few cases at a time. It’s a great way to recycle something to bring interest into your landscape. Not to mention, it’s a great excuse to go pick up a few bottles of our favorite local wines! They have a great selection!
A ladder makes a great trellis for growing small cantaloupes.
I used the old window frames that were removed when we remodeled our house and hung them at different angles along the fence line.
We love to have friends and family over, so we have created multiple seating areas where people can sit, talk and enjoy the outdoors.
We cut out the grass in the area we wanted to have seating and laid thick plastic sheeting down to keep weeds to a minimum. We then smoothed and packed crushed granite all over the area to provide an even area.
Here we dug a deep hole and buried an old galvanized tub in the ground to create a fire pit where we love to roast hot dogs and make s’mores with the kids! It’s a lot of fun and a great time to spend as a family.
Use your imagination and think outside the box. What do you have lying around? Do you have any interesting containers you could plant in or accessorize your garden with?
Most of all, don’t be afraid to ask! You’d be surprised at what businesses are just throwing away and will give you. What’s the harm? All they can say is no…just move on down the road to the next place. Besides, growing an edible landscape is so rewarding! I love being able to go right out my back door to pick ingredients for a recipe!
I’m Jennifer Locklin, author and owner of Jennifer Cooks. I am a trained chef and passionate about good food, cooking for family and friends, and creating recipes that form lasting memories from one generation to the next.
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