Repurposing for the Garden

The summer is drawing to a close and, as I look back at what was accomplished this summer, I'm really pleased (despite the drought) with the results of lots of hard work.  All of that will be documented in a series of blogs. Today, though, I want to look at 'repurposing' -- a term that has become pretty fashionable and, frankly, sounds better than recycling.  Finding another use for things that we love is a wonderful way to make new memories (and save money).

I did some repurposing in my garden this year with varying degrees of success.

First, my new fence needed some color so I dug up an old plate hanger that my daughter-in-law had intended for a garage sale, and added three plates that I found in thrift shops.  Total cost of my art project:  $6.00 (for the plates).  I totally love it and the way it brings out the color of the flowers as well as drawing the eye up to make use of the whole space.  In the picture of the whole fence, there is also a Croton sitting in an old wicker wastebasket.

In the back corner of my yard (opposite this lovely fence) is an area that is shaded and has a full view of the entire garden.  For this corner, then, I wanted to arrange an area where I could sit and enjoy a book in the afternoon.  While arranging chairs and a table was easy enough, I also wanted to add some whimsy and saved a couple of things that I was about to take to the curb.

The first was an old wicker blanket chest that had lost a lot of the wicker from the top, but was still structurally sound with a metal frame and an ornamental front.  Really, too pretty to go to the dump!  The second item was a floor lamp that was sitting in my basement.  The lamp needed to have the base removed and the pole slid right into the ground!  The idea was to plant something with trailing stems and white flowers that would stand out in the shady area.

I put a plastic garbage bag into the chest first, and then a cardboard box to hold the soil.  Filled it with good potting soil (took more than I expected!), and added some shade-loving ferns, impatiens, and a sweet-potato vine, plus alyssum and petunias.  The lamp was planted with bacopa and euphorbia.

Turns out that the lamp (still a good idea, I think) was a bit shallow and maybe I need to drill a drainage hole.  The plants never really progressed and had to be replaced at least once.  I may just keep it and try again next year.

The chest, on the other hand, was awesome!  For a time, a colony of ants made it's home in with the plants but I eventually had to move them out as they were taking up all of the space.  With that good soil, though, the plants really thrived even with the drought that we had all summer.  I realize that the chest will eventually rot away completely but, until it does, this is going to just add beauty and whimsy to my favorite corner of the garden.

A couple of my other repurposed items:  a beautiful blue pitcher that I found at a thrift store in Florida which immediately became a favorite vase.  Also, a candle holder that struck me as something that would look beautiful with ivy trailing out of it.  So, I drilled holes in the bottom and planted an English Ivy that hung on a shepherd's hook in my garden all summer, and has now been moved inside where I can enjoy it all winter.

Finally, repurposing is something that is being done all over -- as I witnessed first hand during a trip to Alaska in August.  These 'plant hangers' were on the outside of a building that specialized in backpack adventures, but would look equally cute hanging on a tree in my garden.  I'll have to think about that!