apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

WOWOWOWOWOWOWOOWOWOWOWO

Love it!!!!

Can you tell me more about the fabric/ceiling contraption? I'd like to do something similar in my yard.

neal!!!
i am so proud of you (and jealous)!!!
keep up the amazing and beautiful work.
can't wait to see what you do next!
xoxo
[e]

Amazing!

Enjoy the fruits of your labor!!!!!!!!!

Did you make those chairs yourself or did you put them together from a kit?

Um....this rocks. Completely. I'm assuming you created the design yourself?

the best post i've ever seen on this site. fantastic work!

Thx for the kudos! Quite thrilling to log on and see my little urban Shangri-la!

ILU - the canopy was made from painters drop cloths (9x12), clothesline rope, grommets and (don't laugh) large key rings! I originally wanted to use those boat hooks that have a locking clip but they were $2.50 a piece and I “design” on the cheap. Saw the key rings nearby in Lowe’s, thought they’d work just as well – and they did - at 50c each you can’t go wrong.

Labchick - The chairs come unfinished in a kit from Ace hardware, $60 each, but got them 50% off at father’s day sale. Really wanted chairs from Archie’s but…

Rog - yep, the design was mine as well as the labour – I was originally inspired by an amazing garden that Matt James did – nontraditional, undulating. It’s a complete break from the trad cookie-cutter backyards that most of the brownstones have in my neighborhood and really makes use of the space – it looks a lot bigger than it is.

FABULOUS!!!!!!! My garden is just about the same size, and looks a lot like the first "before" picture right now. This gives me a lot of hope.

Love, love, LOVE the yellow wall & chairs. Dreamy!

Painters dropcloths huh? Hmm. Will it hold up or will the weight of it (when wet) pull it down and rot. I was checking our subrella type fabrics but they are very expensive.

Absolutely fantastic. Thank you for sharing this wonderful design and documentation of your work. The child with the toy lawnmower pic is precious.

ILU - the canopy was designed more to screen the sun out than for rain protection. I also dyed it (pink) with Rit because the original creamy/grey colour looks dire when dirty - there's more dust in the NY air than you'd think! I put it up last Spring and have only taken it down to wash (removed it completely during the winter months) but it's held up extremely well. The whole project cost less than $30 and that included the grommet kit.

I am so impressed with this. It's wonderful. Wow, what a dream and a commitment. And the effort and creativity! I also like the mirrors - something I don't ordinarily like outside, but I do like them here. Please send us updates as the summer goes on. We want to sit back and watch those plants grow too. Thanks for sending this in!

this is fantastic! very inspiring :) well done, Neal!

Holy crap. This is great. As someone who tried to redesign her backyard and realized she's no good at it, I now can appreciate how much work and thought went into this. Ok, time to go move dirt around again.

WOW (though I recognized the influence of City Gardner right away; he's fantastic). It's impressive in itself, but considering you were a gardening beginner at the start of the project -- it's downright awesome. Congrats.

PS Those two Adirondack chairs... and the little itty-bitty one for your little one right next to them -- MAJOR CUTE.

I have seen the place in person. It is abosolutely wonderful!!
Neal, let's plan something to enjoy the garden soon!

Very good job. Love those yellow chairs & wall.

However the garden beds are a bit bare. If you sew clover as a ground cover, you can dig it in to provide the soil with more nitrogen. It is green, fluffy, doesn't need mowing and provides a nice overall groundcover while other plants get bigger.

Another nice trick - especially for a child -- is to buy 'kid's pack' of flower seeds. They are guaranteed to grow -- and FAST. You get a great display of annuals and the different shape seeds are interesting. Don't be too precious - just scatter them and lightly cover - you end up with a 'meadow' type garden and don't notice the weeds. It is a real thrill when the little shoots come up and then a feast of flowers. When they die off, dig them in to build the soil.

If some flowers prove to be favourites, buy them next year.

Another quick ground cover is a herb lawn which gives off scent when you walk over it.

Vines covering the fence would be good too. I wonder if it is strong enough to support mini espalier fruit trees like the fruit salad plants? That way you get mutliple types on the one stem. Would ornamental grapes grow in NY? Vine vegetables eg beans, peas, tomatoes?

I was stunned when a 6 year old asked me where oranges come from "before the shop".

That's beautiful! Usually I'm too impatient for slides and lots of pics unless they're very interesting and/or beautiful. Your's is both and the little girl is a such a cutiepie! Thank you for sharing.

Deb - Thx for the advice - rest assured the beds are no longer bare, but I'll take the Clover suggestion under consideration as I'm still culling the list of ground covers that will eventually tie together the entire scheme. I've spent ages researching appropriate plants for my zone, looking at texture, form, colour etc. and don't want to take any short cuts not after all this effort. When I'm done I just want to be able to go outside with a drink and relax, roll around on the grass with my daughter, pull the occasional weed and deadhead as needed.

As for the Kid's pack flowers, I'm not planting any annuals in the yard - with the exception of comos which are fillers for the mo. I do have some strategically placed accent ones - Zinnia Envy and Dianthus Kawara Pinks that have already come up. But I abhor those generic packs - it's the control freak in me - I know what I want and where to put it. I like a lot of meadow type wild flower gardens, but not for this space.

My overall design was based on low maintenance architecturally interesting perennials that once established didn't require anything but light pruning. When these pix were taken the Verbenas, Agastaches, Echinaceas, french Lavenders, kniphofias, euphorbias, echinops ritros, were mere seedlings, now they are coming in. Plus there's a Rhamnus Fine Line, a Cornus alba "Sibririca" and Solidago rugosa 'Fireworks' that have been put in along the 'east' side for added height.

I originlly consider Clematis Josephine for the fence, but having had to remove the horrible old vine that was originally there and the hell that took, that idea has been nixed!

I did become a little too obsessed though (as my family will attest to), and even wrote a proposal complete with scale drawings etc - to myself! But we'll see how it all turns out!!!

I can definitely feel your bliss! I have a small backyard and (though it needs a ton of work) I always have a smile on my face when I'm there. :)

OMG - i hardly ever comment on anything but I was floored, inspired, moved, and overjoyed by your post.

The detail of design, consideration of users (differently family members), eye on cost, all the while learning --- incredible. I can't believe it only took you 2 seasons.

I am so glad to hear you are still enjoying the whole experience.

I am not sure what you do for a living, but as side venture you may want to consider consulting - if you are ever in Boston and are up to learning about roof/container gardens, let me know.

keep us updated!

tlf

thx tlf! Actually some friends of mine have "commissioned" me to do the roof on their condo! Am in the research phase right now - I've already designed the layout, and looked at the structural integrity of the roof - am now looking at plants - using the list from the roof for the Chicago city hall as a starting point.

Am a research analyst - but i've always had an eye for design interiors & web), so it was actually pretty easy to the outdoors.

would love to learn more though - you can contact me at anaguy@hotmail.com