Each time I open my garden for a tour, a different plant seems to be the "it" plant, the one everyone asks about. When 50 people came through on June 1st it wasn't a plant that got all the attention though, it was the metal.
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For starters everyone wanted to know where I got my dish planters, and they were surprised to learn I made them, no welding required! The other metal pieces around the garden were also remarked on, one person even asked if I was a metal worker. I couldn't help but laugh at the trouble that would get me into! Answering their questions it occurred to me to do a "where are they now" update on my haul from a visit to BBC Steel last September. To refresh your memory (or keep you from having to click on that link), here's what I purchased all laid out on the scale for weighing. Three expanded metal panels, three metal tubes, and a welded together series of 15 short tubes; total cost...$27.
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I'll start here, although that metal piece on the wall didn't come from BBC Steel, it came from a salvage shop in Seattle. But it was my mental jumping off point for what I ended up doing with the panels from BBC (more on the making of this piece here, and yes, I was playing with tillandsia placement when this photo was taken, that long one on the right didn't stay).
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Just around the corner is the first BBC panel...
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It's just leaning against the garage, and I've added a planter of Clematis repens ‘Bells of Emei Shan’ and a tillandsia. The planter's shape echoes that of the trashcan lid full of bromeliads to its right.
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The other two panels are against the fence behind the shade pavilion, one leaning, one mounted on the fence.
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The "danger" planter is a piece of ducting I bought years ago at Portland's Rebuilding Center, the danger sign a gift from the lovely Laurin Lindsey of Ravenscourt Gardens.
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These, of course, are two of the dish planters that got so much attention. They're filled with Billbergia nutans and Dichondra argentea.
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Let's take a closer look at the expanded metal panel.
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The planters came from Garden Fever. I wanted something simple that would be easy to hang. I should probably go back and get a couple more while they still have them. In the planters are...
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Rhipsalis pentaptera
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Aechmea recurvata v. recurvata
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Rhipsalis baccifera subsp horrida
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I decided the other panel needed to be hung, luckily Andrew was willing to make that happen.
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Are your eyes drawn to that sexy bromeliad on the left, under the circle planter? Mine are.
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It's one I purchased from Dick's greenhouse, on, I think, my third visit there.
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The subtle variegation has gotten stronger since I moved it outside.
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Okay, let's look at the plants on the panel. The planter at the top holds Neoregelia Hannibal Lector 'Governors Plea', Vriesea rubyae, and a couple of NOID cryptanthus.
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Cryptanthus bivittatus 'Crimson Star'
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Quesnelia marmorata 'Tim Plowman'
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And more Rhipsalis, this one maybe R. campos-portoana.
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Rhipsalis ewaldiana (on the right).
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And because more plants is always the right answer I added a vine at the bottom, hoping it will grow up the panel, even though it's in a little more shade than it really wants.
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The vine is Holboellia coriacea 'Cathedral Gem' (aka Cathedral Gem Sausage Vine).
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Monrovia sent me a few plants to trial, and this vine was one I asked for.
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Funny thing. When I bought the metal panels last fall I pictured them going here, on the fence at the back of our property. I'd already asked for the sausage vine and planned on putting it here, growing on the panels.
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The fence is mostly hidden by the bamboo, but when you can see it...
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It's not very attractive.
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However since Monrovia didn't send me the plants until just a couple of weeks ago I had plenty of time to rethink the placement of the panels and they ended up on the more visible fence. Then, since Monrovia sent me two of the vines, rather than just one, I had an extra to experiment with here. You do see where this is going right? I have to go back to BBC Steel to buy more panels for the back fence for other vine to grow on. Darn.
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So what about the other things I purchased?
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One of the big tubes is holding up my fern bowl.
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The other one is supporting a dish planter in the driveway.
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The slender tube is supporting one of the metal containers that hangs off the front of the garage in the wintertime. The metal containers are moved when warmer weather appears, so the point pot and it's charcoal companion can move in.
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As for this piece I still haven't come up with a use for it, but you know I'm thinking on it.
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Weather Diary, June 9: Hi 82, Low 51/ Precip 0
All material © 2009-2019 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.
I'll start here, although that metal piece on the wall didn't come from BBC Steel, it came from a salvage shop in Seattle. But it was my mental jumping off point for what I ended up doing with the panels from BBC (more on the making of this piece here, and yes, I was playing with tillandsia placement when this photo was taken, that long one on the right didn't stay).
Just around the corner is the first BBC panel...
It's just leaning against the garage, and I've added a planter of Clematis repens ‘Bells of Emei Shan’ and a tillandsia. The planter's shape echoes that of the trashcan lid full of bromeliads to its right.
The other two panels are against the fence behind the shade pavilion, one leaning, one mounted on the fence.
The "danger" planter is a piece of ducting I bought years ago at Portland's Rebuilding Center, the danger sign a gift from the lovely Laurin Lindsey of Ravenscourt Gardens.
These, of course, are two of the dish planters that got so much attention. They're filled with Billbergia nutans and Dichondra argentea.
Let's take a closer look at the expanded metal panel.
The planters came from Garden Fever. I wanted something simple that would be easy to hang. I should probably go back and get a couple more while they still have them. In the planters are...
Rhipsalis pentaptera
Aechmea recurvata v. recurvata
Rhipsalis baccifera subsp horrida
I decided the other panel needed to be hung, luckily Andrew was willing to make that happen.
Are your eyes drawn to that sexy bromeliad on the left, under the circle planter? Mine are.
It's one I purchased from Dick's greenhouse, on, I think, my third visit there.
The subtle variegation has gotten stronger since I moved it outside.
Okay, let's look at the plants on the panel. The planter at the top holds Neoregelia Hannibal Lector 'Governors Plea', Vriesea rubyae, and a couple of NOID cryptanthus.
Cryptanthus bivittatus 'Crimson Star'
Quesnelia marmorata 'Tim Plowman'
And more Rhipsalis, this one maybe R. campos-portoana.
Rhipsalis ewaldiana (on the right).
And because more plants is always the right answer I added a vine at the bottom, hoping it will grow up the panel, even though it's in a little more shade than it really wants.
The vine is Holboellia coriacea 'Cathedral Gem' (aka Cathedral Gem Sausage Vine).
Monrovia sent me a few plants to trial, and this vine was one I asked for.
Funny thing. When I bought the metal panels last fall I pictured them going here, on the fence at the back of our property. I'd already asked for the sausage vine and planned on putting it here, growing on the panels.
The fence is mostly hidden by the bamboo, but when you can see it...
It's not very attractive.
However since Monrovia didn't send me the plants until just a couple of weeks ago I had plenty of time to rethink the placement of the panels and they ended up on the more visible fence. Then, since Monrovia sent me two of the vines, rather than just one, I had an extra to experiment with here. You do see where this is going right? I have to go back to BBC Steel to buy more panels for the back fence for other vine to grow on. Darn.
So what about the other things I purchased?
One of the big tubes is holding up my fern bowl.
The other one is supporting a dish planter in the driveway.
The slender tube is supporting one of the metal containers that hangs off the front of the garage in the wintertime. The metal containers are moved when warmer weather appears, so the point pot and it's charcoal companion can move in.
As for this piece I still haven't come up with a use for it, but you know I'm thinking on it.
Weather Diary, June 9: Hi 82, Low 51/ Precip 0
All material © 2009-2019 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.