Hopalong Hollow....

Hopalong Hollow, where the Blueberries grow sweet, and the moss feels soft beneath your feet.

Tuesday, August 21, 2018

A Hopalong Hollow renovation....

What can I say? The peacocks had devastated my Potager garden.. Not a tomato, pepper or watermelon plant survived the onslaught of 4 hungry, mischievous, vegetarian scavengers . I was at my wits end. Many of those plants I had grown from wee seedlings in my own little trays, watered and babied them from "birth"...only to have them devoured in a matter of days.
That is when I decided to completely ENCLOSE my entire potager with a lethal, pointy topped fence.
 
 I used the spindles from our old porch railing as my pickets, cut the tops into sharp spears and created 8 ft sections of fencing to cover 57 feet. .
James sunk all the posts for me and together we created, a wonderful new garden area.  (James has dug 16 post holes this season, he has gone through 3 post hole diggers in the last few years. He says he never wants to dig another hole.)
 Where there once was an open kitchen garden, now we have a tidy, enclosed and very cottage-y Potager.
I will explain to you soon, why peacocks and chickens will not challenge this short fence.




Instead of topping each post with a finial, I used what I had, clay pots. The pots mimic the color of the brick walkways, and can be filled with just about anything. At the moment, they have newly potted succulents in plastic pots inserted inside the clay pot. But I think in the fall, I will fill the pots with tulip bulbs!



 I only had 100 spindles and that covered the footage for the fencing, but not enough for the two gates I needed. What to do......???
 Well, years ago I purchased one 8 ft section of antique cast iron fence. I've moved it here and there over the years... it hasn't ever really had much of a purpose until now.
James cut it into two pieces.... one for a large gate and the other a very small gate.
I "welded" these metal bird silhouettes I had purchased from a garden show 3 years ago.

 This made a fantastically sweet, but simple gate!


 TWO GATES!
 I used old rakes as gate stoppers...
On the big gate...

 and On the small gate.


I was able to put my old cast iron teapot to use at last! I found this years ago, after seeing on at the Museum of Appalachia used as a gate weight.
This pulls the gate closed using gravity.
Jolly good!

  I did not paint the posts because I wanted to break up the monotony of the pickets.
Now, some will ask, can't peacocks fly right over those pickets? YES and NO.... they can, but they won't. My birds do not like "barricades" on top of a fence. If the edges were smooth enough to perch upon, that would be a different story, such as a straight edged ranch gate; but obstacles such as pickets make them nervous. They have never flown over my various fences here on the property.
It may be too late for my vegetables, but tomorrow is another day, and one can always plan the next crop anytime of the year.

Hopalong Hollow Cottage Garden 
 The elements that tie this garden design together  are:
Old rusty metal: trellis, metal bedsteads used as trellis, iron fencing, the old rakes, the wheelbarrow, the cast iron teapot used as a gate weight.
Stone and brick; Used in the walkways, used as garden borders, the clay pots repeat the color of the brick.
Timbers and woven branch fencing; Used to enclosed garden beds
Concrete statuary used through-out the garden.

23 comments:

  1. Why the peacocks wouldn't just fly over was my first question. I wonder why they suddenly decided to invade, is it maybe just this batch of peacocks as compared to others you have had?

    I love the fence and especially the gates. My husband is planning on putting a fence around the backyard and part of the front to keep out the deer but it won't be nearly as charming as yours but should work for my purposes.

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    1. Hey Vic, it was weird how the peacocks started to attack my crops after 8 years of having birds. It was normal for them to grab a tomato once in a while, but these 3 brother peacocks, were eating the leaves and all!
      Putting up the fence really changed the appearance of the property. You will be so happy to keep the critters out, although the deer do not enter our space, because of our dogs.

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  2. Darling, Jeri! I love it! The gates are so charming with the birds and the tea kettle weight is brilliant. Now, I bet next year you will have the veggies to enjoy and the peacocks will have eat at another diner. ♥

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    1. Martha, the birds are so puzzled as they walk around the perimeter of the fence "Unfair! Unfair! We want those Nastursium leaves, and some red pepper... and what about those strawberries, aren't they about ripe by now?!"

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  3. Oh how sad for your garden, but yay for the beautiful results. I love the teapot weight! A fence with an entrance makes it that much more inviting to explore 😊 Tell hubby "Good job" and give him an extra bowl of ice cream. Post holes are not fun. Have a great evening.
    PS - Deer just eat the tomato blossoms. Now you see them. Now you don't. It's a viscous game.

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    1. Lady, I promised husband, no more holes to dig.
      My birds were eating the leaves and all! Only thing left standing were desolate looking stalks.... it was a horror!

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  4. JERI LANDERS (and James) have struck again! Brilliant solution to a very difficult problem: how do you keep your beloved animals out of the garden patch!

    Jeri, this fence is dynamite. Gorgeous in every way. And I love an enclosed potager; a blogger pal of mine had her husband build her an enclosed picket fenced area and WOW, what a sweet addition that has been to her sprawling property. I know you'll nurse your plants back for the next season. So good to see you, and that handy-dandy welding work you did with the animal cut-out.....YOU are amazing!

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    1. Anita, I understand your friend's reaction to the difference an enclosed space makes against the backdrop of a large open area. It really creates such a delightful contrast, an almost private area.

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  5. WOW, I love your new fencing and the gates, oh my! It's all wonderful. You took lemons, your trashed garden by the peacocks and turned it into a beautiful place!!!

    Once again, I am inspired by your creativity and hard work.

    Love & hugs ~ FlowerLady

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    1. Lorraine, Necessity being the mother of invention, I was grateful to the peacocks for having "made me do it"!

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  6. This turned so well, Jeri. What a vision come to life!! now your garden feels even more special... all wrapped up in beauty!!

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    1. Gwen, It turned out better than I had hoped for, very different from our previously open area. I have to give those peacocks a pat on the back for causing this renovation.

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  7. So very clever! And beautiful. Years ago we put in a picket fence to keep our toddler IN! :-) Now it provides a quaint backdrop for the gardens I have put in since he grew up and left home. A few years ago we screened in our front porch so our indoor-only cat could come out to be with us. We wondered why we hadn't done it sooner for US because it took care of the mosquito problem. The porch has entrances to the kitchen and also the living room. We take the storm doors off after winter and leave the doors open and enjoy having this extra room all season long. Sometimes our critters help us in ways we would never have suspected.

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    1. It's amazing how enclosing an area can completely transform it's purpose and look. You basically added another room to your house. And we added a garden room.

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  8. Replies
    1. It will take more than luck, I have to be smarter than my birds!

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  9. It's beautiful as always, but where's the video?

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  10. Honestly you have to be the most creative person. I love that you use all of your things you have there and it all looks perfect*** love it all

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  11. Gosh Jeri - first I am sad to read about all your veggies being confiscated by your peacocks. Yet you came up with a brilliant and beautiful solution. Perhaps giving a hubby a break from digging holes should be on the next agenda :). Love your fence friend. Thanks for sharing. Hugs!

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  12. Your blog was absolutely fantastic!
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  13. So happy that finding you on YouTube led me here. I love how your fence turned out! I have a lot of old take heads that I now have a wonderful use for!

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  14. Glad you found me here.It's amazing what can be accomplished with 2nd hand objects. I knew those spindles would come in handy one day!

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