Outisde our house
A while back someone asked to see more photos of the outside of our house. We finally took a few more photos, now that everything is overgrown and lush and lovely. It’s all a bit ramshackle, but I like it that way. What I like best is that the whole thing looks different every few weeks, at least in Spring and Summer.
We do a fair amount of sitting on this porch now that it’s warm. It’s a great place to have dinner and watch the people and doggies stroll by.
Here’s my raised bed and some veggies. Everyone in Portland seems to grow a few veggies, which is very exciting for me. I love walking around and seeing front yard gardens (and sometimes a few chickens) and identifying all the plants.
I’m growing five types of tomato, sunset runner beans on the bean teepee, some squash, sweet peppers, and a few herbs which are being attacked by slugs. The tomatoes and beans are amazing, this is what the tomatoes looked like just a few weeks ago. I also just put in two raised beds in the side yard for the fall garden.
This little structure is referred to by the owners who built it as “the pole barn.” It’s recently been cleared out, and we set a table and chairs inside of it. I’m going to hang some string lights around, I think.
One thing we’re not sure about is the dirt floor under the structure. It’s not as pleasant as grass or other groundcover under foot. I’ve thought about laying down a large straw mat or something, but I just don’t know. Anyone have any good ideas on that?
Here you see a small portion of the grape vines that cover the trellis over the backyard and grow all around the house. We are going to have crazy amounts of grapes.
We also have plums back here, and strawberries and blueberries in the front yard. We just picked our first blueberries last evening.
How pretty! And I love you veggie garden. What about decomposed granite or mulch for under the pole barn?
So pretty. I’m jealous of such a beautiful outdoor space. I think the pole barn will look lovely with some fairy lights and a natural mat!
It looks so lush and lovely!! Yay for summer time strawberries, and you’re growing blueberrys? And grapes? Heaven…
Ditto about the decomposed granite (DG) or, perhaps, pea gravel. If you want to get above the dirt, how about some modular decking from IKEA or recycled wooden shipping pallets?
I’m planning on doing punch tin can lanterns either tonight or tomorrow. I got a bunch of BIG can from New Deal Cafe. For the ground how about one of those recycled plastic Moroccan looking ones or do like Pied Cow and just use an old Oriental if it is just for the summer.
tute for the lanterns – http://crafterella.blogspot.com/2009/04/how-to-make-punched-tin-lanterns.html
Have a good 4th!
You have my dream house! I am currently container gardening in my apt and it is not as satisfactory as having real dirt to work in. My dad was just telling me today how my grandma used to make jelly for the whole year from the grapes in their yard. I think the plastic moroccan rugs or something similar would be nice for the pole barn. You could put some big containers with some bright flowers along the edges too or have an evening garden.
Cheap beer is good for slugs. I use empty salsa/hummus/sour cream/small yogurt containers, put some beer in at night and in the morning you’ll see lots of slugs that have drown in the beer. Gross I know, but it’s cheap and environmentally friendly. I dont know why slugs like beer but they do. I got some Old German for 4.50$ per 6 pack from New Seasons. The slugs loved it. It may not be pleasant, but at least they die happy.
Your house looks lovely! Have you thought about trying pea gravel for the pole barn? We have a small patch of it in our yard where our fire pit is and it works great and looks nice too.
You have a beautiful home! Congrats on the veggies! (A summer storm killed my beans a few weeks ago…)
beautiful! it is so similar to a house i almost bought that i had to look several times. :)
!
Wow, my little apartment just doesn’t compare. It’s beautiful. Can I come knit on your porch?
Your yard looks great! If we had a yard that looked like that I would be very happy, it looks comfortable. I think that if the dirt was hard packed, you should just leave it as is. When it rains though, take in the furiture and stuff so it won’t get wet. If there were some hooks on the beams, maybe you could hang the furniture from the beams under the roof. Just a thought.
Parlo poco l’inglese, ma ci provo! “You are wonderful! I like your web site and your dresses are beautiful!”
Ciao
What a gorgeous house! I love everything about it. I’m going to have to go back through your blog to see about the inside too…
wow, you’re lucky! the “pole barn” is awesome. i’m sure you’re going to fix it up into a cute little outdoor area. can i come to your summer dinner parties when you throw them out there? :)
Thank you all for your lovely comments, I can’t wait to have a few little summer get-togethers out there!
Love the pictures. We are remodeling a 100 year + home. The work never ends. Our homes have some things in common, simple lines- we consider ours Craftsman style.
I couldn’t find just one pic- but here is our update a few years back, we just painted the exterior green and I am loving it!
http://lemondropvintage.com/webred/houseletter2.pdf
Lovely home! I wish I had a “pole barn.” What a neat place for relaxing or entertaining. Have you thoght about stone pavers for a ground covering? Like flagstone, or maybe even reclaimed brick? You could get really fancy with a pattern even. Just a thought. Thanks for sharing!
Anna Jane, we’ve considered it but since we don’t own the house, we don’t want to spend too much time or energy. Though that would look really lovely, I agree!
Love your house! And the gardens are wonderful! I live in the woods, so can only grow shady stuff – no vegies! Kids don’t complain about that! Do you have mosquitoes there? They would eat us alive here in a pole barn or on a porch!
We do have mosquitoes, but mostly at dusk. Citronella candles deter them slightly, but for some reason, they are really attracted to me. I always get bitten up way more than Kenn!
So beautiful, lush and green!
I love your house. I used to live in Portland nine years ago, left for theatre school to Norther California and have been trying to get back to Portland ever since. We’re in Austin now, but hoping to be back in Portland in a year. What area of Portland are you in? (neighborhood) I’m keeping my eye out for great houses and areas of Portland. I want something just like your house…sigh.
Your vegitation is incredible. We have an organic garden in our backyard, but the heat of summer has pretty much taken its toll. Ahhhh, I crave lush green loveliness again.