Help with colour for my back deck, fences, and extension!
LisaD O
14 days ago
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LisaD O
13 days agoRelated Discussions
Need help prepping my Ipe deck for refinish.
Comments (10)Ken mon man!!! are you a chemist or did you stay at a holiday inn express last night!! LOL...(just some kind ribbin)...being a chemist and having 4+ years of pulp and paper science under my belt just wanted to clarify the acetone will indeed dissolve not emulsify the natural wood resins which are lipophilic (fat loving) extractives composed mainly of fatty acids, resin acids, sterols, steryl esters and triglycerides. So most of the surface resins will be completely removed with your rag,towel, or mop and what remains on the surface (acetone and residual resin) will have the acetone evaporate well before you get back to that area to coat with TWP or the like....thus the resins will return to their initial solid or semi-solid state....I think I know what you were trying to say but a little off in the actual chemistry...The other thing that will happen is that if a copious amount of acetone is used the resins will be solublized and penetrate further into the wood....effectively allowing more exposed "raw" wood for the coating to bind to. Acetone WILL dry out the wood as it is miscible(mixes) with water and will allow water to evaporate (azeotrope) at a lower temperature...it is often used in wood preservation where the wood is soaked 3+ times in acetone to remove ALL water and then dipped in a acetone/rosin mix.....then the acetone evaporates and leaves a rosin caoting protecting the wood.... Acetone is also frequently used in the pulp and paper mills to extract these types of wood resins to improve the strength of the paper products we use... so I don't think it matters about sealing immediately after acetone wash....but it may help to do the acetone rinse last to help with the drying process you require after the RAD treatment (1-2 day of warm/hot weather to get back to 12%?? moisture)...the acetones removal of water will be immediate and may speed the drying process as well as removing any residual oxalic acid...See MoreDoes anyone want to help us design our back deck/related landscape?
Comments (9)If you don't need space for socializing on the deck, I think you would be better served by a simple, 6' wide runway deck/walk that hugs the house and then devote the leftover space to planting. Split the steps with half at the deck and half at the entrance to the walk (from the drive.) It would seem a lot more luxurious to you if you made the step-treads 16" (front-to-back depth.) Use a conventional railing instead of seating. (You can't post photos by embedding code, but you can upload them directly from your computer by using the "Photo" button at the bottom of the window where you create the post.)...See MoreHelp me design a garden along my fence?
Comments (40)If you want both the variegated dogwood and the willow, you don't have to put both in that bed; you could put one set in another part of the yard. The variegation makes the plants stand out from quite a distance, and IMO it may overwhelm the bed to have both. I like to use variegation to spice up a garden rather than as the main ingredient. However, it's really up to you to decide what appeals to you - you could do a mockup with proportionately sized images to get a feel. Or you could try similar plants that are a bit more subtle. There are a couple other shrubby dogwoods that are about the same size as Ivory Halo. Cornus sanguinea 'Midwinter Fire' has leaves that are green but turn a glowing gold in the fall, and the winter stems are gold at the bottom but get redder toward the top. Not too attention-getting in the summer, but really glorious in fall and winter. There is also one with red winter twigs and green and gold variegation called Hedgerow Gold, but you might have to order that since I've only seen that at mail order nurseries. As far as I can tell, all of them, including Ivory Halo, can get to 6', so give them that much room. Nursery tags frequently give shrub sizes at 5 years, so they may get a bit larger. I usually look them up at the Missouri Botanical Gardens website which IME has accurate size info. I like Marquest's suggestion of holly as a green for winter. Be sure to get one male that is compatible with your females in order to get berries. It doesn't have to be in the same bed, just blooming at the same time as the girls and within bee-flying distance. Sky pencil won't have showy berries, just the green narrow shape. For blue shrub-sized evergreens in the east I found only limited choices that are likely to stay healthy. You could look at eastern junipers of various kinds (but don't get any of the J. scopulorum such as 'Wichita blue' which is a western species that likes dry air and gets diseased in the humid eastern half of the country.) I've seen far too many sickly looking dwarf Alberta spruces to want one in my yard, though there are some that are bluish. You might be able to grow blue atlas cedar - I find the weeping ones to be lovely, though expensive, but it's too cold here for them to survive. If you can find one of the dwarf forms of blue spruce, it may work well. I ended up with 'Fat Albert' which will eventually become tree sized and need to be cut down, but I live in a rural area without a huge amount of nursery choice. You may find something that works better for your area, or you might be able to get osomething ordered for next season if you talk to good nurseries near you. You could also ask on the conifers forum for suggestions since there are some real conifer experts there. I know there are some really interesting white firs (Abies concolor) but I don't know if any stay small, and some forms of Korean fir (Abies koreana) hold their needles so that the silvery underside shows, but I'm not familiar enough with them to know if smaller selections are readily available....See MoreHelp with what to plant along back fence?
Comments (5)Maybe you like what I like. A structured jungle :-) You have a great space and a wonderful fence (I agree with Kent) for a backdrop. With white above it which allows you to choose any colors. How nice! Since the wood edging will not define the bed, get rid of it. Lay a hose to find a pleasing bed outline (Sunset trick). If you are not going to have an outline, plan paths you will need for access (to cut flowers, clean-up etc). Defining spaces is most important for a successful garden. Are you are going to keep anything major? Rip out now what won't stay. How can we amateurs visualize anything with such obstacles? Take a new picture of as much of the area as possible and change it to black/white. Print several copies and draw in pencil on them. Study your space at twilight to see where mass is needed. Colors don't detract then. I love the triple layer bed effect (tall, med., short) to create depth. It is a formal look and effective in shallow spaces. I mentioned sasanquas in that context plus the sun/shade. For a non-formal look I would consider a grouping of 3 birches over to the right (to conceal the vertical wire and provide a focal point. They are sold bare root and can be planted in the same hole or further apart. A grouping of 3-5 shrubs (one of the shorter Raphiolepis possibly ie. 'Jack Evans' so there's very little pruning) planted triangularly rather than in a row. Perhaps a rose bush. How much maintenance do you want. What colors are you drawn to? Agapanthus and Lantana also do not require watering after establishment. Oops, unless you're on sand. At the garden dept. put different plants side by side to see if they are complimentary. Start a plant list of what you like. If you purchase make sure it's returnable if it doesn't suit your space. I'll shut up now with what helped me, hugely. Drive around. Take pictures of all gardens you like. And copy!!!...See Morelisedv
13 days agolast modified: 13 days agocat_ky
13 days agoLisaD O
13 days agoLisaD O
12 days ago
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