The Green Room Grows

The Green Room at the back of my house has now grown to about 20 feet by 30 feet.  And my exhaustion is considerable since I had to remove almost everything that was growing there before I could make any headway or even make a plan.

To my surprise, the tin can sculpture just took off, despite the fact that I've been ready to do it for several years but just never got around to drilling holes in all those cans.  It looks here a little like a small war memorial, I suspect, but it's actually more of a monument to canned tomatoes,.  Some of the cans are actually rusted, but some are still shiny and the contrast between the two is nice.  I had thought the 'stalks' might move slightly in a breeze, but they are way too heavy (the tallest 'stalk' is about 4 feet or so).

I've surrounded the sculpture with saltillo tiles (neither they nor the marble slabs are leveled or set in; they are just sitting on whatever uneven surface was there when I got them to the site).  I have no idea what the future of a saltillo tile is since they are now outdoors and they were made to be indoors.  But I guess we'll just see how that works.  There's a little sun in this area around noon, so the lettuce (on the right in the photo above) appreciates a little but not too much summer warmth.

Here is the view from the east.  A couple of years ago, I found a? some? bedsprings at the side of Gulf Road down by the Grange Hall.  It appeared to have been doubled back on itself and then run over repeatedly by a sizable truck.  I dragged it home because it was so interesting, and it has now found itself a spot on the fence (center).  The small hydrangea I transplanted has kept its blooms (it was a very quick transplant) and is now just to the left of the sculpture.

The white marble tiles provide a walkway somewhat to the left of center of the entire space.  Just at the left edge of the photo are a bunch of lunaria, evening primrose, and candytuft plants...just things i happened to have around that could be easily moved.  And feverfew in pots at the back.  When I sit in that chair, looking east, this is what I see to the south/to my right.

A bunch of alpine iris and some foxgloves on the left side of the metal wall and the rock, which needs some companion rocks, but that will take some more time to gather.  I started some needle-point ivy cuttings to root today and hope to train them on to the metal wall.  So far, I've spent about $8 on all this, which went for three 1/4"-rods for the sculpture.  Such a pleasant way to entertain one's self, "lazing on a Sunday [sunny] afternoon..In the summertime" as the Loving Spoonful said or sang, or at least I think it was them.  [Of course, it wasn't the Loving Spoonful: it was The Kinks.]