The Brownstoner Garden: A Rough Plan
Here’s Mr. B’s rudimentary sketch of the plan for the garden. Our plan is to create a bluestone patio on the existing raised section at the back of the garden. Although a mosaic pattern would be much easier and cheaper given the bits and pieces lying around, we feel strongly that we want to use…
Here’s Mr. B’s rudimentary sketch of the plan for the garden. Our plan is to create a bluestone patio on the existing raised section at the back of the garden. Although a mosaic pattern would be much easier and cheaper given the bits and pieces lying around, we feel strongly that we want to use only square or rectangular pieces. (To that end, we’re wondering if anyone in the area has any extra straight-edged pieces that they’d like to donate–we can come pick them up on Saturday.) The old chain link will be replaced by a trellis at the back and vertical cedar planks along the sides. We’re playing with the idea of a pergola over a portion of that back area to create a shady eating area too. He’s also drawn a long bench in the foreground and a small supporting wall near the rear, both of which will be made of some kind of wood. After much hand-wringing, we’ve decided to lay sod in the middle of the garden rather than bluestone, largely because buying this much bluestone was prohibitively expensive and the idea of scrounging enough square pieces was a little daunting. Given everything we’ve heard we’re not particularly optimistic about grass working out over time, but we figured it’s worth a try. – Mrs. B
Ramping Up for Garden Makeover [Brownstoner]
where do you get sod in brooklyn?
you can easily (albeit messily) cut bluestone with a circular saw and a diamond blade (about $30 at HD for the blade). we had a “stonecutter” come in and charge us $75hr to cut curved pieces for our stairs. we were kicking ourselves as we watched him, since we had already hired him. the next summer, we did a 2nd patio area (3’x8′) and it was done in 1 day. we used eye protection and a dust mask…something even the stonecutter didn’t do. if you want squared off pieces, it will be a cinch.
We’re not going to do too many curves for now because we want the sodded area to be kid-area (after the necessary root, watering time).
we are just doing low borders along the sides and will decide about the “patio”. For us, this is very much the beginning and about spending as little money as we can to get the garden to the point where we can actually sit in it and THEN reflect over the next year or so about more sophisticated options. Also, keep in mind, we have young children, one of whom has already earned the moniker “dangermouse.”
1. Definitely curves, and levels – they adds informality and texture.
2. We installed sod last year (in a fairly shady garden) It did pretty well, but didn’t fully root, so there were a lot of bare spots by the end of the summer. We overseeded it in the fall and this spring have a very lush lawn. As others said, plant early, and water heavily in the first weeks, and then regularly afterward.
sod not gonna last if you don’t get it in soon before the weather heats up. get a curve in there. you are going to want to think structurally about the shape of your garden in terms of the kinds of plants you put in there. they are structrual too, unless you want low borders. time to visit the gardens for structural shrub inspiration!
Just my experience with grass/blue slate. I dug out the slate squares and created a patio in the rear of the property. Happens to be the sunniest area of the yard and the slate gets awfully hot. The soil surrounding the patio drys out quickly due to the heat.
Regarding the grass. I started with sod before all the renovations were complete. It did fine, but only because I was warned that it must be heavily watered for 3 weeks following installation.
The construction debris kiled most of it so I planted seed. The grass is growing nicely, but it takes a full summer plus to grow heartily. Young grass can be trampled and dies easily.
Good luck.
Our neighbor is building one of those vertical cedar plank “good neighbor” fences. Williamsburgh Gardens is charging him 85 bucks a linear foot. His fence is going to be 43 feet long, and cost $3700. We got a bid from the same guy 2 years ago to lay about 700 sq feet of bluestone, he wanted $15,000 to do it.
Just to clarify, our sod experience was in a brownstone garden similar to yours (we had the rear half of a solid-fenced south-facing yard). I don’t remember what the sod cost (it was from Home Depot), but I do remember my poor husband on his hands and knees the better part of a day preparing the soil and installing the sod, and then me watering it day in and day out for weeks. We didn’t have kids or anyone else trashing or trampling it, and it still failed. Again, I think our garden was just too shady for it (maybe yours is sunnier).
I love the herringbone brick idea too