On the rocks.....

This is a rock garden just outside on the terrace between my studio and our living room. Normally this would not be a style I would choose but it is practical for this area due to the large windows there. We thought it would be a simple touch to the sitting area near the house as we plan to plant up the rest of the garden heavily in comparison.

But the rock garden needed a facelift. For years, the previous owners have swept dirt and junk into this area and it showed. If you look at the photo above you can see the results after cleaning it up from the photo below which is before we started.

You can see the anti-weed membrane sticking up through the pebbles and it is just very dirty looking. We found broken wine glass, clothes pins, plastic wrappers, plastic from toys, etc. and lots of leaves and so much dirt that weeds started growing in it.

We removed everything right back to the membrane. Once the membrane was swept, we started to first filter out the less dirty pebbles to put them back. A good half of them had to be washed though. It was hard work which we sometimes continued even when it turned dark. A friend laughed when she saw it and asked if the beauty police were coming to visit. I laughed back and said the beauty police live here. *grins*

The fountain did not work and we wanted to see if we could figure out if the pump was broken but instead Jos discovered this. If you look closely on the photo, you will see that the end of the cord has been cut straight through most likely with a hedge clipper. Jos plans to pull up part of the terrace to retrieve the remaining portion of cord and repair it.

When the frost season has passed, I will plant another decorative grass. We marked a spot for it with a tile.

Now my large lanterns are standing in the rock garden and I think they look like they belonged there all along. It is so pretty from inside the studio or living room to see the candles lit.

Our gardening makeover has started and this was hard work but when I see the before and after photos, it was well worth it. We have major plans for both front and back which we are going to work on as time and weather permits. For now, I can sit on the terrace in the coming spring to enjoy the rock garden and hopefully by then a working rock fountain.