I’m thrilled to be starting a new greenhouse series here on Wildlandia. When I saw the listing for this house, I thought it was cool that it came with a gardening space. Kind of a fun story, our land lord is this really tall, happy Danish guy who lives up in the hills and fixes up old Italian sports cars. When I called about the listing, we ended up talking for twenty minutes about all kinds of things – gardening being one of them. We all met up and did a walk through, then a few days later went out for margaritas and nachos with him and his girlfriend to sign the lease. He’s been over a few times since then and brought us a tomato plant for the greenhouse that’s currently living in my sink. I’m excited to garden and get creative here. The couple who lived here before us really let the place go, so we’ve been rolling up our sleeves and tackling cool projects like pulling back ivy-covered walkways and finding all kinds of hidden treasures underneath.
I’ve never had a greenhouse. Up until now I’ve mostly had succulents because they are so easy to care for and can go long periods of time requiring little attention. Succulents are like the cats of plants. Or, the Mila cat of plants at least. I had this really great fiddle leaf fig tree once, but Keeper destroyed it as a puppy back when she was an uncivilized little punk (ok she still pretty much is. go girl, do it to it). This past weekend we washed the greenhouse inside and out, got all the spider webs out, and shoveled out the old, smelly, dry soil that was left behind in the planters. Now we have two raised beds that I plan on planting veggies in, and lots of wooden shelves/sills to grow flowers in. A couple weeks ago I planted some seeds and so far I’ve had rainbow chard, spinach, and heirloom tomatoes start sprouting. It’s so fun to wake up and walk outside to the greenhouse to see what has grown overnight. My grandma used to grow the prettiest flowers in her backyard. I always remember it being such a peaceful place. I hope I can recreate that feeling with my space here.
Here are some before photos…
At the hardware store the other day I picked up a quart of paint for the door to the greenhouse. I went with a color I’ve wanted to use on something for a while and love how it turned out. There’s something about finding the perfect color. I think it’s called synesthesia, where you think and feel in colors. I’ve always loved thinking in that way. This color was called “abyss” and it makes my brain happy.
Herbs and veg and flowers here we come! I’m going to get a speaker to play music in there and look for a cool vintage stool to add inside too. One with a wooden seat and antiqued metal legs. And a little rug for any garden buddies that decide to join in. Jack’s in it for the carrots. They’re his favorite. I already planted some for him. More to come!