POUNDING THE PAVERS

            "Where do you come up with ideas for all the things you write about?" my friend Chuck asked last Tuesday evening over ribs and his wife Maggie's fabulous, secret-recipe potato salad.

The French House, Wilmington, NC

            Ideas for topics come from all over the place. For example, Miss Janice, owner of The French House bed-and-breakfast in Wilmington, phoned on a Sunday morning not too long ago. About to convert her dirt driveway to period paving bricks, she wanted to know what to use to underneath them to prevent the pavers from sinking into our sandy soil.

            Well, huh, I thought as we chatted. There’s a post.

            Tim and I do a bit of paver and wall-block work in our business. Almost all our projects are dry-laid, meaning we use no mortar. The ground in southeastern North Carolina never freezes; ergo, it never heaves.  I enjoy the work, as it requires precision. (Although Nature abhors a straight line, those of us afflicted by anal-retentive tendencies secretly adore them.) We’ve installed circular decorative medallions, angular sidewalks, flat patios, patios incorporating steps, seating walls, low retaining walls and, once, a grand surround for a fountain. We’ve also run about a mile of standing-paver edging.

            Yep, I’d say we know our pavers.

Some paver colors & styles

            Pavers come in various sizes, shapes and colors, and, for the purposes of this discussion, include concrete stepping stones, or “steppers.” There are even paver “systems,” sets of blocks in differing shapes that fit together to form patterns. A visit to the home improvement emporium or—better yet—your local brickyard can leave you reeling with ideas for embellishing and enhancing your garden. Prices range from very affordable do-it-yourself to moderately expensive hire-someone-else-to-do-the-heavy-lifting projects, to over-the-top master mason-created objets d’art.  

            In the interest of getting this post out before the end of April—the farm in our front yard consumes a great deal of my time these days, not to mention our beloved regular clients who have grown weary of looking at their tired violas and bolted mustards—here are some pictures of several Fitzgerald projects from ridiculously easy to quite complex for a couple of gardeners giving themselves on-the-job training.

            Just below on the left is an example of Belgian block plopped on the ground to serve as edging. I love Belgian block, with its rough-hewn surfaces, unique cubed forms and considerable heft. The downside? It’s pricey. I dream of one day having a dry-laid Belgian-block driveway: stately, textured, pervious, and great traction. But for now, 12 feet of single-wide edging represents the extent of my budget. (I blew the bulk of it on what Tim indulgently calls my $700 potato.)

A proper Belgian block sidewalk

at The Stone Garden,

Wilmington's premier stoneyard

Rudimentary Belgian block edging

            

             Here are two toss-it-on-the-ground projects utilizing square steppers. I wanted a level place behind our screened porch to put pots on and to quell a stubborn crop of fleabane; our friend Cornelia needed a hard surface on which to drag her garbage cans to the curb. Lest you be misled by my literary insouciance, “toss it on the ground” doesn’t really describe the installation. Level is the operative word here, and will pop up many, many times in the next few posts.

Steppers make it easier to get

your garbage to the curb

Steppers make a base for pots

           

            

            Next we undertook a sidewalk, also at Cornelia’s, that presented new challenges and educational opportunities. First, part of the space was really narrow; second, the walkway took two 45-degree turns; and lastly, we wanted to maintain the integrity of the pattern, a kind of modified basketweave. All three required sawn-to-shape pavers. To make precision cuts with minimum effort, you need a special chop-saw with special, heavy-duty blades.  Unfortunately, Tim muscled through using a masonry blade on his regular chop-saw. Live and learn, right? Still, the project turned out very acceptably.

Challenge # 1

Challenge # 2

            

Notice how evenly the water's dripping down

             When our friends Charlotte and Tom bought a graceful, three-tiered fountain for their back yard, they asked us to install it. Level is paramount when dealing with water features: nothing reveals the tiniest tilt to port or starboard, fore or aft as glaringly as water. Other aesthetics to consider when constructing a base are shape, color, and dominance. The fountain was grey and circular, so we built the base to match in order to showcase the fountain rather than its surround. (It can also be done the other way ’round, and we’ll get there shortly.) For now, suffice it to say Charlotte’s fountain introduced us to The Circle Kit, one of those paver "systems" mentioned above.

This is what you call an irregular shape

          Charlotte and Tom loved our fountain job so much they asked us to continue the paver motif by building a patio off the back steps. Bordered by an extruded-concrete edging, the challenge here was the area’s irregular shape. Another learning opportunity!

Circular medallion in the center

A semi-circular medallion at the bottom step echoed the full circle at the geographical center of the space. We filled in with a gently curving running bond. Having by now obtained the special chop-saw and special heavy-duty blades, all necessary cutting went smoothly.

 

The step the mason forgot

The original brick mason paid meticulous attention to the job specifications: the plans called for three steps, so three steps are what he built, regardless of the fact that there were 13 inches between the bottom step's tread and the ground instead of the seven-inch height of the rest of the risers. I pointed out this little lawsuit waiting to happen to Charlotte. “So fix it,” she said. We did, and quite elegantly, too, if I say so myself. Tim insisted we mortar the upright bricks for sturdiness. I insisted the same uprights be a different color for visibility. (Scarred by 12 years spent in lawyer-land, I see potential liability suits everywhere.)

Remember me saying fountain surrounds can be subtle or not? Here’s our “or not.” An enormously fun project to design and execute, this paver / seating-wall / entrance column construction took eight weeks on the ground to complete. It ended up costing 35 times as much as the putative centerpiece, a rococo Italianate-style fountain. Apparently, the angels were as pleased with the outcome as the homeowners, because we have photographic evidence.

A heavenly blessing

The grand fountain surround

Next time, a bit about wall-blocks, standing-brick edgings, and a primer on laying pavers.

Thanks for dropping by.

                                                            Kathy

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P.S.—Gracie, this is for you: grow-bags galore!

QUICK TIPS

            Tim and I spent the last week or so doing a basic spring landscape clear-out—pruning, weeding, feeding. (It wasn’t awful as it sounds: an average Fitz workday runs about four hours, plus we get all inclement-weather days off. Oh, the joys of self-employment! But don’t try this at home, kids, unless you are mortgage- and debt-free, and can be happy with a simple, low-tech, anti-consumption lifestyle.) The lovely, appreciative couple whose yard we literally crawled all over marveled at the difference between before and after. And that’s without planting a thing except one 30” hayrack.

Southern crabapple blossom
(Malus angustifolius)

            It’s not really horrendously hard work, because Tim and I have a rhythm that plays to our individual strengths. It occurred to me that I could share some of our techniques, discovered during years of T always looking for the easiest, fastest and most efficient way to get things done and me poking along behind, humming to myself, avoiding tool-use as much as possible.          

I’ve also been having an online conversation with a reader named Julie about some of her gardening woes. She describes a problem, I respond with what I think the cause might be and suggest a solution. (See what making a comment can do for you?)  Between the two of us, we decided a post of early-spring tips might be generally helpful. So here are a dozen snippets of random advice, from the voice of experience.

           

TIP 1:  The optimal time to feed your plants is when active growth begins. I’ve covered the ins and outs of this topic ad nauseum in “Food for Thought, Parts 1 and 2” (see February 20^th and 24^th posts), so all I’ll add here is a factoid: at the job we just finished, it took five 40-pound bags of Holly-Tone to do the job right for an average-size suburban lot. Don’t scrimp.



Unlimbed-up hedge



TIP 2:  Prune before you feed, so you aren’t schlepping around underneath shrubs with your face in fertilizer. What do you mean, “underneath”? you say. I mean it’s critical that you limb up plants from below to enhance good air circulation, in turn enhancing pest resistance. (I recommend protective eyewear for this task if you don’t already need corrective lenses to see your shrubs.) Cool weather is best for this chore, especially for those of you who are reptile- and insect-phobic—get out there before hibernating creatures stir. Clear out dead leaves and twigs and old mulch while you’re down there: this also helps improve circulation and can remove overwintering pests.



Limbed-up hedge



TIP 3:  One other pruning hint—if you haul your cullings off yourself, cut them into straight pieces so they’ll compact better. Y- and L-jointed branches take up more space, meaning more runs to the dumping ground.     

TIP 4:  On to weeding. Drag a big tub (my favorite is a 25-gallon nursery pot) around with you for collection. It’s easier than making piles you have to go back and pick up later. Why do I have to weed? I hear you whining. Because weeds take water and nutrients away from the things you actually planted, that’s why. Don’t throw weed flowers or seeds into the compost pile. That’s just asking for trouble. (At T’s and my latest job, wild garlic grew rampantly. Its bulbs, and those of wild onions, are edible. The onions’ flavor is sharper, like green onions, and the garlic milder than cultivated versions. Just in case you were wondering.)



Summer snowflake
(Leucojum aestivum)



TIP 5:  While you’re down on the ground weeding, you might as well neaten up the edges of your beds. I pull the mulch away from the grass, removing any lawn incursions, and leave the edge open. Tim comes behind me with his sharp shovel and cuts a lovely English trench. (Sound like too much work? You may want to invest in hard edging, which is a topic for another day.)

TIP 6:  Getting ready to plant containers? Clean your pots after emptying them—recycle the soil to the compost pile or to low spots in your yard if last season’s plants stayed healthy. I don’t usually bother with the ten-to-one bleach-and-water scrub, but I do give my pots a brisk once-over, inside and out, with a nail brush, then wipe them down with a clean cloth (which is why I never throw away ratty dishtowels).



Sweetly fragrant monastery vine
(Akebia quinata 'Shiro Bana')



TIP 7:  How do you figure how much soil your pots will need? Cubic volume is height times width times depth, which gives you cubic inches: divide by 1728 to convert to cubic feet. But what about soil measured in quarts? A 32-quart bag fills two-and-a-quarter-ish 30-inch by 9-inch by 6-inch hayracks, so I’d guesstimate it to be a tad over two cubic feet of soil. Trial and error is the best teacher, of course. Always buy more than you think you’ll need: that way you won’t have to stop in the middle of planting to run back to Lowe’s.





Rain and wind-battered
Rosa chinensis 'Mutabilis'



TIP 8:  Mix a couple of 16-ounce cupfuls of composted matter (I use Black Kow) and a half-cup or so of kelp meal into that 30” hayrack’s soil. All commercial potting mixes are sterile by definition: the Kow helps with moisture retention and the kelp with trace minerals Osmocote and Miracle-Gro (good fertilizer choices for containers) lack.    

TIP 9:  If you have moss or coco-liners to change out, the old ones make good weed barrier fabric for around trees and shrubs. You’re not only recycling, you’re building your soil as the liners decompose over time.



Spanish bluebells
(Hyacinthiodes hispanica)



TIP 10:  Is your garden’s soil sandy? Azaleas, gardenias and Japanese camellias looking sad? Give them a boost by doing three things. 1) Make sure they are not too deep in the ground. In particular, shallow-rooted azaleas do best when their topmost rootlets are at soil level. Digging them up and resetting them higher will make a world of difference. 2) Take advantage of the replanting opportunity and amend the soil in the hole with composted matter and a healthy dollop of elemental sulfur (available at farmers supply stores if not at the local home improvement emporium). 3) Feed the buggers. In addition to appropriate amounts of Holly-Tone, topdress all your acid-lovers annually with composted matter and elemental sulfur if your native soil tends toward neutral or alkaline.

TIP 11:  Distressed by a black coating on your gardenias and-or crape myrtle foliage? It’s called sooty mold, and is mildewed whitefly and aphid poop, respectively. The good news? It’s a cosmetic problem, and, since neither pest is active right now (although they will be soon!), now’s a good time to clean the mess off. Mix a tablespoon of soap (not detergent) in a quart of water in a spray bottle. Coat the affected foliage to the dripping point, top and bottom, with the soapy water. Let it sit 10 or 15 minutes, then blast the plant with the hose to wash the stuff off.



American honeysuckle
(Lonicera sempervirens)



TIP 12:  To prevent recurrence, clear out and dispose of (but not in the compost) the mulch and any dead leaves at the base of the plants to remove any over-wintering eggs or larvae. Treat gardenias with horticultural oil at intervals all season, per package directions. Aphids on crapes (or anything else, for that matter) dislodge easily with a strong jet of water from the hose, or you can use an insecticidal-soap spray. Make sure all plants have good air circulation from all directions, including from underneath.

            Hope these tips help as you ready your property for the coming warm weather. Not that gardeners need an excuse to spend time outside in the spring.

            A note on the pictures: since the subject wasn’t particularly photogenic (except the limbing-up underneath bit), I supplemented with what’s blooming today chez Fitz.

            Thanks for dropping by. Next time—veggies!

                                                                        Kathy