My new courtyard.

Well it is not a new courtyard, but with all the new plants it feels like a new courtyard. This is the first garden that I have truly planned before buying and planting. Back in about November I suddenly realised how much I love sitting in the courtyard, and how much nicer again it would be if it was a garden, rather than a bare brick yard. Well instead of my usual rushing out and starting buying plants, I decided since it was such a small and unusual shape I would have to plan it carefully. The courtyard has the large heating unit for our central heating and earlier in the year, my mum had organised for her handyman to put in a trellis screen for us. It does a good job, but I decided that I really wanted to grow a climbing plant on it, but what? I spent time reading, talking and thinking about all the different plants I could have. I started really wanting a passionfruit, but then decided it might be a bit cold for it in Canberra. The I went through the options, potato vine (we’ve got 2 already and they do really well, safe option.) But we’ve already got 2 and I want something different. The family used to have a beach cottage called clematis cottage what if I grow clematis. I like that idea, but I really want a passionfruit. So I came full cycle back to the passionfruit, so guess what I planted a “Ned Kelly” black passionfruit today in a big brown ugly pot. My mum helped me plant it out and she insisted we put a lamb’s liver near the bottom of the pot. She says it’s important, don’t know why, but she’s usually right when it comes to gardening stuff. (Even if she’s not right about lots of other things, I know you’re reading this Queen of Misinformation). The courtyard is a triangle shape like below, the corner with the smily face, is the most difficult corner and I knew it needed a larger structural plant to fill it out. At first I thought I might have a fern tree, to go with the fern tree near the pond, but I didn’t think it would go well in a pot. So I decided I would give in to one of my longings and buy another lime tree, this time I would get a Tahitian lime for the fruit, after buying a kaffia lime last time. When I went to the garden nursery I was very excited to fine no Tahitian limes, but instead they had an Australian lime, so that now graces my courtyard.



The final key structural point of the garden was a largish rectangular window box along the wall with the star. I knew I wanted flowering plants in this and I have planted blushing butterflies, hot lips and a Christmas lily (which my nursery gave to me for free, because it was dying)
What else have I put in my courtyard? A large water pot with 2 goldfish, a pineapple guava (a thoughtful impulse buy) and a pot of black bamboo. The pineapple guava I saw in the nursery and my mum said they were nice. So I was thinking about buying one, when I saw an article about them in an old Gardening Australia magazine, that clinched the deal and off I trundled to buy one. The Bamboo Miki allowed me to buy as a Christmas tree and after it had served its job of guarding all the presents, he carefully carried it to the courtyard for me.

Photos
Here are the before and after photos of the tricky corner with the smily face. As you can see I have some pots for more planting. The brown pot is the same as I used the passion-fruit. I brought the pots because they were very cheap on special, thinking it was because they were ugly. When I got them home I realized that they were not only ugly, but very very heavy. It takes 2 people to lift them empty.





Here are the before and after photos of the other end of the courtyard with the trellis and the window box.



Last photos,
My passionfruit vine! Fingers crossed it survives and does well. The courtyard is very sheltered and doesn't seem to get frosty.

My fish, They are all hiding under an old teapot plunder than my mum gave me. The ugly green thing is a solar pump water fountain that is set into a fake lily pad. Hopefully it will look better when I add water weed from my mum.


So now I have the beginnings of my courtyard oasis.