A New Take on the Garden Bench

From Freshome, whimsical garden furniture.  Grow-your-own plants right on your very own bench or seat.

  

I wonder if they come complete with holes in the bottom for drainage?

How about bringing the garden to your very own concrete jungle with this bench?

Wood Garden Hanna Bench

Here’s a novel idea.   The Splinter Bench -- 2 chairs or 1 bench.  You choose.

For nautical lovers including Maya at Completely Coastal, a boat-shaped wood bench from David Trubridge.

David Trubridge

And a stunning Indoor/Outdoor bench from Acronym Designs. 

 

How about this sleek aluminum built-in?

My favorite is this striking organic wood bench from Diamond Teak.

Last but not least,  a modern take on timeless Adirondack chairs from Loll Designs.

 

Thoughts?

Oh look, it’s Friday!  You know what that means … it’s time to check out Hooked on Houses Blog Party.  See what others are hooked on this week.

Spotlight on Westover Landscape Design

Every now and then, it’s good to stop and admire some one else’s work.  Here is some work from Westover Landscape Design, a firm based in Westchester county, New York.

 Shanti Garden, Bronxville, NY

A Garden Path

 Slate-framed lawn

  Tarrytown, NY Terrace

 Townhouse Garden

 Westover on Hudson

I admire these spaces because of their simplicity.  I like their use of bluestone slate for the hardscaping and for the most part, their simple plant palette of grasses such as Hakoni grass and ferns, combined with shrubs such as hydrangea.  All provide a sense of unity and harmony.  The weeping habits are also restful providing for a feeling of tranquility.

 

Rock on

These beauties of nature …

 

are really pieces of Livingstones furniture.  Soft and comfy!

They are also made for use outdoors.

 

From the French company Smarin.

This week, I’m hooked on rocks.  To see what others are hooked on, visit Hooked on Houses for her Friday Blog Party.

Ode to the U.S. Open

The U.S. Open is the fourth and final Grand Slam of each Tennis year, following the Australian Open, the French Open, and Wimbledon.  It occurs at summer’s end in Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York on the grounds of what once was the 1939 and 1964 New York World’s Fairs.

 

1964 New York World’s Fair

The Unisphere became the universal symbol of the New York World’s Fair and it’s grounds.   It is still the centerpiece of the park!

 

The USTA National Tennis Center opened in 1978 after then USTA President W.E. “Slew” Hester spotted Louis Armstrong Stadium from the air while flying into nearby LaGuardia Airport. 

Today the grounds are known as Flushing Meadows – Corona Park.  The view from above shows how large the park is.  It includes Shea Stadium; the Billie Jean National Tennis Center, home of the U.S. Open; a zoo; science museum; marina; two lakes; skating rink; soccer pitches; and cricket fields.  Some would be surprised to learn that it is larger than Central Park.

 

In 1995, Arthur Ashe Stadium replaced Louis Armstrong Stadium as the largest venue on the grounds.  Designed by Rossetti Architects, it is also the largest tennis-only stadium in the world!

Arthur Ashe Stadium

On August 28, 2006, the USTA National Tennis Center was rededicated as the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.  It is the largest and most prestigious facility of its kind to be named after a woman.

There are 22 tennis courts in the Billie Jean National Tennis Center and 11 more in the adjoining park.

Although the Billie Jean National Tennis Center is home of the U.S. Open, it is also open to the public for play 11 months out of the year.  The cost to the public is $16 an hour.  Each May, it also hosts the New York state high school tennis championships.

  Fountains outside of Arthur Ashe Stadium

Last year, 720,227 people attended the two week U.S. Open events.  It is crowded with sophisticated and sporty people.

 

I recently had the great fortune of attending the U.S. Open!  We were there last Saturday.  I was excited to see my tennis heroes in their New York colors!

I got to see my favorite player, Roger Federer beat Lleyton Hewitt.  Here he is on the big screen being interviewed after his win in Arthur Ashe Stadium.

And after a big serve on the courts!

I ALMOST got his autograph!!!

Here is Maria Sharapova warming up for her match against the young American, Melanie Oudin.  Oudin beat her!

And Andy Roddick hitting a big serve against John Isner, who went on to beat him!

Here’s Melanie Oudin in tears after beating her idol, Sharopova.

… and me at the biggest venue in tennis!

Congratulations to Kim Clijsters for winning this year’s US Open Women’s Singles title!  You know who I’ll be cheering for tomorrow night.  His initials are RF!

If you happen to be lucky enough to have a ticket for the men’s championship on Monday evening, check out these Ten Tips when visiting the U.S. Open.  You might find them helpful!

From Tree to Table: A New Use for Fallen Leaves

 

Verterra is now making dinnerware from fallen leaves.  The company manufactures environmentally friendly plates, bowls and serving dishes from just two ingredients – fallen leaves and water.

Pack your picnic lunch, serve it up on these beauties and leave them for compost!  Guaranteed to decompose into beautiful Mother Earth in just two months!

What’s more, the company will even teach you how to compost Here. 

Go get your Green on!

Each Friday, Julia at Hooked on Houses hosts a Friday Blog Party.  Stop by it HERE and see if you are lucky enough to find the hidden treasure!

 

 

Zone 8 Gardens

For me, summertime in Wilmington, North Carolina always means a trip or two or three to

 Zone 8 Gardens. 

This is a gem of a garden center and is owned by

Dick Stinson. 

Upon arriving at Zone 8 Gardens,

one is greeted by very loud classical music that seems to be coming from the trees. 

Immediately, you know that a unique experience is at hand. 

The gardens are truly beautiful. 

Dick and his staff have planted them out over the years

with sub-tropicals that do well in our coastal

Zone 8 environment.  I’m thinking the garden center

has more plants in the ground to see than it has to sell.  Dick

personally showed me what was blooming!

Dick is a collector.  He collects plants and art.  

Although I loved all of the plants,

I also admired this very large chicken.

This smaller one however, was more within my budget.

How about this pelican? 

Dick built this wall inside his greenhouse entirely out of

old windows. 

It is stunning!

My eye was drawn to this lobster sitting on the sill. 

Imagine, a  Lobster in the garden!

I found some ferns in beautiful pots.

and Purple Pixies.  I’ve blogged about these beauties.

Here is Dwarf Podocarpus

 

and some very happy sunflowers.

Dick is now really into xeriscape plants or those plants that will do well in the zone with little to no care at all. 

Here is just a small part of his aloe, yucca and agave collection for sale.  They are all high energy plants.

This plant has beautiful star-shaped flowers like jasmine.

The Ginger Lilys are so tall and gorgeous and very fragrant as well.  They attract the most interesting moths in the early evening hours!   The moths can easily be mistaken for Hummingbirds.

 

At the end of the day, Dick (center) can often be found relaxing with friends out back, enjoying the classical music and the conversation in his subtropical garden paradise.

Oh, what a life! 

If you ever find yourself in Wilmington, North Carolina, stop in at Zone 8 Gardens and tell Dick I sent you!