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So, all summer long, I have been working on creating a new look to a corner of our back yard. We had no plants, well, strike that....the entire inside of the fence was completely overgrown with vines, weeds, and bushes, but my wife cleared that out before we got pics. Anyways, we did this all ourselves as a giant DIY project in preparation for our "Hawaiian" themed wedding the week before last.

We are finally getting around to snapping some pics, and I wanted to share. Notice that many of our banana plants did not get much growth this year. I think that we got them in the ground entirely too late. The project started in May, but I don't think we got the first plant in until July. Considering this, though, some got some dramatic growth in that time. ALL of the canna's were planted from rhizomes aside from the bird of paradise and bengel tiger, which were 4" TC plants.

As for the banana plants; The Gros Michel was from a member on here, Chance1945. Most other came from online sources or local nurseries. The Black Thai has great growth, and also had a nice sized pup.

With the palms, we have Sabals, Pindos, Euro Fan, Blue Fan, and a mexican fan. All of these should do fairly well here in GA, though I am worried about some of the younger ones this winter.

I am not sure how well the banana's will last through the winter. A lot are still very small. Some have good root growth I'm sure...but hoping I can overwinter them enough that they will all be back next year. The Gros Michel is is doing well, but we will have to see how it fairs especially.

As for varieties.... I have Black Thai, Mekong Giant, Ice Cream, Gros Michel, Dwarf Orinoco, Red Abyssinian, Musa Basjoo, Snow Banana, and a supposed California Gold... i think that is it.

Now for pics!

BEFORE

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AFTER

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ok....everything has been updated via the gallery. enjoy

oakshadows

A BIG pat on the back for both of you. It is very pretty and nicely arranged. Was this of your design or help from a landscaper? If you two did all of the work you are surely tired. Now if the weather cooperates you can enjoy a nice fall outside.
Thanks and post pics when the yard grows a little more.

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"What this country needs is dirtier fingernails and cleaner minds."

austinl01

It looks great. You are going to have a jungle back there in no time. Like a mullet...party in the back!

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Austin
Arkansas River Valley

Average January Low: 31°F, Average August High: 92°F
Extreme Winter Lows: 5-15°F, Extreme Summer Highs: 100-112°F, Annual Precipitation: 52 inches

Ready2Play

Thanks! No help, the design was all mine. We hand painted all the concrete items (statues, benches, etc), hand built the firepit, pilings, etc, hand dug all the plant holes, hand carted the mulch....we did it all.

You can't see a lot of minute things from the pics either, such as the many statues placed around and some of the plants that didn't get to full bloom (hibiscus, colocasia, alocasia, etc.) It lights up pretty nice at night. All solar lighting. There are outdoor speakers out there run from garage. The poles for the hammocks and pilings were telephone poles delivered by the city, and MAN are those things HEAVY!!! We have a few more of those as well. Eventually, we be replacing the gazebo with an actual fully built tiki ut and bar. There will be horsehoe pits off to the side and everything as well. We just ran out of time.

More plans for next year, and cannot wait for the jungle to fill in! The young palms will grown in eventually too and give the whole area a tropical vibe.

G.W.

love the look but I'd hate the bill

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winter winners, jackfruit, carambola, hua moa, d namwah, hak ip lychee with pink leaves 2 days before a cold snap eeeek!

Winter losers, kohala longan, misi luki, 80% jackfruit seedling loss

first bloomers, HUA MOA, DC, D NAMWAH, FHIA 17, KANADARIAN, RAJA PURI, M D NAMWAH

best bunch FHIA 17 , undisclosed

WORST BUNCH hua moa, 2 fingers

Ready2Play

Haha...well, it actually wasn't that bad all said and done. I'm unemployed with a small VA disability payment, and she only makes $10 an hour, so we have minimal budget after bills. We did this on that budget, and that is the main reason it took a few months to complete.

A lot of the stuff was free believe it or not. Telephone poles, mulch, and a lot of the plants were free from the city or craigslist. The most expensive parts were the concrete border and tall palm. We also have a friend at a landscaping company who gave us great deals on the topsoil/mushroom compost and the sand. Plus, my grandfather was able to get most of the concrete statues free as well. Let me see ...I haven't even figured it out so i will on here:

Telephone Poles - Free
Mulch - Free
Some plants -free
Concrete statues - $100 for ones we did buy (2 giant tiki men)
Palm - $400 delivered and planted (the one hole we didn't dig)
Border -$675
Plants- $350
Landscape Fabric - $250
Gazebo - $40 + $65 for new cover
Hammocks - $70
Sand and Dirt - $65
Lighting - $100
Tiki Torches - $20 (love sales!)
Paint and misc - $150
Fire Pit plus accessories/gas components - $250

I think that is about it besides all the work and such we put in. So just barely over $2000...not too bad IMO considering it was built as a wedding setting that we could keep versus paying $3000 for a venue for one day.

Ready2Play

Some more pics from the wedding day as well. I tried finding a closeup of the bamboo and banana leaf podium I build too.

orinoko

Garden is an awesome transition from the first Image to the last,

Wedding Image loks lovely.....congratulation I hope you spend many happy years together.

What are the small structures called that have teeth..heheeh?

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[url="http://flowersnpalms.com/lancalass/[/URL]

ReneeFLL

Ya'll did a fantastic job on the landscaping.
The hawaiian wedding dress and outfits are really cool. My kind of thing.
If you are ever in Ft. Lauderdale you should visit the Mai Kai. I think you will really like it. The website is below along with another one you might enjoy.
Renee

Mai-Kai Restaurant - Fort Lauderdale
Welcome to the Fraternal Order of Moai

Ready2Play

Thanks! The Hawaiian theme was chosen to bring a little Hawaii into our own home since we miss it so much. That is where we were both living when we met, but moved back to my home state of GA to be a little closer to my family, and so I could get into the whole acting business.

We will actually be in Ft Lauderdale soon....well, hopefullly soon. We have a cruise paid for already that ports out down there, so we will definitely check that place out! We will be on land for about 3 days before the cruise, so we should have plenty of time! Thanks!

GreenFin

Great improvement job! Looks fantastic. You'll get enjoyment out of that for years.

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Set out runnin', but I'll take my time; a friend of bananas is a friend of mine.

www.GreenFinGardens.com

Bradford

Looks great, but the backyard is never complete!

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God grows bananas.

Abnshrek

Ain't that the truth.. :^)

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I'm a Nannerhead :^)