With it being Autumn here in Australia at the moment it’s time for hubby and me to get our garden in order. That means a big clean down of the front and back porch and planting our winter veggies and also the potted colour for us to enjoy throughout the cold months! There is just something so beautiful during the cooler months to take a wander through our garden and see it in bloom. Sharing our little Vintage Garden Tour along with my blogging pals who are also sharing their homes and gardens.
Vintage Farmhouse Garden Tour
With our house being blue it’s quite a dark backdrop and unfortunately, the front porch doesn’t get lots of sun on it through the Winter months. So we decided to give most of the bushes around the front porch a big haircut to let the light in. Boy, was that a giant job and it left a big mess. So it took us a couple of weekends to make that happen but it was well worth it. It has made a huge difference.
Everything was taken off the front porch and given a good clean to remove all of the dirt since we cleaned it all through Summer. It doesn’t take long for it all to come back that’s for sure.
I am on a BIG decluttering mission! So the beauty with starting with a blank space is that you only put back what you want and can either store or sell the goodies that you don’t use or in some cases throw it away if its damaged and weathered.
There are certain things that I will never get rid of. Like these apple boxes that once were my Granny’s from her apple orchids down in Stanley in Victoria. Because our front porch is only small they are perfect for a little table for us to use and enjoy the morning sun and enjoy our little garden.
I wanted to keep the colours very neutral this time around and have gone with White, black, green and wood.
All of the pot plants got some new soil and some seedlings. I try to use things like snapdragons, pansies and violas as they seem to tolerate the colder temperatures and last the whole winter.
Camellias
Camellias are in full bloom at the moment and are doing so well this year. We are trying to train the line of camellia trees to be a hedge at the front of our house. This one is the biggest of the 3 and they go down in size so after this has finished with its beautiful hair blooms it will get a nice haircut to be in line with the other 2.
We were so lucky over the weekend to see the other big camellia tree in front of our carport burst with blooms.
With using things that I already had I just added back to the potting table keeping things simple.
This chair has now become the most favourite spot for our cat Lilly to now sit and warm up in the sun. I tried to get a happy snap of her but she must have thought that she was getting in trouble and scurried away! But I have a feeling now that we have had a little spruce up, she will be in competition with myself and hubby to sit on the chairs and enjoy the sun!
We are looking forward to the seedlings growing and blooming. Our sweet peas have started to already pop their little heads out from the soil. That will be for a later post when it all becomes a little more established.
Hope you have enjoyed our little tour and be sure to check out below what my blogging pals have been up to.
Happy Creating!!
25 comments
Sam, I just love all the vintage treasures on your porch. How creative to incorporate an old Singer sewing machine into the mix! Being a Canadian Prairie girl, I have to admit that I’m green with envy that you have a “winter” garden – sounds heavenly from where I’m sitting. Your camellias are stunning and I can only imagine an entire hedge of them. Beautiful!
So glad you have enjoyed our little tour, Marie! I have heard how cold your weather gets and it’s crazy!!! I will try really hard not to whine when it gets to our coldest here in the Blue Mountains soon! The camellias are just amazing this year! If I was closer I would bring you some!
Sam your porch is stunning! I’d love to have a porch like yours filled with vintage goodies everywhere, wow! The singer sewing machine is amazing and I love the apple boxes, so perfect to have with the chairs! Enjoy your autumn, it looks so pretty!
Aww, you are so kind Katrin! Thank you. It sure is a nice spot to sit a while and relax when we are able. Even with all of its rusty goodness the Singer Sewing Machine is beautiful! 😉
Everything about your porch is funky, clunky and fun Sam. I love the apple boxes and that chair with just the right amount of paint missing.
It is a gift to be able to put shabby things together in a way that makes them beautiful. You certainly have that gift.
PS its not cold when you can plant vegetables, cooler maybe lol Minus 43 Celsius is cold lol
Thank you so much, Leanna! Yes, I know we don’t get as cold as you do over in Canada but it’s still darn cold!!! LOL!!
Sam your porch is beautiful! I love all the vintage items and how you have it all decorated. I did not know that snapdragons tolerated the cold weather, I will have to remember that. Thanks for the garden tour!
So glad you have enjoyed our little porch, Linda! Thank you for your sweet comment! I’m not sure how cold it gets where you are Linda but it gets down to about -5 50 -8 degrees celsius here and they don’t seem to have an issue 🙂
I really enjoyed your tour! The porch has so many cool treasures! I love the you he your grandmothers apple crates! The sewing machine is so cool!
So glad you enjoyed the tour, Michelle! Yes, those crates are very precious to me and bring back so many wonderful memories!
Camelias! OOH. I am not sure we have them, though I recognize the name. Anything that blooms…and especially if it blooms PINK, I am interested in adding to my garden. I love the details on your porch and can just visualize your cat on your chair. You are an artist at pulling all of your treasures together and then incorporating the season. Was that boxwood growing in the container on top of the apple boxes? Thank you for sharing this space and that amazing Camelia!
Ahh yes I know you love Pink Debbie! I do hope you have them over in your neck of the woods! They are just stunning!! They are faux plants from Ikea!! Last year I tried to grow some pansies there and I just don’t think that enough sun gets through. So faux plants its is for now. Thank you so much for your kind words and I am so glad that you have enjoyed our little space!
Absolutely beautiful
Sammy… such a lovely space. I am never disappointed by your displays?… no such thing as plonking stuff on a table for you my dear … it’s all such a credit to you. Beautiful job ?
Sam, I don’t think I have seen your porch before ! It is full of vintage eye candy!! WOW!!! I love it Sam! That sewing machine and the bed post are my favorites. It is amazing to me that you are so far away and in a different season! Im so thankful to have met you and became friends in blog land!!
This is a beautiful outdoor space, I would love to spend some time there relaxing.
You’re welcome anytime Sarah! 😉 So glad you like it 🙂
Sam, this is such a lovely space! With all of your treasures, you have created such an inviting, comfortable place! Beautiful!
Thank you so much, Lynne! We sure love relaxing in this spot!
Sam – creative, charming and inviting! Beautifully done, and so welcoming. I am so upset that we missed Lilly – please post a picture of her when you can. Maybe she can be pen-pals (or paw-pals?) with our 3 cats. The apple boxes are clearly valuable, and you gave integrated them beautifully with the rest of your porch. Thank you for sharing this and your camellias!!
Haha! Yes, Kristine! It would seem that Miss Lilly seems to know when a photo is about to be taken and scurries away. But will try for sure next time! So glad you enjoyed our front porch and thank you so much for stopping by and leaving such a lovely comment 🙂
Hi Sam – first time I have visited your blog but it’s really inspiring, I love what you’ve done with your front porch. 🙂
Camellias are one of my favourite flowers and I really liked the nice simple pink blooms on yours. Do you happen to know what variety they are? And if they are japonica/sasanqua species? I live in the Perth so sasanquas tend to do better here.
Hi there Julie! Thank you so much for stopping buy and so nice to find a fellow Aussie! Thank you so much for your sweet words. I just went out to have a look at the tags and they have all faded from the sun 🙁 From memory they are sasanqua because of the bright yellow centres and long stamens! Aren’t they just stunning flowers and sure do brighten up our winter!
Hello Sam, I like your vintage garden. You have shared awesome pictures. Your porch is looking stunning. I love gardening. Everybody should have a garden. It gives us fresh air and fruits. Thanks for sharing your blog.
Thank you so much, Mike! Yes, our garden is one of my favourite places to hang out!