Extend the Outdoor Season with a Firepit

Extend the Outdoor Season with a Firepit

 

Fall is coming, and we can expect chilly nights soon. But wouldn’t it be great if you could still gather with family and friends out on the patio for a relaxing evening outdoors? Consider the warmth and congeniality a firepit on your patio or an outdoor fireplace can provide.

“Especially during this time of the pandemic, it’s a good way to get outside without going anywhere,” says Gardens of Babylon landscape architect Ryan Fogarty. While most of us no longer need open fires for cooking (except, possibly, for making s’mores), time with friends around a fire can warm the air and the heart.

As the weather cools, a crackling fire on the patio can extend the time you can be outdoors. “It’s a great way to enjoy being out in the yard,” Fogarty says. “It’s like a little retreat.”

Stylish additions

For outdoor entertaining, family gatherings, casual dinners on the patio, a firepit can be the element that brings people together. In an outdoor room, a fireplace can make the space comfortable even when the weather is cold.

“We have definitely seen an uptick this year with people requesting a firepit built into design plans,” Fogarty says. “It’s a cool experience in nature. Like going camping without going camping.”

Style choices run the gamut, from rustic stacked stones to designs that are sleek and modern, or anything in between. 

Design and build

A typical firepit for Gardens of Babylon clients may be circular or square, usually 18 inches tall or a little taller. The width depends on the scale of the design, but it’s typically 36 or 42 inches wide or wider, Fogarty says. It may be built of wall block veneer and capstones, but can be any suitable material that may reflect the style of the landscape and the homeowner.

“If it’s in a patio, we build the patio around it,” Fogarty says. In a wood-burning firepit, the logs sit atop fire bricks flush with the ground. Gas firepits are also available. The gas company taps into the home’s gas line and attaches a fireplace insert, and the building crew builds a wall block or other veneer around the insert to hide it, Fogarty explains. 

Questions to ask:

Here are some questions to consider when you include a firepit or fireplace in your landscape design:

  • How and when you will use it? It is for entertaining large groups or small gatherings? Maybe it’s just for the two of you.
  • Do you want wood-burning or gas-fired?
  • How large should it be? Is a small firepit big enough? Is a massive fireplace too large?
  • What is your style: rustic? Sleek and modern? Something in between?
  • What type of seating will be placed around or nearby?
  • If a firepit is to be installed in a patio, is there enough space to accommodate it?
  • Should the firepit design include an additional wall for seating? “A firepit with a seat wall takes a lot of space,” Fogarty says. Maybe you’d rather have it out in your yard.”

A fireplace has an extra set of considerations. “The majority of fireplaces we have worked on have been a kit, and we veneer it with a brick or other natural veneer that the homeowner wants, Fogarty says. “A fireplace also requires a chimney flue and the insert, which comes with the kit.”

“For homeowners with kids it’s good for getting outside and sitting around,” she adds. And those marshmallows melting over the firepit for s’mores are something even the kids will enjoy.

To discuss ways to include a firepit or fireplace in your landscape design plans, book a consultation with a Gardens of Babylon landscape design team professional here.

August Container Planting Tips

August Container Planting Tips

Hey, my name is Dana with Gardens of Babylon and today we’re going to talk about August container planting and I’m going to give you some tips and tricks.

All right so for August containers this is a transition month, we’re moving out of summer into fall and so our containers have been really going strong all season long and this is the time to just sort of look and see what’s going on, like can we salvage anything do we need to get our pruners out and maybe tidy up a little bit and deadhead.

Tidying up and deadheading the containers

This container actually looks amazing you can see the lavender is just really flush and the Lantana. I do see this is very common so this cute these coral bells we’re just gonna do a little bit of deadheading. You don’t have to go all the way down to the base, I just want to sort of tidy up a little bit and get anything that’s kind of got its thing out. So that’s the first step for your containers.

So now that we’ve sort of tidied up a little bit we’re going to look and see if there’s any dead spots is there anything that we could sort of liven up a little bit. Some containers you will have to pull some things out because they’ve just sort of done their thing for the season.

Transition Plants: Summer to Fall

But these are some great transition pieces. This is a Snapdragon it’s a great transitional piece because it takes still our hot summer heat and it will actually transition into fall and take some frost so this is perfect.  I feel like we’ve got a little bit of a bare spot so i will come in and just tuck in this color right here it’s going to be perfect.

Most people don’t realize that Lantana does take a little bit of cold as well. So another fun idea other than Snapdragons is we, I love to use vegetables in my fall containers. This is a Chard it’s a bright lights chard and you can see it’s multi the different plants they’re going to be like yellows and bright reds. So this would be another thing to pop in and this is going to grow up and give you some color as it starts to turn cold and you can eat it which is amazing.

Succulents are also a an idea to add because this is still drought hot and you want to have things that are going to take that drought in that heat that’s not going to require so much watering.

August is a fertilizing month

August is a time to fertilize, fertilize and fertilize because your pods have been going strong all season long and so it’s time to sort of give them a little bit of a rejuvenation. I either love to use like a good organic fertilizer liquid organic fertilizers are amazing and actually just spill it onto the foliage because right away that fertilizer if it’s liquid will go straight into the plant and work straight away.

Another thing we’re going to talk about is how to sort of amend the soil on top let’s talk about that next. All right so in August we don’t necessarily have to go in and take out soil and add new soil what i like to do is called top dressing.

So i just love to use a natural soil conditioner it’s a cross between a really fine mulch and almost could be soil and it decomposes very very quickly because it’s very fine. I love to use soil conditioner and i like to just put it on the top of the soil in and around all of my containers this time of year.

All right so this is it for august container planting tips the main thing is just have fun if you need to add some new things find things that spark joy for you it’s the little things in life.

How Landscape Audio Can Make a Gathering Space

How Landscape Audio Can Make a Gathering Space

Landscape Audio makes your outdoor space special

Imagine relaxing in your personal outdoor retreat.  It probably has comfortable seating, just the right amount of shade and sun, and soothing music all around. A custom sound system designed for the specific needs of your landscape takes outdoor music enjoyment to the next level. An outdoor audio system is a nice addition to your outdoor living area, says Eric Van Grinsven, a landscape designer with the Gardens of Babylon design team. A backyard retreat is the area where you can get away to when you need a break. “It’s your little spot you can disappear to or just relax and be surrounded by nature.”

Indoor, outdoor: What’s the difference?

Your favorite music sounds good indoors because there are walls and ceilings to bounce the sound back to your ears. But even the best indoor speakers, when they’re outdoors, send music out into the open where sound quality is diminished. A system designed for outdoor spaces balances the sound coverage throughout the area, tailored specifically to your landscape design. Outdoor speakers are also more durable, built to withstand the sun, wind, rain, cold, dust, dirt, bugs and other elements that you expect in an outdoor environment.

How does outdoor audio work?

Gardens of Babylon is a certified dealer of Coastal Source, a landscape audio systems company based in Moorestown, NJ. Chris Marshall, a Coastal Source landscape lighting and audio designer, explains that a landscape audio design specialist will consider the size, shape and needs of an area, based on the landscape design submitted by the dealer. The setup generally includes a power supply, amplifier, audio streamer and speakers.

Interested in including audio in your backyard retreat? Schedule a free phone consultation through the Irrigation, Lighting & Audio portal on the Gardens of Babylon website. You can also schedule an in-person audio demonstration to hear how outdoor audio can transform your outdoor living areas.

How to Choose the Right Hydrangea

How to Choose the Right Hydrangea

When choosing the right hydrangea, there are a couple things to consider first:

  • Will the hydrangea go in full sun, partial sun, or shade?
  • What size shrub were you looking for?
  • Do you want colorful blooms or just white?

Our staff is happy to help if you need more advice or any help deciding which of these options to go with!

Full Sun Hydrangeas

These hydrangeas can tolerate partial sun but prefer full sun (6-8 hours)

‘Bobo’ Hydrangea paniculata – This dwarf flowering bush grows to about 3’ x 3’ and blooms during the summer with white blooms. They bloom on new growth and would need to be pruned in late winter or early spring. These make good border plants and have strong stems that do not droop with full blooms.

‘Limelight’ Hydrangea paniculata
‘Limelight’ Hydrangea paniculata – With white summer blooms that eventually turn white and fade to a rosy shade, these grow to about 6’- 8’ x 6’- 8’. They bloom on new growth and need to be pruned in late winter or early spring. Stems occasionally need support when in bloom.

‘Little Lime’
‘Little Lime’ Hydrangea paniculata – This is a dwarf form of
the Limelight and grows to about 3’- 5’ x 3’- 5’.

‘Quick Fire’ Hydrangea paniculata
‘Quick Fire’ Hydrangea paniculata – This bush grows
to about 6’- 8’ x 6’- 8’ and blooms white fading to red into
the fall. They need to be pruned in late winter or early spring. This hydrangea begins blooming in the summer about 1 month before other summer blooming hydrangeas.

‘Incrediball’
‘Incrediball’ Hydrangea arborescens – This gorgeous white flower grows to about 5’ x 5’ and is a native type. The
Incrediball is an improved variety of the Annabelle that has larger white blooms and sturdier stems to support them.
Cut back in late winter to early spring.

‘Annabelle’
‘Annabelle’ Hydrangea arborescens
– These flowers grows to about 5’ x 5’ and is a native type. These hydrangeas
bloom white and make a nice addition to rain gardens.

Partial Sun Hydrangeas

These hydrangeas can handle shade but prefer partial sun (4-6 hours)

‘Ruby Slippers’ Hydrangea quercifolia
‘Ruby Slippers’ Hydrangea quercifolia – This is a dwarf hydrangea that grows to about 4’ x 4’ and blooms white fading to red. Oakleaf hydrangeas are a native type. Prune after blooming ends in fall.

‘Pee Wee’
‘Pee Wee’ Hydrangea quercifolia – This is a dwarf version that grows to about 3’ x 3’ and blooms white. Oakleaf hydrangeas are a native type. Prune after blooming ends in fall.

Alice’ Hydrangea quercifolia
‘Alice’ Hydrangea quercifolia- This hydrangea grows to about 6’ – 8’ x 6’ – 8’ and blooms white. It is a native variety and is pruned after blooming ends in fall. This type is known for pest and disease resistance.

‘Snow queen’
‘Snow queen’ Hydrangea quercifolia – This hydrangea grows to about 6’ x 6’ and blooms white. It is a native variety and is pruned after blooming ends in fall.

Shade Hydrangeas

These hydrangeas can tolerate partial sun but prefer full shade

Endless Summer Bloomstruck
‘Endless Summer Bloomstruck’ Hydrangea macrophylla
These beauties grow to about 4’ x 4’ and bloom ranging from purple to pink depending on pH of soil. More acidic soil makes them more blueish purple and lime can help them to turn pink. The endless summer collection can bloom on old and new growth enabling them to be pruned throughout the year.

endless summer blushing bride hydrangea
‘Endless Summer Blushing Bride’ Hydrangea macrophylla-
These grow to about 3’- 6’ x 3’- 6’ and bloom white. The endless summer collection can bloom on old and new growth enabling them to be pruned throughout the year.

With any of these hydrangeas, it is important to know that they need a lot of water and will need to be  watered regularly the first couple seasons after planting until they are established. The ideal time to plant is in the fall!

Stop by the store to shop, and our knowledgeable staff will be happy to help find you the perfect plant for your landscape!