UGH PART II

The pity party of yesterday afternoon is now finished!

My sister decided to come over after she got off work to help me set up the gazebo, something I had attempted to do by myself but failed miserably at. Not to say that it went smoothly with two of us working on it, but at least we got it done.

I paid $40 for this gazebo frame from someone on Kijiji, which seemed like a pretty good deal at the time. However, upon putting it back together yesterday, we realized almost every single screw was rusty and the frame was warped, meaning the screws wouldn't fit back in the holes properly and it was a giant PITA to assemble. We actually broke one of the screws in half it was so rusty - this thing really should have been free!

Finally assembled. We will be putting wood chip mulch on top of the weed barrier to even out the base.

I'm not a fan of the big ugly white ropes holding it down, but the wind was picking up just as we were finishing and I had to quickly stake it into the ground before we left. Hopefully my plants will grow in and hide them later on.

You might be wondering why I put this big piece of rusty junk in the garden at all. The reason is three-fold:

1) I plan to attach several pieces of string along the crossbar at the rear leading back down to the ground, and will grow the Kentucky Blue pole beans up them. This will create a "wall of beans" on one side (and maybe up onto the roof, depending how big they get).

2) I am planting Heavenly Blue morning glories at each corner, which will hopefully grow up the corner columns and onto the roof as well, creating a shady living structure.

3) Once grown in, the gazebo will shade the plot in front of it for most of the day, where I will be planting my lettuce and other veggies that tend to bolt early and don't do well in the hot summer sun. I'm hoping this will extend the growing season for my salad greens.

My inspiration picture for the gazebo + morning glory set up.
I hope mine turns out as lovely!

I think we are going to head back over this morning and fill in the weed barrier area with woodchips, as long as the rain holds off. Thanks to my sister for coming over and helping out. It was nice to have some company and the extra helping hands. She will be handsomely rewarded this summer with fresh peppers and tomatoes!!!