Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

Formerly The DIY Bungalow

  • Home
  • About
    • About Karen & the Blog
    • Thirty Days of Gratitude
    • Habitat for Humanity ReStore Workshops
    • Stories from the Bungalow
    • Dogs Who Don’t Eat Pizza
      • Bear, the Original Dog Who Didn’t Eat Pizza
      • Hank Dog
      • Elvis Parsley
  • Project Index
    • DIY
    • Decorating
    • Shopping Tips
    • Repurposing and Upcycling
    • Paint and Color
    • Organizing
    • Cleaning
    • Recipes
    • Gardening
    • Holidays & Seasonal
    • Friday Five
  • Home Tour
    • The 1929 House
    • The First House
    • Room Reveals
  • Advertising
    • Disclosure and Privacy Policy
    • Advertising
  • Media
  • Contact
You are here: Home / Gardening / Thirty Days of Gratitude, Day 5: Fall Color in My Yard

Thirty Days of Gratitude, Day 5: Fall Color in My Yard

November 5, 2014 By Karen Cooper Leave a Comment

I love fall and fall color. When you think of fall colors, though, you think of oranges, browns, and golds, right? Our yard was full of those colors, and I wanted to add some brighter colors to perk it up. Think pink and purple, people!  (What? Pink and purple in fall? Have I lost my mind?)

I was thrilled when I received these gorgeous plants from the Southern Living Plant Collection and the Encore Azalea collection!  Beautiful pinks, rich purples…perfect to add some pops of color to our yard at the 1929 House!

I started in the backyard. We have a fence with a planting bed that runs along it, and it needed some bright color.

back of yard needs color and plants - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

The “Before” Photo

I wanted to add flowering plants around the benches.

Autumn Lilac Encore Azalea - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

I love this Autumn Lilac Encore Azalea. The bright purple flowers really stand out among the green and brown.

A little ways down, I decided to add some pink with this Autumn Chiffon Encore Azalea:

Autumn Chiffon Encore Azalea - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

One of my favorite plants is Loropetalum, and this Purple Diamond Compact Loropetalum from the Southern Living Plant Collection was the perfect burst of color next to the stone bench in our yard.

Purple Diamond Compact Loropetalum - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

Between the benches, I planted the Jubilation Gardenia. Gardenias were my grandmother’s favorite flower and I love its strong, sweet fragrance.

Jubilation Gardenia - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

Bonus: They also attract butterflies!

Next to the other bench, I added another Encore Azalea, the Autumn Sundance.

Autumn Sundance Encore Azalea - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

Beautiful dark green leaves and rich pink flowers really perk up this space by the bench.

So, here’s what that area by the fence looks like now:

Beautiful fall yard labeled with Encore Azaleas and the Southern Living Plant Collection - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

I’m going to post pictures as the plants continue to grow, so you can see the transformation and the colors they add.

The next “problem” area was this blank spot near the gate of our fence:

blank fence in need of plants and color - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

Yawn.

I added a mix of color and texture to this space to make it more interesting.

First, another Loropetalum; this time, the Purple Pixie Weeping Loropetalum.

Purple Pixie Weeping Loropetalum - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

I love the deep purple leaves and the shape and size of this plant are perfect to disguise the bottom of the fence.

Next to that, I planted the Mountain Snow Pieris.

Mountain Snow Pieris - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

I planted it here because this plant requires part shade-part sun, rather than full sun, and this area is shaded by a tree and the fence. I love the texture and flowers of this beautiful plant.

Lastly, I added the Autumn Debutante Encore Azalea.

Autumn Debutante Encore Azalea planted by fence - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

The rosy pink flowers are just lovely.

The blank fence area looks much better now:

plants give color next to fence - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

And I added some purple and orange pansies along the walkway. This area will be bursting with color throughout the fall!

pansy to add fall color - Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

Don’t think that cooler temperatures mean you can’t plant shrubs and flowers in your yard. All you need are plants like these from the Southern Living Plant Collection and Encore Azalea that are perfect for planting now. Here are my tips for fall planting:

1. Choose plants with a range of colors and textures. In the backyard, I planted purple next to pink or white, alternating the colors. I juxtaposed different textures as well, like the smooth Loropetalum leaves next to the small flowers of the Mountain Snow Pieris.

2. Plan your plantings before you order or head to the nursery to buy plants. Make sure you have space for what you want to buy.

3. When planting, make sure you pay attention to the sunlight or shade each plant requires.

4. Give the plants a good watering after you plant them and in the days that follow so that they can get established.

5. Follow any instructions on the plant tags regarding pruning, watering, and fertilizing.

On this fifth day of Thirty Days of Gratitude, I’m grateful for these gorgeous plants and the color and brightness they bring.

Happy Fall! What are you grateful for today?

You might also like:

  • Your Yard Is Your Canvas: Adding Color to Your Yard
    Your Yard Is Your Canvas: Adding Color to Your Yard
  • Whew! Getting Back in the DIY Saddle
    Whew! Getting Back in the DIY Saddle
  • Creating Fall Warmth in my Dining Room
    Creating Fall Warmth in my Dining Room

Filed Under: Gardening Leave a Comment

About Karen Cooper

Hi! I'm Karen. I call myself a “recovering lawyer” - I traded in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY adventures. Join me for DIY, home decorating, repurposing and upcycling, and organizing projects and tips as I transform a 1929 Tudor bungalow into our home. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home.

« Thirty Days of Gratitude, Day 4: The Right to Vote
Thirty Days of Gratitude, Day 6: Having a Platform »




Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Hi! I’m Karen. I call myself a “recovering lawyer,” because I turned in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY. This blog is all about DIY, home decorating, repurposing and upcycling, and organization. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home.




find projects here!

My Daybed in This Old House Magazine!

Daybed from Old Doors featured in This Old House Magazine
Best of 2016 - Best Blog DIY Category - thediybungalow.com

Disclosure

Dogs Don't Eat Pizza is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.  Dogs Don't Eat Pizza also participates in other affiliate programs.

To see my complete disclosure and privacy policy, click HERE.

About Karen

A "recovering lawyer," I turned in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home. Read More…

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
© Copyright 2012-2021, Dogs Don't Eat Pizza, LLC (formerly The DIY Bungalow LLC).