Garden Stepping Stone

'Grandmother's Garden' uses special filtration system

Yes, we are talking about the weedy white flower that grows in all of the unkempt fields and ditches along the roadside. If you ask anyone, they will say, “Yes, I love Queen Anne's lace, but I cannot buy it anywhere, so I go dig it up along the roadside.”

It's true: Not many garden centers carry the perennial plant. But Terry's passion for the plant got worse when she discovered there was a “pink” Queen Anne's lace, as it is normally just white. She got her first plant from a woman in Connecticut and brought it to the South. Now, she's serious when she says she wants to cover South Carolina with pink Queen Anne's lace.

Gardening in the South began three and a half years ago for Terry, when she and her husband moved to Spartanburg from Norwich, Conn. The cost of living was too high up North, and they were tired of shoveling snow. One of their daughters lives here and convinced them to move to Spartanburg.

After moving in, Terry went and bought a shovel with intentions of planting several things. She soon discovered she couldn't break through the tough red clay we call soil here in the South, so she “sliced through it.”

Ken Terry, a retired engineer who was brought up working on a farm all of his life, soon figured out that you needed to amend the soil and water it to soften it up. He knew that the common rain barrel system was not enough, so he built a rain collection system to water the garden.

He picked a spot at the back of the garden and designed a 305-gallon system. It runs down off the property and enters four catch basins sunk in the ground and connected to 4-inch PVC piping. He uses a sump pump with a garden hose connected to it to water their garden by hand.

They keep track of the rainfall with a rain gauge, and Ken knows in his bones when the garden needs water as a result of all those years working on a farm. He takes care of their vegetable garden.

Carolyn and Ken deliver for Mobile Meals on Wednesday. One of the people on their delivery route gave Carolyn some rose campion. Carolyn has added it to the garden and thinks of her friend whenever she sees it.

She is also a rabid Boston Red Sox fan. She has a baseball plaque in the garden that hangs on the fence. It is perfectly placed so she can see it from the living room window as she watches their games.

Carolyn's favorite part of the world is her “Grandmother's Garden.” Carolyn is the grandmother, and the garden is shared with her 12 grandchildren. In 2005, she had all of the grandkids paint a steppingstone, each in their own color and design. She placed the stones in her garden and smiles when she looks at it, as it brings to mind all the love she feels for them.

How to Paint Garden Stepping Stones ~ Practical Gardening

Right after we had our house built, a garden landscaper was contracted by the architect-builder to do some landscaping on our front yard. As we wanted some lawn grass in front, the garden landscaper dug up holes along a path and poured concrete on these holes. These would be the faux garden stepping stones on the lawn. Garden stepping stones are a great alternative to concrete paving to minimize lawn damage due to foot traffic. With a flat trowel or a machete, dig along the edges of the garden stepping stone. Pry out the surrounding turf so the side edges of the garden stepping stone are exposed. Remember, you'll be painting these garden stones so try to expose at least an inch below the ground level. Be careful not to chip the concrete garden stones with the trowel or machete. Two things need to be considered when you're about to paint the garden stepping stones. One, it has to be a clear day with no rain in sight. Latex paint is water-soluble. A strong rain immediately after painting could wash away the latex paint. Second, schedule the painting when you don't have busy projects in the lawn. Remember, it will take a while to fully dry the two coats of paint so you won't be stepping on them for some time. So it's best to minimize foot traffic in the garden as the paint dries. Choose paint color that complements your house color. Earth tones look natural on the garden lawn. Apply two coats of paint. Let the first coat dry thoroughly prior to the second coat. It's best to keep it simple. You can apply multiple shades of color, but remember that when the paint job on one of the stones get damaged, it may be difficult to replicate the same design and same set of colors in the future.

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