'Junk' Landscape

TC3

TC3

Headache !
Joined
Aug 12, 2006
Messages
1,504
Location
Michigan
Mek's thread on Buckthorn brought up a regular daydream I have of an entire landscape made up of what's considered nuisance, invasive, or junk. Imagine walking up to a beautiful estate then taking a closer look ?!? My 'junk' landscape would start with a hedgerow of buckthorn around the perimeter, with violets as a groundcover underneath.
What items would you add to the landscape, and how would you make it interesting ?
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3
I like it !!! >>> Instead of looking ponds, PYRES !
 
I knew a guy who scattered junk all around the perimeter of his property. Old refrigerators, dish washers, sinks, other appliances, old wrecked cars and then filled in between with regular household garbage. Then let the brush grow up through it. It looked absolutely horrible from the county road. He told me, "It keeps people from venturing onto my property." Evidently it worked because no body wanted to have anything to do with him after that.
 
The look that used to be quite popular in the greens was old farmhouse...broke down barn... field is full of old cars , trucks , appliances....while the animals are out in the road...
 
Prickly pear cactus, cedar, and persimmon. Throw in some china berry.
 
Might as well throw in a honey locust or three for good measure.
 
Actually.. one of our accounts, a master gardener here and his wife have included "junk" into their garden quite appealingly. Stuff they got at yard sales and such along with some dump finds. They then incorporated some theme's (bed room with old iron bed frame etc.). He is also handy with a welder. Some pedestal pots are made of old brake drums, ice cream parlor stool stands etc. Rebar. Old fencing and gates. Ecclectic but rather tasteful and pretty..
 
There's a house not far from here with a early 90s T-bird in the front lawn. They removed the engine, hood and trunk lid and filled the trunk and engine compartment with soil and planted flowers in it. Kinda goofy, but they keep the rest of the property looking nice, so it's not too bad of an eye sore.
 
I LIVE in a junk landscape. It used to bother me. BUT....240 acres, a 2 acre 'yard' plus field garden....if I had retained my suburban mind set concerning weeds and junk, I would be residing either in or under the compost bin by now.

I don't say it outloud very often IF EVER, but some of the same invasive plants that I'm constantly battling are some of the prettiest flowers/plants out there.

Johnson Grass, Queen Anne's Lace, Iron Weed, Nodding Thistle, Poke Berry, Passion Flower, Chicory, Fox Tail.....

I've heard the story at least half a dozen times about a 'city girl' who joined my MIL's church:

Each Sunday a different person would bring in a bouquet to sit up front on the table behind the pastor (don't know the terminology.) Once day, mid hay season, this young lady brought in a HUGE bouquet of purple nodding thistle. I guess there was a big grumbling murmur still going when the services started and the farmers (a big percentage of the congregation) were noticing what was up there....same thing they'd been sweating buckets out in the field trying to get rid of. I still think it's funny, cuz although it WASN'T this 'city girl', I could sure see doing that myself. Ha!
 
JamesTX said:
Prickly pear cactus, cedar, and persimmon. Throw in some china berry.
Click to expand...
Ha! I am working to grow all 4 of these. Kinda shows that location, and personal taste, matter.

What is wrong with violets? Short season in MI?
 
Daisy's would be high on my list for a junk landscape. I'll never forget a rental house I used to live in that had a bunch of daisy's outside the bedroom window, which made the bedroom smell like a rotten fart in the summer.
 
Pretty yellow tar weed... Some buck brush and deer brush. Mix in some mountain mahogany and mountain cherry. Ohhhhh and sour berry, have to have sour berry!
 
I always thought it would be fun to start a nursery that only sold noxious trees. Around here that would be eucs, tree of heaven, acacia, locust, etc.

Our motto would be: No tree shall leave our lot untopped.

Maybe I could get sponsoring from the local tree companies :)
 
Che said:
I LIVE in a junk landscape. It used to bother me. BUT....240 acres, a 2 acre 'yard' plus field garden....if I had retained my suburban mind set concerning weeds and junk, I would be residing either in or under the compost bin by now.

I don't say it outloud very often IF EVER, but some of the same invasive plants that I'm constantly battling are some of the prettiest flowers/plants out there.

Johnson Grass, Queen Anne's Lace, Iron Weed, Nodding Thistle, Poke Berry, Passion Flower, Chicory, Fox Tail.....

I've heard the story at least half a dozen times about a 'city girl' who joined my MIL's church:

Each Sunday a different person would bring in a bouquet to sit up front on the table behind the pastor (don't know the terminology.) Once day, mid hay season, this young lady brought in a HUGE bouquet of purple nodding thistle. I guess there was a big grumbling murmur still going when the services started and the farmers (a big percentage of the congregation) were noticing what was up there....same thing they'd been sweating buckets out in the field trying to get rid of. I still think it's funny, cuz although it WASN'T this 'city girl', I could sure see doing that myself. Ha!
Click to expand...

you married to this guy....jus kidding
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From that initial picture (@ 26.4kbs I can't download video), I'm guessing that's the 'turtle man'....or whatever he calls himself. He's been on public tv sporting/hunting/wildlife show (KY Afield?) more than a couple times. Last week he was on the front page!! Surely, he makes enough money with all that publicity to BUY HIMSELF SOME TEETH!!!
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #23
The idea of a junk landscape comes from a volunteer Mulberry (fortunately a male) that grows right next to the trail of one of my dump spots for debris. Over the years I've had to cut it back & elevate it to get it the hell outta my way. As an arborist, proper cuts are second nature >>> even on a crap tree.
Well, the tree is actually really pretty.
Violets are invasive here in Michigan. Our entire yard is chamomile and we mow it down. Pity.
Gotta add in some Autumn Olive, Virginia Creeper, and a big ugly Cottonwood... a Boxelder, too.
 
Che said:
From that initial picture (@ 26.4kbs I can't download video), I'm guessing that's the 'turtle man'....or whatever he calls himself. He's been on public tv sporting/hunting/wildlife show (KY Afield?) more than a couple times. Last week he was on the front page!! Surely, he makes enough money with all that publicity to BUY HIMSELF SOME TEETH!!!
Click to expand...

yup, the quote of the segment, for me anyways, " I try not to smile cuz I got my teeth knoced out by a chainsaw."

yeesh.:roll:
 
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