Home Decoration: Back Porch Picnic Table

The view from our back porch is pretty freaking spectacular. Facing north, the panorama encompasses rolling Washington countryside as far as the eye can see - and no more than seven or eight homes in all that space - as well as a striking view of Mt. Adams, approximately 50 miles ever-so-slightly northwest. You can see the hills imitating the ocean when the wind ripples the tall grass, you can see rain approaching from miles away accompanied by clouds that move across the terrain like a shadow-colored tablecloth spreading, you can see the fog creeping out of the river valley like something alive. Deer and cattle graze in the distance. Osprey, Turkey Vultures, Hawks, and the occasional Bald Eagle soar overhead. Ten-thousand trees spot the landscape, twenty-, who knows? Like I said, pretty freaking spectacular.

And if there's anything a spectacular view needs, it's a spectacular place from which to view it. The builders of our log home - it was erected in 1989 by the family that lived in it for 25 years right up to the day they sold it to us - accomplished this with aplomb. Our back porch runs approximately 22 feet long and 8 feet deep and sits on four posts off the main level, and is covered by the top level's overhang. It's always shaded and open on two sides - north and east - to allow a cross-breeze. It is, quite simply, one of the best spots, if not the best spot, in the whole house, and we hang out there every opportunity we get. Three or four nights a week at least we'll grill supper out there, some evenings we'll just have a libation or two in the cheap-o plastic Adirondack chairs we got til something better comes along, and it's a great spot to relax and read. Even Harrison, the older of our two indoor cats, howls like a sick banshee if he doesn't get his daily excursion. So to further maximize our enjoyment of the back porch we thought we'd get a picnic table so we could eat out there when the weather permits.



A quick trip to Home Depot in The Dalles and we were the proud possessors of a good-sized picnic table kit that didn't set us back too much and seemed easy enough to put together. A screwdriver and the included hardware were all that were required for assembly, and aside from an injury to Perry's back incurred when loading the kit into the car at Home Depot (an injury that kept him on the couch with a heating pad for two solid days, which he didn't mind as his copy of The Familiar had just come in the mail, and the Mariners played afternoon games), it was a relatively painless process. A few of the logs were a little rough, but with some sanding - which happened a week later once Perry could stand under his own power again - and some expertise weatherproof staining by Cory (one coat, let dry, then sand, then throw on a second coat) it was all done, no more than two or three combined person-hours. Pretty lax commitment for the outcome, if you ask us. A couple decorative Citronella candles in Ball jars, a doily thing Cory had, and the table was set. We celebrated by grilling up a few brats, cracking a cold Rainier and pouring a glass of white from Lyle's own Syncline Wine Cellars.

A good outdoor space is like another room of the house; a great outdoor space is like the best room of the house. And it doesn't take a lot of furniture or frills to get that great space, sometimes a single, simple piece can do the trick. Just remember to lift with your knees.

Garden Update: It's Alive!

It's been two weeks since Planting Day 2015 here on our hill in Lyle, Washington, and in our garden the seeds have taken root and sprouted our first leaves of the season. Every box is showing signs of life, some stronger than others, but all in all it seems we're off to a solid start.

The corn is on the rise, standing a couple inches above the topsoil already. We planted the corn in the box at the northwest corner of the garden. Because of the direction our yard faces - ever-so-slightly northeast - and the slope of our hill, this was the best spot to sew it to ensure it wouldn't spend too much of the day casting shadows over the other crops in its box. There were eight kernels planted, and all eight have sprouted. Provided they survive the summer and the wind up here, and if last year's crop in Portland is any indicator, we can expect 2 or 3 good ears per stalk, roughly a couple dozen all told.

One of those crops we're careful not to overshadow with the corn is the zucchini planted right next to it. We only planted a few seeds this year - last year things got, well, let's just say "out of hand" - and all three are above earth and thriving. Cory loves zucchini, and I, Perry, love Cory so tolerate zucchini. She makes it easy on me by sauteing it in olive oil and butter and dusting it with grated Parmesan. Cheese solves everything. 






In the southeast-most bed where the lettuce-Mesclun mix dominates, it's the green beans that have jumped out to an early lead, with all 12 plants sprouted. We'll thin them down in another couple weeks, trellis them soon after that. The lettuce and Mesclun are showing signs of life, and the jalapenos that sit in the other available quadrant are slow starters but it's still early. The heat hits Lyle at the end of this week - three 90+ days are projected - so we expect that to kick the reticent peppers into overdrive.

Heck, things are growing so good out there, even the three grape vines we planted at the beginning of the season and had all but given up for dead have sprung to life and are each displaying leaves. We're going to give these guys the season to see how they do, but our suspicion is the clay quality of our native soil here on the hill might not be the best for them. Next year's micro-vineyard might have to be in a long and slender raised bed.

But the real star of the garden thus far is without a doubt our potato box. Now granted, the potatoes went in the dirt about a week before the rest of the garden, but despite that they're still leaps and bounds ahead of the other crops. Each of the nine plants is already standing between 3 and 6 inches high, and the idea of all those ripe little white, yellow, and purple potatoes waiting in the dirt has us salivating. Conventional wisdom says potatoes need about 10 weeks before they're ready to harvest, depending on the date of your last frost. Ours was mid-April, so the potatoes went in the first of May, meaning our spuds should be ready around mid-July. Another method some folks use to determine when to harvest is to wait until you see flowers, because it means the plant has shifted its priorities from developing the tuber to developing seeds. We're going with whichever happens first, because that's the shortest path between us and taters.

The cherry trees shorn bald by the wind are still pretty much leafless, but there are fresh chutes all over them, so the roots are at least finding purchase and giving it a go. In another couple of weeks, once the 3 remaining garden boxes are built and the gravel has gone down and the fence has gone up, we'll plant another pair of trees - peach perhaps this time - and see how they fair. Until then we're in a waiting game, waiting and watering and weeding, and hoping the wind doesn't blow it all away.

So that's our garden as of Memorial Day. But that's not all we got up to over the holiday weekend. Check back over the next few days for posts about our most recent Saturday Morning Hike, and the picnic table that nearly broke Perry's back.

Good gardening!