Summer Kitchen

In your quest for the ultimate in outdoor living one must truly experience the epitome of an oasis by adding a summer kitchen. What is a summer kitchen? It's the outdoor bar-b-q times ten! Imagine your grill standing all alone beside the beige stucco of your house. Kind of a sad existence for such a giving machine. Now imagine a beautiful covered, yet not enclosed, back porch. Surrounding your once lonely grill is custom cabinetry. You have storage for all your grilling utensils. Your mini fridge is stocked with cold beer, a bottle of wine and pure spring water. The beautiful Eco friendly patio furniture you bought is set up to ensure that feeling you're in a five start resort. Your summer kitchen is surrounded by beautiful potted plants native to your climate. Your pergola with climbing hydrangea is nearby only to solidify that you are in the lap of luxury. The meals you prepare taste nothing less that what Wolfgang Puck would create for you in his restaurant. Anybody can go on vacation once a year, but how many people get to feel that way everyday? You could be one of those people sipping a drink, sitting on fine outdoor furniture and eating meals prepared in your very own summer kitchen.

Outdoor Accessories

It seems to me that once you decide that you're going to make your outdoor space a place you want to spend quality time in, why not go all out? If you have a pergola and add some plants, you might get a table and chairs, add some lighting, maybe even a water feature. These are mostly hard surfaces. Why not add an outdoor area rug? If you have your pergola over a patio this is a great way to soften thing up to create your "outdoor room". There are many websites that offer outdoor area rugs. Home Depot and Lowe's carry some as well as my personal favorite, Target. This is a great way to keep that outdoor indoor line seem a little more blurred.

Native Plants

I found a great website http://www.plantnative.org/how_intro.htm to find the native plants in your area. It also has a list of the drought resistant plants in your region. Planting drought resistant native plants is not only beneficial the the enviornment, but also budget friendly since they need to be watered less often. Everybody wins!

Climbing Vines

There are many options when it comes to climbing vines. Your pergola or trellis will be all the more beautiful with a vine as it's accessory. The most beautiful in my opionion is the Climbing Hydranga. It is the slowest to establish of all the climbers but is definately worth the wait. Once established they can grow up to 50 to 80 feet tall with blooms ranging about 6 to 10 inches in diameter. A sturdy tree trunk or pergola will help sustain such a large vine. Luckily they are not an overly aggressive vine and enhance your garden instead of take over it. The white flower blooms appear in June to late July. A climbing Hydranga is a welcome addition in my garden, hopefully you will enjoy one in yours!

Backyard Beginnings

Backyard's aern't just for the dog and swing sets anymore. They provide an area to gather with friends and family and spend time together. Add a new dimension to your outdoor oasis with a pergola.

A pergola is an outdoor structure consisting of posts and beams that add decorative value to your home. A pergola can be adorned with hanging light fixtures or sconces. Add climbing vines, like jasmine, to ensure that true garden feeling. Set a table and chairs underneath it and you automatically have an outdoor dining room. Put your fire pit in the middle with a few chairs around it and voila you've got romance or a place to make smores. Put your hot tub or spa underneath hang those sconces around it, what could be more beautiful? The possibilites are endless just use your imagination. What can be done indoors can be transferred outdoors with a little creativity.

Our lives are so busy and we are inside so often that being outside enjoying the fresh air is a luxury. Why not enjoy it with some style?