The time has come! We are at that point in the seasons where spending a few hours outside each day isn’t a challenge and doesn’t require ear muffs or an extra layer. Spring finally decided to arrive in our neck of the woods right around Mother’s Day weekend. So today, I’m sharing how I’ve prettied up the patio with some pots and blooms from our local President’s Choice Garden Centre and new furniture.
And – don’t forget to enter to win $100 in PC Gift Cards at the bottom of this post!
This yard has been an adventure, to say the least. By the end of last year, after we’d cleaned up the deck, built our chevron privacy wall, hung our new repurposed and painted shutters and tossed together some hodge podge patio furniture – we were finally seeing our vision come to life. But there’s a lot left to do. Sections of the yard are still really badly overgrown and our deck space really needs attention if we are actually going to host people for entertaining.
This is what we were left with after last year. *grimaces* UGH. Yes. Our patio furniture, despite being covered up all winter – DISINTEGRATED.
BUT – we are up for the challenge. We have three main goals this year:
- Get the lower deck to a place where it’s not that embarrassing 😀 (This is what we’re tackling today!)
- Update the upper balcony so it’s safe and clean (and a little fun) for me and LB to play on through the summer months
- Clear the back of the lot of debris, bricks and overgrowth and make a solid plan for next year. (Man, landscaping takes time y’all!)
If you’ve been watching my InstaStories, then you’ve seen the fab new furniture we got to replace it. We weren’t planning to do that this year, but it seemed necessary and we’re really happy with what we chose.
Better already! Right? I’m planning another post all about our furniture. It’ll be part of a new Room by Room series I’m starting in June…Hold tight for that. 
So naturally, the next step was to pretty up the patio with potted plants and flowers!!
Last week, LB and I hit up the PC Garden Centre at our local Superstore (Loblaw’s if you’re in a non-Atlantic province). I have to say, I often get overwhelmed with not knowing what to buy or how much or how to put things together. Luckily, we met with horticultural specialist Judy Thompson from Forest Glen Greenhouses in Brookfield, Nova Scotia at the garden centre. She is the local provider for all the lovely President’s Choice annuals and perennials you see at the Superstore. I had NO idea they used local growers like that, did you?! #NovaScotiaProud
Here’s a quick 1 minute video I put together of me adding the pots to the patio! I was racing against the rain 😉
I had a few snapshots of our deck on my phone, so Judy was able to help me and LB select the best plants for our space. Judy even put a custom planter pot together for us, including some of her signature plants. I’m in love with the tall King Tut grass and the trailing greens – such lively texture! It was fun to watch her put together potted arrangements in much the same way I put together a bedroom – matching colours, textures, heights and tones… Amazing.
I tried to get her to guarantee that I won’t kill these plants – because you know #BlackThumb – but Judy’s knowledge and tips definitely gave me confidence that I’ll be able to keep these lovelies blooming for at least a while 🙂 I used some one-time granular potted plant fertilizer that will help things stay moist in the hot sun. So my only job is to check on them and give them a good drink every one to two days. *I think I can, I think I can* 🙂 
I especially love the window boxes full of the PC Gigantico plants that come pre-planted and labeled based on sun exposure – takes the guess work out of gardening for folks like me. While we don’t have railings down here, I was able to prop them up in from of our privacy wall to fill out the blank corner. I’d still like to get something else to hide the concrete blocks – perhaps some herbs later in the season? Or maybe that’s where the cooler should go? haha
And let’s talk about these dahlias!!! They are also an exclusive grown by locally and are out of this world. I put a few of them into a pot I already had on hand. Dahlias remind me of my Aunt Susie – she has some in her garden grown from bulbs that are decades old. 
This year my outdoor patio motto is no-fuss, no-muss. I really want to be able to enjoy all my time with my sweet baby girl, and while gardening isn’t my forte, I LOVE having plants around. I appreciate all the options PC has for gals like me. It’s like plug-and-play for your patio! 
So now that you’ve seen how easy it was for me to gussy up our always-evolving patio, here’s your chance to take home a $100 Gift Card from President’s Choice so you can Pretty up your Patio this year!!
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