New-Old Brick Patio
In our garden I love
that we have several places
for one to sit and to relax.
We have the blessing
of having front and back porches as well as a couple side patios. Underneath
trees or at the edges of the flower beds I have placed benches and chairs to
invite one to linger in the garden.
Our garden is sort of
a secret garden in that we are on a hill and much of it is hidden from view.
One of the side patios
was a delightsome discovery when we first moved it. A very large, old Magnolia
was planted outside the dining room – sadly, we had to cut down this tree
because its roots were compromising our home’s foundation.
brick patio and house before |
Underneath the low
branches was an old brick patio.
The center of the patio was laid in a path
then at another time added to. Bricks from various sources had come together to
create a maze. Some of the bricks are very old – made from the red clay of
Georgia and some potentially came from a neighboring house that had burned
several years back.
brick patio before |
We had to pull up a
section of the patio to replace water lines – this old house had very old lines
– galvanized pipes that had so deteriorated that from the beginning – we could
do only one thing at a time with water.
pipe and cleared section to the left |
Clearing this space
gave me them impetus to do what I had long wanted to do – to rearrange the
brick.
birdbath before-last June when the Japanese Beetles attacked |
This turned out to be
a very big job – the number and size of the bricks as well as the shape of the
former patio was a challenge. A number of the bricks crumbled too as I lifted
them.
The ground is not completely level due to the presence of old roots. To me,
this gives it a rustic charm.
I chose a basket-weave pattern with a
border –
It was like putting
together a large puzzle – I had to find just the right piece to fit in some
areas.
After all the brick
was laid, I grouted with red sand found along many of the dirt roads in our
county.
We are very pleased
with the result – I hope to one day have a pergola set in to give shade to the
afternoon sun.