Growing Wise : garden planning

Gardening in Hard Times II

Elisabeth — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 15:16:00 GMT

Gardens get people through hard times. The most obvious way is by providing food. A little less obvious, but still very important, is the psychological and physical value of gardening. America's settlers crossed oceans and frontiers with seeds and cuttings of favorite ornamental as well as edible plants stored in boxes and bags. The sight of a favorite nasturtium or lilac helped remind people of home and inspire them to do the hard work necessary to clear land, plant crops and begin new lives.

Our challenges are different now, but the value of gardening hasn't changed. A previous blog post covered food gardening. Now I want to give a bit of advice to cost conscious gardeners who focus on ornamentals. The following are the best tips for saving money right now:

Page through catalogs and click through websites. Make a list of plants, trees and shrubs that you need and/or want. Prioritize your list. Once that is done, look for early bird specials, free shipping and free plant offers (usually free with purchase). If any of your "must have" plants are offered by vendors with such promotions, take advantage of them
Multiples: If you need or want more than one of something, check for vendors who offer discounts on multiples of a single plant or plant group.
Team up with the neighbors: You can often save plant costs and/or shipping costs by splitting orders with a neighbor or friend. For instance, if you and your neighbor both want daylilies, find a vendor that offers discounts for multiple daylilies, combine your order, divide up the cost, and have the daylilies shipped to one address or the other. You may also save shipping costs this way.
Consider planting "easy" ornamentals (especially annuals) from seed. Even if you don't have the sunny space to start them inside, you can still get them going outside as soon as spring begins. Annuals will bloom later in the summer. It's a lot cheaper to grow 20-40 zinnia plants from a $2.25 pack of seeds than to buy flats at $9-$12 apiece. Check websites and catalogs for discounts on early seed orders. Store seeds in a cool dry place until you are ready to plant them.
Plan ahead and think about plants already in your garden that can be divided. Find a like-minded friend or neighbor and arrange swaps.
Learn more about plant propagation. A great book on the subject is Making More Plants by Ken Druse (Clarkson Potter, 2000). Check it out of your local library or buy it in paperback.
For a little humor plus inspiration on swapping or "passing along" plants, get your hands on Passalong Plants by Steve Bemder and Felder Rushing (University of North Carolina Press, 1993). It is also available in paperback.

Man (or Woman) Eating Hedges

Elisabeth — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 14:21:00 GMT

Hedges are a great thing. They define properties, keep out the neighbors' dogs (but probably not the neighbors' cats) and provide a nice backdrop for a garden. Recently there has been a vogue for mixed hedges, where several different types of shrubs alternate to form one line of greenery. Mixed hedges add interest and enhance horticultural diversity.

Whatever kind of hedge you choose, make sure that you provide enough room between the young plants and the sidewalk. Look at the planting tag on the shrubs of your choice to see how wide they are likely to be at maturity. If a particular variety will be four feet wide at maturity, for example, be sure to plant it more than two feet from the sidewalk. Otherwise it will end up as a man (or woman) eating shrub, obstructing part of the sidewalk and making it impossible for people to pass each other or walk two or three abreast without treading on the grass or other plantings on the street side of the sidewalk. Needless to say, if enough people are forced to do that on a daily basis, the grass or plantings will not survive.

But what do you do if you or, more likely, the previous owner of your house, planted the shrubs too close to the sidewalk? Taking them all out is too draconian in most cases. However, you can make sure that your shrubs are closely and regularly clipped on the street side. You can also move the shrubs back gradually, starting on one end, cutting one or two of the shrubs way down, digging them up and then replanting them a foot or two back. Your hedge will look a little unusual for a few years, but eventually it will be tamed. Be sure to do your transplanting in the spring or fall, when the shrubs will not be stressed by extreme temperatures. Provide plenty of water to your transplants and they should be fine.

A Garden That Suits Your Life

Elisabeth — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 13:27:00 GMT

The gardening season is far from over in most parts of the country, but it's still a good time to take stock. Look around your garden and your property in general. Do you like what you see? If not, it's time to plan the changes that will allow you to have the best garden possible, given your schedule and level of interest.

First think about those lawn and garden tasks that never get done. Chances are, they never get done because you hate them. Consider ways of making those tasks easier or making them go away all together. For example, if your back hedge is always overgrown because you hate to trim it, consider hiring a local teenager to do the job. If you don't have the money to hire someone on a regular basis, think about incurring the one-time expense of removing the hedge and putting in a fence instead. If neither option is desirable, for financial or other reasons, think about trimming the hedge in ten or fifteen minute increments. You can get a lot accomplished in relatively small amounts of time, and even onerous jobs are less taxing if they are limited.

Maybe there are no tasks that you really hate, just too much to do and not enough time to do it. If this is the problem, you need to either change your life or change your garden. If gardening is your passion and you are frustrated by not getting enough gardening time, look at your other responsibilities. If there are chores/responsibilities that you can eliminate, delegate or make more efficient, then do so. If that isn't possible, or isn't possible right now, consider replacing high maintenance perennials and annuals with flowering shrubs. Mulch everything thoroughly to cut weeding and watering chores. Keep your garden tools in one, easily accessible place. If you can afford it, hire someone to help out with weeding or other routine tasks.

Gardening should be about joy and relaxation not guilt and toil. Make the changes necessary to give yourself that gift of joy.

Gearing Up

Elisabeth — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 15:02:00 GMT

Having a garden is a bit like having a child that is reborn every year. You wait and wait for the "firsts"--the child's first tooth or the garden's first daffodil of the season. Then, time seems to speed up as everything happens at once. In the garden that first daffodil is followed in quick succession by all the other spring flowers, not to mention the thousands of spring weeds. Before you know it, it's early summer and the lilies are blooming. About ten minutes later--or so it seems--you are at the garden center picking out fall chrysanthemums.

Knowing that life in the garden moves as fast as life everywhere else, it makes sense to think about organization and memory aids now. Here are a few suggestions:

-- Keep a plant "wish list" on the family bulletin board or stuck on the refrigerator with a magnet. If your tulip display looks a little sparse a few weeks from now, for example, write "tulips" on your list and make a note about colors and locations. You won't forget them when fall rolls around.

--Make a master plan for the growing season. This allows you to chart out large and small tasks month by month.

--Use your digital camera to record images of your garden beds or containers at various times during the growing season. This will help you remember great plant combinations, not to mention reminding you of the locations of all those spring-flowering bulbs.

Genus Loci

Elisabeth — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 15:50:00 GMT

If you have read or absorbed much garden history, you have probably heard the phrase "genus loci", which comes from ancient Greek and means "sense of place" or "spirit of place". You may not be able to remember the foreign phrase, but the concept is good for all gardeners.

Whenever we plan and plant gardens we impose ourselves on the space involved. But the best gardens embody the idea of "sense of place". To my mind that means thinking about where you live (as in North, South, East or West; urban, suburban or rural) and how your particular property or gardening environment--which includes container gardening--is set up.

For example, I live in the northeast, in USDA Zone 6. Temperatures around here sometimes go into the teens in the winter, but rarely fall below zero. Our summers are hot and sticky. If left alone, my area would probably be swampy, with the higher ground covered with forests composed of mostly deciduous trees. My property is a standard suburban lot that slopes gently downward from front to back. The soil is on the acid side of the spectrum and my property has a mix of sunny and shady areas.

When I plan garden plantings I think about my neighborhood, where most of the houses were built in the late Victorian era. Stark, modern planting designs don't really seem in character here. On the other hand, vines, plants with variegated leaves and old fashioned varieties of species like dahlias and cannas fit right in. I also think about my particular lot, which has low spots where certain plants thrive and others meet a quick demise. The sunny space is limited, but very little of my lot is in deep shade.

I have made my garden at a slow, deliberate place, so that while I work and plan I can absorb the spirit of the place. The garden that I created when I first moved in ten years ago is very different from the garden I have now, and not just because the current garden is bigger. Why? Because when you work on a piece of ground, its particular spirit seeps into you. I always encourage novice gardeners to go about their business slowly and cultivate quietness along with the perennials and annuals. It's easiest to pick up on the genus loci in quiet times when you have dirt under your fingernails.

Organization

Elisabeth — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 14:02:00 GMT

The problem with great garden ideas is that so many of them come at the wrong time. For example, yesterday I was out in the garden and I noticed that the very first snowdrops were blooming. This was very exciting, of course, since winter has not yet given up the fight in this part of the country. But after the initial wave of excitement passed, I thought about getting more snowdrops. It is too early to divide my existing plants and it is way too early to buy bulbs for fall planting, which means that the idea has to be stored somewhere and in some way that is easily accessible.

I could put the information on a list in my computer. That way it won't get lost in the household shuffle. I could put it on the last page of my current garden diary so that it is easy to find most of the time--even when I'm in the garden making notes in the diary. I could also copy the list and put it on my refrigerator, where I will see it all the time. If I had one of those handheld PDA's, I could even put my list in its electronic "brain". (For better or worse, I am not there yet.)

So, in the interest of actually acquiring the snowdrops, I will probably add the item to my computerized wish list, print out the list and hang it on my refrigerator and copy the information onto the last page of my garden diary. This sounds time consuming, but it really only takes a few minutes. The information will be available when I need it and I have freed up a few brain cells for other applications.

To really enjoy gardening, you have to find ways to keep it as simple as possible.

Holly

Elisabeth — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 13:53:00 GMT

The weather outside is cold and blustery, with wind chills below zero. When I look out my dining room window I see the three big holly trees (which are actually shrubs) on the south side of the house. They are covered with bright berries, which is wonderful all by itself at this time of the year. Best of all though, is the fact that the hollies are full of birds. At various times during the day I can see sparrows, cardinals and blue jays, all with their feathers puffed out against the cold.

The hollies' growth is dense enough so that birds can find shelter within the branches and protection from the wind. It isn't exactly warm in there close to the trunks, but at least the thick green wall of prickly leaves keeps out the worst of the elements. I have never seen birds actually eating the berries, but the bushes are close enough to other food sources so that no bird has to venture far for food.

When you are planning for spring planting consider the birds and choose hollies or other large shrubs with dense growth. The old standby, arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis), is a great choice for this purpose, as are some of the evergreen trees like pine, fir or spruce. Pick a variety that works for your particular location and climate conditions. The birds will thank you in winters to come.

Book Review: Rosemary Verey's Garden Plans

Elisabeth — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 22:14:00 GMT

Garden planning, for a single new bed, a garden "room" or an entire landscape, is a daunting task. If you have the money, you can hire someone to help. If not, you should visit lots of gardens and indulge in some serious reading on the subject.

One of the most inspiring books I've come across lately is Rosemary Verey's Garden Plans, by the late English gardening maven Rosemary Verey. Originally published in 1993 and now available in paperback, the book contains descriptions of and planting diagrams for twenty-three different gardens. Luminous photographs by Andrew Lawson bring each garden to life.

Some of Mrs. Verey's designs were created for well-known people, including Elton John and Princess Michael of Kent, but many others were done for ordinary--if well-off--individuals. Though the majority of the gardens depicted in the book are at least a little bigger than my suburban spread, I got new ideas from each plan.

If you love flowers, you will love Rosemary Verey's designs. Even the book's two ornamental vegetable gardens have plenty of blooms. Mrs. Verey also does not restrict herself to great estates; the book includes small-space plans including those for a small city garden, a set of narrow borders and a semi-circular flowerbed.

The well-traveled designer also considered the special situations that are a fact of life for many of us. Her "Drought-Tolerant Knot Garden," designed for the Garden Club of Jacksonville, Florida, is a wonderful combination of restraint and simplicity that emphasizes drought-tolerant plants as well as ease of care. Her "Minimum Upkeep Garden" uses flowering shrubs and trees to provide a maximum number of blooms with a minimum amount of upkeep.

The book contains extensive plant lists that make it easy to duplicate Mrs. Verey's choices.

Like all good garden books, Rosemary Verey's Garden Plans makes you want to run out into the garden and dig in. You could do worse than to dig a few of Rosemary Verey's ideas into your own soil.

The Year of the Peach

Elisabeth — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 23:49:00 GMT

I have wanted a peach tree for the longest time. Peaches ae among my favorite fruits and their season is relatively short. Supermarket peaches are usually awful. They are shipped hard and unripe and even if you ripen them in a closed brown bag, the end result is often grainy and flavorless because of improper supermarket storage practices.

My problem is space. A standard size peach tree would simply be too big for my suburban garden. Even a semi-dwarf variety, which would top out at about twelve feet, is a little large. I don't have a stout brick wall, so I can't save space with an espalier specimen.

What I really need is a self-pollinating dwarf specimen that I can grow in a large tub. My favorite varieties are 'Red Haven' and 'Elberta', but I have also heard great things about 'Red Globe'. I will do whatever is necessary to make my peach tree healthy and happy as long as I can do it organically.

Of course, if I rearrange a few things and my back doesn't give out in the process, I might be able to accomodate a semi-dwarf tree. One way or another, I have high hopes that this will be the Year of the Peach.

Something New

Elisabeth — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 15:11:00 GMT

One of the best things about gardening is that there is always something new to learn. At this time of the year, when the weather in much of the country makes outdoor gardening unappealing or impossible, learning and planning take center stage. One of my New Year's resolutions, this year and every year, is to learn about a particular plant species or variety. Since we are living in a golden age of plant breeding and new varieties and species from all over the world are more available than ever before, learning about something new is easy.

Last year I made a commitment to explore the world of hellebores. I still have a lot to learn about the genus, but I have already enriched my garden with new varieties, and I can't wait until they bloom in the spring. This year I may focus on the epimediums. I grow two species of these attractive, shade-loving groundcovers, but there are many more and I have some available shady space for interesting newcomers. The flowers of many of the epimedium species and hybrids remind me of very small columbines. The leaves, which sport interesting coloration in many of the species, are often shaped like elongated hearts.

Epimedium are part of the barberry family, with all of the beauty of some of their woodier relatives, but none of the prickles. I am scouring reference sources to learn more about them. As my knowledge grows broader, my garden grows better.

The Great Equalizer

Elisabeth — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 13:45:00 GMT

I think of gardening as a great equalizer. You don't have to be rich to grow beautiful plants and have a great home landscape. You can fertilize your garden with lots of money or just a little money and a lot of ingenuity. You can purchase amazing plants from expensive boutique nurseries, or you can create great plant combinations with specimens from your local "big box" store. Some of the best gardens start on a shoestring.

Suppose you are a novice gardener. First you need some basic gardening knowledge. Between the Internet and your local public library, you can learn everything you need to know without purchasing anything extra. Most local libraries are part of interlibrary loan networks, so you have easy access to older or less well known books as well as recent garden guides.

Once you have the knowledge, you need a few basic tools, including a trowel, spade, rake, hoe, watering can, etc. Shops and catalogs are full of wonderful, expensive models of all those tools, but if you frequent garage or tag sales, you can probably find all of them for only a few dollars. Discount stores also have excellent inexpensive garden tools, not to mention gloves and hats.

The cheapest way to get a garden going is to grow plants from seed. Some can be started indoors on sunny windowsills, but many ornamental and food crops can be sown directly in the ground as soon as all danger of frost is past. If you are starting plants from seed, choose a mixture of fast-growing annuals like zinnias, cosmos and sunflowers, plus some hardy perennials, which take longer to get established. Other gardeners are also a great source of free plants. All you have to do is put the word out among your friends, especially in the spring, and you will find yourself the recipient of divisions of hostas, daylilies, Shasta daisies and other prolific plants.

When you can afford to buy plants from local, catalog or online nurseries, choose wisely. While the flashy new plants are always tempting, sometimes it is better to choose tried and true performers if you're on a tight budget.

Mulch is a great boon to most plants and cuts weeding chores. If you have friends with pine trees, ask if you can gather the pine straw that accumulates under the trees. It makes a wonderful soft mulch. Compost is another good mulch and soil conditioner. Start a pile in a corner of the garden. Add organic material and water and turn it daily and you'll have good compost in a couple of months. If you have room for two piles--one active pile and one "cooking" pile--all the better.

Remember that anything from a yogurt container to an old paint bucket can function as a plant pot.

In these times when many of us have to think about economizing, it's reassuring to know that you can start or maintain a garden without breaking the bank. Look around you--everything you need for a great garden is probably close at hand.

The New Gardening Season

Elisabeth — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 14:30:00 GMT

"Calendar winter" (as opposed to actual winter) only started a week ago, but I feel as if the new gardening season has already begun. Why? Because the catalog and internet vendors of plants and seeds have started mailing out catalogs and posting spring offerings on their websites. In these days, as the old year wanes and the holiday excitement calms down, it is nice to start considering what to do with the garden next spring and summer.

Every since Sears and Montgomery Ward sent out their first mail order catalogs in the nineteenth century, catalogs have been "wish books". Now websites fit into that category as well. When I was a gardening novice, I developed a strategy to maxmize the pleasure that I get out of these wish vehicles. I still use it and now that there are even more catalogs and websites, I get even more pleasure.

The strategy is this: whenever you receive a new mail order catalog or access a website whose owner has just put up the offerings for spring, go through, read all the descriptions, look at all the pictures and circle (or "cut and paste" onto a list that you save in a computer file) absolutely everything that interests you. This does not mean that you have committed yourself to buying the particular plant or plants; it just means that for some reason the specimen (or specimens) has piqued your curiosity. If you are like me, over the next month or so you will put together an enormous, ruinously expensive master list. Eventually, in late January or February, you can look at your wish list and your plant budget and start to tame your acquisitive urges. You can comparison shop for the best prices. You can decide which plants that you absolutely must have and which you can live without. The more prudent among us will even consider whether we actually have the space for all the plants on the list. By the time you finally commit to buying plants, you will have gotten some of your more outrageous ideas resolved, one way or another. It's a great way to get through the winter and a great way to kick off the gardening season.

Autumn Dreams

Elisabeth — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 22:11:00 GMT

I am stuck with too little space and too many big plans for my garden. Some people who have this problem just forge ahead, like a woman I know who has two waterfalls, an island, a gazebo, a rose garden, a rock garden and an outdoor kitchen--all on the back third of a standard size suburban lot.

I can't bring myself to do something like that, mostly because I would find such an array of landscaping and hardscaping confusing. So I tend my own beds and borders and spend a lot of time coveting my neighbor's lot, especially the sunny parts. Her house is the mirror image of mine, but, due to property transactions that took place a century ago, her lot is twice the size of mine. Life is not fair.

While I am coveting, I find myself thinking about what I would do if I could annex her garden space. First of all, I would add lots of edible crops to my planting scheme. I might even have a fancy potager or kitchen garden. Since I love strawberries, I would also have a dedicated strawberry bed, with enough fencing and netting to keep out various varmints and berry-loving birds. It's highly likely that I would have raspberries, a peach tree and a dwarf apple tree as well.

In the ornamental realm, I would make a round bed and fill it with many different varieties of my favorite yellow roses, underplanted with blue-purple flowered hardy geraniums and encircled by a low lavender hedge.

Now that I have done all that dreaming and come back down to earth, I have to face the fact that there is no way I'll ever be able to annex my neighbor's yard. I'll just have to settle for a small round rose bed in the center of the lawn, a strawberry jar on the back porch and a few edibles here and there in my planting scheme. It's not the whole loaf, but it's a start on half a loaf.