Older gardens have a marvelous sense of stability and a unique character. They're restful to wander around in or sit inside. Not that they're static, no garden ever stays exactly the same. But they have a depth of spirit, you might say, a quality that's almost indescribable.
The gardeners and the gardens seem to have reached a balance that means, usually, less work. The more plants there are to fill the space, the fewer the weeds and, often, the less water it needs. The plants that do well have been allowed to spread, the ones that didn't work out are gone. The shrubs and trees are full grown. Stability amid change, that's what a mature garden says.
Nurturing stability
A stable piece of land has a good plant cover, often three or four layers from ground covers to tall perennials or shrubs. No bare soil, no expanses of mulch, means less maintenance. This ideal may take a few years and many plants to achieve, but it's a worthwhile goal.
Nurturing meaning
Meaning is always personal, something to give to an object in the outer world, a way of melding inner and outer reality. You can always add something with meaning to a garden, a statue, a rose planted to honor a friend, a special rock from your favorite place.
The more meaning infused into your garden, the more the garden as a whole with feel uniquely yours, and the more energy you'll have for working with it. In a way, gardens are like sandboxes for grownups. We play around, change the furniture or the decorations and when we get bored we find something else to do.
Nurturing possibilities
Brainstorming is a good winter activity, or even something to occupy yourself in the midsummer heat when you're not going to actually change anything. Seed catalogs arrive, you. have time to look at gardening sites online or the beautiful books of photos that tempt us into bookstores.
And brainstorming is, by definition, separate from decision-making. Ideas, lots of ideas, are the purpose here. Write them down, collect photos, let your imagination roam. Practicality comes later.
Older gardens have a marvelous sense of stability and a unique character. They're restful to wander around in or sit inside. Not that they're static, no garden ever stays exactly the same. But they have a depth of spirit, you might say, a quality that's almost indescribable.
The gardeners and the gardens seem to have reached a balance that means, usually, less work. The more plants there are to fill the space, the fewer the weeds and, often, the less water it needs. The plants that do well have been allowed to spread, the ones that didn't work out are gone. The shrubs and trees are full grown. Stability amid change, that's what a mature garden says.
Nurturing stability
A stable piece of land has a good plant cover, often three or four layers from ground covers to tall perennials or shrubs. No bare soil, no expanses of mulch, means less maintenance. This ideal may take a few years and many plants to achieve, but it's a worthwhile goal.
Nurturing meaning
Meaning is always personal, something to give to an object in the outer world, a way of melding inner and outer reality. You can always add something with meaning to a garden, a statue, a rose planted to honor a friend, a special rock from your favorite place.
The more meaning infused into your garden, the more the garden as a whole with feel uniquely yours, and the more energy you'll have for working with it. In a way, gardens are like sandboxes for grownups. We play around, change the furniture or the decorations and when we get bored we find something else to do.
Nurturing possibilities
Brainstorming is a good winter activity, or even something to occupy yourself in the midsummer heat when you're not going to actually change anything. Seed catalogs arrive, you. have time to look at gardening sites online or the beautiful books of photos that tempt us into bookstores.
And brainstorming is, by definition, separate from decision-making. Ideas, lots of ideas, are the purpose here. Write them down, collect photos, let your imagination roam. Practicality comes later.
Gardening with Skill and Delight
A great garden doesn't require gallons of water every week, just skillful planning and a couple years to let plants settle into their places.
Here are the steps:
1) Know your garden, the soil texture, the rainfall in winter and summer, the lowest temperatures you can expect.
2) Know yourself. How much work are you willing to put into soil preparation? How much watering do you want to do in summer - none, a couple times or every two weeks?
3) Make a list of the plants that fit your desires and the garden's profile. If you have heavy soil and you'd rather not add perlite or gravel to lighten it, cross off the most drought-tolerant plants. These usually require a light, air-filled soil, especially in the Northwest. But you still have plenty to choose from.
4) Now plan your garden, the curves, the harmony of lines and paths. Decide where the plants on your list would look best.
5) Decide on the best places for a "holding area," somewhere easy to water that small, newly acquired plants can spend the summer before being moved to permanent positions in fall. Selection is best in spring but planting for drought-tolerance is best in fall.
6) Now divide your planned garden into sections that can be filled with plants all in one year. Why? Because a garden bed develops drought-tolerance as a whole. If you plant piece-meal, you'll always being starting over with regular watering in that spot, hauling the hose over more frequently than the other plants need.
7) Now, finally you can start buying plants! Definitely the best part of gardening.