Evergreens in Winter

A couple of posts ago I waxed poetic about the use of evergreens in your landscape.  What I failed to mention is that evergreens, which are generally an easy care plant, need a little help in winter to keep them healthy.  For those smaller evergreens that you may have just planted in the fall, covering them with a A-frame is useful to keep the branches from snapping in half under the weight of heavy snow.  For mature evergreens, such as the false cypress pictured right, gently knocking off the snow after a heavy storm is a must.  I've seen plenty of slender arborvitae loose their natural shape because someone did not bother to knock the heavy snow off the branches.  When the snow forms into ice, it becomes doubly tragic.  The limbs will fall to the sides causing the arborvitae to look more like a lopsided letter "W" and less like an "O", it's natural pretty shape.  If you have inherited a "W" shaped arborvitae, you can discreetly tie the branches that have strayed to the main trunk, gently lifting them up where they belong.  

I've included a recent photo here of my Hinoki false cypress.  This poor shrub has been moved to four different locations and had one bad winter where it's main trunk split in two due to heavy snow and a negligent owner (namely, me).  Now in it's permanent location, it's somewhat protected from strong winds and exposure, and it's big enough now where heavy snow is less of a problem.  I did have to cut a large chunk out of the middle after I realized that the main trunk had split and I worried that it would always have a large hole.  But, hopefully this photo demonstrates that nature can usually recover given enough time and care.  One of the reasons I love this false cypress so much is that it's carefree shape usually requires no sort of tweaking, trimming, or shaping.  Now I also love it because it can be trimmed when necessary and it forgives the intrusion.

Holiday Gifting for New Gardeners

If the holidays have you contemplating what you should buy that wannabe gardener on your list, I have a few suggestions.  A basic book on how to start and plan yardscaping with easy care plant suggestions is always useful.  I have a library of books that just seems to get bigger with each book sale I attend.  A new book is fine for a gift, but useful information can be found in any basic book as long as the information is clear and concise and there are color pictures to help the new gardener envision the possibilities.

Other good gifts that will be used on a continuous basis throughout the growing season, pruning shears, weed puller, pruning saw, small spade, utility scissors, hand rake, or gift certificate to a local nursery.  Other items I wouldn't mind receiving if my yard was in need of added interest would be a bird feeder with supply of seed, compost bin for outside (and compost pail for inside), simple lawn statute, and stepping stones.

As a gift one year, I asked for, and got, a rain gauge.  It was a glass tube with inches marked off on the inside so that I could measure the amount of rain when it rained so that I could track which days I needed to water the yard.  Rain gauges are fine if you 1) are diligent enough to manage your watering needs based on rainfall and 2) remember to bring them in for the winter, lest they freeze and shatter.  Unfortunately neither 1) nor 2) applied to me.  I often forgot to check the rain gauge after a rainfall, and, sadly, I did forget one fall to bring it inside for the winter and I found glass shattered in the yard when cleaning out in spring.  A more practical guide for weather watchers might be Farmer's Almanac or a wireless weather station (fancy talk for indoor/outdoor thermometer).

On a Clear Day I Can See Forevergreens

Luckily we had a bit of snow today so this photo of the holly berries looks extra festive.

After being spoiled by a summer of color and sunshine, the short days and cold nights can be a kicker especially if every one of your plants looks dead (but rest assured they are just dormant).  Because the winter can seem to last longer than three months (in Maine, I would swear it's six) planting with winter in mind can be useful.  Combine evergreens with deciduous plants so that your yard isn't completely bare.  Holly bushes come in several varieties, but remember to have both a male and female plant if you want berries.  Thankfully, nurseries will mark the male from the female as I'm not certain how to tell the difference (I suspect it's far more complicated than just turning them over).  I also like evergreens that produce pine cones in various size and shapes.  Pine cones, like holly, make not only a pretty outdoor compliment to your yard, but indoors during the holidays as well.

This is the white coast cedar with blue pine cones, if it ever really starts growing, it will be far too big for its location, but, like Scarlett, I'll worry about that tomorrow.

What I like about mixing in a few evergreens, is that they don't necessarily have to be "green".  For example, blue rug junipers are a low growing shrub that are a beautiful shade of blue-green, and gold mop false cypress are a lovely shade of yellow-green.  The white coast cedar I mentioned in my post on memorial gardens, has a silverish tinge to its green needle and produces a funky little blue pine cone.

As some evergreens can get quite large, I would suggest, if you also have a small yard, to look at dwarf varieties rather than regular varieties.  Dwarf evergreens are slower to grow but won't overshadow other plantings.  I mentioned in a previous post the benefits of shopping nurseries in the autumn to find lower priced shrubs and trees, but it's worth repeating.  As long as the ground is still workable (i.e. not frozen) then planting a tree or shrub is just fine (in my opinion).  You can even move perennials around to your hearts content.  While some may argue that plants can't get settled at this time of year, my landscaping sister has re-assured me that the plants are in dormancy and cannot be harmed by being moved.  Through experience, I have found that to be true.

My sister not only gives me good advice, but good plants as well.  When she was working part time at a landscaping job, she brought me some perennial grasses that were going to be tossed out.  I had never given grasses much thought, since I had assumed that they would be boring.  Not so, especially this time of year.  We weren't actually certain where to put the ornamental grass at first, I have no idea of what kind it is or how tall it gets, so the better half divided the plant into three sections and planted it along the path to the front door (which I still dream about replacing with brick, one of my future lofty goals).  It did get a lot taller than we thought, but I like it where it is.  When approaching the front door from the driveway I like the way the dried grass looks against the evergreen boulevard false cypress.  I also cut some of the dried seed heads and brought them inside to see if they would retain the same shape and color when dried completely. They do!  If you have a crafty side, I'm certain there are many uses for dried grasses (like arrangements and wreaths).  Like the holly, it's nice to bring the outdoors in when the days are so short and the nights so long (so very, very long).

Decorating with Garden Statues and Sculptures

My last blog on memorial gardens reminded me that I wanted to discuss garden "art".  I used quotes around art as there may be some difference of opinion about what constitutes tasteful lawn ornamentation.  I actually have very few items in the yard that are not plant related.  I have a brass sundial that I inherited from my parents, a couple of homemade stepping stones, birdbath, a catlike gargoyle, and a small angel head with wings.  I had purchased a small statute of St. Francis after one of my cats died unexpectedly and I was just overwhelmed with sudden grief.  But the bottom of the statue appears to be felted so I do not dare place him outside, so, instead, he protects the animals from the inside of the sun porch.

Please note, this is Not from my yard.

While I might have been tempted to pick up a pink flamingo at a yard sale and brazenly flaunt it in my front yard, I wouldn't really do it.  Same with the backside of the lady made out of wood that appears in county gardens along winding roads. I've inserted an image here as an example, but I've seen this "lady" in many different dresses and socks, and often without the gray haired bun. There are other items that are readily available from nurseries and gardening websites, ceramic frogs, ducks, gnomes, sleeping cats, etc.  And some are actually quite nice.  I think the key is to pick one or two tasteful items and strategically place them in your yard so that they stand out as items of interest and not trash talk from your neighbors (as in, how long before they throw that trash out?)


The St. Francis statute was not the only sentimental buy.  The catlike gargoyle came home with us when I became angry at the neighbors over a fence dispute (their fence, our land).  I purposely placed the gargoyle facing their house as an attempt to ward off their bad spirits.  Also, I like cats (obviously) and this was a rather cool looking gargoyle who adds a nice touch on the steps for Halloween, and with a neck wreath and bow is a perfect Christmas accent.  The birdbath comes inside in the winter as it may crack (not quite concrete, more like resin) in the cold, wet weather.  It is also important to bring in any ceramic pots in winter as they, too, might fill with water, freeze, and crack.

Memorial Garden

Our dog lived with us from 1994-2009; I'm guessing he was about 16 or 17 years of age when he passed, but I can only guess as we adopted him from a shelter in Brockton, MA, right after we bought our first house and his age was unknown.  Our decision to get a dog went something like this; we had just finished unpacking and were working outside when I said to the better half, "now that we have a house can we go get a dog?".  And I'm sure he (reasonably) replied "why don't we wait until have finished with all the yard work?" (meaning in a month or so). I'm certain, at least this is what I remember, I put my tools away and said, "there, I'm done, how about now?".

When we visited the "Best Friends" shelter there were 12 dogs all waiting for adoption.  Of the 12, only one was not barking when we entered the kennel.  This dog simply wagged his tail and appeared friendly.  My husband said to the attendant, "we'll take that one".  Our dog came without any information as to his previous life; he was found as a stray and brought to the shelter.  They listed him only as a "shepherd mix" although he probably had some retriever in him (loved to go get things and bring them to you) and the vet thought a bit of doberman (he had a long skinny body).  Our dog was as big a part of the family as the kids and it was a sad day when he died.  So I thought I would create a memorial garden in the back yard where he spent a lot of time.

Although it's still an unfinished garden (I've only put a few plants in so far), the memorial garden has seen a lot of activity. Four pet rats have come and gone and are now buried there (I chose to cremate our dog, with his ashes returned to us, as the thought of him being disposed of in any other way made me cringe), plus a deceased field mouse I found in our driveway one morning on my way to work, and a dead bird that I found on our deck (may have flown into one of the windows).  I know that most people would probably throw an animal away with their trash but somehow it seems disrespectful.  My only concern, however, is that the next home owner will go digging out back in the memorial garden, find all the tiny bones and think that we harbored some type of wildlife serial killer!  (I guess I should also confess now that my daughter buried a dead hummingbird in the front yard, and there are two additional field mice I found on the school playground buried in the side yard.  Oh, and a squirrel that was hit by a car and left in the street is somewhere by the back garden.  That one I wish I remembered where my husband put as it's been in the yard the longest and chances are I'll find it first if I keep gardening.)

Our dog's ashes are supposed to take their place in the memorial garden.  In my mind I had a dedication ceremony half planned ending with a sentimental spreading of the ashes.  But I am still not ready to part with him (well, what's left of him).  I keep thinking if we move we'll want to take him with us.  I am also holding onto our cat's ashes from last year.  We've had two other cats who have passed in the time that we've been married, I placed one's ashes at the base of a lovely linden tree I planted in the front yard and the other's ashes my daughter planted with a tree she picked out, a little white coast cedar that still hasn't "taken off" but cannot be replaced due to the sentimental aspect of the tree.  I somewhat regret burying the ashes that we have as it feels like the final goodbye, but it's part of the grieving process.

I may have gone off topic here (after all, this is a gardening blog) but I think creating sentiment in your yard helps you connect to it.  I also, though, think that you shouldn't go too far with that sentiment.  How far is too far?  Well, a couple of years ago John Grogan (author of the book Marley and Me: Love and Life with the World's Worst Dog) wrote an article that appeared in the Parade magazine describing how he and his wife decided to move but couldn't bear the thought of leaving Marley behind, so they dug up his corpse and brought him "home" with them.  Yuck.  That article positively haunts me.  It was all filled with sappy sentiment, and sure the author has made a tidy career from this one dog, but if he thinks that every time he moves he needs to dig up his dog's body, then perhaps he's not the animal lover he proposes to be.  Let the poor animal rest in peace.  My advice, if you cannot part with the remains of your pet, please cremate and place the ashes in a pretty container to bring with you.  If you prefer a burial in your yard, dig deep, mark it well, and for the love of St. Francis, leave them alone.

The Joys of Raking

While I am so tempted to leave this post blank ('cause let's be real, what could possibly be joyful about raking?  Unless you consider it doing penance in some sort of religious sense?)  But raking, like mowing, is one of the unavoidable tasks of yard maintenance which can seem like thankless work.  Whenever I rake, however, I remember a story from one of Leo Buscaglia's programs on PBS that I heard as a child (yes, I am just that old, and no, we did not have cable TV so there was nothing better on).

In this particular story, Leo talks about teaching his students during a pretty fall day and being inspired to bring all the leaves inside the house.  At the time it sounded like so much fun, bring all the leaves inside for jumping into and rolling around in.  However, when I think of it today, all I can imagine is the mess that it would make and how long it would take to clean up.  The difference?  Attitude.  If we imagine something to be undesirable and a real chore, well, it will be.  If we can look more at the positive aspects (exercise, fresh air, how nice it will look when done) then it won't be as difficult to get motivated.  I strongly suggest raking with someone else, a family member, gullible friend, etc.  Talking during any unpleasant task always seem to make it go faster and you feel accountable to finish the job when someone else is with you.  An ipod also makes a good companion (plus it can block out the sounds of your neighbor's high powered leaf blower that makes you a bit green with envy).

Autumn Follies

It occurred to while I was admiring the baby grass grow around the new labyrinth that the reason we don't usually plant grass seed in the Fall is because we inadvertently end up disturbing most of the new blades while raking.  Because we have a large maple in the backyard, the leaves tend to fall fast and furious.  And once the maple has covered the yard in pretty red fallen leaves, the (5) pin oaks begin (and don't usually end until after the first snowfall).  So, this year we will have to be really gentle on those areas where new grass has sprouted.

It is generally a difficult task when you have a large area of containing both perennial beds and deciduous trees as raking can disturb other plants as well.  I've tried a few different approaches: using a small soft rake to get some of the leaves out of the beds; hand picking the leaves; and, my laziest method, justifying that the leaves "protect" the ground from heavy snow and just leaving them there until Spring.  The soft rake still pulls a lot of mulch out of the yard with the leaves, and if you've just laid mulch in the previous Spring, you may not want to waste the mulch.  In general I usually hand pick the leaves, if they are wet from a recent rain they tend to be easier to pick.  I also finally invested in a leaf blower with a vacuum option.  If the leaves are dry (and maple, as oak leaves tend to take far longer to decompose) we can vacuum, mulch, and use in the compost pile.

I saw a gardening TV show a few years ago that was encouraging gardeners to create leaf mold/mulch over the winter for the benefit of their gardens in the Spring.  In a nutshell, you collect the leaves into dark green trash bags, add water (only if the leaves are dry; if they are already wet, so much the better), tie off, and then store in your yard in a sunny spot.  The heat from the bag combined with the moistened leaves will cause them to decompose quickly and months later produce a leaf mold that can be used like humus or compost for the benefit of the flower beds.  I love ideas like this one, simple, inexpensive, and useful.  However, we do not have the benefit of a large yard, so finding a secluded sunny spot to place a garbage bag or two isn't doable. I'd have to leave the garbage bag on the front lawn, and I'd worry that the neighbors would be suspicious of just what was in the bag.  (Like, if I saw someone digging in their yard late at night I might begin to wonder when the last time it was I saw their spouse).

One of Three Things Update

The labyrinth has been tweaked a small bit (I think it was missing one more stretch of patio bricks to make it an even number of rows on all sides) and more loam was added to finish the leveling with the lawn. The better half threw down some grass seed on the outside of the bricks in anticipation of a rainy weekend.  The only question that really remained was what to do with the spaces in between the rows.

While I like the idea of planting creeping thyme, I don't want to run the risk that the ground cover will grow so far over the patio bricks that the pattern is obscured.  I also didn't want to the kids to think they couldn't run and play over the labyrinth.  So, we ended up by filling in between the patio bricks with pebbles that we purchased from Home Depot.  While creeping thyme or some other type of ground cover might have been prettier, it didn't seem as practical.  Most likely the dampness will cause some pretty moss to grow over time (just as it has on our other walkways).

One of Three Underway

No, we haven't built an alien spaceship pad in the middle of our backyard (although the neighbors might think we have).  On Saturday we bought loam to fill in the back yard (went the cheap route and headed for Lowe's) along with some grass seed.  While we were there, I noted that the patio bricks were on sale (end of season) for 20% off regular price.  I had pretty much scrapped the idea of a labyrinth, thinking it too complicated and unnecessary, but then priced the least expensive patio "brick" and thought, why not?  So I went home and came up with the simplest design I could imagine, counted up the bricks needed, and went back and bought enough plus a couple extra in case of future breakage.  The preliminary result is below:

Part of me thinks it might be too uncomplicated, but we haven't filled it in yet just to see if it needs tweaking before we finish with loam and grass seed on the outside and mulch on the inside.  That is next weekend's project.  Meanwhile I'll probably keep looking at it to be certain it's perfect.  Once it's been set it won't be easy to move or adjust.

These Three Things

The end of summer is approaching and I've felt particularly lazy about posting progress or advice.  When you've worked hard over the Spring and early Summer, the enthusiasm for yard work may have all but disappeared by Labor Day.  Though I've tried to keep up with the new weeds (which usually follow any significant rain fall) and I've mentally made plans to fill in the large divot in the back yard where the kids' wooden playset used to take residence, re-seed grassy areas that still need love, and mulch the path that used to be in the front (now overgrown with ajuga), I haven't quite summoned the energy.  Part of the delay is because the weather has either been too hot or, lately, too rainy.  The other part is lack of ambition.  If you find that you are resenting the work, take a break from it.  If you are stuck because you feel that you do not have an adequate plan or course of action, then do a little research and see what your options are.

Currently, I have three things I would really like to do in my yard if time (and resources) permit.  I would like to put in a labyrinth in the rectangular section of the back yard left vacant by the kids' playset.  I would like to replace the asphalt path that leads from the driveway to the front steps with a brick path (we have brick steps and a brick path would add so much).  And, I'd really like to fix the side garden/grassy area by the driveway with a traditional square garden sectioned off for growing vegetables and perennials.

When I discuss the idea of a labyrinth I am usually greeted with polite nods and smiles.  I'm thinking some people envision a large maze with trimmed hedges leading path walkers down a confusing series of walkways.  What I am really talking about is a design in pavers that creates a path that leads into a central core and back out again (not really a maze, although it is often confused with one).  What intimidates me most is trying to design such a path with rectangular edges.  Most designs online are circular and our space is fairly limited.  Also, picking out reasonably priced pavers, predicting how many will be needed, and how close to set them is mystifying me.  I am also wondering if it's overkill considering how many other unusual choices we've made to our yard already.

The brick path is another stumbling block.  I would prefer to hire someone to put one in, but imagine that the price would be considerable.  My sister claims it is easy as she has installed them herself, but first the asphalt must be removed.  While I do not disagree that I could probably do it myself, I hesitate on the issues of how much sand, gravel, and brick to buy?  How do you keep the path clear while you are installing the sand, gravel, and brick?  And do I have that kind of free time to dedicate?

And, finally, perhaps the easiest on the wish list, to fix the side garden area that seems to need a bit of help.  In Fantasyland (where I like to go when things get tough) I am able to create a garden in four sections with a cross shaped in between for easy weeding.  In reality, I have a young apple tree right in the middle of the square that is most likely too large to move, and too sentimental to kill.   My daughter started that tree in kindergarten after picking the seeds out of an apple she ate and (using skills she learned in camp) getting them to sprout by keeping them moist against a paper towel and sealed in a sandwich bag.  This tree is now 8 feet tall and there is no other space for it in the yard.  Though I have no use for an apple tree (the number of apples it may produce some day will not be worth the care and maintenance over time, at least not for me) my daughter is really proud of her tree and I can't bring myself to kill it, though I've dreamed about it many times.

As a sort of compromise, I have left the the tree and altered my design for the side garden.  I decided to leave the square garden in the middle, a grass path around the edge, and finish the strip of garden around the outside.  Ok, so this photo is not pretty, but it's temporary.  In order to complete the strip of garden around the outside I have to finish killing the grass (mostly crabgrass) left along one patch in between some plants I put in the ground (where the grass did not survive last winter) and the garden edge won in a battle over property lines with the next door neighbor.  Because I'm low on ambition, I threw down some newspaper on the grass to be eliminated, rather than dig it up.  To keep it in place, I used bricks and broken up pallet pieces.  Over the winter, the grass will die (and it hadn't bloomed so seeds should not be a problem) and in the spring I'll be able to put in some extra plants I have around the yard (and remove the newspaper as it will have done it's job).

If you choose to use the low ambition/newspaper method and you don't like the way it looks, you can throw down some mulch over it to cover the newspaper and go ahead and plant by cutting a holes in the newspaper.  Eventually the newspaper will disintegrate, but can easily be removed if it doesn't.

Crabgrass Makes Me Crabby

This is the most disappointing time of year.  The desirable grass has gone dormant in the heat and the crabgrass seems to have taken hold.  I've tried hand pulling the crabgrass and other weeds, like wood sorrel, out of the lawn, but, seriously, it's like trying to move a mountain of snow with a teaspoon.  Sure, it can be done, but is it really worth it?  Probably not.  I found myself feeling particularly discouraged while mowing the lawn yesterday about the proliferation of crab grass and its ability to lie so low that the mower doesn't cut it (or its blossoms which will set the seeds for next year-lucky me!).

Ideally, each Spring, just as the forsythia is beginning to bloom, you spread a "pre-emergence" on the ground to prevent weed seeds from sprouting in your lawn ("pre-emergence" containing corn gluten is an all natural, safe alternative to chemical pre-emergent herbicides).  The only trouble is you can't spread grass seed at the same time (obviously, since the pre-emergence will keep those seeds from sprouting, too).  What to do?  Looking back over this year we chose grass seed over pre-emergence and I may be regretting that decision. Because so much of the crabgrass has bloomed and thrown its seeds all over creation, next year we'll do the pre-emergence, suffer with brown turf in the summer, and then put down grass seed in the Fall.  (We wouldn't have to worry about grass seed each year but our yard has a lot of fill, sand, rocks, and glass, with very little loam, and poor drainage.  After a wet winter we can end up with standing water in the backyard that will cause damage to the grass as it freezes and melts in the spring.)

The Basics of Trimming

The other day I stumbled upon an infomercial for a new product called the "Garden Groom".  This is a compact unit with an enclosed blade designed, supposedly, to trim your shrubs and hedges with a minimum of work and effort.  I will admit the attached basin designed to mulch the branches it collects makes it appear to be a good idea, you can either empty the basin into a leaf bag or onto areas needing mulch, saving one more step in your trimming process.  However, despite how "easy" the infomercial makes it seem to shape a shrub, it violates everything that you really should do when trimming a shrub, and doesn't really work as described (at least according to the online reviews).  In fact, while watching the infomercial I found myself getting a little irritated.

Why irritated?  Because shrubs and hedges will not thrive over the years being trimmed only on the surface.  When you only cut the top growth on a shrub (like a yew or a holly) you spark that limb to branch out with new growth.  Then the next year you trim those new branches and then those branch out, too.  Over the years, you end up with an overly thick green surface on your shrub with all dead wood underneath.  Air needs to circulate within the main branches of your shrubs and water needs to get to the roots.  The best course of action is to thin your shrubs and hedges.  My sister uses the "keep it simple" theory.  That is, uncomplicate your shrub.  Take out any branches that cross each other, trim back any branches that are dead or dying, and reduce your shrub to several strong main branches especially if you expect the shrub to grow quite large (like a hydrangea, rhododendron, and so forth).

Please be careful to time the trimming of your shrubs so that you don't loose this (or next) year's  blooms.  For example, I always trim my hydrangea in the Spring before it begins to leaf out.  As I recall, a hydrangea is like a weigela, blooms only on new growth so it's better to cut back the older limbs when shaping the shrub.  For Spring blooming shrubs, like rhododendrons, it's best to cut it back once it's done blooming.  If you do it in the Spring, like your hydrangea, you will actually be cutting off those branches that would be producing the blooms.  If you must cut a significant amount of your shrub back due to a long period of over growth, be prepared to have a couple of lean years of blossoms before the shrub fully recovers.  For old lilacs, you can cut up to a third of the shrub back without harming it, but other shrubs, like a spirea, you can almost cut it to the ground with no repercussions; it's best to check a gardening resource (like a local nursery) if you are unsure.

This is a dwarf Hinoki False Cypress

This is a Boulevard False Cypress

Some evergreens, like false cypress, mugo pines, and arborvitae, need no trimming at all (and do not lose leaves in Fall).  If you would like to keep your yard work to a minimum, consider planting evergreens as opposed to blooming shrubs. Just be sure that you give your shrub plenty of room to grow especially if you will not be trimming it back.  I've since moved the autumn joy sedum seen behind the Hinoki False Cypress as the two were too close together.  Another nice thing about these false cypress, is that they grow quickly.  We could only afford to purchase very young specimens and at first, we thought it would take a long time for them to mature, but we've had each only a few years (maybe 6?) and they really look beautiful.  The Hinoki has also been moved three times in the yard until I finally settled on its perfect spot and it has forgiven me each time.  (I first had it in the front like the Boulevard but the snow and ice that landed on it from the roof caused trunk to split.  I cut out the broken limbs, and it grew right back into the space.)

Overcrowding Revisited

Overcrowding your yard is so tempting when you are first planting trees, shrubs, and perennials.  You look at your yard and want that instant gratification of seeing masses of color and texture.  DO YOURSELF A FAVOR - RESIST! There are three stages of perennials (according to gardening lore): sleep, creep, and leap. Remember this when you feel impatient.  If you over crowd you'll spend those "leaping" years moving, rearranging, and perhaps tossing a lot of plants.

Not that you won't ever have to move things around even if you are careful in your placement.  Currently I am considering whether to find new homes for a dozen or so yellow siberian iris (not my favorite as they bloom only halfway up the stem unlike my purple who blooms are so elegantly perches atop theirs), some purple cone flowers (aren't blooming as I thought they would in a mildly shady area, plus getting overwhelmed by a maturing holly bush), some daylilies, and a gigantic misplaced hosta that I thought would just be smaller. It is usually best to move and rearrange your yard in spring and fall when the plants are either going into dormancy or just coming out.  I will probably ignore that rule this summer as I'm afraid with all those leaves to be raked in the fall I won't have time.  So, for those plants that have already bloomed (iris and lilies) I will go ahead and move them.  I will also be certain to water frequently until winter to make sure their chances of surviving my impatience are greater.

Work v. Play
If you read my last post on weeds, you are either now a) so depressed about trying to diminish them from your yard, you are currently dialing a local realtor and asking about the prices of condos in your area (who needs a house and yard anyway?),  b) are still pondering the philosophical question "what is a weed?", c) not worried, afterall you've been keeping a close eye on all the interlopers and have no concerns that alien bittersweet will swoop down in the middle of the night and snatch you from your bed, or d) know that you have a lot of yard work to do but you are looking forward to spending time in the fresh air.

Sometimes the effort is worth it.

If you answered either a) or b), well, you might want to reconsider how you view your yard, how you'd like it to look, and whether or not you have the "right stuff" to achieve your goals.  If you can afford landscaping services, use them for the jobs you really hate but be prepared to supervise the work and clean up any loose ends left behind.  If you don't want to pay a landscaper and you don't have the energy to weed, plant, water, and maintain, then maybe a few simple slow growing shrubs and drought resistant ground cover will suit your yard best.  Setting realistic goals is as important in gardening and yard design as it is in budgeting and weight management and there are as many external messages that will try to convince you otherwise.

To set an example, I could lose a few pounds (well, maybe a few more than a "few") and despite the fact I am inundated with external messages on TV, in bookstores and magazines letting me know how "easy" it would be to look younger and more slender if I just bought the right supplement, the right exercise equipment, or followed the right exercise regimen I cannot summon my enthusiasm for any of it.  Other than eating a healthy diet and getting moderate exercise I am not really interested in spending extra money, hiring a personal trainer, running five miles a day, or investing in a "lifestyle" that I will lose interest in within a few months.  Maybe I'll reach a point as I age where I become interested in joining a gym or eating grapefruit five times a day, but until then I have made peace with my physical flaws.  The same philosophy can be applied to yard work.  If you are ready, then great, if not, limit your expectations to meet your commitment and don't feel that you are letting some editor from Better Homes & Gardens down (chances are, unless your yard is a botanical theme park, they won't be contacting you for a magazine spread anyway).

weed

noun \ˈwēd\

Definition of WEED: a plant that is not valued where it is growing and is usually of vigorous growth; especially : one that tends to overgrow or choke out more desirable plants

After visiting a friend who is in process of embarking upon a small garden, I feel the need to go back and talk a little more about weeds.  I took this picture from her driveway and thought I recognized the vine as bittersweet (which had a choke hold over the porch in our first house).  But I didn't remember the purple and yellow flowers or the red berries produced afterwards.  So I asked my sister, a landscape designer (and overall encyclopedia of information), and she confirmed that this is bittersweet, but more specifically called "nightshade".

Nightshade is an invasive, hard to kill, fast growing vine that really should be completely removed from your yard.  The berries are poisonous to people and animals, and it can grow under vinyl siding, around outdoor wiring, and choke other plants.  I "googled" removal of nightshade to see what the online recommendations are from various garden sites and each one included using an herbicide.  Well, I am still not in favor of using chemicals in your yard, though apparently nightshade is so vigilant nothing short of biochemical warfare will eradicate the plant.  Even so, I do remember that we were able to calm the bittersweet in our first house by removing the plant down to the root to the best of our abilities.  Once in a while we would see a young vine pop up, but we were careful to pull it out right away.

It is important to recognize weeds like nightshade so that you can take proactive measures to control them in your yard.  If it gets as severe as the photo you not only run the risk of losing the desirable plants that may still be living under that mass of vines, but you may lose your vinyl siding, clapboards, outdoor wiring from the street to your house, etc., and the problem will compound as the summer growing season continues.

On the other hand, weeds like milk weed are not so worrisome.  While I do not have any milk weed in my yard, I have seen it in others and realize that they do have value by providing nourishment to butterflies and may be beneficial if you enjoy watching the lovely creatures thrive in your garden.  The photo to the right was taken at a friend's backyard.  There is no landscape plan or garden and I was just looking at the mass of wild plants (mentally planning what I could do with all that space) and was charmed by the butterfly (monarch?) that was working its way through the weeds.

Another weed that I like is the Virginia creeper.  This vine produces dark blue berries and, as I remember, the leaves turn red in the fall.  We had a very small patch of Virginia creeper along a shared fence in our last house in Massachusetts.  I was warned by the neighbor who shared the fence that it was poison ivy and not to touch it.  I saw the five leaves (versus three) and told her it was just Virginia creeper, but she was insistent that she had broken out in a rash after touching it and therefore it was poison ivy.  But, as I have previously mentioned in an earlier post, you can get rashes from all kinds of plants; and though I reassured her several times she was still a non-believer.  Not to say that Virginia creeper is a highly desirable fence vine as you can be sensitive to it and its berries are poisonous to humans, but I liked it and was satisfied that my neighbor was so afraid of it she had no intention of removing it.

In closing, I would just add that weeding is an ongoing activity that cannot be avoided in any garden.  I included Webster's definition of a weed to illustrate that there is no clear answer to the question, "How do I know if it's a weed?" when working in your garden.  I think any plant that causes damage (like the bittersweet) definitely falls into the "weed" category, but other plants such as johnny jump-ups, violets, milk weed, etc, you must use your own definition.  If it impedes your enjoyment of your yard and lawn, well, then pull it.

What to Wear
As I was getting ready to spend all day (a gorgeous summer day expected to be about eighty degrees) outside fixing the esplanade that was partially removed and hastily repaired by road crews that have been working in our neighborhood over the last ten weeks (I originally mentioned my concerns over this work in my April 16th post) I put on my normal gardening outfit; old shirt, weathered jeans, and lawn-mowing sneakers.  It then occurred to me that I should perhaps cover "what to wear" when spending time getting "dirty".

Not much for straw hats, gloves, and knee pads, I usually dress for comfort and discretion when working outside (conscientious of the fact that I will normally end up in several different, unflattering positions).  It may seem too hot in summer to wear jeans, but I find they are good protectors from scratches, bug bites, and any rash-causing plants that I might unwittingly brush up against.  I had the experience in my first garden of spending a Sunday outside trimming and weeding, then realizing at work the next day I had a fiery, itchy rash over the backs of both my legs.  I had an urban yard with no known poison ivy or oak, so I am unsure what may have caused it (my sister did tell me once that interaction with even ordinarily harmless plants can cause a rash as plants, like animals, have defense mechanisms), I only know that it was vastly uncomfortable wearing nylons and skirt at work that week while my rash healed.  Since then, I have made it a rule to wear long pants, despite any heat, while gardening.

Perhaps more important than clothing, is sunscreen.  Sunscreen not only prevents skin cancer and premature aging, but also that not-so-sexy farmer's tan.  I never realize when I'm outside how much sun I truly get until I slip on that swimsuit and view myself (with horror) in the mirror at the tan that ends with my t-shirt sleeves and begins again from the base of my neck up.  Do yourself, and those at the beach who surround you, a favor, use a really good sunscreen when working outside.

Those who are dedicated to working outside even in inclement weather may even want a good pair of rain boots (or "wellies").  I begged for a pair for Christmas a couple of years back, and the better half purchased a traditional green pair from L.L. Bean, which I love because I am a bit of an anglophile.  On rainy days, I even wear them to work to save my good shoes.  And though I usually don't wear gardening gloves (I like the feel of the soil in my hands) I will wear them also in rainy, cold weather to keep my hands warmer or when pruning a thorny shrub.

The Green Door
When we purchased our first home in Massachusetts we were young and a bit naive.  We had read an article in the Boston Globe entitled "Make Your Mansion" and it profiled turn of the century homes that were once-beautiful, now-dilapidated and could be yours for only a few thousand dollars.  It mainly focused on Brockton, MA, which was once a large leather accessories (mostly shoes) manufacturer up until the mid-19th century, but had since seen hard times.  The house pictured accompanying the article was just lovely and had recently sold for $49,900.  We were definitely interested.

The first house the realtor showed us had a saltbox shape and a gambrel roof.  The carriage house in back had been converted into a garage; the doors were loose and the windows broken, but we weren't concerned.  We saw the overgrown shrubs, the peeling wall paper, the non-working toilets, the bags of trash left over from the last owner (it was a foreclosure from a couple years prior) but once we stepped into a dining room with the hardwood floors, oak paneled walls with plate rails, pocketed doors, built in buffet (with a seat on each end), and the terra cotta tiled fireplace, well that was it.  I was all misty-eyed.  The rest of the house could have been blown apart and I wouldn't have cared in the least.  We were buying that house.

It is needless to say, though well loved, that house needed work.  The chimneys needed repointing, the yard needing tending, the windows needed repair, the door needed a lock (as opposed to the 2x4 being used when we purchased), the floor refinishing, etc, etc, etc.  We spent long hours into the night  peeling painted wall paper, repairing horse hair plaster, and learning to do other odd jobs.  Once we had our son, however, the resources of time and money (and the travel to Maine) were wearing thin so we sold after five years and moved to a house that needed far less of us.

But, in that short time, we learned what it meant to truly love an inanimate object; we named our house (because all fancy houses have names) "Chateau D'Embrace", which, to us, meant the "House of Open Arms".  Friends and family were always welcome to come and stay in one of the six bedrooms, though Brockton wasn't exactly a tourism hot spot.  We were lucky to have friends stay over for New Year's a few times and it was rather fun to plan a whole weekend rather than one evening, knowing you had room for everyone willing to make the trek.

Fast forward to our current home and I'm the first to admit, it has not the charm nor character of our first house.  We purchased more because the house was clean and neat with plenty of closets.  We liked the lay out and the proximity to the neighborhood schools but not the shag carpeting nor faux wood paneling that so permeated the 1970s when the house was built.  We've done a decent job adjusting the house to our taste, and even used our first house as inspiration.  We added a plate rail to the dining room, bookshelves and a mantel to the fireplace, and nailed unfinished wooden molding pieces in rectangular shapes to add a bit of detail in the living room before we painted.

The yard, however, is the main character in this urban plot.  I've batted many names around, but any referring to the house seem inappropriate. I thought first about calling it "le Petite Chateau" as an homage to the first "chateau", but dismissed it as not quite fitting. I then thought about calling it "the Jungle" but can't get the images of Upton Sinclair's depressing novel (required high school reading) out of my mind.  So, I think I have finally settled on "The Green Door".

To Thine Own Self

If you have been reading these posts (and, yes, I’m talking to both of you) and you disagree with any of my “insights” into yard maintenance then I say, “good for you!”.  I would never want you to substitute my judgment for yours.  If, for instance, your idea of a dream lawn is a front yard filled with spring blooming yellow flowers only, then, by all means, do just that.  Having a yard that expresses your personality is more important than having someone else’s ideals. If you have the means and opportunity to hire a professional landscape designer, first let me say, I am completely jealous, and secondly, it's still your yard so it's important for you to have a voice in the design and concept.    

We have friends who had a “professional” draw out a plan for their yard that included perennials, trees, and shrubs.  The plan was never put into action as it was an accompaniment to a greater plan for a deck expansion and other work that didn't get to the construction phase.  In looking at the plans, which our friends brought out of retirement when I inquired, I was surprised at the large number of perennials (roughly one hundred or more) that surrounded the entire perimeter of their house.  My surprise was at the fact the designer did not take the personality of our friends in mind.  Our friends rarely have time to maintain their yard as they are often busy with kids, kids’ sports, extended family, and travel.  To plant so many perennials would be requiring them to water, weed, divide, deadhead, etc. during their busiest times of the year.  Perhaps the “professional” was looking for more business down the road, to redesign the yard once everything was overgrown, weedy, and/or dead, or perhaps they had a side business specializing in yard maintenance for which they were drumming up clients.  In either case, it was fortunate that the plan was not put into action as I do not think our friends would have been prepared to provide the care or cost of care that all of those perennials would have required.  Our friends did not ask the relevant questions when the plans had been prepared, so at least in reading this blog, while you may stumble across some piece of advice you do not agree with, you will have begun to think long term versus instant gratification.

Rain Reigns
The prospect of spending two or more hours watering the yard in between rain storms doesn't really excite me.  I usually start out by filling (cleaned and emptied) milk jugs with water from the rain barrel (conveniently poised under the gutter drain, but inconveniently having the spout so low that it's difficult/impossible to fill the jug to the top-unless you are some type of Houdini) then resort to the hose when the barrel runs dry.

Several sources I've read recommend only deep watering.  That is, try to get the ground completely soaked. If you cut time corners (like using a sprinkler) you are not helping your plants; the water may not penetrate the ground enough (unless the sprinkler runs a very long time).  Also, if you water during the hottest hours of the day you may lose a lot of moisture to evaporation.  A couple of other tips: try not to wet the leaves of your plants while watering, diseases (like powdery mildew) may spread faster or appear, and if you water in late evening you may attract insects to your plant.

As a general rule of thumb, always check on recently planted trees, shrubs, perennials, and annuals on a frequent basis as their watering needs are far more.  After two years or so (depending upon how dry the summers are) trees and shrubs are fine without extra watering, they have sent out their water roots and can help themselves.   If you go for days without significant rain, check the color of the soil.  Is the top layer the same color as an inch beneath?  If so, go for a deep soaking or your plants may wither up and blow away.  I have been known to push the time between waterings as I let the local meteorologist be my guide (and often they are wrong).  If I see rain in the forecast I will put off watering until the next day.  I do not recommend this method, however, as in Maine, the weather can be highly unpredictable (a forecast of rain will often turn to just cloudy for days on end).

"Jack's Rain Barrel"

If you choose to use a hose for watering, a couple of tips.  Try to get a submeter for just your outside water supply (otherwise you end up paying sewer charges along with the water charges in your monthly bill, and, in Portland, sewer can make up two thirds of your utility bill).  If you want to use a rain barrel, check out your local Public Services Department to see if they offer one (usually in Spring) at a discount.  I purchased mine from the Portland Water District a few years ago and it's a nice terra cotta color so it blends well (see in the photo to the right that it is also strategically placed to capture water from the gutter and to not impede the overall look of the garden).

In viewing the recent rain barrel offerings at the City's Public Services Department, I'm glad I have the other one, the new one (pictured below) looks to me like a giant cup of Starbucks and I'd be craving (fancy) coffee if I had to look at it every day (and as coffee grounds from my old fashioned coffee maker make for excellent top dressing on my acid loving plants, I'd hate to waste resources and money on a giant cup of coffee that I don't really need-plus I'd like to sleep sometime in the near future).

"Catscat"?  Really, Dad?
My dad has been gardening his whole life.  I think he found it relaxed him after a long day at work.  Most of the time he's had great success, though I do remember one shady front yard giving him grief as nothing would grow in it.  But when I visited him yesterday I noticed these plastic things in his garden that were square with spikes sticking out.  I gave him a quizzical look, and asked "cat problem?"  And he answered that "yes" the neighbor's cat was using his garden as a litter box.  I then asked, "and you don't think the cat is smart enough to go around?"  To which he pointed above the "catscat" row and said, "Apparently it is".

Pests can be a huge problem in any garden.  I also have a lot of neighborhood cats who think that any workable area is a litter box.  Since I have four cats (all indoors) I am quite patient and will even talk to my feline neighbors when I spot them in the yard.  When I see something that they've done left behind, I will pick it up with a small bag (like a doggy bag) and simply dispose of it.  Frankly, even if it did bother me it would take more than a few "catscat"s to surround my yard.  On the brighter side, because I am more urban, I do not have to worry about other would be pests that are a problem for gardens located on the more wooded side of town.  Such animals as deer and ground hogs will eat many types of plants.  In my last house in Massachusetts there was a family of ground hogs living under a neighbors' garage.  I do not think the neighbors minded or they would have relocated them.  Once in a while I would spot a ground hog in my garden and instead of running out and chasing it away, I would grab the camera and take photos.  So cute!

That said, there are humane methods to deter pests (such as "catscat" won't hurt a cat, it will just make them go around the plastic square to get where they want to be) or even better plant with wildlife in mind.  You can either plant flowers and shrubs that do not taste good to wildlife or plant shrubs and trees that produce berries and flowers that will actually provide food for them.  It's something to consider when in the planning stages of your yard.

The War Against Weeds
In one of my first posts I mentioned that I am very anti-chemical poison when it comes to building a beautiful yard.  I realize that there are some old-timers out there (named "Dad") who do not agree despite the fact studies have shown using chemical poisons can have long term negative effects for people, pets, and wildlife. I try to be understanding and non-judgmental (since, afterall, I do drive a car so I contribute in my own way to polluting the environment) but I do reserve the right to get a bit uppity when I see the "Lawn Dog" truck (which bears the mantra "Environmentally Responsible Lawn Care" on its door) idling while the driver/worker spreads seed on my neighbor's front lawn.

So, when it comes to weeds, I first will hand pull (dandelions are so large rooted they tend to be easy, just remember to get the entire carrot-like root as they are perennials and will come back better than ever if you aren't careful) or use white vinegar in a spray bottle for those crabgrass seedlings that pop up in driveway and sidewalk cracks.  Mulching planting beds is a good way to make the weeds easier to pull and keep them from getting out of control, but make sure you mulch a clean bed (mulching over weeds won't make them go away).  However, mulching can prohibit seedlings from desirable plants from setting.  Plants such as columbine may want to set seeds but won't do so easily in mulch (and I say this as I've only had one columbine plant for years and I keep hoping for seedlings, but see none and you can tell that my little columbine gets lost in the ajuga when it blooms, so I'd really like to see a couple more plants).

If hand pulling weeds remember not to toss the weeds into your compost as you may end up with weed seedlings if using your finished compost as a top dressing in the garden.  I will always keep my pulled weeds in my brush recycling for drop off at the local facility.  If using compost in a deep hole for planting trees and shrubs, then by all means throw in the weeds, I don't imagine that they could possible work their way back up.

As an aside, a few years ago I bought a "gardening" book aimed at providing tips for maintaining your yard and garden with minimal time and care.  I was game at looking at some suggestions to save time and effort but was quickly disappointed.  The author had some questionable tips, such as learn to love your weeds.  Well, I do agree that a lot of plants walk that fine line between desirable plant and weed (johnny jump-ups, forget-me-nots, bachelor buttons, to name a few) but I don't think complacency is the answer.  It was probably the only gardening book I ever owned that I quickly gave away to Goodwill as I could find no redeeming advice in it.

Needful Things
Rather than write a blog about the awesomeness of gardening, it occurred to me today as I was planting a recently acquired white Siberian iris that I did not need (but bought anyway) that I should really be writing a letter to an intervention group asking for help with my plant addiction.  In fact I may be doing our yard a disservice should we ever sell, as it would not be fair to pass along this jungle with the expectation that  the next owner would be as dedicated.  Or, perhaps just the mere idea of it will keep those liking the house to even consider ownership?  Or, with luck, I will sell to someone who appreciates having a yard unlike any other.  And if I ever feel like I've gone too far, well... the neighbor behind me is working hard to catch up, except he might have done me one better.  What used to be a level yard filled with green grass and a few shrubs is now a stage for a train set complete with tracks, suspension bridge, town (with solar lights, so we can see all the little windows glow at night), and a forest of evergreens.  I haven't seen the train leave the station yet, but perhaps the "whoo whoo" is not far behind.

3 is a Magic Number
This advice is a little late for planting spring bulbs, but it is useful advice whenever you plan to have more than one of the same plant in your yard; plant in odd numbers.  For some reason 4 red tulips never look exactly right, always plant 3, 5, 7, etc.  I like the idea so much whenever I even cut flowers from the yard (like peonies) I always cut an odd number for an arrangement.  This is especially true if your house is asymmetrical in style.

If you have a symmetric design to your house, you may be tempted to plant in twos, such as an arborvitae bordering each side of the front door, etc.  I would caution that once you begin to plant in that style you may be locking yourself in to a more formal garden setting.  Formal gardens require more planning and maintenance than the casual cottage garden, but if you are willing to do the extra work for the satisfaction of the effect, go for it!

Peony Rain
June is headed fast our way, the peonies are all budded, so that only means one thing: we can expect a week of rain.  It is an oddity that peony buds mean heavy rainfall, but it never fails, the peonies will just begin to open then get so heavy with rain water they flop to the ground. They do sell peony supports, but I am not usually on the ball enough to get the support on the plant before it needs it.

Peonies are one of my favorite cut flowers, which is fortunate since they almost require cutting once they flop, because you only have to pick a few (in an odd number :) to create an arrangement that looks both dramatic and beautiful.

Shown here is a pink peony I brought from our last house.  There is a rumor that peonies do not like to be moved, but I disagree.  I brought three in pots in the move (the roots are long so careful lifting them out of the ground) and now have about five of these plants.  I would just have the original three, but I tried to move one a couple years back and when I lifted it out of the ground, the roots fell into three separate sections.  I planted each root section separately, and though they were very small for a couple of years and did not bloom, this year they look large and healthy.  In gardening it is good to be flexible and a little brave.  If you are unsure about whether you can move a plant, you can try to research how large the root ball is expected to be (you don't want to accidentally drive a spade through the center of roots) or you can take a good guess based upon the age of the plant and start digging a large circle then move in as needed.

The pink peony also has a little story.  When we moved into our last house there was a large garden-like area in front of the house which contained only a large blue spruce, 2 climbing roses, roughly 30 double flowering pink peonies and nothing else.  When Spring hit, I decided that I couldn't justify an all pink front garden (not sure what possessed the former owners to plant so many of one color) so I offered up the peonies to everyone I knew but had no takers (sad because I've come to understand how expensive peonies can be).  Consequently, I threw away about 25 of the peonies and kept the rest but spaced them out and mixed in some summer and fall bloomers.  I was a bit sad when we sold the house under two years later, because I didn't get the chance to see how beautifully the plants would have filled in.  I took consolation in potting up many seedlings (and three peonies) to take with me.  If you do plan on potting up some plants for a move (or to give to a friend) do make certain to keep them watered and put them in the ground sooner rather than later (nothing drives me crazier than to carefully dig, pot, and care for plants just to see them dried out in a friend's driveway, it's just plain disappointing.)

The Best Things in Life are Free


To continue on from my last post where I recommend that cost cutting can really help out if you are saving for something really big (gazebo, shed, greenhouse as pictured in one of those old fashioned British mysteries) I neglected to add that oftentimes the best plants are obtained from a friend, neighbor, or coworker when they are dividing or rearranging their own yard.



In our first house I was over the moon for some bearded irises that my husband brought home from a coworker who was dividing her own garden.  They were tall and elegant, and, best of all, needed no pampering or fussiness in order to be beautiful (they only need to be divided every 3 to 5 years, with the exception of siberian irises which need no division).  Irises today are still my most favorite flower.  I have several types in different colors.

Sometimes I wonder if I may have planted too many irises, but since they are easy to divide and give away, none have gone the way of the compost pile.  I can usually find someone thrilled to have the extras, with the one exception of a neighbor who declined my offer of irises because she did not feel that they bloomed for a long enough period.  Of course, I disagree entirely, but to each their own (plus she is the one who kept planting multi-colored pansies with faces in the same planter each and every year so I took what she thought and promptly disregarded it.)

Though I will admit I do have some yellow siberian iris that do not trip my trigger.  For some reason they like to bloom only halfway up the stem.  In contrast to the delicate beauty of my purple siberian, well, they are a bit of a disappointment but I leave them in as I need the color contrast.  (My yard is inadvertently heavy on the purple.)

Know When to *Spurge*

I've talked a bit in earlier posts about ways to cut costs on landscaping; such as only buying tools you really need, reusing items that may have been left over in your yard from the previous owner, and shopping the "orphanage" section of your local nursery (if you are lucky enough to live near one).  But it's also good to know when to splurge on that one item you really want for the yard (a bench, a fancy shrub, new deck, etc) and with the money you have saved from all your other cost cutting activities, perhaps you can buy more than one.

Another good way to save is to go to a nursery, farmers' market, or other place where they sell plants with a specific list.  Otherwise, it's like visiting the grocery store when you are hungry-everything will look good and you'll buy on impulse and consequently overspend. Plus, if you go without a specific plan you may end up with all spring bloomers, all summer bloomers, too much of one color, etc.  To make a comprehensive list, it is best to begin by thumbing through a few books that profile plants for your region (the hardiness zones are in practically every book, so it should be easy to discern what plants are appropriate for where you live).

Then from the list you've compiled you can further downscale it (if you want) to drop off those plants that might be susceptible to pests (in Maine Japanese beetles and Lily Loving beetles are real concerns) and diseases (unless, of course, you love the plant so much that you are willing to do the extra work).  You may also want to avoid any plant in which the description reads as "may be invasive" (but again, you can find ways to control an invasive plant but it will require extra attention).

Neighbors and Fences
When I was in high school my English teacher explained to us that Robert Frost's poem with the famous line "good fences make good neighbors" was intended to be an argument against having fences between neighbors.  I have to say regardless of the intent of the line I actually believe that boundaries should exist.  Perhaps it is because we live in a City with limited outdoor space; I like my privacy and I like knowing where I can and cannot plant and improve my own space.  Plus we had an issue with the placement of a fence and a neighbor who was trying to "empire build" by stealing land from each of us on both sides.  The other adjacent neighbor bought from someone who smartly had an easement drawn up and filed in the Registry, the previous owner of our home didn't care enough to worry about it.  In fact, I don't think they ever used this yard for anything recreational (thus explaining the multitude of yew buses and no pretty landscaping).

After several heated interactions with the land-stealing neighbor, we had our plot professionally surveyed and took back what was ours by title.  We did this in the event we decided to sell our house and the question of boundaries were to come up. (I didn't think we could legitimately sell our plot if the neighbor was preventing any new owner from access to it).  Plus, I was disappointed that we  had helped our neighbors on many occasions with snow removal, tree planting, and other odd jobs (they are older) and the attitude from them in regards to their installation of a new fence on our land, was  "tough luck for you".  Didn't seem fair somehow.  So not only did we get the land back, but we got over the feeling that we were obligated to help people whose values seemed skewed.

My moral of the story is be a good neighbor.  If you decide you wish to plant a row of privacy trees or install a fence, be kind and make sure it's on your property.

Unintentional Assets
When planning yard work sometimes you have to evaluate what the previous owner left behind before you can move forward.  In our last house we scored big with a pile of granite blocks stacked up against the side of our house.  At first, we were a bit miffed that they didn't clean up after themselves as we had expected (they also had a dog who "used" the yard all winter and spring and they apparently felt no compulsion to pick that up either, so, in essence, we earned those blocks!) but then we found there were many uses for granite.  I used the blocks to edge a couple of gardens and with those left over we put in a "patio" where we  placed our outdoor table and chairs since we had no deck.

In our current home we were not the benefactors of granite, but there was an odd square patio by the sunroom made out of concrete pavers.  I'm not certain why they were there (I don't imagine they had a grill or other item on this makeshift patio), but once we picked them up I realized how lovely they would be as stepping stones in a gravel path especially as moss grows over them.

Above is a photo of just a section of the path from outside the sunroom.  Below you can see that it also wraps around a side garden (where the pavers used to be).  This area is heavily shaded but we planted a hosta, bleeding heart and cedar seedling (it was only 2 inches tall when I first brought it home from the woods) and I have room to add an astilbe or two.

The path was originally all asphalt and extended from the driveway, all around the back yard deck, and to the bulk head (I suspect there was a sale on asphalt when the house was built).  I wouldn't have thought to replace the asphalt until I envisioned the concrete pavers as stepping stones so it was lucky they were left behind.

Now we've discussed what you can do with stuff that is there, let's discuss what to do with stuff that isn't there.  The lack of privacy, fences, and grass can all be motivating factors in planning your yard.

For privacy, evergreen trees can be useful and also provide the benefits of a fence without the fence (two birds as it were).  We decided to close off the back yard fencing with real fencing as we had small children and a dog and didn't want to have to be on "high alert" all the time we spent outdoors.  Our dog has passed and our kids have grown, but I still like the fence as a mode of privacy and for creating an outdoor space that feels like a room.

Where the grass won't grow I've put in plants as discussed in earlier posts.  But I also started a memorial garden in the back where my dog spent a lot of time.  There is no grass in the area I've selected, so planning a garden there seems both functional and appropriate.  I'm taking my time moving shade tolerant plants to that section as I've planned to place my dog's ashes in the garden when it's completed and I'm in no hurry to part with them even though it's been a couple of years since he passed.  See below for heart tugging photo.

Get Thee to a Nursery
Yesterday I headed to the local nursery in hopes of bringing back a flat of pachysandra to put in the back yard under a tree where grass has given up all hope.  I wouldn't usually buy pachysandra as it can be invasive when left to it's own devices, but when I imagine the corner filled in with a sea of green I'm willing to chance it.  The nursery, as it turns out, will not have pachysandra for a couple of weeks, so I will have to return.  It's important to remember when buying plants you oftentimes have to wait until the correct season to buy the plant you are looking for (which is usually right before they bloom; in other words, don't go to the nursery to buy a fall blooming plant in the spring.)

While at the nursery I did spy a bright red bleeding heart in bloom.  The leaves were a beautiful shade of silver and the blossoms were so deep in color, they almost put my fringed bleeding heart to shame.  The price was $14.99 which I thought was expensive for a quart sized pot but I was still tempted.  But as tempted as I was to give in to its prettiness, I also remember that oftentimes the showiest plants aren't the most reliable.  Sometimes it's better to stay with reliable if low maintenance and/or frugality  is in your game plan.

Speaking of choices, there is something else to consider when planning your garden.  Sure, you can pull out the color wheel and plant according to complementary blooming colors (an orange next to a blue, a yellow next to a purple) but I never bothered and I think my garden looks nice.  Every spring I am loaded with purples (ajuga, grape hyacinth, creeping phlox, etc) and once it goes by, the sea of yellow will take over.  I have found that blooms in solid colors planted repeatedly in the yard have big impact when viewed from the sidewalk, across the street, etc.

As a aside to that, when I plant pansies as an annual to fill in around the perennials (sometimes pansies will winter over, sometimes not, so I always think of them as an annual) I select the "faceless" kind and I plant groups of the same color.  When a lot of multi-colored flowers are planted in a small space they don't seem to "pop", at least that's this gardener's opinion.

Photo Credits
You may have been wondering about the photos shown on my blog and whether or not they are from my own garden.  They are!  The photo above here is of the pagoda dogwood my friend "adopted".  The blossoms are really lovely and you can see that the "orphan" we adopted from the nursery that initially appeared as a dead twig in the fall just needed a little TLC.  The dogwood also produces berries once the blossoms have faded and gone by which provide food for your neighborhood birds.

Certified Wildlife Habitat
Which leads me to also mention that if you provide food, water, and shelter for your neighboring wildlife, you may want to proclaim it!  See http://www.nwf.org/Get-Outside/Outdoor-Activities/Garden-for-Wildlife/Create-a-Habitat.aspx on the details if interested.  Of course, you may have guessed that I have already certified my yard (I did it about 5 years ago after spotting someone else's certification in their yard and I loved the idea!).