Evie and Bill live two streets behind ours and I've been helping her renovate her garden. We met them years ago on one of their daily walks past our house. She's been asking me for a long time to take over her garden and do whatever I want! Her main request - lots of color and year-round interest. And hummingbird friendly!
The first project has been the huge berm that is in the front. It was choked with iris, daylilies and native aster. They spread easily in this loose, elevated soil. Bill and Michael helped and we finally got it cleared over two half days. I'm sure some of the roots are still there so it will have to be monitored closely.
Evie loves dogwood trees and I planted a 'Venus' dogwood on the berm near a laceleaf Japanese maple that was already there. From there, I was uncertain as to what to do and after mulling it over for a while, I decided to use drifts of perennials and annuals. I think some evergreen plants should be added later this fall but for now, the annuals can fill in and at least provide some nice color. The perennials include Geranium 'Rozanne', bee balm, salvia, sedum, and Russian sage. Annuals include celosia, salvia, nicotiana and zinnias. Of course I had to throw in a rose as well and there is also a potentilla which are such reliable and drought-tolerant plants.
There is a blank spot between the dogwood and the Japanese maple. I was planning to add more plants but think a rock or some type of art piece or water feature is needed. Actually I would like to add several boulders throughout the berm in various spots.
Look at all those daylilies and iris in the back of the truck! You can also see a clump of the huge old-fashioned daylilies (I forget their name) behind the mailbox. These were 5 feet tall but they were planted directly in front of the berm. It was painful for me to dig them up but after doing so, I talked Evie into keeping them and planted them in a big bare spot behind their mailbox. Despite being in full bloom, they didn't blink and made the transfer with ease. I didn't even cut them back.
Now on to the next phase which is a border alongside the front and a corner area. Evie had purchased a jasmine vine and I think some type of trellis for it to grow on would provide a nice solid backdrop. Maybe a water feature in front?
Evie was lucky to find you! I can't even imagine the challenges you faced taking out this daylilies and Iris.
ReplyDeleteThat's fun! Definitely a complement to your gardening abilities and artistic taste. I expect it may be more challenging than creating your own garden, having to satisfy someone else's vision. I'm looking forward to seeing the added hardscape elements and evergreen over time.
ReplyDeleteChavli
I love seeing a garden renovation like this ! Yes I too would be hesitant to just bin plants I couldn't think of a use for, so you did a great job in repurposing them .. those type used to be so common here in Kingston but something happened (I think people dug them up for their home gardens) and you don't see hem on the road side any more. Great job !
ReplyDeleteLots of hummingbird plants. Nothing brings a garden so alive. The dogwood is a great idea. It will be lovely to see as all the plants grow. Do you have a new career as a garden designer? :)
ReplyDeleteOh how fun! Looks great so far, and I bet more neighbors will follow. Looking forward to seeing it all fill in. :)
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