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Multi-purpose garden room
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The spring season we are just ending has been more like spring in Washington State than a typical spring on Capitol Hill. The excessive rains have caused the grasses to grow higher, trees and shrubs have surged and the spring vegetable gardens have been incredibly productive. All the rains have made our gardens thrive.
A spring like the one we have just splashed through has a tendency to make both seasoned and novice gardeners more ambitious. We see our neighbor’s flowers growing like weeds or our own gardens excessive success and forget last year’s drought and its associated impact on our plants. We decide to start buying more plants since the ones we have a thriving. We start thinking that a new flowerbed, lawn, or tree box planting is a good idea. Just like kids rushing out to get the newest Play Station game, we rush the garden centers and overindulge.
Before you rush out and add to your garden, an inventory of your relationship with your garden may be in order. Your questions should be: what would you like to have your garden become? What needs to be changed, added, or deleted? What worked, or did not, and why?
Many of the reasons that our city gardens thrive, or fail, come down to some simple yet real facts that every gardener must consider. Three of these are environment, space, and time. We city gardeners must understand and accept the limitations of these aspects. There are issues that confront our gardens that have to be considered when planning for garden greatness.
Traffic
Our city gardens have to endure the real possibility that they may need to withstand the feet of many passersby. Planting delicate flowers in the tree box in front of your home is beautiful, yet everyone will not be as caring of your handiwork as you. Planting a border of Liriope can be just as beautiful and can withstand the foot traffic that our two and four legged neighbors can inflict. Many gardeners have installed fencing to help protect the tree box plantings. However, you should be mindful that your fencing is not creating a hazard to pedestrians. Most urban gardeners do install fencing for their front yards. This is a good idea and will go a long way to protect your plants.
Exposure
Take the time to find out what direction your home faces. If you are doing a front yard garden and you have a southern exposure with no trees to add shade, do not plant Hosta and expect picture book results. Plants will do best if given the proper environment. If your favorite plant is not performing in your front yard, and you have the soil properly prepared, perhaps the exposure is wrong. Consult with your landscaper or garden center pro prior to installing the plants. The most important thing is to learn from past mistakes. If a certain plant has not done well, and was purchased from a reputable source, maybe improper exposure contributed to your failure.
Scale
The most important thing to consider when designing or redoing an existing garden is the space that you are working with. If your front garden is ten feet by 8 feet, using an arbor, statue, or fountain designed for a country estate will not work. If you have trouble with the design phase, there are many firms that will design the space for you. One of the reasons small space gardens fail is that the designer (homeowner) tries to fit one of everything into the space. This is poor design. Repetition is one of the basic laws in landscape design. Perhaps the second most common failing is in not considering the plants that are installed and their mature size. A good design should look good when installed yet should also take in consideration that the landscape will truly be mature in about ten years. Take the time to find out what size that “cute” tree will be when it matures, and reconsider if the tree or shrubs you want to install will some day be 60 feet tall.
Time
The gardens that you see that look well maintained look that way because they are. When considering your garden landscape, be realistic. How much time do you have to devote to the project? Many homeowners turn the actual maintenance over to a professional. This by no means indicates that the garden is no longer yours. You are the one that can decide how much involvement your schedule allows. When considering a 10 foot by 8 foot garden you should be able to dedicate at least two hours per week doing the tasks that a well-maintained garden will demand. If using a professional company to maintain your garden budget for two visits per month. The costs can vary, yet remember this is an investment and you usually will get what you pay for. Take the time to do a little interviewing of the potential gardener or landscaper. If they are professionals, they should be able to answer your questions and come up with a plan for your gardens needs.
Planning
Take the time to put together a checklist of what is important to you. Prioritize the list and then set it into action. This can be the most important phase of achieving garden greatness. Remember that there are many resources available to you during this phase. And perhaps most importantly, be willing to make, and learn from, mistakes. This quest for garden greatness is ongoing and the best gardens began with a good solid plan. |
