The Herb Garden

A few observations:

The spring bulbs are all but done, replaced by irises, dames rocket, lily of the valley, aquilegia and bleeding hearts. The old fashioned roses have begun to send out a few brave blossoms to test the waters. It will not be long before the rest of the rose buds follow.

I have noticed the irises and lilacs are producing smaller flower heads than in previous years. At first, I thought ours were the only ones blooming on the small side, but travelling the county, I see a good many in the same condition. The same with the aquilegias.  A result of the extreme cold and deep snow of this past winter perhaps?

Now that the perennials have leafed out, the effects of a cold winter and a wet spring can really be seen. We have lost all of our foxgloves, delphiniums, lupins and perovskia and a few ferns. Will they be replaced or will we take this opportunity to redesign the gardens, adding different plants? We won’t make that decision until the summer when we’ve had a chance to live with what’s left and given our imaginations time to dream up new landscapes.

The bridal wreath spirea hedge at the front of our property is blooming more prolifically that ever before! I was beginning to think that the hedge I fantasized about when we first planted it would never happen. How nice to be wrong!

This weekend has been set aside for planting up container gardens. Having learned my lesson a couple of years ago when I potted up forty-three container gardens, this year I’ll stick to five or six. Oh wait, I’m already at six, so maybe I’ll limit myself to nine.

Year two for the “new” herb garden and it is already too small! The perennial herb plants have grown like crazy leaving no room for annual herbs. Guess the annual herbs will have to go into containers. So much for limiting container gardens to nine! This fall we will have to seriously re-think the size of the herb garden. I foresee an expansion in the future.

Come to think of it, our entire yard seems to be shrinking more and more every year. Hmmm. Either the gardens have to be downsized, or we have to eliminate most of the remaining lawn area. Or we have to move to a property with more land!

Silver Leaf Dogwood planted correct distance from building

• We’ve all seen them – shrubs that grow against a house, twisting the plant into a grotesque monster that hides windows and damages siding. Often, people only consider the mature height of a shrub or tree when the mature width should also be considered. Plant shrubs far enough away from building foundations to allow the shrub to reach its mature width without being crammed against a wall. Not only do the shrubs benefit, but you won’t have to worry about the roots of the shrub damaging drainage tiles buried underground.

• Planting in too shallow a hole. Container grown shrubs should be planted so the top of the soil ball is at the same height as the ground. The soil ball should not stick up above the soil level. That exposes the roots to air causing them to dry out, which leads to a plant that struggles.

• Planting too deep is just as damaging. That smothers the stem of the plant, affecting its ability to send nutrients and water to the leaves. It also increases the potential for rotting of the stem which kills the plants.

• Planting the wrong plant. Plants that like some shade, protection from the wind, and moist soil will not last long in an area of full sun that is dry and windy. The same is true of planting a shrub in the shade, when its requirements are full sun and well drained soil. .Read the label at the nursery or do your homework online so you know you are selecting the right plant.

• Incorrect watering. When planting, make sure you water it in well. A slow trickle of water applied for thirty minutes, is much better than a rapid soaking. By watering slowly, you give the root ball time to absorb the water. Soaking will cause the water to drain away into the subsoil and not enough will be retained by the plant to give it a good start in its new home. New plantings should be watered every day for about a week. Then you can cut back to twice a week until the plant is showing evidence of new growth.

Enlarging a garden bed

Suckers to be trimmed.

Gardening has been my hobby for most of my adult life, and my career for nearly half of that.  It still is my career. And I still like gardening, but the passion is gone. Every day I ask myself why? And, what happened? But the answers seem to be buried at the very bottom of the compost heap that is life. I’m thinking a backhoe is the only way I’ll ever be able to dig up the answers.

Is it burn out? Not likely or I wouldn’t enjoy my job and the bit of gardening I still do.

Is it boredom? Have I been there, done that? Have all the challenges that come with gardening been conquered and there is nothing left to try? No way! There is always much to learn, to experiment with, to play with.  That’s the beauty of gardening. It’s always changing so boredom never gets to set roots.

Perhaps I’m feeling outdated? Newer trends have brought significant changes to the gardening scene that are not always to my personal taste. But I’ve never been a trend follower so that shouldn’t bother me. And, as long as I have my own gardens to counter the trendy necessities required in the gardens I install professionally, I can play with the best (or worst) of both new and “old”.

Aha! Maybe that’s it! Maybe I am getting too old for gardening? Nah! You’re never too old to garden!

No, it appears the answer to my problem is deeply seeded and much more digging is required to make my passion for gardening sprout new growth. While I’m working on that, I’ll start some seeds, and maybe, if I’m lucky, the answers will come to me and the passion for gardening will return.

When I began writing this particular instalment of Bert’s Bloomers on November 14, the temperatures were relatively warm for November. The thermometer has suddenly dropped out and we now have a dusting of snow on the ground, but, Mother Nature is still astonishing me with her stubbornness to let go of the growing season. In other words, what I wrote about, is still current news.

A tour of our rather wild and barren garden this morning has brought many delightful surprises! Still blooming are two roses – New Dawn, and The Fairy, as well as sweet peas, black eyed susans, alyssum, feverfew and garlic chives (we’ll pay dearly for that last one). How exciting to see anything blooming in November in our area!!  I can perhaps understand the cooler weather plants, but how does one explain the tenacity of the roses? Heat loving, sun loving roses?  While I’d like to take the credit for the survival of all those spots of summer, I can’t. The credit goes to Nature herself.  Incredible, wonderful, never to be understood, Nature.

Having survived the shock of seeing plants in bloom, my attention was drawn to a number of gardening tasks yet to be attended to. There are still containers of plants to be emptied, still some perennials languishing in pots, a bird bath to be stored for the winter and let’s not forget about the patio furniture that has to be stored yet. And leaves to be raked off the lawn. I should forget about writing and go outside.

I guess while I’m out there, I really should shut off the outside tap and drain the hose, and store the hose.

Some of the more delectable plants (according to our neighbourhood rabbits) need to be caged. Those would include all of the roses, the flowering quince, the chestnut and a dwarf burning bush. Caging them may prevent the ravenous rabbits from pruning them down to the ground. I say “may” because if we get enough snow built up around the cages, the rabbits will still be able to reach the plants. 

I haven’t cut back any of the perennials nor do I intend to! I’m leaving the seed heads for the birds, and the stalks for added winter protection for the crowns of the plants. The theory is, the stalks will cause snow to build up around the plants, and the snow is a natural insulator, therefore, no winter mulching is required. That’s been my story for twenty odd years, so I’m sticking with it! Besides, it really does work.

One bit of trimming I continue to put off is removing the wild grape growing between the walls of our greenhouse. Perhaps the description of where it’s growing is explanation enough for why it has not been removed. And since it isn’t interfering with the greenhouse, I figure, why mess with it? If it ain’t broke and all that. Common sense says I’ll kick myself some year for not dealing with it. Maybe when we re-skin the greenhouse the grape vine will be dealt with?

Enough rambling for one day! I’m off to the gardens.

More than half of my daily 40+ kilometre commute to work is spent driving along country roads, giving me the opportunity to observe nature’s continuing mood changes. Most of the land I pass is wide open farm land, but there are enough wooded areas, even a small hill or two, to keep it interesting. I have seen black clouds rolling across the fields, high winds bending and twisting the trees lining the roads. I have watched the lambs of spring playing, the summer crops growing daily,  wild animals running about (testing the brakes and my reflexes) and flocks of birds flying south in autumn. Every day affords a new vista for me to take in. At this time of year, I am treated to bursts of colour provided by the wildflowers growing on the side of the road: White and purple asters, goldenrod, Queen Anne’s lace, thistles and some chickweed. Toss in wild rose hips and apples, brilliant red Virginia creeper, the golden leaves of wild grape, the rainbow of reds, yellows and oranges of sumac and the varied assortment of other trees, and the vibrant show is non-stop. The trip home is seldom long when Nature is providing such delightful entertainment.

Autumn is certainly not my favourite season, but I cannot help but be taken by the beauty of this time of year. In particular, sumac entrances me. So much so, that when we moved to this house, cutleaf sumac (Rhus typhina ‘Dissecta’) was on the list of “must have” plants.

Having spent a couple of years in our heeling-in garden, last year one sumac was moved to the shrub border. This spring, two more were planted in the same border. Already they have begun to sucker, and we are torn between wanting to control them, and wanting them to control the border. None of the suckers have been removed as yet. We have decided to wait and see what happens. If we like the look of dozens of sumac growing throughout the bed, they will stay. Until they become nuisances. Or interfere with my (most favourite) weeping false cypress (Chamaepcyparis nootkatensis ‘Pendula’)

Rhus typhina ‘Dissecta’ Cutleaf Sumac

Height:          6’

Width:            10’

Location:      Full sun for best fall colour

Soil:               Moist, well drained

Propagation:From softwood cuttings in summer,

From seed in fall

From suckers in winter or early spring

Male and female plants required to produce fruit

Pests:            Scale

Diseases:     Powdery Mildew

                        Leaf spot

                        Verticillium wilt

Uses:             Well suited as specimen plant, in borders or to fill large areas quickly

Other:            Can become quite invasive

                        Young stems are velvety

Low maintenance plant other than its invasive tendency

Well, here we are again: Another fall bringing us frost on the gardens and lawn each morning, leaves turning colour and perennials preparing to sleep the winter away.  Another gardening season over. Almost. There are still things to do in the garden.

This morning there is grass seed to plant, as well as a shrub or two and some bulbs. And, the twenty-five perennials I scooped up for a dollar each at one of our local greenhouses’ end of season sale (more like “stole” at that price!).

When I look at all the plants and bulbs that are awaiting a permanent home, I wonder if I am obsessed with gardening or maybe just plain crazy? There is no room for these plants in our gardens! We’re supposed to be down-sizing, not increasing!! What have I done?  Then I look at the plants and think “Gosh, I’ve always wanted this plant, and now I have it!” Or, images of how the ferns I purchased will look in the shade garden come to mind and the spending spree is instantly justified. Picturing the bulbs blooming next spring amongst the bare stemmed shrubs and emerging perennials excites my passion for gardening anew.

Many of the perennials I purchased have silver foliage, and since a silver garden has always been on my wish list, I now see one appearing in the not too distant future.  We’ll spring that on Trevor next year.

Some shifting and removing plants is also on today’s agenda. A few years ago, I started a wild rose from seed. This unnamed rose has sweet scented, single pink flowers in June, beautiful red hips in the fall, and glossy, dark green leaves; A very lovely looking rambler. However, it has become one of those garden thugs you read about. Spreading throughout the rose garden by sending out undergrounds runners, this rose is threatening to smother every other rose in the bed! It is coming out today and being planted beside the fence along the back of our property where it can ramble to its heart’s content.

There are a few perennials that have been struggling because they aren’t receiving enough sunlight anymore because the tree canopies are spreading. Today they will be moved to new homes in sunnier locations.

I suppose that while I’m in the gardens, I should do some weeding. Guess I should edge the gardens too. And cut the grass.

Yes, it may be fall, but the gardening season is far from over.

There are times when working in Landscape Design and Maintenance are, well, dare I say it? Boring! There are high points and challenges, but during the hot summer months when new garden installations are halted because of the weather, and all we seem to do it maintain existing landscapes, I become so bored that I feel my imagination and passion for gardening is turning to compost. Just in the knick of time, fall arrives and new garden plans that have been in the works since spring can be implemented. Then, the sheer pleasure of this career sprouts new growth, carrying me through to snow’s arrival.

September is always a busy planting month, as we race to beat Mother Nature’s closing bell. In our area (Zone 5b or 6 depending on which map you look at) we have until the second week of October to get our plants in and established before frost hits and plants begin going dormant. As a rule (my rule), after October 7^th, planting and transplanting are taboo. Last fall I broke that rule and planted right up to October 20^th. This spring, I paid dearly for taking that chance and had to replace a good many shrubs planted near the end of the season. Lesson learned? Do not allow yourself to be pressured into taking a chance that you know from experience doesn’t work. You will lose.

Fall is also a fabulous time to begin renovating existing gardens. Cooler temperatures make the tasks of removing shrubs, dividing perennials, re-shaping beds or making new gardens, so much more pleasant! Quite often, I will prepare a bed and leave it fallow until spring. That gives the soil a rest from supporting plant life. In the spring, it is easier to clean up, weed and work up the bed before new plants are installed.  And I’m all for making life easier!

Perennials, with a few exceptions, take well to being divided and transplanted in the fall, although I do prefer spring for this task.

Here at home, we are taking advantage of cooler weather to completely renovate our water feature. We are going low maintenance with the new and improved water feature, turning the pond into a covered reservoir for the pump. The existing rock formations are being dismantled, and re-arranged, with more rocks and boulders added. We are building a waterfall that will splash onto a bed of rock and stone that will cover the reservoir with the aide of a wire screen. The water plants that were in the pond have been relegated to the compost pile. Instead of water plants, marginal plants and perennials will be tucked in and around the stone works. Should be fun!

Some green fingered think fall signals the end of the gardening season. I prefer to think of fall as the closing chapters. There is still lots that can be done, and still some time to do it if, you plan, and don’t push Mother Nature around too much!