Scenes of a Garden
This article was first featured in the Fine Gardening magazine.
It was such a joy and lots of work when we moved to this house and found ourselves with an entirely blank canvas to tackle - originally to the house, only the beautiful boulders and one tree (on the left ) in the back of the yard. My first projects were to fence the backyard and plant some trees. Well, I fenced the backyard but had to refrain from planting trees due to the septic pipes running through the entire yard.
My husband has dedicated himself to growing an edible garden; in the first year, he built only one bed, but later, he added two more. I have focused on designing and growing plants. I admit I made quite a few mistakes in the beginning. I wanted to see everything blooming and shining quickly, so I didn't give some plants the proper spacing, I planted invasive plants, plants that grew so much and fast; bottom line, I didn't have patience or knowledge when I started gardening, and soon enough it became overwhelmed to care for it, and throughout the years I started downsizing it.
It's a very sunny backyard, so I decided to have only one long flower bed in the back of the yard, and flower beds on the sides of the house.
My favorite spot is a narrow strip on the north side of the house where my husband built a stone path and a gate; there, I planted hydrangeas, hostas, azaleas, clematis, ferns, and a white bleeding heart. Surprisingly to me, this red rose bush thrives in this shady area.
Every now and then I have 'spontaneous' plants growing in my garden, thankfully, I think, for the birds who carry their seeds, some sees them only as weeds but I see beyond that, I see their textures, colors and beautiful shapes, and I let them be.
Every time a deer wanders into our backyard, when hummingbirds, bees, butterflies, chipmunks, birds, and squirrels visit, I feel blessed. Our yard is destined to be a wildlife oasis; without them, some of the joy of gardening would be missed.
Of course, not all creatures are so welcome, like this caterpillar eating my parsley. I couldn't kill it, especially after taking this close-up photo, so I removed the parsley and threw it on the edge of the property and let the poor creature eat it up, and suffice with the scallion to flavor my food.
I love succulents, their beautiful and unique shapes and textures, and their resilience.
