Good morning. Gardens are well under way. I know this because as I drive around, I see wonderful colors popping all about. The forsythia has passed, and the lilacs and crabapples have arrived with their pinks and purples. Daffodils are beginning to fade but the grape hyacinths and tulips are in abundance.
I can also tell it is spring because of the critters, big and little. My husband has been complaining that the sunflower seeds in the deck birdfeeder are disappearing at an abnormal rate. He blames this cute little red squirrel who frequently skitters his way across the deck as if he owns it. And, yes, he can be found at the feeder now and again.
But last night at 7:30, in full light, I looked out to the feeder and this very cute – and very young raccoon – was looking back. Now he obviously wasn’t old enough or wise enough to be afraid and just stared at me with curiosity. As cute as he was and as much as I would like to think of myself as Grizzly Adams, I knew an encounter between the little guy and one of my little dogs would not be a good thing. So, I marched out to the deck. Well, he just sat there, on the railing next to the feeder, and looked at me expectantly. I knew what I had to do but wasn’t happy about it. I started yelling at him and waving my arms, and he jumped down from the lower deck and hid under the upper one on which I was standing. I knew this from long experience. He’s thinking, “I’ll just hide here for a few minutes and go back and finish my dinner.”
So, I jumped up and down and yelled some more, and he came hightailing it out and headed down over the cliff. He kept looking back over his shoulder at me, and I kept yelling. Well, he disappeared into the valley, and there have been no signs that he has returned during the night. Probably went home to tell mom and dad about the crazy lady on the hill. Typical teenager!
Since it is spring, I have gotten the usual number of e-mails from people asking questions about planting new gardens. So, I thought I would run through the process. A friend and I just finished a new garden at our church yesterday, so each and every step is fresh in my mind – as well as in my back.
Start with the soil
More than a decade ago, the church added a ramp from the driveway to the front door. Parishioners wanted something that would grow up and camouflage it, so they planted a type of yew bush meant to cover things and be decorative. Unfortunately, these bushes are also meant to be pruned, and these never were. They were overgrown and unsightly, so they were yanked out to make way for the new garden.
The soil in this particular area is very sandy, so that was the first challenge. Evaluating soil in my experience is the most important part of the gardening process. Getting it right can mean the difference between success and constant frustration. The soil was excavated to about 2 feet, which took care of a majority of roots and weeds. We added good loam and compost in a ratio of about two-thirds loam and one-third compost and mixed it with some of the native soil. The remainder was removed and used on another part of the property.
Here is an easy test for soil consistency. Grab a handful, close your hand to compact it and then shake your hand gently and open it palm up. If the soil basically runs out between your fingers, too much sand; if it stays clumped, too much clay; if it separates nicely and stays in your palm, it’s pretty good. You can improve sand with loam and compost and yearly conditioner, but clay is a much longer process. So, if you can, remove it and start over with good garden soil.
Before this soil process started, I took careful note of the garden’s location. This site has some really good, and some not-so-good, things going for it. The church building protects it from the north, and a set of stairs that juts out will protect it from easterly winds in the winter. So, it is fairly well protected from the cold and damaging winds.
It has a completely open southern exposure for lots of sun; but the afternoon sun, which can be withering in summer, will also bake it. And since this is a church and not someone’s home, watering could be hit or miss.
We picked shrubs and plants that love the sun, are fairly drought tolerant, do not require a lot of attention or special care, and will grow to fill in the space and bring interest and color from spring to fall.
In the back are three Miss Kim lilacs that will grow to about 8 feet and 5 feet wide and two burning bushes that go 8 to 10 feet wide and tall and can be pruned. These should, in a few years, basically fill in the 30-foot length of the ramp but not overwhelm it.
In front of those we planted clumps of daylilies in orange and yellow, pink and yellow and a rusty orange. We added a heavy, blue-leaved hosta which can take full sun, some silver mound artemisia for interesting color and foliage and two chocolate ruffled coral bells, just because they are pretty (sometimes you just have to do these things).
Double purple petunias and little yellow marigolds were added in clumps in the front for continuous color and because they can take sun and drought. The lilacs will provide their wonderful scent in the spring and bright green foliage throughout the season, while the burning bushes will bring their colorful red to autumn. Daylilies will provide at least six weeks of various color, while the foliage on the remaining three plants will also provide silver, burgundy and blue to the mix. In the fall, we will add some daffodil bulbs for early spring flowers next year.
Can you wait?
When we arrived yesterday to plant, the ground was prepared and we had the plants. We set them in their pots on the bed to gauge proper spacing, allowing for their growth in the next few years. Both the hostas and daylilies will get quite large and will fill in nicely but look a little sparse right now. This is a decision that each gardener has to make. You allow for the proper spacing, and the garden looks sparse for at least one, if not, two years; or you plant for instant garden (my description). Instant garden looks wonderful within a month or so but in two years, you will be digging plants out of an overcrowded garden. But it looked really great from the start. An individual decision on that one is required.
After planting, you should water everything. In our case, after a week of rain and gallons of water added when the soil was prepared, as well as wet plants, we didn’t add anymore water. We added slow release fertilizers and then covered the entire garden with 2 inches of compost, which should help retain the moisture, keep the weeding to a minimum and help further condition the soil as the worms and rain work it into the bed over the season. We will add more each year for soil conditioning. Finally, we sprinkled Sluggo over the whole thing because those little slimy things just love new hostas and annuals. Ready to rock ‘n’ roll!
So, if you have a space that needs a redo, think new garden. There is work, but there is also a lot of fun to be had in the process. And just think of all those new plants out there to choose from. The nursery visits alone are worth the effort.
Until next time, keep up the weeding, don’t forget to fertilize and someday soon when it hits 85 degrees, take a few minutes and a large glass of ice-cold lemonade and sit under a tree. Really look around at your garden and appreciate the beauty that both you and it have brought into your world. Because sometimes, it is a good thing to congratulate yourself on what you have accomplished, instead of always focusing on what still waits to be done.
Happy gardening.
Jody Goodwin has been gardening for more than 20 years. She lives in Turner with her husband, Ike, her two dogs and two cats. She can be reached by writing to her in care of the Sun Journal, 104 Park St., Lewiston, Maine, 04243-4400 or by e-mail at jodyike@megalink.net
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