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Dandelions welcome |
| Owner:: dandelion |
Our garden with a footprint barely larger than the average house is set back from Admiralty Strait in Port Townsend, WA. On the edge of the rain shadow we still enjoy the seasonal changes (like snow!)but are warmed by the closeness of the ocean. The garden does get occasional high winds that scrub our air clean. We generally get less rainfall than Seattle and like our neighbors, we work at sustaining the wonderful environment we enjoy by making our plant choices accordingly from non-invasive and drought tolerant plants. A drip system supplements for those things like tomatoes that need more water. Herbs, vegetables and fruit jumble together with flowers not necessarily chosen for aesthetics at times as much as nostalgia or just because they're interesting. Yes we tolerate what some might consider weeds. We enjoyed miner's lettuce and dandelion in our green salads last year. The rainbow chard was a brilliant accent in the winter landscape and on the table at the holidays. We even put up with bugs and four legged wildlife if they don't get too greedy. We keep the weeds at bay by overplanting somewhat and we companion roses with chives to encourage insects to dine elsewhere.l
Most of the hardscaping in our garden was completed in late 2007. A very talented and understanding landscape designer, Meg Pulkinnen, foresaw our erratic enthusiasm for trying new things and laid out basic rooms for us to develop as we mature. For instance, the hellebores and euphorbias stay outside our yard for now while our toddling visitors help themselves to our Top Hat blueberries and alpine strawberries.
This year we will answer the questions: can I squeeze another bearded iris or dahlia in? Can I find a pink dictamnus (or gas plant) - I love the citronella smell. Oooooo ooo, I really want to give the milkweed with the little puff ball seed pods a try again (for the butterflies of course) and we have a worm bin as well as our beloved mason bees to work with. That apricot tree won't set fruit by itself you know! Also, I'm wondering if some of my friends would be interested in starting a plant round robin like my mother participated in during the Depression. She once told how she traveled on a railway pass with 3 small children from Kansas to upstate New York and back visiting with all her gardening buddies and sharing seeds or starts along the way. She confessed too she was praying there would be no problems the last 200 miles because she had only 25 cents in her pocketbook. I wonder if my HOA will let me put up a clothesline? I think some colorful aprons or overalls flapping on a sunny day might remind me about the strength of gardeners I've known. And who knows maybe that would even discourage the raccoons from taking my precious few figs. Inch by inch, dig deep in the earth and be well! |
| Garden Tags:
small garden,
cottage garden,
edible,
drought tolerant,
drip irrigation,
large container gardening,
fruit,
ferns,
dwarf evergreens
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| View Count:: 788 |
| Date Added:: February 14, 2009 |
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Average Rating:
1.5
(44 ratings)
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