A few years ago, I woke up one morning and realized I had turned 72. How had this happened?
I looked out the window and wondered just how I was going to continue to maintain the gardens as I grew older. Loving flowers of all kinds, we had all manner of high-maintenance perennials needing to be divided every other year and deadheaded during the season. I began to think about which of “my children” I could part with.
After I thought about how my arthritic hands and knees ached in the mornings and after a day in the garden, it became a little easier to decide what must go. But what to replace them with?
I had planned for years to construct a small patio in front of my husband’s shop, connecting a brick walkway and a gravel path. The only materials handy were 12-inch square pavers in red and gray. My nephew built a checkerboard patio in that spot, making it easier to push the wheelbarrow and get to the compost — and to cut down on the weeding in the area. By laying the pavers in sand an inch or so apart, the patio allows water and nutrients to filter into the soil, making it eco-friendly. Some garden-sized checkers added a little fun to the garden.
I began removing some of the perennials and replacing them with small shrubs that either bloom or have variegated or textured leaves. By adding crane’s bill geranium to an area with crocosmia, I created an interesting combination of leaf color, shape and texture. Another area where the taller crocosmia Lucifer combined with asters, dahlias and a golden chain tree made for a great array of color and texture — mainly from leaves, with some flowers.
Astilbe, hebe and sedum Autumn Joy in front of a purple clematis and an orange-red honeysuckle creates a surprise when walking through the garden. The fernlike leaves of the astilbe with the small-leafed hebe and the succulent leaves of Autumn Joy bring a harmony of color and texture. Add a light-green, variegated low-growing plant, and it’s lovely.
The astilbe is mainly a shade plant, but is very thirsty. In our coastal climate, it does very well in a bed with damp soil, even in the hottest sun — at least, in my garden.
Mulching helps tremendously; a layer of compost in the fall or early spring is good for most perennial beds. Adding a cover of pine straw or bark in the spring helps with moisture and weeds. I am blessed with three pine trees in back and one in front, so I use a lot of pine straw or needles as mulch. It hinders slugs and snails around my hosta and other tasty plants. I prefer bark chips to the shredded bark dust. Gravel or lava rock also make attractive mulch.
Making my gardens more “elderly friendly” is an ongoing project and will probably continue until I go to that great garden in the sky. I am always planning on how to make things easier or better, as well as more attractive. Of course, some of this is merely a guise for adding another plant or piece of garden art. I save my money all winter so I can add some new “thing” that will grab the eye of the passer-by.
My garden is my haven, a place to go when in need of solace. It gives me pleasure in so many ways. I can feel the stress leave me as I work the soil with my hands or deadhead the dahlias. It also gives me the chance to teach my great-nephews and great-grandchildren about gardening. There is something about a garden that not only gives pleasure to the senses, but eases one’s soul.
Linda Lee, from Cosmopolis, has been a WSU Master Gardener for 17 years. Her garden, where these photos were taken, was featured during the 2016 WSU Master Gardener tour.
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Mark your calendars for the 2017 Grays Harbor Master Gardener Show, May 20-21 at the Elma fairgrounds. At 1 p.m. Saturday, Sam Benowitz of Raintree Nursery will show the best fruit and berry varieties for our climate; and Ciscoe Morris will bring his signature style to the stage at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
