Planning for a new flower bed

22 Dec '06 7:07 pm

Well, it's nearly the new year, and I'm planning a new flower bed for the front of my mobile home.

You see, last spring, a really evil neighbour poisoned the current one, including an old lilac tree, which is now half dead. Luckily, that guy has moved away (across the continent!), so now it's time to rethink and replant.

I plan to dig up the disfigured old tree and give it to a new neighbour who is glad for any plants, as he has none. Then I'll dig up and move or replace all the other plants, as well as digging up all the front lawn right to the street.

I'm hoping to develop a Piet Oudolf-inspired garden heavy on Michaelmas daisies, torch lilies, euphorbias, purple sages and Chinese Forget-Me-Nots to fill in as a ground cover until my creeping raspberries can take over. With luck, there'll be room for fairly large groupings.

I'll try to upload pictures as I go. Wish me luck!

-gordonf

23 Dec '06 11:42 am

Inspired by that brilliant gardener Piet Oudolf yur new garden will be brilliant! And it will be like a phoenix, beautiful, rising out of the - ashes? of the last garden. There are some people who will never give up - they are called gardeners! And jolly good on them all! Good luck, and hope your Christmas goes well.

24 Dec '06 12:32 am

Dear friend, your gardening dreams are so wonderful, so colourful!! I just love and admire your positive/optimistic attitude/approach , within your --- momentarily....--- snow-white, wintery, and beautiful country! Never stop dreaming! Cause your dreams are positive, beautiful thoughts, and are soon going to be true! Your summery garden will be exactly in the way you "see" it right now! Happy Holidays! See you ...next year!!

24 Dec '06 8:53 am

Much success with your new flower garden. I just finished a new article which I have submitted to some of the article directories. I just thought as you are embarking on your project that I could share this with you from my article.

" Garden Design is the vision and wants of the Garden Steward. I say steward, as you can never really own a garden because in the true sense a garden is a living dynamic thing that is always in a state of change and will really never be finished. A garden is different every day there will be new blooms, fading blooms, and yes even plants dying and returning to replenish the soil from where they sprang.

The perfect garden is a place that you can go and enjoy a place that makes you happy and that fulfills your senses. The perfect garden is different for everybody as long as you like it that is all that matters.

If per chance your design appeals to the masses well that is an added bonus and gives you a chance to do a little chest puffing."

Please try and upload some pictures because the more that I come to the forum the more I enjoy the pictures of everyones gardens.

24 Dec '06 7:27 pm

Hi, folks!

Well, here it is, nearly Christmas, and here I am, figuring out a new computer and attempting to upload a photo of my mobile home as it looked last year as the painting was beginning. The small flower bed at the end of the trailer is the one that was poisoned and which is going to be completely redone in 2007.

I've already begun digging out the lawn turf but have been hindered by our vile weather of late! However, it's now like spring once more, so perhaps tomorrow, in between baking bread and visiting with neighbours, I might even get a few buckets of grass out. My neighbour is going to use the turfs to raise a low spot in his lawn, so nothing will be wasted!

All the best to everyone for the new year!

-gordonf

26 Dec '06 10:44 am

Oh my! How on earth could someone poison such cute little flowers.. Eh?

There really are some mean-spirited ppl around, thankfully he has moved on Wink

Good Luck with your new garden. hehe.. Fill it with flowers! Applause

~
Such true sentiments gbronner Cool

26 Dec '06 12:35 pm

Hi, Pumpkin-

Thanks for the note; I couldn't believe how someone could do that, either. Around at the back, he came in my gate and did the same to my beautiful tree peony and several others as well. It looked as if he selected the prettiest plants and dumped bleach on them. What a jerk!!

Anyway, for this year at the front, I plan to move lots of my Michaelmas daisies (purple, pink and white) from the back to the new bed and mix them with drifts of red yuccas which I grew from seed last year and a "Purple Rain" salvia that is now large enough to split into at least 3 pieces. For underplanting, I have starts of creeping raspberry in my cold frame and lots of saved seeds of Chinese Forget-Me-Nots. That should give me a good start, and I can fine-tune it all later.

Merry Christmas, and have a happy new year!

-gordonf

27 Dec '06 6:41 am

It takes extraordinary courage and optimism to start again .Gordon - your friends on the forum will be cheering for you ! It would be great if we could all arrive with our rooted cuttings to get your garden established .If bleach was used ,has it affected the soil and worm activity ? Are you able to get good compost to help build it up ,and neutralise the effect ?
I went to the website of Piet Oudolf -interesting ...Also a question for Glenn -your article looks like good food for thought .Can it be accessed in full?
Dixie.

27 Dec '06 3:48 pm

Hi, Dixie-

I don't think it affected the soil too much as other plants grew in the same spots later in the summer. Also, we have had so very much rain here, and it's always rainy in the winter anyway, so I think that any residue should be washed out by spring. And, yes, I have lots of good compost, plus I'll add some mushroom manure before I replant.

Thanks for the support and good wishes!

-gordonf

5 Jan '07 8:33 pm

Belatedly adding my best wishes that your garden is everything you hope it should be.
I'm horrified that a neighbour could be so vile. You're well rid of that weed!
Looking forward to progress photos. Smile

Planning for a new flower bed

Planning for a new flower bed

Cheers

A Great New Project For The New Year

New Garden

New Garden

good for you

Bleach vs Worms