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| The Boston ivy and silver lace vines are slowly making their way up the pergola! |
As I wait patiently for my garden to become established in order that I can snap some great photos to round out
The Beautiful Edible Landscape series, I realize summer is really moving along quickly! Although many of the plants will likely take a few seasons to begin to produce, we've been able to harvest a few vegetables, including lettuce and swiss chard, and a variety of herbs. It's been much more fun accessorizing the garden as one of the final finishing steps as opposed to the physical labour involved in the early construction stages. However, the most rewarding experience for me has been watching the numerous seeds sprout into tiny seedlings and then seeing them form into beautiful mature plants.
Yessss, plants! Finally! I've found that it's at this point where
The Edible Landscape has really been the most helpful as it gets into greater details on plant selection and also goes into the specifics of the actual planting itself (whereas
The Beautiful Edible Garden focuses more on overall garden design.) So, after we establish our
Focal Points in the garden, it's now time to move on to next steps:
- Position anchor plants: These provide structure and thus help to define the garden. My use of evergreens and perennials such as cedars and hydrangeas carefully positioned in strategic locations will serve to anchor the garden throughout the seasons. A number of fruit trees will also serve as anchors and I have left openings in order that we have room to plant a few next year.
- Add plants for beauty and production: Next to go in were our favourite edibles such as blueberries, passion fruits, tomatoes, eggplants, cucumbers, snow peas, kales, chards, lettuce, and herbs. I then mixed in some beautiful ornamentals such as hydrangeas, roses and peonies. After that I planted yarrow, bee's balm, alyssum, foxglove, lavender, agastache, and finally geraniums. The latter group attracts pollinators and other beneficial insects which ward off garden pests such as aphids and mites.
- Fill it out with groundcovers and low-growing plants: Sweet potato vines, alyssum, and trailing petunias helped to fill in the few remaining empty spaces. I'm also planning to add some Japanese spurge, an evergreen which will eventually form a dense solid groundcover that should (hopefully) reduce weed infestation.
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| Nothing is more satisfying than to watch plants grow from vegetative to flowering, then fruiting stage: I can't help but care for them just like my own children! |
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| A hydrangea anchors this garden bed while a mix of ornamentals and edibles (peonies, brussel sprouts, tomatoes, cucumbers, flowering kale) provide a fine balance between beauty and production. The empty spaces here will be filled with Japanese spurge. |
I found that family and friends were really helpful at this planting stage. I was always on the look out for what was in their garden and they were more than happy to provide me with cuttings and plant divisions to make use of. Don't hesitate to try this yourself..all you have to do is ask! I'm sure when they see the beautiful masterpiece in your back yard, they will certainly be asking for you to return the favour.
The final step: Furnish and accessorize your garden with a nice patio set and some well-placed hanging plants. No garden is complete without a few lanterns to highlight your plants so they can be enjoyed while sitting out on those warm summer evenings. Now you're ready for some stylish outdoor living!
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| My inspiration board for outdoor accessories |
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| Patio view from deck: the Moroccan lantern grouping (above table) adds an exotic flare to the space |
