This is our second day of rain. Much needed, so I’m not complaining, however I really can’t do any work in the garden. But I can share some thoughts on perennial gardening.
The California Poppy has really taken off this year.
Though I plant a few annuals – mostly in pots on the porch – I really concentrate on perennials. Annuals are great fillers, especially when you are first establishing a garden, but perennials are with you for the long haul.
When we first moved here, the big garden bed, and it’s really big, was pretty bare. It had been established, but very few things had been planted. There was a hosta or two, some sedum “Autumn Joy”, daffodils and a bush. In addition, there were two peony bushes down by the road, a wiegela near the shed, and a lone yellow tulip by the porch. And lots and lots of trees. Since we moved in at the end of August, I decided to hold off on the garden until the following year. The only thing we added that first year was a new garden bed in front of the porch where we planted 4 boxwoods.
Slowly but surely that next spring, I started to add perennials to the garden bed. As you know, I am on a very limited budget ( I think it was a bit less limited in those days, but nevertheless, limited.) I had to be selective about what I added. Some plants took, others did not. I had to learn about our soil, amend it, do lots of research and be willing to experiment.
Since I was on a budget, I added only a small amount of plants each year, starting in the spring of 2006. Patience was my watchword. You need patience when you are establishing a perennial garden because it takes a while for the plants to take off. No instant gardens for me. No landscape designer filling in my garden beds in the blink of an eye. No, I wanted to design my beds. Slow and steady wins the race.
Now, in the spring of 2012, I am bowled over by how big and full all of the plants are. I’m amazed at the poppy, for example, a plant I haven’t seen bloom in its full glory for 4 years. Wow. It’s huge. It has lots and lots of buds that will soon burst forth in a gorgeous shade of reddish orange. I planted it at least 4 years ago. It took time to reach this size. The catmints are unbelievably full and gorgeous. The bee balm multiplies every year. As do the coneflowers. And the David phlox. The ground covers spread a bit more each year.
And they all come back. That’s what perennials do. They come back, year after year. They hunker down in your soil, spread their roots, and decide to make a return visit every year. Each new spring, I am filled with awe at the miracle of rebirth. My plants have become my children. Truly. Just as you watch your children grow, the same holds true for your perennial garden. It doesn’t sprout up overnight. Good food, nourishment, water and lots of love help to build a healthy, long-term garden.
Annuals are temporary. They’re perfect for my porch pots (impatiens) and window boxes. They nicely fill in my barrels. My hanging plants are annuals. But the garden beds are filled with perennials.
Since that first summer in 2006, I have added two more beds. I expanded the bed in front of the house (where the boxwoods are) and added a hyacinth, russian sage and a rose bush. The next bed is just around the corner of the porch and it has my (now huge) hydrangea, two rose bushes, a spirea and some coneflowers. The most recent addition was put in last year – another bed that expands upon the hydrangea bed. It’s a bit bare – I will add more plants as time and budget allow. But remember, patience is a virtue in perennial gardening. It’s about the process. You have to be willing to wait as your garden evolves.
The area around the porch that you see in the above photo was completely bare when we moved in. Just grass. Now, I have a flourishing cottage garden that adds to the charm of this old house.
And, oh my, it was worth the wait.
