GARDENER'S READING ROOM
The Art of Gardening

Fall Garden Remodel

Everyone needs to move the furniture every once in a while. In the garden, fall is the best time to rearrange the furniture.

The first step in any garden remodel is to decide what's working, and what ain't. Ask yourself some questions. Are your outdoor rooms still functioning? For instance, as children get older, you may no longer need a play structure. You might instead want a patio in that space, or perhaps raised beds for a vegetable garden. Are individual pieces in your garden still doing their job? You may have plants that have stopped flowering because light conditions have changed, or accent plants that are now hidden by the foliage of maturing shrubs above them. Maybe you have changed your mind about the color palette. In any event, it is just like moving furniture in a room. Sometimes you need to gut the room and start over because you are changing its purpose or focus. Sometimes you can just shuffle the pieces around, add some new accessories, and you are done.

Some helpful tools at this point are a digital camera, some stakes, and a fine point marker. First, go through the area and place stakes with colored ribbon where you think you might need additional material or changes. Then take pictures of the area (from several angles). Print them out on plain white paper. When you look at the prints, use the stakes for reference points. If you are trying to move plants around, you can cut images out of one print and then shuffle them around on top of a second to see what happens. If you need to add or delete plants, use a fine point marker to rough sketch in the shape of the plants you are thinking of using. Keep scribbling, crumpling and tossing until you come up with a plan.

If you are completely changing the function of the space, decide what can stay and what has to go. Don't be afraid to be ruthless at this point. Just because you have a plant in your garden doesn't mean it has to stay there. Maybe you can find another place for it. Maybe you can find a friend or organization to donate it to. Maybe it needs to be compost. Once these decisions have been made, it is a simple matter of removing the old and planting the new.

If you are satisfied with the overall design and just need to tweak it, take a look at the main structure. Does it need to be adjusted, or is it fine as it stands? Do you need other structural pieces? Once you are satisfied with the bones of your garden, turn your attention to the supporting pieces.

Just as you can change the style of a room by changing the palette of color and accent pieces, you can change the style of a garden by changing the companion plantings. For example, the wild look of a cottage perennial garden will look more constrained if you add a low hedge of Boxwood or Hebe, or the flowering Plum in your front yard would look totally different if you replace the evergreen Azaleas at its base with ornamental grasses. This is the time for a little patience. Step back often, walk around and assess the effects of your moves. Leave new pieces in their containers until you are satisfied with their final positions. Don't be afraid of some open space. Plants need room to expand.

When you are satisfied with the final product, plant, water everything in thoroughly, get your favorite garden chair and toast your new space with a cool drink.

By Charlie Shull
Skylights Autumn 2007, Vol 22, No. 3

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