spring rhythm ~ a volery of birds & a fluffle of bunnies

The weather has done a 180 this week, turning from mild and sunny to cold, dreary and snowy. Last night we received a few inches of heavy rain, sleet and snow. This morning it’s turned colder and I’m looking out the window at sideways snow and trees bending in the strong winds while snow plows make passes up and down our steep hill - oy!

I’m so glad that my garden remains sleeping under a protective layer of leaves, pine needles and plant debris. This crazy weather happens almost every April in southern New England, so I don’t understand why people are always so surprised! Hopefully my tiny daffodils that opened a few days ago will emerge from this storm unscathed.

First week of April observation notes: Four varieties of hellebores and many clumps of mini daffodils and iris burst forth on 4/1 with an undeniable cheer. With lengthening days the birds sense the end of winter and are preparing to mate. While not a ‘junco expert’, my close observation of our eastern Juncos seems to indicate that they are preparing for their migration north for the summer. They are still quite busy in the garden, but more and more their feeding activity is on the ground under the bird feeders (except for this morning due to all of the newly fallen snow). I suspect this is because most of the seed heads in my garden have been picked clean. I’ve also noticed a lot more finch activity in the last two weeks, from both the New Hampshire state bird, the Purple Finch, and the adorable American Goldfinch. Their loopy, swoopy flight patterns and high-pitched squeaky calls now fill the air. The male goldfinch are quickly developing their distinctive bright yellow plumage, giving the illusion of lemons adorning the shrub layer.

A slightly more disturbing observation came a few days ago. As the morning rain subsided and the fog lifted, FIVE teenage bunnies were romping all around the yard and garden. I guess it’s going to be ‘one of those years’. Sigh.

As an homage to the Japanese tradition of 72 Seasons, my personal garden calendar for the beginning of April reads: miniature daffodils welcome a charm of finches and a fluffle of bunnies while spring can’t seem to arrive.

balancing pretty with productive ~ rejecting AI…the artificial ideal

Over the past ten years, my personal gardener journey has evolved from ‘mannered and manicured’ to ‘natural and native’. My early aesthetic preferences and attempts to mimic other ‘beautiful gardens’ now take a back seat to Stewardship as I have gained a much deeper acceptance of the connectedness of all living things. Creating biodiversity in the garden has long been a goal, but more than ever I see the importance of ‘going beyond pretty’.

I now fully recognize the harm that the landscape industry has done in its effort to tame and mold nature into an artificial ideal. The power of advertising and our need to conform have proven to be a deadly combination to the very things we claim to hold dear. The good news is, each of us can help undo the harm through thoughtful stewardship and ecological land management.

maintaining law & order in the garden

Being the best steward of my land (all 1/4 acre of it!) means rejecting practices that are at odds with ecological gardening. It means putting the needs of wildlife ahead of the gardener’s needs. It means seeing the beauty in all phases of a plant’s 'life. With this ‘filter of clarity’ now on my garden lens, the natural world reveals daily magic that demands my full attention and respect. Yes, I still care about ‘pretty things in the garden’. But my eyes are open (and seeking) the Beauty and Wonder of the entire landscape, both above and below ground ~ the web of life that exists well beyond my intentional plantings. There is a fascinating ~ and frequently tragic ~ Insect Opera playing out constantly in our gardens, and the best thing we can do is step aside and let the bugs police themselves! I wrote about the results of my hands-off approach to aphids here.

Harmful pesticides, herbicides, rodenticides (just say no!) and fungicides are counter productive to the natural processes happening daily in your garden. Even so-called ‘safe’ pesticides are non-selective and usually end up killing greater numbers of beneficial insects than what we deem to be ‘pests’.

To illustrate my point, I found this fascinating article at Xerces.org about how native plants attract beneficial predator insects that maintain Law & Order in the garden! I can attest to the power of predator insects as I observed native lady beetles (the official state insect of New Hampshire!) feasting on and eliminating the aphids that attacked my native honeysuckle last year ~ no chemicals nor intervention from me were required! A similar scene plays out in the fall as aphids attack the many milkweed plants in my garden then fall prey themselves to predator damselflies and dragonflies. In turn, the winged predators then become the prey of birds and other mammals. It’s the Circle of Life in the garden (cue the Lion King theme song!)

making a case for murder

Of course, not all life in the garden is ‘good’. I recently attended a pruning clinic at a Parker Garden Design client property. While pruning the yew hedge, a crew member spotted a praying mantis egg case. I knew right away what it was, but didn’t realize at the time that it was likely from a non-native species ~ always learning! I’ve since done some investigating and find that it was probably a European mantis case. BIG PROBLEM! Both the Chinese and European mantis’ have voracious appetites and can quickly decimate the native insects and upset the balance in a garden. They can even overpower and kill a hummingbird! If you see a non-native egg case, the easiest thing to do is remove it, put it in a plastic bag and trash it. Or stomp on it if you are having a bad day! I have been guilty of buying mantis cases for my garden but never had much luck hatching anything. Looking back on this, I realize it was probably a dumb thing to do… I honestly have no idea if the cases I purchased were native or not. To make matters worse, I gave some to my friend Bonnie, so may have unwittingly helped spread non-native invaders to her landscape in Rhode Island - yikes! Yes, I was well-intentioned but not well-informed. If you find a case, you can reference this great resource to see if it’s a Carolina Mantis (keeper!) or one of the non-native invaders…in which case you have my blessing to commit MURDER!

merging tradition and naturalism ~ the best of both worlds

On March 30th, Bonnie and I traveled to Little Compton, R.I. to attend a marvelous garden symposium hosted by the owners of Sakonnet Garden ~ an incredible garden and well worth the trek to tour it! The theme of the symposium was ecological gardening ~ seeing, observing, and always learning. It was perfect timing for me!

Kicking off the symposium was Eloise Gayer of Stoneleigh Garden in Villanova, PA who shared her team’s transformation of an incredible Main Line estate into a biodiversity powerhouse with native plants. As the website explains, they are “layering historical designs with contemporary plantings that restore ecological function to the landscape”. Wow, as you can imagine, this is the Kool-Aid flavor I love the most! I returned to New Hampshire fully energized and committed to a season of renewal and growth in the Community Hospice House gardens where we are blending the original 23 year old gardens with the new naturalistic gardens installed last fall. This will be an ongoing process, and with 20+ volunteers to assist, it should be quite a journey.

The second presentation was a beautifully poetic and visually stunning account of a young man’s childhood experiences and further exploration of the natural world in southern Appalachia. Rowan Nygard, a self-described ‘mycohorticologist’ is the ultimate observer ~ examining gardens ‘very closely with a focus on mycology and the ways that plants, animals, and fungi interact’. Only 25 years old, he is so wise and thoughtful - well beyond his years. He urged us all to ‘slow down and observe' the magic around us’. Sound familiar? A kindred spirit, for sure. The audience was deeply moved by his intensely personal story, images of fungi, plants and animals, and his way of seeing and interacting with nature. I urge you to follow him on Instagram @rowan_nygard.

The final guest speaker was the highly entertaining Jimi Blake, well-known in the UK for his incredible Hunting Brook Gardens outside of Dublin. Gardening since early childhood, Jimi urges us all to ‘be brave and try something different’. His energy and passion for plants is infectious and his own garden continues to evolve toward a more naturalistic, biodiverse style. Hunting Brook is definitely on my bucket-list and I can’t wait to return to Ireland with friends in the coming years to see it in person! Here’s a link to his book if you need some inspiration!

the uncomfortable truth about lawns

While we wait for spring weather to arrive for good and plan for a season of renewal in the garden, I would like to share some thoughts about lawns. Soon, many among us will begin to obsess over our lawns. Lush green lawns are the iconic American symbol of suburban success, and a source of pride for many homeowners. Lawns are fun for children and pets to play in, and in my yard, my tiny lawn acts as a border around my extensive gardens. I admit that the contrast between green lawns and floral gardens is lovely. Long celebrated as a badge of prosperity and pride in home ownership, lawns have more recently become the poster child for everything that’s wrong in the landscape industry.

my annual plea to ‘see’ your lawn differently this year

Yes, expanses of lush green turf can be pretty and welcoming. But, the reality is that most of our lawns are toxic wastelands and significantly larger than we need them to be. Turf grass is a non-native plant that requires an extensive life support system of chemical fertilizers and excessive amounts of water. As a ‘monoculture’, turf grass has close to zero habitat value. To make matters worse, regular mowing, irrigation and fertilization contribute to polluted air and waterways. Closer to home, chemically laden lawns create health risks for ourselves, our children and our pets. Kids rolling down a grassy slope. Dogs licking their paws after romping through the lawn. These mental images shouldn’t make me cringe. But they do.

Don’t get me started about ‘weeds in the lawn’! It makes no sense to me that a single dandelion or blade of crabgrass triggers all out chemical warfare by the same people who claim to care about their family’s health and safety. Each of us has to decide the amount of lawn and resulting chemicals that ‘make sense’ for our individual situation and lifestyle. I’m just hoping everyone will have eyes open to the risks. Here’s a great resource for more information on the link between lawns and illness.

I invite you to join the growing movement by conservationists like Doug Tallamy who encourage homeowners to reduce their lawns by 50% and replace them with native plants. This simple act would significantly reduce the amount of pesticides released into the environment, conserve our water supplies, and build vital habitat for beneficial insects. In this video, Doug explains why lawns are counter productive to the Homegrown National Park movement and why we should care! If you want to learn more about how to make a difference, check out Doug’s book ‘Nature’s Best Hope ~ A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard’.

mitigating the negative effects of our lawns

I’ve been on a ‘Lawn Reduction Crusade’ for over a decade. Each year, my gardens get larger and more plentiful, reducing the size of our lawn. A few years ago, we started overseeding our sod in the back yard with mini clover. Results were fast and remarkable. Seeds germinated in about 7 days and grew strong root systems that spread quickly, comingling with the blades of grass.

We’ve found that clover is drought tolerant, can handle a lot of foot traffic, fixes nitrogen in the soil for the benefit of all adjacent plants, and is really soft and beautiful under foot. It doesn’t require fertilization and can be mown, just like a lawn, but less frequently. If left to grow, clover blooms are beautiful and support our native bees. As a side benefit, it helps to ‘mostly’ keep the rabbits out of the garden. Read more about our experiment with a ‘mostly clover lawn’ here.

native plant focus ~ Solidago/goldenrod

Let’s talk plants! One of the challenges for gardeners who love colorful flowers is extending bloom time deep into autumn, not only for visual interest, but for wildlife support. In the last issue of garden talk, I introduced you to the early spring blooming amsonia/bluestar, a beautiful native host plant for the snowberry clearwing moth. We’ve planted dozens of amsonia at the Community Hospice House gardens, and I can’t wait to see them perform!

A fabulous fall blooming companion plant for amsonia that supports hundreds of native insects is solidago/goldenrod. Shown here in my east facing garden bed in late September and early October, goldenrod is a superior plant for pollinators. When most other perennials are in decline, solidago rugosa ‘Fireworks’ is ablaze with color and absolutely covered in native bees and insects. Goldenrod is a critically important source of pollen and nectar as our native bees prepare to overwinter. It is also a host plant for many moths who rely on its foliage for reproduction.

We have many types of native goldenrod in New Hampshire, but I particularly favor ‘Fireworks’ for its stunning growth habit and arching blooms. Give it plenty of room and be ready to divide it every few years in the spring to share with friends! Find more info here at Native Plant Trust. I will be sourcing ‘Fireworks’ and other native goldenrod this spring at my wholesale growers, so contact me if you would like some for your own garden!

2024 services

Just a quick reminder that I no longer design and install gardens. But, I still love to coach and shop. So, if you need guidance in the garden or help finding the right native plants for biodiversity and wildlife support, I am here to help! Still not sold on ‘going native’? Here’s my take on the subject!

In closing, I’ve covered a lot in this issue, but it’s all related to good stewardship and promoting a healthy garden and landscape, not only for wildlife but for our kids and pets. I would love to hear your thoughts below about any challenges or successes you’ve had in restoring balance in your landscape. Next issue, I will share recommendations for beautiful native shrubs for the understory and mixed border as well as tips on how to create ‘soft landings’ under native trees to promote insect reproduction.

Hopefully this latest round of rain, sleet and snow will quickly give way to warm, sunny weather and the spring garden will finally be able to unfold in all its glory. Until next time, I will leave you with this photo of one clump of happy hellebores ‘Ivory Snow’ taken before the storm on 4/2.

Happy gardening!

~ Barb