"And So My Story Begins..."
I moved into the Garden in July of 1996. I sensed immediately that it was suffering from an advanced state of neglect. It was overgrown and without definition. The only areas that showed any indication of upkeep were the grassy areas. The single flower bed, while colorful enough with irises and a few daylilies, was choked with quack grass and an assortment of invasive mint and goldenrod. There was also an area of beautiful, old-growth rose bushes that probably hadn't been thinned out or pruned for many years. There were also numerous lilac bushes scattered throughout, all of which were overgrown and in need of pruning. The other outstanding feature of this Garden was a very old and venerable trumpet vine. All in all, this was a Garden worthy of saving.
The entire Garden was surrounded by a patchwork of fencing materials, supported almost entirely by a tangle of weeds and vines. Here and there I could see young trees growing through the rusting wire netting. To the west of this main area, on the other side of the fence was another space that at one time had been cared for as well. Now, however, it had reverted to a more primitive, overgrown mass of tall grasses, trees of varying sizes, and invasive undergrowth.
I was aware of the history of this Garden since it has been in the family for more than 75 years. Therefore I had a general idea of the potential of this Garden. This restoration was, and is, truly a labor of love.
Having a picture of what I hoped to accomplish embedded firmly in my mind, I set to work. Gathering together my tools - saws, axes, pruners, shovels, and rakes - I set to work. This was in late July and August of a hot and dry summer - my kind of weather!
The first thing to go was the old fence. I needed to open up the area. As it stood it made for a rather stifling enclosure. By removing the old fence I was able to give the Garden a more spacious feeling, less boxlike overall. It was not an easy task however. In addition to the weeds and saplings there were grape vines, various shrubs, and another, very invasive vine known around here as Virginia creeper. This vine is very difficult to control because it can grow great distances from the base root system, both along the ground as well as twining its way upwards on tree trunks and whatever other obstacles it encounters. The only way to control it that I know of is by continually pulling out or cutting away any new growth. The initial removal was even more difficult. It was well established in the fence line, having twisted and twined itself through and around everything. But I was up to the challenge and eventually I was able to remove most of it. One characteristic of Virginia creeper is that eventually it will choke the life of whatever it is growing on. I've seen it kill large, mature tress. And it keeps coming back, requiring constant vigilance. It even seems able to reroot itself from pieces of broken off vine, so it is important to remove every piece of it from the area.
One advantage that I have in my Garden is that there are railroad tracks at the bottom of a big ditch on the western edge of my Garden. The steep dropoff gives me a ready site to dump the debris from my labors. As a result, I was able to build a series of brush piles which the birds, bunnies, and ground hogs really enjoy. The brush piles provide places to perch, shelter from the elements, and safety from predators. And it provides me and my Friends many hours of enjoyment when these little Friends come to my Garden.
But, back to my story. Once the fence was gone, I began to work my way into the "virtual jungle" to the west of the fence line. In addition to many saplings and scrub growth, there were many thistles, burdocks, goldenrod, tall grasses, and assorted other undesirable vegetation. I wore out my old lawn mower in this jungle and subsequently had to buy a new one. Another obstacle I discovered while clearing the area was that there were numerous small brush piles scattered throughout. Let me tell you, it is no easy job moving old brush piles, especially when they are firmly attached to the ground by years of weeds and vines. But I perservered and slowly, inch by inch, reclaimed the area.
Now, allow me to digress for a bit. I mentioned earlier that there were many small and a few not-so-small saplings growing in this area. Well, I started removing them with a bow saw. This task is truly sweat labor. I must have poured out gallons of sweat until I finally decided that enough was enough, that this body of mine isn't as young as it once was. So I went out and bought a chainsaw. After putting all the parts together, filling it up with gas and oil, and firing it up, I went back at it. The task of removing the bush and saplings became considerably easier and faster. In no time at all I was standing in the middle of this area, sputtering chainsaw in hand, looking all around me, and saying, with a glazed look in my eyes, "More trees! More trees!!" My lifemate, who was standing near the house, looked at me as if I had taken leave of my senses. Perhaps she wasn't far off the mark.
I confess that perhaps I had become a bit over-zealous at this point, but remember, the original idea was to open this area up. Many years before this area had been well-tended, but after the previous Garden Caretaker was no longer around, the area began to revert to its native state. I did, however, practice some restraint. I didn't cut down every tree in sight. I spared those which were worth saving, including a beautiful hawthorn tree, standing some 20 feet high.
My next task, after cutting the weeds down and removing the brush and small limbs, was to cut the logs and larger branches into shorter lengths and building a wood pile. Before long, I had a sizable wood pile started. A promise of good things yet to come. But that is another part of my story, for another time.
Other discovered "treasures" in my new Garden included some dogwood bushes, wild roses, a row of old, venerable apple trees, and perhaps half a dozen small, as yet unidentified trees with long sharp thorns and tiny dark fruit in the fall.
Now began the task of pruning and shaping. This Garden was suffering from an advanced case of neglect. It became necessary at this point to take a step back and to assess the Garden as a whole. I needed to sense the Garden's potential, its balance, and most important of all, its "soul." I needed for it to "speak" to me, to tell me what to do.
It was obvious that the apple trees would require a lot of work. As the season progressed it was readily apparent that the apples would not be good for much. All the years of neglect had allowed them to become small and deformed. To transform the apple trees into good fruit-bearing trees again was going to require more than one season of work.
To make a long story short, in that first season I put in a lot of hours and work just basically cleaning up and shaping the Garden. I also did a lot of thinking and looking, making plans for ongoing improvements.
And then came the winter...
A Winter Garden
Winter adds a whole new perspective to a Garden. The contrasts offered by the vegetation against the snow-covered background offers a visual treat that is hard to describe. My Garden has a variety of vegetation types, from the grayish trunks of trees to the red branches of the dogwood to the evergreen color of the solitary fir tree. Interspersed throughout were branches laden with black or red berries, and an occasional shriveled apple which for whatever reason had chosen not to drop from the branch of the apple tree with the rest of the apples.
This bounty of fruit, along with the bird feeders which I had hung from several low-hanging branches, attracted another delight to my Garden. Birds of many varieties chose my Garden as one of their favorite winter hangouts. The availability of food in combination with the brush piles, which offered shelter from the cold winds, provided me and my lifemate with many hours of pleasure.
The winter months were a time for reflection, a time to ponder, to dream, and to plan the next stage of development for my Garden. The cold, snowy months are when all the seed catalogs arrive. This is when the dreaming begins, as you page through the catalogs, gazing at all the full color pictures of the flowers and plants, thinking of how they would look in the Garden. But by the time spring begins to arrive reality has set in again. I know what needs to be done yet, and a botanical garden is not one of them.
Season 2: The Garden Begins to Take Shape
The second Garden season began with the continuation of pruning, removing, planting, and transplanting. The apple trees still needed shaping up. The difficulty about doing this was their location. They grow at the very edge of my Garden where the slope drops off steeply down to the railroad tracks. Therefore, while one side of the trees were within fairly easy reach, the other side of them were twice as high off the ground. Added to this was the fact that the area beneath them is covered with a tangled mess of weeds and scrub growth. Even with a long-handled pruner it would be diificult to reach the upper levels of the trees. So I put that project on hold for a while longer.
On the Garden side of the apple trees the ground beneath them was far from level. Over the years the soil had eroded away leaving behind a number of fairly good sized gullies. Therefore my next project was to restore this area to a more level grade. The problem was, where would I find fill material. This problem was resolved in August when thr city did some street and utility work in front of my house. As they were digging everything up and hauling it away, I approached the work crew and asked if it would be possible to dump some of the excavated material in my Garden. They were more than happy to oblige me. All they needed to know was how much I wanted and where to dump it. Almost before I knew it, I had a small mountain of fill. All I had to do now was to spread it out, which proved to be no easy task. It was mostly a red clay soil, which is very heavy. I spent my spare time for the remainder of the season with shovel and wheelbarrow hauling dirt. But the end result was well worth the sweat and aching muscles. I had enough fill to accomplish my goals, and it went a long way toward the final realization of my Garden. All that was left was to add topsoil over the fill and then to seed and plant the area. But that would have to wait. I ran out of season again.
But I've gotten ahead of myself again. In the months before the fill project there was still much that needed to be done. I continued to open up the area to more sunlight with selective removal of several more larger trees. The branches became new brush piles and the larger branches and trunks were cut up and added to my woodpile. I purchased and planted some white fir seedlings. I continued to clean up the fringes of my Garden, slowly expanding and improving it. And I continued my never-ending battle against the invasive Virginia creeper.
Soon winter was upon me once again. A time to rest and reflect, to enjoy the fruits of my labors, enjoying the view and the wildlife. Again the seed catalogs began to arrive, and the dreaming started all over again. I pondered and planned for the third stage of my Garden's renewal.
Which brings us to the present.
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