Each Little World

Learning from Jeff: Containers

Jeff Epping has been the Director of Horticulture at Olbrich Botanical Gardens here in Madison since the 1990s. During that time, he and his staff have transformed the gardens and continue to do so. His own home garden has undergone an equal number of transformations over the years. It's always a thrill — and a must see — when his own garden is open to the public. 

This private space is hidden from view at the front corner of the house. 

The next three photos go from left to right across the back steps of the house that lead down to the deck.

No matter where you look, there is an idea to inspire. 

Keeping all your prunings on site to decompose or to be used in various ways is a concept that is new to many of us. I love how all the logs from a tree trimming are put to use in a sophisticated display here. It is an idea that would not have occurred to me without seeing such a successful display in person.

Containers are a feature in the seating area on the deck. Note how he has plants interspersed in the paving.

Jeff always seems to have interesting evergreens potted up. Love how this merges the foreground and background. 

This row of pots — with those sweet baby containers interspersed — has been a feature on the porch railing every time I've visited Jeff's garden. The plants may change, but a great idea is worth replicating.

Simple solutions

Despite a couple of warm days, my garden is still mostly in winter mode. So I'm sharing images from more of last summer's garden tours.

I've visited Ken Nordlund's garden many times over the years. Each time I come away with ideas. Last summer I was struck by the number of simple combinations he uses to great effect. As a Carex fan, I loved this Carex getting to be the star all on its own. I was amused by its lush, healthy appearance compared to the neighbor's grass on the other side of the fence. 

Miscanthus and lamb's ears offer a delightful contrast in scale and texture. 

Another grass paired with the patterned foliage of a Canna is a simple but striking combo.

In our climate zone, Hostas and Heuchera are garden stalwarts. I love this grouping that straightforwardly acknowledges what attractive workhorses they are. But what raises this planting up a notch are those sweet little grasses providing a dramatic change in color, texture and scale. 

Local gal meets drama queen in this pairing. In the Upper Midwest it is hard to find a garden that doesn't have daylilies. They can take everything our climate throws at them. Here it creates a glamorous combination paired with a similarly colored Dahlia. 

The Dahlia's dark foliage adds just the contrast this combo needs to set it off. It would be worth the effort it takes to overwinter Dahlias here to be able to enjoy such a gorgeous scene in one's garden. 

More containers

I typically don't do fancy garden containers. Mine usually have just one plant such as a giant Hosta or a small tree like this little Ginkgo. They're subtle markers rather than exclamation points in my garden.

But I am always inspired to rethink that personal pattern every time I visit Olbrich Botanical Gardens. The staff there are masters of container composition. Even focusing on one form of a plant they create displays that always stop me in my tracks. This one is a fascinating lesson in color, texture and size relationships. 

I am not a big fan of air plants — Tillandsia — but this display showcases them better than I've ever seen. 

Plants that too often look lost and alone are used to dramatic effect here.

I think my problem is that I want to have containers that look like this. But in our zone you really need a greenhouse to nurture these plants and get them to a size that makes a statement. 

Though this container is filled with yellow and black plants and touches of orange, I find it a subtle and very sophisticated grouping. 

As a fan of both silver foliage and Euphorbia 'Ascot Rainbow', this container is a win-win for me. 

The repetition of 'Ascot Rainbow' in the ground below is a clever touch. I have been growing this Zone 6 plant for a few years;  mine gets smaller each year. I can only dream of having one that looks like this make it through the winter in my garden. 

I'm looking forward to seeing what the Olbrich staff does in their containers this year. 

Container plantings

Last summer, it seemed like most of the containers I saw on garden tours were planted with Begonias or Coleus. I'm not sure if that meant they were the gardener's favorite plants or the ones most available to buy. 

I find Coleus varieties very attractive, but difficult to use once I get them home with me. So I was smitten with this pot containing a single plant left to flower. What could be prettier?

I initially thought this planting was a little lacking for my taste, until I took a couple more steps past the front door in this garden . . . 

and discovered this display. The Begonias nod to the simple grouping by the nearby door, but are show stopping when grouped with multiple varieties of Coleus and a purple leaved Japanese maple. 

Flowers, furniture and umbrella all glowing in this small shade garden.

The same colors that I saw in countless displays, but this time with Fuchsias and sweet potato vines.

This display was was unusual with the glass art and the container providing the dramatic color rather than the plants.

This was my favorite Begonia composition of all those I saw. The orange of the flowers was toned down by its neighbors and the Begonia foliage reflected the underside colors of the huge tropical leaves above it. Perfection.

I've decided to test a couple of Begonias in my garden next season. But I'm still undecided about adding Coleus. 

Summer garden tour: John Mathews, Part 2

John Mathews garden had more than beautiful plantings to inspire the rest of us. It was filled with wood structures and detailing as well as creative stone work not often seen in small home gardens. The air conditioning unit that we passed by as we entered the back garden was nicely disguised in a manner related to the rest of the garden.  

The back lot line of the garden was beautifully marked by this wall that lets air and wind blow through. It offers a peek at the neighbor's garden without taking the focus off the homeowner's garden. 

The exterior of the garage has been transformed into a structure well suited to the style of the garden. Plus its surrounded by noteworthy plants and stone work.

Everywhere you went there were striking details that caught the eye.

The fence wall along the driveway alternated open and closed panels along with bamboo details. 

Even the folding chair was in keeping with the setting.

Summer garden tour: John Mathews

Last summer a gardening friend and I went on the annual tour of home gardens sponsored by Olbrich Botanical Gardens. We took advantage of the fact that most of the gardens were on our side of town. I was familiar with half of them — which is how I am able to identify this garden.

John Mathews is a professional designer and we've visited each other's gardens a number of times. I always know I will see unusual plants and creative solutions when I visit his garden. 

John has a exceptional collection of conifers and they were marked with id tags which was a treat.

This garden is heavily influenced by traditional Japanese gardens but seen through the eyes of a western homeowner and plantsman. So I was not surprised to see a rain chain or large rocks.

When I get back home I always want to be sure I have images of how these lovely parts of the garden are actually put together. 

So I tend to take lots of detail photos.

We turned left at the rock which took us through the front garden. 

John interpreted a classic Japanese barrier using bundles of prunings. This was across the path from the big rock.

Further along were these standard Ginkgoes. I've rarely met a Ginkgo I didn't like and these were no exception. Look at the moss, rocks and ground cover. The path is behind this display.  

Nothing has been left to chance in this beautiful combination of planting and hardscaping along the side of the house, leading into the back garden. 

A koi pond nestled among rocks and plants. 

I love this scene because it has familiar plants and a simple bamboo fence that anyone could make. Great inspiration.

Again, familiar plants that showcase all different tones of green — contrasted with a big empty pot. 

Every garden we visited had containers with various types of plants. None compared with this one with its span, limited depth and use of rocks as both decorative accents and to create a mini crevice garden. 

Next up: John Mathew's wood and stone garden elements.

What does lower maintenance mean?

Now that Mark and I are in our mid-70s, it seems obvious that we need to seriously "reduce maintenance" on our garden. It's a concept that's widely touted, but harder to define. I've had a garden consult with Madison's Jeff Epping, Director of  Horticulture at Olbrich Botanical Gardens. I've Googled the subject and read endless articles on it.

The articles tell you that if you think of all the chores that your garden requires, those are generally what you need to reduce; jobs like watering, weeding, pruning, deadheading, and dividing plants and cutting grass.

Ann Lovejoy, whose garden books were among my first purchases, suggests installing gravel paths instead of grass. That's because gravel paths let water drain and they don’t need the maintenance that grass paths do. But we did that a dozen years ago. We also replaced our concrete driveway with pavers set in sand.

Surrounding trees with plants instead of lawn is another idea. Done.

Grass is one of the highest maintenance plants one can grow; getting rid of it reduces maintenance and helps the environment — which is probably not news to most of you. We've been in the process of saying goodbye to the last grass on our property for a number of years. There's one little bit left that should be gone by the end of next summer. We're mainly replacing it with native sedges.

Jeff suggested adding more ground covers and shrubs in mass plantings the way we've already done in our driveway. Since I have a lot of shade, I have been adding more ferns (native and other), Carexes, Epimediums and Hellebores. I have a list of shrubs I'm hoping to add this year.

Jeff also said that I should only have a couple of special areas for plants that require work. I have been trying to reduce the number of perennial beds, but it's hard to do. I am trying to think in terms of big sweeps of one or two easy plants with a few drama queens mixed in. I'm currently inspired by this area of the Hermannshof Gardens in Germany. (Photo by James Golden)

Perhaps the most helpful concept about lower maintenance I found was this question: 

"Where do you spend the most chore time in the garden, and which part of the garden is the most enjoyable?"

The article pointed out that it is unlikely that these places are the same. It suggested that identifying high maintenance areas should then help us to make good choices about which garden features to alter or eliminate.

They suggested replacing a fast-growing hedge with a fence. We pulled out our dying hedge and put in a fence last year. Another hedge, generally low maintenance, will have dying shrubs pulled out and replaced with new ones this spring. 

If each of these changes is the right one, then it should mean less work and energy will be needed to still have a satisfying garden. Whether I am really moving far enough and fast enough in the right direction remains to be seen. 

Pond re-design: The final frontier

Before adding the next layer of fill to the pond, Mark put down permeable weed barrier.

The weed barrier is intended to keep the layer of screened top soil from filtering below. 

We took advantage of a big hole partly full of dirt to replicate our portrait taken on the day we started to build the pond in 1997.

Once the soil brought the pond level up high, Mark attacked the stream bed and waterfalls. He took out all the rocks from that area, piling them temporarily on the soil in the big pond. Then he removed as much rubber liner and carpet from the stream as possible. A number of the rocks in this area were set with a bobcat and two people. 

We were lucky to be able to borrow a couple of contractor's wheelbarrows. These are built to carry loads of concrete. Even empty, I could barely lift and move them. 

Mark's assistant, Angelo, had no trouble moving them full of dirt or gravel. Everything had to go from the driveway up an incline into the back. Angelo was amazing in how quickly he could move those barrows. 

The soil layer also got rained on which helped to settle it and let Mark determine if his calculations were correct. 

At this point, Mark began preparing for the final layer: Quartzite chips. He put wooden stakes in the ground, linked with string, to indicate the depth the chips needed to be, tiny surveyor's stakes. 

The quartzite chips needed to be put down without mixing any dirt up into this final layer. We were following the system that Olbrich Botanical Gardens uses in their sustainable gravel gardens. 

Once all the quartzite chips were settled on top of the soil. Mark began to level the pond surface. (It may not hold water but Mark and I still call it the big pond, stream and upper pool.) This was amazing to me to watch as he went the length of the pond on his hands and knees with a long, even board, a level and smaller pieces of wood to smooth the surface. 

He took design breaks to work on placement of the stones around the pond edges. The round stone was moved a number of times, getting it just the right distance from the pebble beach. 

You can see he changed his mind on how this area should be edged compared to the big stone blocks he experimented with above.

This view from the Upper Pool shows the stepping stones that cross it and the top of the stream on the other side of them. 

Even the stream bed has raked patterns. 

The sharply curving rock in the bottom pool of the stream symbolizes a jumping fish. 

Once Mark removed that wide swath of Carexes to make his working "bridge," we decided not to replace any of them. Instead he created a beautiful little path down to the east end of the big pond.

He set a grindstone into the quartzite chips so you could step out into the pond for a different experience than just viewing from a distance. 

Mark's first raking design was a very traditional linear pattern, the length of the pond. 

The big stones in the pond and the curving edges mean there will always be curvilinear patterns. 

This is where the stream meets the pond. 

I love this view from the path between the two hills in the garden. It is a view I rarely noticed when the pond had water. 

This was his first raindrop pattern, which was quickly followed by more elaborate version. 

This was his most recent pattern: diagonal lines across the width of the pond. Though it is a very simple design, it has proven one of the most effective because we can "read" it from inside the house. It also gets lit by east and west raking sun which makes the pattern pop.

Mark began this project on April 4th and finished on Aug. 17 — four and a half months later. It was an almost daily effort; whether with a wheelbarrow or a pen and paper. We couldn't be happier with the result. We celebrated the "unveiling" with an open garden event in early September. It was also Mark's 75th birthday. 

Simple effects

On a recent visit to Olbrich Botanical Gardens in Madison, my eye was captured by a number of displays where the design concept was extremely simple. Perhaps more importantly, they were ideas they would be easy to replicate in any home garden. You know it is a good idea if they are doing it in a public garden.

A redbud underplanted with Epimediums. This must be beautiful in spring when both are in flower ahead of the appearance of their foliage. 

Boxwood balls interplanted with the herb dill.

I love the contrast of the airiness of the dill with the down to earth solidity of the boxwood. Despite the height of the dill, it does not obscure the view of the sculpture at the center of this garden. 

I fell prey to temptation on an early nursery visit, seduced by the dramatic foliage of the Coleus plants. But I never really figured out how or where to put them once I got them home.

This struck me as a perfect solution. You can admire all the various colors and patterns of the Coleus and add or subtract pots as necessary. It's an idea that would work with any number of annual plants. And it brings color and life to a major walkway that does not have available planting space.

Garden Girls

Like most gardeners, I love my own garden the best. Part of that is the fact that I am the designer as well as the one who decides which plant and where and who actually puts it in the ground. It is that familiarly that breeds contentment.

Not long ago I realized I have three gardening friends who all live on my side of town and whose gardens I have visited enough to be quite familiar with as well. I decided we should form an informal group to visit each other's gardens, talk gardens, get in-person advice and share books, information and ideas. But no set meeting schedule, no projects, no fees or obligations.

We've met four times and have seen all the gardens but one. At our last meet-up we all brought books, computers, 3-ring binders and talked about how we keep track of our plantings and how effective each particular system is working for each of us. One person even brought a beautiful piece of stained glass she'd just made that she later installed in her garden. When we're not meeting, we're emailing each other with reminders of events, questions and links to articles, plant lists and Youtube videos.  

I'm sure that this desire to hang out with fellow gardeners in person is a lingering result of our year of living COVIDLY and mostly gardening via Zoom. Though I am a long time member of Olbrich Botanical Gardens and the Wisconsin Hardy Plant Society (and am on their excellent FB page many times a day), nothing has proved as much fun as getting together in living color with this like-minded group.