Petals & Stems

Moving out of the shadow of Forest Park about 20 years ago, I found a rare,, tree-less home in Irvington. The scraggly grass and puny rhodies quickly had a close encounter of the bulldozer kind. David Mason (formerly Hedgerows Nursery) helped me make a plan for the terraced front garden, to include a rock garden, a dry creek and a small bridge. After I planted lots of rocks and boulders, the sun-loving plants soon followed. Later, the parking strip became a garden and the side yard became a woodland garden under the borrowed shade of neighboring birch trees. During the pandemic, I dug up the backyard – a mossy weed patch undeserving of the word “lawn.” It’s now a climate friendly decomposed gravel courtyard with shady borders. The long driveway hosts a container garden sheltered between houses. The pergola at the back end of the driveway makes a great patio with a climbing hydrangea scrambling over the top. I look forward to sharing the garden again this summer.