NEW ADDITION TO THE INDOOR GARDEN

Masdevallia 'Aquarius '

My daughter, the houseplant expert, brought over this sweet little plant on Thanksgiving. It is an orchid that blooms several times a year and unlike others, it enjoys being kept moist.

I didn't know we had a famous orchid grower right here in the Chicago area. Aquarius came from the famous Hausermann Orchid growers , the largest in the Midwest. You can visit them at www.orchidsbyhausermann.com.

Hausermann has a fabulous selection and the prices aren't bad either. There's even an orchid of the month club for $25 which would make a nice gift for a gardening geek.

ON THE PATH TO BECOMING A GARDEN DESIGNER

I've had my sweet little garden every-which-a-way. As we say down South when someone marries and divorces numerous times " they're practicing 'til they get it right. " I once turned the entire back yard into a vegetable garden with brick paths separating the beds of vegetables and herbs. Holding a full-time job and tending that garden wore me out. But, my hubby loved it because he could pick some fresh leaf lettuce and make a Korean-style sandwich for lunch.

Having decided on a patio garden , the placement of the path was of utmost importance and it changed the entire look of my garden by adding an air of mystery and depth . Planting shrubs near the entrance of the path obscured the view of what was just beyond and not being able to see everything at once was key to my landscape design. I was happy at last.

About that time the Chicago Tribune started running a " Glorious Gardens " contest and the competition was very keen indeed. The first section I turn to every Sunday without fail is HOME AND GARDEN and to my great surprise that September Sunday the contest winners and photos of their garden in living color were splashed across the first page. I didn't see it at first but then...gulp. There was my little garden being given THE GARDEN AS CANVAS AWARD for garden artistry ! Well, of course I went out and purchased a lot of Tribunes.

My garden at that time, eight years ago, was brand new. The white flowering tree near the statue is a dogwood which since passed on and was replaced by an Asian pear. The white flowering shrub in the foreground is a very young Viburnum Plicatum ' Mariesii. '

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Everyone and their uncle reads the Home and Garden Section so I started getting calls and requests for advice from friends, family and neighbors. I was at the point in my life when I was ready to leave my day job and pursue my two passions : Gardening and Art. I never go halfway on anything so I started both careers at the same time -garden design in the summer and painting in the winter. I've been very fortunate with both but the main thing is that I enjoy doing it .

Sometimes all one needs on the path of life is a little inspiration to help them along on their journey.

THE BLANK CANVAS COMES TO LIFE

I promised to post about how the garden path I created led me down the path to a career as a garden designer, but I thought that before doing so I would show the long and short shots of the garden.

For some it is difficult to look at a landscape rendering and imagine what the garden will actually look like. I have a designer friend who worked long and hard on a very pricey landscape plan and got the green light to install it as discussed. When the client came home at the end of the day she went beserk. She absolutely hated it ! Not only did she pay a lot to have it installed, but un-installed as well. This has to be one of the most devastating things to happen to a designer and homeowner as well. Someone didn't do their homework and I ain't sayin' who ( or is it whom ?) It takes two to tango.


Keep in mind that it's winter now so you won't be able to see the garden in bloom but here's the landscape in 3-D :

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Dec. 1, 2007

I was going to show you my flagstone path but it's been dusted by our first snowfall ! On the left is 'Olga Mezzitt ' Rhododendron and the right is Viburnum Plicatum ' Mariesii '. Notice the Taxus x media ' Densiforma' right behind Marie and in the center . This is what my garden will look like most of the winter , depending on the snowfall. So you can clearly see the importance of structure. Even without flowers it is tranquil and interesting and lots of color : green and of course , white in the form of snow.

Around the left of the Olga rhodo is the fish pond. I'm just flabbergasted about how my 9 pet goldfish don't eat all winter and survive the freezing water temperatures. Here's what they looked like this Summer :

Even naked, the Marie Viburnum has a most unusual horizontal branching that is quite attractive and its creamy lacecap blooms in early Summer are quite spectacular. Notice the Japanese yew behind it screening out the view of the entire garden. The white between the right branches is the path that continues to the garage.

The bare branches in the foreground belong to my Chinese Wisteria that is full of gorgeous purple blooms in early Summer. I don't like a lot of statuary in a small garden but ' Rebecca at the Well ' was a present from my girls and since its a bird bath it serves its purpose. Just behind Rebecca is my favorite evergreen : Hinoki Cypress . Next to the Wisteria are the drooping green leaves are my oakleaf hydrangea and the dried brown heads of the Limelight are next to it. The white plumes of my ornamental grass are graceful all winter.

The narrow perennial bed is all dead and gone now but here's what it looked like in high summer. Long-blooming Phlox, Blackeyed Susan, Sedum and Bee Balm are a few shown here.

Perennials and annuals make for a pleasant walk from the house to the garage. And that completes the tour for now.

BLANK CANVAS - THE FILLERS

Now that all the hard work is done -the hardscape, pond, trees and shrubs; time for some fun : The fillers. Perennials that come back year after year. I also leave space for annuals to add constant color. My favorite annual is coleus and it is carefree from early Summer right up until late Fall.

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It's particularly important in a small garden to have plants with long bloom periods . For Spring I plant : tulips, daffodils, Jacob's Ladder, Cranesbill Geranium, Ajuga, and dwarf Iris. Summer : Blackeyed Susan, Veronica, Bear's britches, German Iris, Yarrow, Coneflower, Hardy lily, Goldenrod, Brunnera, Bergenia, Hosta, Euphorbia, and Phlox to name a few. Fall : Anemone, Mums, Sedum, Ornamental grass .

It looks so easy on paper doesn't it ? My garden has been evolving for the past decade and everything in it has been a DIY project.

Next : My path to becoming a garden designer.