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Catherine's Garden
#1
I have used my time off to work on my landscaping. I have tried to make a place where birds and people are happy together. Some of the new trees are small, but they will grow. The birds watched me the whole time and had lots to say about what I was doing.

Sadly all my butterfly bushes were lost in last winter's ice storm and the birds and I miss them. They will be replaced at a later date, after I dig out the dead ones.

All the new trees in a row.
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My Birch tree. This year it finally turned white and it is tall enough for the birds to enjoy it.
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Up close, two cut leaf Japanese Maples and between them a dwarf Cypress.
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The newest Maple is against the fence. It has orange coloured leaves.
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Looking back towards the pond.
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The little orange maple.
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The view from the chair.
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The view from the deck.
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I think it was time well spent. Everything will fill in and be very colourful.
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My garden is like a little woodland oasis in the midst of the city. Many of the bushes produce berries for the birds and the pond gives them water. It is my quiet place.Heart
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Catherine

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#2
Oh, it's so beautiful! You are right, it is like a lovely oasis. the trees will grow and provide even more of a 'secluded' feeling.
You have made such a good job of it. Is that cedar bark you put down on the pathway? I love the smell of Cedar.

The Birch looks graceful and beautiful.
I had a shock with Birch trees however.... When I was 13 I found a tiny birch tree 'twig' about 18" long growing among some brush by the river. I should have left it....but I was 13 and had no sense.
I planted it in our garden at my parents' house. It flourished, and grew....and grew.....and grew.
Eventually 30 years later it was half the height again of the house, with a huge trunk. The last I saw of it was in 2009. And it was massive!
The house was sold in 2011 18 months after my mother passed away. I heard the tree was going to be cut down by the new owners Sad
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#3
Yes that is cedar. I like the smell, I like the colour and it makes warm soft pathways that are gentle on bare feet. Everything will fill in and the path will end up smaller. On the side of the yard across from the Maples, I am still planting hostas. I want them to edge the path and fill in. There will be perennials and biannuals in the area behind the hostas. There are a few flowers right now, but mostly it is low growing plants. I want more flowers that are bee friendly. I still need to replace the butterfly bush.

I can always fit some more plants in.

That Birch tree must have liked where you planted it. They can get quite big as you noticed. I hope they are not just cutting it down. Maybe it is starting to die. Birches do not live as long as some trees.

My Birch is a Canadian River Birch and it will not get too big. They tend to have multiple smaller trunks. I have tried to choose trees and shrubs that fit the space I have and provide food for the birds. I hope a bird nests in my tree some day.
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Catherine

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#4
Knowing I have a beautiful garden makes me feel good even when I am not home to see it. I know the birds are out there enjoying my space. I know the bees and butterflies have a place to be. My pond needs some work next year. That is the joy of a "wild" garden. It looks okay all the time, but there is always something to do. I could still plant bulbs and have spring flowers. Next year I want to work on having more wild flowers. It is a never ending project and that is what I love about it.

You are lucky to have a big space to work with. It means you can do more and have more choices. It may take longer, but that is the fun part. Every winter I plan for spring. It makes the months of snow seem more temporary. You could do different things in different areas of your property. Native plants are such a good choice aren't they. They do so much better with so little care. They are suited to the climate you have put them in. You should post some pictures so we can see what you are doing. I would be interested in knowing. I love gardening/landscaping.
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Catherine

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#5
Yes I should take some pictures. I keep forgetting photos! My garden always looks better in the early part of the year, from late March through to early June. I have a flowering Oleander bush (huge) a Hydrangea, Fuchsias, and masses of Primroses. MASSES of Primroses, and they look splendid until the real summer heat comes. There is also a Dwarf Rhododendron which has beautiful lilac-mauve flowers every April. Far too many Montbretia -but their flame-coloured flowers are lovely from July to early September
But my garden is very overshadowed by big trees -a bit beyond me to prune or attend to. So it's like a tiny woodland glade. Nice -but it means some things refuse to grow. However in high summer when the sun is higher in the sky, good light comes into the centre part. Nasturtiums and Marigolds do well, but almost every other flower I have tried to plant gets eaten by something. In the past I spent money buying plants to see them eaten away the next morning....
So I gave that up!
I actually have 2 gardens -one on each side of the house. The other side was a complete wilderness for years. Wild things (hardy native species) grew there just fine....but that meant Hogweed, Nettle, Bramble. Although Nettles are good food/good medicine/ and have lovely flowers, I decided to clear it this year, built a bird bath for water, and laid a woodland lawn. The lawn has not done well. It is too shady there. I cut the meandering 'hedge' (saplings by now!) all down one side for about 60 yards, and hedge-laid it all along. I found Laburnum, Privet, Lilac, Ash, Hawthorn and Hazel in there so hopefully it will make a good varied hedge when it re-establishes itself. But that lets little more in the way of light in, as just across my lane there is a huge unruly 'hedge' belonging to the Orchard property, which I cannot cut. Never mind. I like it, it has a sense of secret wildness in there.
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#6
You must post pictures. Now I am curious to see your gardens. I think we should try to post pictures of the different seasons. I am sure it is like a whole different place at different times.

Soon enough my garden will be under the snow, but I have tried to plant enough evergreens to give it winter colour. I will go out there this year with the camera, if we do not have another ice storm.
It was sad the damage that was done. However, I have replanted.

Gardeners are ever hopeful.
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Catherine

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#7
Yes some things die off, but some things are amazingly resilient.
The far side of my 2nd garden hadn't been tended for many years. I just let it run wild. But sometimes did cut weeds down to make a path through to collect kindling. (Misty always refused to go in that section because it was very 'nettly' and spiky!)
Then this year I completely cleared it as I said.
A week or two after that, I noticed a white flower come up through the bare earth, followed by a few green leaves, which I recognised as Cyclamen. I watched it spring up, and let it do its thing. It is beautiful and doing well. I have no idea how long that must have been there, just waiting for the opportunity to grow! I know I never planted Cyclamen in there, and I have lived in this house for 30 years!
And I don't think Cyclamen grows from a seed dropped by the birds...I think it grows from a bulb.

Now that is what I call Patience!
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#8
My garden!
One side (the main part of my garden outside the back door) The area with the little reed fence is Misty's grave. There is a Fuchsia shrub in flower on there.

   

   

The other side of the house where I cleared brush this year and laid a lawn:

   

   

Along the right-hand side which you can see in pic no. 2, is where I hedge-layed all the smaller saplings. The Hazel on the left is too big for me to work with! There is a tiny stream between the Hazel and the garden but you can't see it in the picture as it's lower down. This garden narrows at the far end where the trees start. Behind them are 5 huge Oaks. I intend to build a 2nd bridge there next year. I am just waiting for some timber which someone said they would give me when they demolish a large shed.

(No idea why all my pics come out small!)
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#9
The pictures come out small, but when I click on them I see them as large. You have a lovely shady garden and way more room than I have. It looks like a gentle, peaceful place. No wonder the birds love it. I did not know that Fuchsia was a shrub. We only have it as a plant here. It just doesn't stand the winter.

I love where you walk past the bird feeder and there is a low stone wall and a path. A bridge will be a beautiful addition. Then you could cross the stream. Can you see it in the winter when the leaves have fallen?
Is there any way you could cut the Hazel back a lot and let it come up fresh? It will be interesting to see what your saplings do.

That is amazing about the Cyclamen. If you hadn't cleared stuff out it never would have had a chance. Gardens are wonderful places of mystery and possibility. It is sad to lose things, but it is also good. When one plant goes another can come in to replace it.

I can't wait to see our gardens in the spring.
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Catherine

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#10
What wonderful gardens, so colourful and peaceful.
Ours is what we euphemistically call a wildlife garden ie. unattended most of the time. The grass is long and the flowers are self seeded from the surrounding countryside. The down side is that it looks a mess, the upside is all the wonderful fruit and wild flowers we get throughout the year. There is also a lot of grass for the piggies right up until the frosts.
I won't post photos as it looks like waste land but in the spring I shall photograph the flowers.
Greeting from Wales.
Hwyl Fawr o'r Cymru.
This is the web site of the rescue I volunteer at.
http://guinearescue.blogspot.co.uk/
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