It’s been four years since I started working on the gardens here at the “new” house. I thought it was about time I gave you a full-fledged tour. It takes a bit of time to see all the gardens, so prepare for a leisurely visit. Can I pour you something to drink?
The Front Garden
Let’s start the tour the way I usually start it, by walking out the front door of the kitchen.
The bed closest to the house is coming along nicely. On the left, however, you can see a casualty of winter’s last stand–a small Japanese maple that lost all its leaves on the right main lateral. The left lateral leafed out fine and I am crossing my fingers that the right side will re-leaf. This was the only “shrub” from the original planting around the terrace that I decided to keep, and I added a lot of red flowering or foliage plants to play off of it. It would be a pity to lose it.The dianthus are seedlings of a friend’s original plants. Now the ones she gave me are themselves seeding about. It is wonderful to sit on the porch and have their fragrance waft around you.I wanted to have something blooming in the roadside beds all the time. Anyone who has tried this knows it’s not that easy–especially if you don’t use perpetually blooming annuals. I envisioned that the flowering quince would bloom after the tulips bloomed, and that after the flowering quince the peonies would kick in. As you can see way in the back on the left in the first photo above, there is one lone peony blooming: ‘Bev’. Here’s her glamour shot:
It might interest you to know that there is another ‘Bev’ on the other side of the walk and she doesn’t even seem to have flower buds. They both came from the same original plant at the old house. Maybe the blooming plant was bigger to begin with? There are other peonies there in a row parallel with the road, and I really thought more of them would be blooming by now. At least most of them have buds. Later on in the season there will be a daylily extravaganza here.The Parking Pad Bed
If we turn right and walk on the lawn underneath the shade of the oak tree said to have been planted in 1885, we eventually come to the driveway and the parking pad, where we view the parking pad bed. This is incorporated into a stone wall that keeps the parking pad from sliding into the carriage barn below.
I really love the purple irises with the scarlet and gold flowering azaleas. “Why haven’t I planted more of these irises?” Then it dawned on me: most years, the azaleas bloom in May, and the irises bloom in June. They have never bloomed together before! I blame winter’s last stand. After our earlier-than-usual-Spring-Part-A we had our deepest snow (a mere six inches) and our coldest temps (single digits! Ack!) before we had our cooler-and-slower-than-usual-Spring-Part-B. Many spring shrubs never bloomed: forsythias, redbuds, magnolias, lilacs, and the ‘Olga Mezitt’ rhododendrons. The late spring/early summer bloomers are blooming later than usual, I think.Fern Alley
By walking down the driveway just a bit and turning left, we arrive at the entrance to Fern Alley.
Besides ferns, there are many spring ephemerals and other plants that like moist shade, such as Siberian bugloss and foxgloves.The Slope Garden
After crossing the driveway in front of the carriage barn, we come to the major change of grade between the front of the house and the back. The Slope Garden was here when we moved in, overgrown not just with weeds but with vigorous perennials that had taken over. As I’ve removed those thugs–or at least reined them in–I’ve been adding more shrubs and ornamental grasses. This bed really comes into its own in the fall, but here are some current highlights.
Another case of delayed bloom–the rhodos are usually further along. But wasn’t it clever of me to plant the primroses there?The Herb Garden
Let’s do an about-face and turn back towards the house and visit the Herb Garden. Mediterranean herbs such as lavender, oregano, and sage like it hot and dry in summer and well-drained in winter. I chose a narrow bed sandwiched between the attached garage and a bluestone walk as the most likely place for them to succeed here, and I amended it well with grit to improve drainage.
Even with the special treatment, some of the plants really struggle, but getting hit with winter after they thought it was spring really set some plants back. What I’m most proud of is the little patch of Arum italicum I’ve got growing in a corner of this bed.It’s not an herb at all–in fact, it’s poisonous–but I planted it here because I figured it was the warmest microclimate I had. Because, you see, Lords and Ladies (its common name) is only hardy to Zone 6, although sometimes you’ll see it listed as zone 5 “with protection”. In warmer climates it can be invasive, but here I am just happy it is growing at all.The Cutting Garden and the South Deck

You can see how the herb garden (in the back along the garage), the south deck (along the lattice) and the cutting garden relate to each other in this photo taken in late May.
The West Deck
Walking around the Cutting Garden, we arrive at the back of the house and the West Deck. This bed is in the midst of a major rearranging.
Many plants are divisions or rooted cuttings and don’t look like much yet. Those three huge hostas were in that exact same spot when we moved in, which is why they’re so huge.
This dreamy iris was also here when we moved in, but I moved it here from the Parking Pad bed. Do you know its name?
The Deck Alcove and Stairs
I’ve been planting shrubs here, hoping they’d grow tall enough to be seen from the deck. The ‘Coppertina’ ninebark has already achieved that goal, and the ‘Amber Jubilee’ ninebark is trying hard to catch up. There are plenty of shade perennials underneath them, as well as Abelia monsanensis, which is hardier than Abelia x grandiflora and deliciously fragrant.
This hardy abelia used to be difficult to find, but Proven Winners now offers a cultivar of this plant, so hopefully it will become more widely available in the north.

I love this combination of Japanese painted fern and ‘Grape Expectations’ heuchera growing at the base of the lilac.
The North Deck and the Bird Sanctuary
Rounding the next corner, we are face to face with the north side of the deck.

I’ve planted tall plants visible from the deck and taken advantage of a wild clematis already growing there. (Excuse the rain drops on the photo.)

The ‘Black Stockings’ meadow rue doesn’t usually lean like this, but we’ve had several exceptionally windy days.

This area of brush was here when we moved in. It’s the birds’ favorite staging area before flying to the bird feeders on the deck.

There is a lovely patch of bloodroot that blooms in there before the trees leaf out, and this native rose is blooming there now.
We’re almost done
Returning to the North Deck border, we slip through a narrow opening between the corner of the house and the bird sanctuary. The north side of the house has some spring ephemerals, but they are all done, so we’ll just round the corner . . .

. . . and we’re almost back where we started. We’re looking down the length of the front of the house.

Down a slope and across the north lawn you can see the entrance to the Secret Garden, beckoning you.

We’ve got plenty of seats, including that glider I painted earlier this spring!
Inspired by the words of Elizabeth Lawrence, “We can have flowers nearly every month of the year,” Carol of May Dreams Gardens started Garden Bloggers Bloom Day. On the 15th of every month, garden bloggers from all over the world publish what is currently blooming in their gardens, and leave a link in Mr. Linky and the comments of May Dreams Gardens.
Wow Kathy!! I love the way your garden looks, it reflects the amount of passion you put in to it.
What a great tour, Kathy! and what a lovely garden. I very much enjoyed walking around with you. But best of all is that photo of peony Bev. Wow. That is real beauty.
Thanks so much for the tour of your beautiful garden. Although I love the close-ups of all of the flowers most of us post, it was really fun to see the big picture of entire planting areas.
I agree! I don’t like missing out on the whole scope, the whole picture of the garden. Typically, I can’t just read a book or go on-line if I want a close up. But to really get inspiring ideas….I need to see the whole plant. Love your front porch nook, what a great place to kick back, read a book and snuggle the cat. Fern alley is equally enthralling. Well-done in 4 years! I’ve got my work cut out for me!!
Kathy, Every part of your garden looks fantastic! So many beautiful plants. The Dianthus really took off! Thanks for the tour!
Thanks for the tour Kathy. God, you are so lucky to have a garden like that. Staying close to mother nature and enjoying its glory is something that people like us living in big cities lack. I would love to visit the countryside, stacking all the stress and trouble back home and enjoying the pure bliss.
I read in one of your blogs people were looking for the lavender PNE poppyseeds and I have a ton of those. Some from last year’s and of course now they’re blooming and I’d be happy to collect some if you need them. I’m going to have to weed so my guard out of these beautiful flowers
How lovely to be invited into you garden, thank you! I would like to learn more about the garden where you are moving plants around. I do the same, but quickly lose enthusiasm!
I enjoy advising my customers, but not so much for doing this in my own garden! Any tips?
Anita, that is a great question! I think I will respond with a blog post soon.
Thanks what a fun tour! So much to see. I love seeing your works in progress as well. So many people only show a perfect garden. I love seeing what you are working on as well. Live in a real garden! Thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome, Joanne. I’m glad you enjoyed it.
Lovely. So nice to see the whole landscape in context.
So lovely, Kathy!
Glorious blooms. You have made huge progress in your short time at this new house. I guess it is a new/old house.
What a beautiful house and gardens you have Kathy. I so enjoyed this morning’s tour with my cup of Deathwish coffee (world’s strongest coffee ha ha). You have such a wonderful collection of plants and shrubs. I can’t pick a favorite but I think I would be sitting in the bird sanctuary. Thank you!
Hmm. Currently there is no place to sit in the bird sanctuary, but thanks for the idea. It is a wild mess; there is hardly a way into the center. I have considered making a fairy garden in there but I need to make an access path first.