Conversations With May Sarton

Plant Dreaming Deep, by May Sarton.  

"We have to make myths of our lives....to understand the metaphor that reality always holds in it.  .....What I felt when all the good news came...was relief.  But what I had felt when I got back to poetry...was joy."
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Joy vs. relief.  A good pair of words to remember.  Without awareness gardening has always been my joy, never a relief.
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"A garden is a perpetual experiment."  Oh, it's tough reading May Sarton at bedtime.   No, my garden is a perpetual atonement.
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Yes, I've been laying in bed the past few nights in conversation with May Sarton.
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Garden & Be Well,       XO Tara
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Antebellum home near Bishop, GA.

A Gate In Croatia

She is Spomenka.  We call each other 'Sister'.  From Croatia, she has family there.

Sister sent me this last week, from Croatia.
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Sister knows EXACTLY what will pull heartstrings.  What is unique yet timeless.  Simplicity.
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And when we're together again, Sister's porch or my conservatory, she'll describe how this garden smelled, sounded, types of insects, birds, wildflowers,  temperature, humidity, a house nearby & more.  Sister will also tell me I was there with her.
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Garden & Be Well,      XO Tara

Leather Hinges

Have your eyes locked on the Leather Hinges?

Mary Kistner, a mentor, said, "It's what we do with what we have."  No, I wouldn't have thought, EVER, of leather hinges.

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Of course I contacted Penelope Bianchi, this is her garden, about her leather hinges.

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Her man, adore that phrase & adore women gardeners who say it, has done many years of volunteer work in other countries.  He learned from them to use everything.

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Thank you 'Her Man' & Penelope for widening my horizon, to see Leather Hinges.  Of course I can't wait to see these with more age on them.  

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Garden & Be Well,    XO Tara

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There should be a special sainthood for that class labeled 'Her Man'.  By the time 'SHE' calls he KNOWS whatever it is is impossible but he will do it, because he's 'Her Man'.

How To Use High Density vs. Low Density

CONTRAST is Landscape Design's potent tool. 

 

 Penelope Bianchi is the QUEEN OF CONTRAST.  Above, a high density garden room.  Lots of 'things'.  Do you know how wicked hard it is to stage a lot of 'things'?

Because Penelope is, indeed, QUEEN OF CONTRAST, another garden room, above, is low density.
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Each picture a masters class in Landscape Design.
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How to use high density vs. low density? Contrast them.
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Garden & Be Well,          XO Tara
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Pics via Velvet & Linen of Penelope's garden.  The garden is only 15 years old, yes, you may want to look again.  And, it's for sale.  Can you imagine the excitement & ideas swirling in Penelope's mind about her new garden.
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High density vs. low density isn't only a Landscape Design tool.  Landscapes with high & low density have the greatest pollinator habitat.  

Penelope Bianchi: Keeping It Simple

Technically this, below, is not simple.  There is a lot of 'stuff'.  But it looks simple.

Why does it look fabulous?  What is the template?
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Themed, above, with stone & color, contrasting forms, quality, zone of frisson between formal/informal.
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Garden & Be Well,           XO Tara
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Penelope Bianchi created this charming vignette.  Potent, I want to see her garden, I want to see inside her house, I want to know her.  All these things, I know, because of her little vignette in a zone of frisson.  Pic via Velvet & Linen.

Early Naturalist

The Lloyd's house was already old when they purchased it a century ago.  It had to be shored up & gardens created. Their good fortune was hiring Sir Edwin Lutyens.  And Mrs. Lloyd wanted her landscape to be 'natural'.  After all, landscapes were then the Edwardian conceit.

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This is the path I first came upon at Great Dixter.  Had never seen a garden like this, yet it imprinted on my DNA as the way to garden.
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Hedges, meadows, topiaries, flowering shrubs, trees, paths, vines, stone, brick, water, axis, benches, focal points, rain butts, potting sheds, subtleties, compost.  Yes.
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But I don't do the herbaceous borders, too much maintenance.
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If this garden room is informal, above, what do you think the next garden room is?
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Garden & Be Well,           XO Tara
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Assignment: Go To Great Dixter.

Crossing The Line Into A New Yorker Cartoon

 The  landscaping was too tall at an assisted living home near me, I drove up to investigate.  Another victim of the economy?

 Signs of a last meal?

Perhaps the food sanitation score closed the business.
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Garden & Be Well,      XO Tara
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The richness of ALL the patio furnishings being white.  So, did they have a full table and share?  A full table and only 1 resident had an 'issue'.  "Pass the potty please."

How To Choose The Best Urns & Containers

The very best containers?  NEVER NEED PLANTING.

 Any container considered for purchase, ask yourself, "Is this so fabulous it can remain empty?", and, "Will this be fought over at my Estate Sale?"

 These classic beauties, centuries of existence across continents, are classic for a reason.

Size, form, & color are considerations.
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Garden & Be Well,            XO Tara
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Pics from my wholesaler.  These 3 urns are truly my 'go to' urns.

English Garden Troughs + Houses

Mary's garden house is its own world.

Selling various troughs & houses via merchandise marts, Brookfield, trade shows, fairs, festivals, symposia, flower shows, nurseries, & etc Mary's garden always has at least one of her treasures.  With new ideas.
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Been trying to figure out how to put one of her houses, already in my garden, on a stand like hers, above.  Clematis climbing a leg.  Aged cedar.  It may never happen but the dreaming is fun.
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Garden & Be Well,     XO Tara

Color On The Front Porch

Plates change, colors change, Mary's front porch always delights.

 Mary grew up in this tiny cottage.

 Love this type of caress, below.

 Porch & front door face a side, not the front of the cottage.

 Not quite an acre, it lives bigger, having mature canopy hardwoods & understory trees.

 Love her blacktop.

A view from the front porch into the garden, above.
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After decades away, in much larger homes, life conspired for Mary to live in her tiny cottage again.  I know it's a blessing in my life.  She's around the corner from my garden.
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Garden & Be Well,         XO Tara

Checkerboard In Tara Turf

Pair of conifers at the entry, a pencil shaped evergreen on axis, and a checkerboard path in Tara Turf leveraging the drama.

 Pink Crape Myrtle adding seasonal drama.

Mary is the queen, designing this garden room, it's adjacent to her parking court, and acquiring most of the contents FREE.  She did the work herself.
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 Since starting to post about Mary's garden, a few days ago, her age has gone up daily.  I said she was 60's.  Nope, she sent a note, she's 71.  Well, a day after that she sent an email saying she was embarrassed at her math skills, she's happily 73.
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Are you getting my point?
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Garden & Be Well,                  XO Tara

Moody Water

Near their kitchen door, in a courtyard, on axis with window views, below.

 Subtle, quiet, good.  I delight in the green slime & hear nature's song in these drops.

 I knew the pump was adjusted, 'just so'.  Laughing with knowing eyes, they said it was.

 Often the biggest gestures are simple.

 Their moody water taking the courtyard for its own.  Redolent of the lion

in Cinema Paradiso.
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Garden & Be Well,              XO Tara
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Water in a garden can be this diminutive yet take your heart in metaphor.  Don't overlook simplicity.  Top pics I took in a client garden.  Bottom 2 pics I copied from the movie, Cinema Paradiso.
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Garden Designers Round Table is all about water today.
Read More !!!

Water!

July 26, 2011 by Jocelyn H. Chilvers

Water; water everywhere…or not enough at all!  Water is the lifeblood of every living thing, and yet it can be destructive in its extremes.  It’s a resource that is ephemeral and unpredictable – be it by natures’ vagaries or politicians’ whims.  The partnering of thoughtful water management with appropriate plant selection is crucial to any garden design. Today the Garden Designers Roundtable presents the topic of water.

We are delighted to introduce Debra Lee Baldwin as our guest blogger this month.  Award-winning garden photojournalist Debra Lee Baldwin lives in the drought-parched Southwest, near San Diego. “Water?” she asks. “Ha! I wish.” Debra authored the Timber Press bestsellers Designing with Succulentsand Succulent Container Gardens.   As a renowned authority on these elegant, easy-care and waterwise plants, Debra shares her expertise in print and online, via radio and TV, and at horticultural venues nationwide. She is one of several acclaimed authors and photographers who share the blog www.gardeninggonewild.com. More info: www.debraleebaldwin.com.

Now, please follow the links below, joining our special guest and members of the Roundtable, as we write about water.

Debra Lee Baldwin : Gardening Gone Wild : Escondido, CA

Tara Dillard : Vanishing Threshold : Atlanta, GA

Rochelle Greayer : Studio G : Boston, MA

Lesley Hegarty & Robert Webber : Hegarty Webber Partnership : Bristol, UK

Jenny Peterson : J Peterson Garden Design : Austin TX

Douglas Owens-Pike : Energyscapes : Minneapolis, MN

Christina Salwitz : Personal Garden Coach : Renton, WA