Happy Daisies

In the early 80's a girlfriend, recent college grad like all of us, was on a motorcycle and hit head-on.  I was living in a garage apartment, working full time at a bank, paying for starter husband's masters degree, not eating dinner many nites, to save money.
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Talking with the local florist on the phone, trying to choose the perfect flowers, was tedious.  Hydrangeas were out of season said the florist.  My imagination blanked with that information.  She gave a stream of ideas.  No, no, no.  Finally, I thought how happy daisies are.  Plain daisies with their brite white petals and a plain solid yellow center, not any of the new fancy spooner daisies or etc.  Plain daisies.
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As little money as I had, it was still embarrassing to send only a pot of daisies.  But they were so happy, and spending more money for something 'appropriate' felt too depressing, compared to the happy daisies.
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Walking into her viewing, at the funeral home, the next day, well, still, I can feel it, even now typing.  But there was a brite spot.  Dozens of large expensive floral arrangements, in big wicker baskets, some on tall wire stands were arrayed as in a floral fantasy.  Yet there was 1 pot of flowers, so happy, like she always was.  The single pot of daisies I sent had been put on an antique wood plant stand, next to the coffin inches from her head.  
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Glad I listened to my heart, and not lizard brain.
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This week, talking with a friend, her 90 year old mom with Alzheimers is in a care home, probably within the past 6 months, she said, there is nothing behind her mother's eyes, no one is there.  Then she started talking about the kind of woman her mom was,  and she seemed so much like my friend, above.  I asked what her name is.  Daisy, she said.
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Immediately remembering, a few days ago, below, another amazing photograph matched to poetry, from Enclos*ure Take Refuge, by Cindy Goodson.

"See, the grass is full of stars,
Fallen in their brightness. . ."

— Marjorie Pickthall, from “Daisy Time“

Pic, Floe Sallows Saunders, Floe Sallows, Emma Combs Fillman, Lottie Green Langell in a field of flowers in Bayfield, Ontario, date unknown, by Reuben R. Sallows, via Huron County Museum & Historic Gaol Commons on flickr.

Garden & Be Well,   XO T

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Finishing college, Engineering degree, Jimmy Carter had just left office, interest rates 21%, jobs hard to find.  Worked at a bank, knew I had to leave, bored beyond measure and thought my head would explode, brains flying to the wall, dribbling slowly down.  Within a month a nursery along the 30 minute drive to work had a 'Help Wanted' sign.  Hired, gave notice, started 5 years of nursery work.  Gained another degree, Horticulture, by the time those 5 years were done, and started my own Garden Design business.  A terrible economy created my career/life path.  I would have eaten dirt off the sidewalk instead of living at home again, it was the era.  During leave taking, after 30 years with starter husband, I thought back to the several years of not eating dinner, to save money.  They added up to about a year.  A year without dinner.  Worth every meal missed, getting here.

    

Color & Architecture's Relationship

It's outrageous what color can do, good & bad, for architecture.
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Painting or staining a fence coming off the front sides of a home, widens its architecture.  Enlarges the footprint of welcome, to the home.
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An easy concept, and wildly affordable relative to the huge impact gained.



Pic, above, here.
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Great example, above, about purchasing a properly scaled doormat.  This poor mat, above, looks like it came from a Pin the Tail on the Donkey store.  Dinky is Stinky, is this doormat's trinity fail.  The doors are way too fabulous to be wearing this doormat.
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Garden & Be Well,    XO T
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Dinky is Stinky is a great save, protecting you from hunting/gathering the wrong things.  Another great save, 'We're not to that layer yet.'  Both from Susanne Hudson.

Taking Historic into the Modern Realm

Clearly a master's touch, below, playing with history, cunningly modern.
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Whimsy, below, in the metaphor of sanctity.  What?  Taking the choice, below, to walk into the garden, you must bow your head, at the shrine of espaliered trees.
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Soon, hedging will shield the house from the outer world, flying buttresses, arc-boutant, to the nave within.
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Is your life worth anything less?
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Stewardship of self.  In all its layers.






For good measure, several ball rooms planted into the back yard, above.



The long hallway, above at right, a promenade, lit in the manner of le jardin rustique.  With hedging at the backyard too, another nave, a double cathedral built,
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Someone, at the top of their game, above.
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Garden & Be Well,   XO T
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We are still tending structural  outdoor necessities at our ca. 1900 American farmhouse garden.  Pouring more gravel, putting in paths, lighting, plantings, must wait.  One of those 'necessities' a well.  Beloved has worked with the well diggers many times during his construction career, he trusts them.  Good, fine.  My concern is flagrantly obvious.  Where will they find water?  How will it affect designing the garden?  
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We chose similar lights, above, for a renovated shed.  Once installed, I knew those lights would be perfect for the rest of the garden, on posts along pathways.  Imagine my surprise seeing the pic, above.
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What a day I had on the old Kubota tractor yesterday.  Wounded pride, newbie mistakes.  Hilarious being an 'expert' and embarking upon a new learning curve in the garden.  Details sketchy, pride still ruffled.
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Pics from here.

Vertical Lawn

Vertical lawn, below.



Pic, above, here.
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Note the tiny planting pockets, above, for the vertical lawn.
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My favorite vertical lawn, residential, are espaliered woody shrubs.  No wire, no trellis, merely simple pruning once a year.
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Garden & Be Well,   XOT

Ready for Outdoor Games

What to add to your patio/deck zone?  Space for games.  In less than 5 years it is amazing how wide-spread Corn Toss has become.  What other games can you add?  It's fun having friends relax & revert to age 8, even rough housing with each other, and they're all past age 50, then the young ones, who really are age 8, pile on!




Pic, above, here.

 

Pic, above, here.

 

Pic, above, here.

 

Pic, above, here.



Pic, above, here.
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Plastic Corn Toss, above, no worries about dragging it in/out.
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Pic, above, here.
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Twister.  Exactly.  Why don't I own Twister?  On my buy list now.
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I'm not a game playing kind of person, yet the right garden, evening, dinner, friends, kindred spirits. We PLAY.
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Garden & Be Well,   XO T

Pleasure in the Ruins

‘To delight in the aspects of sentient ruin might appear a heartless pastime, and the pleasure, I confess, shows the note of perversity.’ From Italian Hours (1873) by Henry James.

Pic, above, here.
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When I was a small girl traveling to Georgia, from Texas, before I-20 was completed I never tired of seeing an old rotting farmhouse, still inhabited.  In summer, windows & doors open.  Intuitively knowing this was great poverty, the type that kills.  In particular a single worn out farmhouse remains vivid, tattered cloth spilling from an open window, and thru the open front door I could see the main room wallpapered with newsprint, a few strips hanging down and dozens of loose corners, behind them, more newsprint.  A tall gaunt man, stooped but not old, walking to the front porch, sitting in a chair.  Nothing human in his eyes excepting misery.
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I was safely in the backseat of our late model 4-door Buick Electra 225, 401 V-8 Wildcat 445, white body, white-wall tires, blue brocade seats, air-conditioning, sister/mom/dad, Argyle our standard poodle, and Puppet our toy poodle.  Dad pushing 80mph, getting us to grandma's house.  His driving, and passing, on those 2 lane roads thrilling, and terrifying.
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Looking at abandoned farmhouses now, I like to imagine the original family, and how the house & land provided a good living.  Not the last inhabitants.
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Garden & Be Well,  XOT

Picture: Garden Design Course

Pulling the gate/columns forward, below, welcomes you from the wide world into their private world, elongates the entry, and adds a foyer to the front door.  Painting the columns same as the house adds them to the footprint of the home, enlarging the home's territory.
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Painting the columns a different color, or if they were stone, still adds good features, excepting they become part of the garden, not the house.
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Great wisdom leaving the tops of the columns empty.
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Front door & light fixtures chosen well, they make the house seem taller.
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Note the gutters, below.  Copper color, not the brick color.  Well done.
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Roof, below, is like jewelry for the house.
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Repetition of square shapes, below, highlights the fabulousity of the tall round urns at the windows.  Super contrast.
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This garden design has been done for centuries.  Have seen it on several continents, and at all price points.  Done it myself, more than once.  Looks fresh & new with each reincarnation.
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Even the front door handle was chosen with care.  Drapes vs. blinds, again, well done.



Pic, above, here.
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Copy, enfilade, axis, cross-axis, color, contrast, repetition, flow, welcome, focal points, ceiling, walls, floor, simplicity, has all the right Garden Design rules checked.
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I have a weakness for Garden- Design- Course in a single picture.
Garden & Be Well,   XOT

Design Solution: Deer & No time

Last week I completed a Garden Design for a local family.  Their home is new construction on 35 acres of beautiful farm land, open, wooded, pastures, broad slight slopes.
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The pool is near completion, the pole barn completed, the house has its exterior, now awaiting wall board and layers that follow.
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The home is huge.  They have young children.  Deer thrive on their acreage.
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Plantings, aside from deer proof, must be no care, they have no time for landscape maintenance.  None.
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What to do?  Farmesque is the theme I chose.  With pool at the back, the front yard is open, mostly flat, short meadow.  I sense the front yard will be THE play yard.  Still, what to do with the Garden Design?
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At the far side of their front yard meadow, I designed a small pecan orchard, 8 trees, 2 rows of 4, with harvest table and strands of lights, for trunks and canopy.  Trunks to be lit nightly.
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More than meals, a gathering spot for projects, or lounging with a book.
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Pic, above, here.
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Whew, saved by an orchard.
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And, simplicity.
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Garden & Be Well,    XO T

Versatility: French Rain Barrel

When Smith & Hawken had its going-out-of-business sale at its Atlanta store, I had the good fortune to be there shopping with a client.  Little realizing ahead of time, I'd be purchasing things too.
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Ahead of moving from my 30 year home/garden I took 18 van loads to the thrift store.  My house sold within 24 hrs of listing and there was zero time for another choice.  Once in our new home, ca. 1900 American farmhouse, it became apparent much of my cottage garden 'stuff', thought to be so worthy ahead of the move, would not 'work' in the new setting.  Yep, that was a 'moment'.
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A couple of months in the new house, Beloved had his largest work truck, large bed/tall sides, and team of men on site.  Unexpectedly he said I could have the men/truck for a couple of hours.  Code language, get rid of your stuff.  Now.
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Six work ready men, felt like I had just stepped into a fire ant pile, and could not point to stuff fast enough as they were scurrying and pulling things for the truck.  2 rounded loads taken to the thrift store.  I did manage to think quickly enough for one of my clients, and saved some things for her.
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Everything purchased that day at Smith & Hawken remained.  Not a conscious choice, the clearing of stuff was too fast for proper editing.  One of the Smith & Hawken items, a galvanized French rain barrel.
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In my cottage garden I used it as a rain barrel, and later, turned upside down, a table.
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In our farmhouse, currently, the French rain barrel is on it side, wedged not to roll in the seat of a teak bench, used as a Cat House at the back door.  With a cushion inside they love it in winter, and it's a shelter against the rain the rest of the year.   Not a use anticipated when purchased.
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Amazed at the versatility of the French rain barrel, have yet to use it as a planter, below.  More, it made the aesthetic transition from Cottage Garden to Historic Farmhouse garden.
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Why didn't I buy more than one ?



Pic, above, here.
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Great enfilade, above.
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Garden & Be Well,   XO T
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Smith & Hawken currently sells online via Target.  Hardly a hint of their 1st incarnation yet they may have that perfect xyz for you too.  No, this is not a paid endorsement.

Designing the Impromptu

Multiple layers of form & function, below.
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Aside from  pure magic, painting the walls with vines, going a step further, adorning the ceiling in vines too.
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There's even a touch of Camelot, the round table.



Pic, above, here.
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It's rare when designed impromptu, upon completion, looks/feels impromptu.
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Many layers in the room, above, enough to be considered a Garden Design class.
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Garden & Be Well,    XO T
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Had the good fortune to work for an interior decorator, Mary Kistner, a master of impromptu, who later became friend/mentor.  She passed several years ago, aside from missing her & actively using so much learned from her, I still tell stories about her.  Then, I come across Penelope Bianchi on the internet.  Penelope's work, the work of my beloved Mary.  Of course I felt obligated to tell Penelope about Mary too, aka, fan letter.  Who knew I would discover Penelope to be twin sister to my Mary.  A joy to follow Penelope's work, blog, and have her friendship.  Two close friends locally are aware of something quite personal happening in my life recently, yet, from my blog, without mention of personal issues, and thousands of miles distance, Penelope intuited the situation correctly.  And, sent a couple of quite detailed notes to me.  Perhaps that's why I adore creating gardens & rooms, like, above, because there is an alchemy in sharing  'life' situations with friends, kindred spirits, in the rooms, above, churning situations into calm, removing stress, clarifying solutions, and adding the binding glue of laughter.        

A Good Ready-Made Lattice Choice

For just over a year I've been working with a client at her farm with a barn style home, ca. 1970'ish.  A polyester leisure suit worn with white leather slip on shoes pastiche of narrow front porch with low ceiling, brass light fixtures.  Built for convenience of builder, no desire for aesthetics, nor its historical underpinnings.  The full monty, a catastrophe.
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Every renovation layer, interior/exterior, honoring form, function, history, and relationship to Nature.
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A few exterior spots need lattice.  We researched the best historic lattice to use.  If building the historic lattice could not be done, there is a default lattice my team uses, with more than adequate success in the layers of form/function.
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Showing her pics of the default lattice, she decided to move ahead with custom.  Recently, ironically, she let me know a change had been made, the default lattice used, already installed and she was quite pleased with it.
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We both laughed, I had pushed upfront for the default lattice, the expense of custom wasn't a necessity for the minor role her lattice plays.  Too ironic, 'my' choice of lattice installed.  Laughing, because she knows my hunt is taking off the porch's end rail, adding steps for another entry to the porch.  Rich laughter, because my choice of adding a wrapped  covered porch, quite deep/long etc, has been built, large & not inexpensive, yet I keep chirping to her about that small end rail.



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Pic, above, here.
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Pic, above, here.
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Pressure treated spruce from Lowe's, above.  (No, this is not a promotional/compensated ad.)
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Garden & Be Well,   XOT

Community Activists Off Radar

Three weeks ago, I got a phone call from a neighbor, about 7 historic buildings away, inviting me to the board meeting of their garden club.  "It's not federated.", one of the first things she described about it, "We just like to have fun."  Amazingly, I've never belonged to a garden club, merely spoken to them across USA for decades.
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Past president of American Hydrangea Society, or on the board of Georgia Perennial Plant Association, do not count, in the least, as garden clubs.
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Moving rural, I knew I would finally join a garden club.  Garden clubs weave the tapestry of subdivisions.  More than social, they are community activists.  Common grounds are arranged to be maintained, money is raised, donations given, college scholarships awarded.  Relationship with local police is proactive, zoning issues kept current, neighborhood illnesses/deaths/births/crime are spoken of, and at least one yearly entire neighborhood social given, keeping their community property values as high as possible, along with several speakers thru the year on pertinent topics, followed with lunch.
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Why join, at this late date?  Have paid it forward, and will continue to do so, in a different realm, it's time, finally, for the Garden Club realm.  A client invited me to her federated Garden Club several weeks ago, quite a group of activists, heavily into all of the, above, and fighting the state department of transportation.  I'll join their federated group.
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Yesterday, at a job site, finally checking messages, the best text ever.  "Straining
watermelons for martinis tomorrow.  See you then."  What's not to like about this non-federated Garden Club ?
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Pic, above, here.
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Didn't know all this about garden clubs?  Amazing, how low they have stayed under the radar of notice for at least a century.  Fine with them.  Few belong to garden clubs anymore, yet those who do, are happy to shoulder the weight of  'community', as their pro-bono, no worries the rest of their neighbors don't-get-it nor shoulder any of the macro community burdens,  All normal facts making up community.
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Garden & Be Well,  XO T
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Please don't confuse Garden Clubs with Home Owner's Associations.  Garden Clubs are stewardship from the heart, not a law book.