I reside in downtown Jeffersonville, Indiana now
It’s different.
I had lived and gardened previously in nearby rural Depauw. It would seem the old saw about change being the only constant in life is a biting reality. While my garden grew larger each year, fuller every season, it aged beyond expectations. The older it became the better looking, as I aged, the more I headed in the opposite direction.
Tiny wild ginger, Hexastylis shuttleworthii, with fern whose original label disappeared long ago
Age alone did not end my gardening, but rather a combination of age along with “technical difficulties” in the health department. It all came to an end late last spring. I had made my usual trips to favored garden centers and came home with three new perennials. I headed to the garden with the containers and my spade, ready to find them a new home. I transplanted one plant, moved to the next location in the bed, and found I did not have what it took to go on.
“This is insane. I simply cannot do this any longer”.
I sat the remaining two containers down and took the spade to the greenhouse.
Thus ended my forty-five years of hillside shade gardening
My home and garden went up for sale and I moved into my apartment in the latter part of May. I am still emptying boxes and will be for some time to come. All the containers I prepared with plants from my garden now reside on my 4’ x 12’ balcony. Therein lies my problem. Perhaps you can help. There are now 12 containers of various sizes. Since the door opens outward onto the balcony that leaves space for one chair. I had visions of two chairs with a small bistro table alongside my containers. So. It could be just me and a couple/three more containers, or perhaps a waterfall feature or Japanese lantern.
Arisaema fargesii and epimedium
I am full of ideas
I like the idea of more containers to play with, perhaps that Japanese lantern and a dragon, but if I keep that up there will be only room for me to open the door and look out at the display. I have always designed my gardens so that I could be among my plants, not on the outside looking upon them from a distance. So, keep what containers I have now and order one chair? If I give up about half the containers presently on the balcony, I would then have room for two chairs and a bistro table. A place to sit with a fellow gardening visitor among the memories of my past gardens and share a glass of wine. It sounds so inviting and comfortable. But, (and you knew there would be a but) that would mean giving up more of my “memory plants” such as partridge berry, walking fern, and dwarf snow trillium from my garden. But I put so much thought and emotion into the plants arranged in each container; each one a memory, a story.
Reduce what I managed to bring with me? That’s even tougher.
Which way do you lean?
Speaking of chairs, the first ones to come to mind were the old metal lawn chairs from my childhood. Talk about retro! In all these years I did not know they were called Tulip Back chairs. I was familiar with C spring patio chairs. I mostly remember them in red with white arms and springy. I am going for an updated retro look in a modern shade of green. Probably include cushions in floral patterns of black, brown, and off-white.
Chardonnay should be a complementary color, don’t you think?
Changes and Challenges originally appeared on GardenRant on June 14, 2023.
The post Changes and Challenges appeared first on GardenRant.
