Maackia 015: At last, a new garden

I have been on the road a lot the past month. Part of it was enjoyable, while the rest was focused on putting out fires that cropped up in various projects. I haven’t travelled this much since Covid first surfaced, so it has been a bit of an adjustment. My body, in particular, has been staging a long, drawn out protest to make me slow down. Its latest attempt involves another nasty head cold. Message received!

Despite the setbacks and slow progress with my projects at home, my mind has been bouncing around looking for something to latch on to while I am recovering. Naturally, it landed on philosophy…

Mountains should be climbed with as little effort as possible and without desire. The reality of your own nature should determine the speed. If you become restless, speed up. If you become winded, slow down. You climb the mountain in an equilibrium between restlessness and exhaustion. Then, when you're no longer thinking ahead, each footstep isn't just a means to an end but a unique event in itself. This leaf has jagged edges. This rock looks loose. From this place the snow is less visible, even though closer. These are things you should notice anyway. To live only for some future goal is shallow. It's the sides of the mountain which sustain life, not the top. Here's where things grow.

But of course, without the top you can't have any sides. It's the top that defines the sides. So on we go--we have a long way--no hurry--just one step after the next--with a little Chautauqua for entertainment. Mental reflection is so much more interesting than TV it's a shame more people don't switch over to it. They probably think what they hear is unimportant but it never is.

( Robert Pirsig - Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance)

I am certainly failing at this right now. I have over extended myself, again! I want to share what I have been working on, but to be honest, I find it’s exceedingly dull when I say it out loud. Hence, the pull towards doing something exciting in my garden at home. Naturally, though, I’ve hit another roadblock with that simple task too — acquiring plants has become much more difficult than it has been in prior years.

But I guess it is all just another test. The universe, while seemingly indifferent, can’t seem to help itself, it seems. It needs to know whether I have been paying attention. Am I still making small steps forward? Is there balance? And right now, there isn’t, really. I continue to bounce between “restlessness and exhaustion”. But, despite the setbacks, I know that too will change eventually.

Which makes me wonder: is gardening just another pursuit that brings mindfulness to the foreground? Another mirror that reflects our current feelings, thoughts, and perspectives back at us as we endeavour to make something with our hands? 🤔

In spite of my reluctance to share the mundane progress I have made over the last month, I would like to share one major accomplishment that has been completed (mostly). A large front yard / backyard garden that I designed last year was installed, despite numerous setbacks along the way. There are still several plants that have to be procured due to supply issues, but it is 90% complete at this point.

For this project, the structure in the backyard was borne from the client’s desire to have specific features within the garden: a shed, three raised veggie boxes, a fire pit, and a water feature. The water feature has yet to be installed, but everything else is there. The front yard was much smaller, at least originally (the design went through a few iterations due to sizing changes when it was being built), but the main substance of the design was in the backyard.

To start, I focused on the perspectives from the house / deck / patio and how I was going to balance the different requested features while also maintaining some feeling of surprise. I wanted to add some separation from the surrounding lots, as it is a new neighbourhood under active construction. The greenery in the background you see in the photograph at the top of the newsletter will all be slowly destroyed as the neighbourhood gets developed. Attempts at fencing will almost certainly take place once the new houses get built and people begin to move in (regardless of whether the fences will actually stay upright or not — who doesn’t love building homes in a swamp!). I didn’t want to make the mistake of relying on the borrowed landscape that existed when I first visited the site in 2022. The feelings coming from the space had to be self contained.

A central axis seemed like the logical choice given the size of the lot and the perspectives from the house. I settled on a primary access point that had the fire pit in the middle and the water feature on the far end, both of which would entice you to come out from the house into the garden. The shed and veggie garden were also linked in my mind, as I would want easy access and travelling between the two if I were working in the garden myself. So, they were placed opposite to each other on a perpendicular axis, with the veggie boxes being placed on the southern side of the property to maximize the amount of sun exposure.

Next came the woody plants. In this particular project, I was lucky enough to work with someone who enjoyed the surrounding natural landscape and was not put off by the suggestion of planting birch trees. Despite their relatively short life span and other health issues, they are a hallmark of Sudbury in my mind and should still be used (when it makes sense). There were a few specific woody plant requests from the client, too: forsythia, some lilacs, and Korean spice viburnum. I also added in some bayberry to act as a screen on the far corners of the property, and some serviceberry to create separation between the patio area and the garden.

And finally, once the bones of the space were set, came the perennials (337 of them!). Numerous bulbs will be added too, hopefully, this fall.

The garden looks a little on the thin side right now, but the perennials should start filling out in the coming months. The shrubs and trees, however, will take a little longer. Regardless, I will be sure to take more photos of the garden once we get through August to see how it is progressing.

I’m very excited to see what it looks like in the fall!

n