Before and After in Shelley’s Garden

Learning to make a garden space work

Today we ’re in Old Chatham , New York , visiting with Shelley Haefner .

I have been garden for a little over 12 years now . At the beginning of my journeying , I just purchased what I loved and planted it wherever I wanted to plant it without giving much thought to the shape of the garden , the soil , the sun , right emplacement , or the mature size of it of what I was planting . So it was no surprise when I found myself always move thing around , systematically feel like something was off . There was something I just did n’t love about the physical body of the garden either . Today , 12 years later , my yard has evolved into my dreaming quad ; it ’s organically maturate and is ahabitat to birds , dirt ball , and all things living . I have so much joy ( after years of thwarting , trial , and failure ) that I partake in my experience , photos , and video on a Facebook page calledGuiding Green Thumbs . Not only am I able to relate with other gardeners , but I can share my knowledge and experiences with others who are just starting ( or they may be well into their garden journeying and provide their advice to me).Garden transformationstake time , and nothing is more worth the wait .

The garden 10 years ago : I kept expand this area around the rock music , adding plant life I fell in honey with or flora that were given to me . It started out as two shrubs around a elephantine rock . After 10 years , it ’s eventually found an amazing shape , purpose , and a colorful pallet that I love every moment during the growing time of year .

Two class into my transformation

The garden today is fill with many varieties ofEchinacea(Zones 4–8 ) , daylilies(Hemerocallishybrids , Zones 3–9),Euphorbia , andSedum . There are shrub used as the mainstay of the garden : ninebark(Physocarpus opulifolius , Zones 2–8),Viburnum(Zones 5–9),Hydrangea(Zones 3–8 ) , and St. John ’s wort(Hypericum , Zones 3–8 ) , to name a few . The garden has evolved from a rectangular secret plan to a kidney bean – form that cradle into the landscape painting and sloping terrain nicely .

This garden is now home to many gorgeous visitors . Echinacea purpurea(Zones 3–8 ) is a pet for indisputable !

A hedging of ‘ Little Quick Fire ’ hydrangeas(Hydrangea paniculata‘SMHPLQF ’ , Zones 3–8 ) line a stone - stair track at the end of the garden .

Bright colors are repeated in this garden to make the openhanded optic impact andattract pollinators . Echinacea‘Baja Burgundy ’ is a ingeminate standout in this garden . ‘ Blue Fortune ’ hyssop(Agastache‘Blue Fortune ’ , Zones 5–9 ) provide a nice contrast of purpleness under the birdhouse . Lobeliacardinalis(Zones 3–9 ) is in the background , a favourite ofhummingbirds .

summertime is not the only fourth dimension the garden look colorful ; there are plenty ofAllium , Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree peonies , and herbaceous peonies(Paeoniahybrids , Zones 3–8 ) to rev up thespring color !

Another Brobdingnagian pollinator favorite isLiatris(Zones 3–8 ) .

We are prosperous enough to have Eastern bluebirds nest in our white birdhouse every twelvemonth . They bring such a sweet tonal pattern when reconnoitre the boxes in former March .

Have photo to share ? We ’d enjoy to see your garden , a particular collection of plant you love , or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit !

To submit , send 5 - 10 photos to[email protected]along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you claim the photos . We ’d love to get a line where you are located , how long you ’ve been gardening , successes you are gallant of , failures you learned from , hopes for the future , favorite plants , or funny stories from your garden .

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