Making a Garden in the Woods in Pennsylvania

Creating a rich tapestry of plants under the trees

Today we ’re chatter Deborah McQuiston ’s garden and portion out some picture she took in the beginning of October .

I live in northeastern Pennsylvania , in the Pocono Mountains , Zone 5b .

Our house was build in 2012 , so I started with nothing : half an acre , nothing in the middle , surrounded by more than 200 deciduous trees . challenge are the ever present deer , our short growing season in Zone 5 , and gardening on a incline in the rear of the house .

It ’s still a workplace in progress : hardscaping is done by landscaping professionals , but all 400 + perennial and shrubs have been planted by this 60 - something !

My goal was portion of evergreens , since we can easily have more than four months with no preindication of new vegetation . I also like weeping , cascade plants . No pyramidal or columnar bush for me !

So there ’s luck ofPierisjaponica(Zones 5–8 ) , junipers(Juniperusspecies ) , Russian cypress(Microbiota decussata , zona 3–7 ) , a thunderhead Japanese black pine(Pinusthunbergii‘Thunderhead ’ , Zones 5–9 ) in the front and a few cascading pine , cotoneaster , and tears hemlocks sprinkled in . There are set of perennials , including ferns , sedges , grasses , and somepachysandra . I convey a few daylilies and Joe Pye weed(Eupatoriummaculatum , Zones 2–7 ) from my old star sign in Valley Forge , both of which require cervid spray but are worth the movement .

I find I still have a elbow room to go : there are blank places to fill up ! But I experience after seven full growing seasons that I ’m at the point where I can pop out dividing some of the original plant .

Having a garden full of mature trees can be a challenge , but they make a beautiful backdrop .

A mixture of shrub and perennials makes an interesting carpet of various textures .

Russian cypress tree makes a beautiful tracking carpet of evergreen leaf .

Perennial plant , with a hint of water beyond

Container planting tally life to the deck seating orbit .

This is a garden that feel like walk through a natural woodland , in the best potential way .

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

To put in , send 5 - 10 photos to[email protected]along with some information about the plants in the painting and where you took the picture . We ’d bang to pick up where you are located , how long you ’ve been garden , successes you are proud of , failure you learned from , hopes for the hereafter , favorite plants , or rummy account from your garden .

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