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AROUND THE HOME LANDSCAPE CALENDAR 3PlantingTips: New plants root in quickly with all the abundant summer rains. Now is a great time to think about re-working your landscape. A well designed landscape with layers of height and texture will add value to your home. With the right selection and placement of plant material, you can have color all year long. The Pleasures of a Garden Outdoor L iving By Jon George Recently I received a call from a dear gardening friend and client, Linda Crawford. “You’ve got to see the yard this year. It’s better than ever,” she said with excitement. I knew that she was not kidding when I opened the gate to the back garden and gasped in amazement. Drifts of white and purple irises led me through arbors of climbing clematis and fragrant wisteria, all blooming in wild abundance. Birds darted across the path on their way to numerous feeders stationed throughout the garden. Pink shrub roses billowed over a low picket fence and the herb garden had a bench set up to enjoy the view. The sound of water splashing caught my attention and I looked up to see a fountain bubbling up out of an old cypress stump into a pond with water lilies and brightly colored fish. Could I still be in Gainesville? Something magical always seems to take place when I am in a garden like this. The five senses come alive in a way that I rarely experience in our modern world of asphalt and cell phone towers. A garden is meant to beckon the weary soul to come away and reflect awhile, and I did not want to leave this place. Linda first hired us to install brick-lined paths that were wheelchair accessible for an elderly relative so that she could enjoy the garden too. Then later, we came and worked on the front foundation, adding shrubs and perennials to help her get ready for her daughter’s wedding, to be held in the garden later that summer. “You’ve got to try some of this sage in your garden” Linda said as she dug a big clump of fragrant silvery leaves and plopped them into a pot before I could say no. “They are the secret to my mashed potatoes.” Clematis ‘Nellie Moser’ I smiled and reached for the plants, imagining buttery herbed mashed potatoes steaming on a plate. Because, who could say no to the pleasures of a garden? The cut fl ower garden Water lilies Yellow fl ag iris Herb garden Climbing roses locally known as ‘Sweet Annie’ Jon George is the owner of Cottage Gardens Inc., a Gainesville based landscape design and installation fi rm. Jon has been gardening in North Central Florida for more than thirty years. You may contact his staff at www.TheCottageGardener. com or at cottagegardensinc@yahoo.com.
Outdoor Living: The Pleasure Of A Garden
Jon George
Recently I received a call from a dear gardening friend and client, Linda Crawford. “You’ve got to see the yard this year. It’s better than ever,” she said with excitement. I knew that she was not kidding when I opened the gate to the back garden and gasped in amazement. Drifts of white and purple irises led me through arbors of climbing clematis and fragrant wisteria, all blooming in wild abundance. Birds darted across the path on their way to numerous feeders stationed throughout the garden. Pink shrub roses billowed over a low picket fence and the herb garden had a bench set up to enjoy the view. The sound of water splashing caught my attention and I looked up to see a fountain bubbling up out of an old cypress stump into a pond with water lilies and brightly colored fish. Could I still be in Gainesville?
Something magical always seems to take place when I am in a garden like this. The five senses come alive in a way that I rarely experience in our modern world of asphalt and cell phone towers. A garden is meant to beckon the weary soul to come away and reflect awhile, and I did not want to leave this place.
Linda first hired us to install brick-lined paths that were wheelchair accessible for an elderly relative so that she could enjoy the garden too. Then later, we came and worked on the front foundation, adding shrubs and perennials to help her get ready for her daughter’s wedding, to be held in the garden later that summer.
“You’ve got to try some of this sage in your garden” Linda said as she dug a big clump of fragrant silvery leaves and plopped them into a pot before I could say no. “They are the secret to my mashed potatoes.” I smiled and reached for the plants, imagining buttery herbed mashed potatoes steaming on a plate. Because, who could say no to the pleasures of a garden?
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