I think that many of you who read me consistently can agree that there is something about a quaint country cottage, especially set in the cool, light mist of Britain, that tugs out a wistful little sigh. Like the souls of those this imagery speaks to, the gardens outside are beautiful and only slightly tamed by man.
I bring this up because, on occasion, I have strokes of genius. I think that thick, lush, verdant lawns are beautiful–but I have no talent for them. They require a tenacity that I just don’t have the spirit for. Yesterday I’d had it. I’ve said I want to get rid of my lawn before, but the idea I had to get rid of it was not very plausible. While searching for landscapers that could lay down a perfect new yard for me, in order to see what such a thing would cost, I found a number of images of grassless lawns.
Don’t think that because I have images of cottage gardens that this is what I found. No. I found dreary landscapes composed of a few rocks, some small bushes, and lots of bark. Just mulch. Swathes of it. This was their low-maintenance solution to having awful grass. I like rich-looking mulch, I do, but a yard does not look inviting, or even lovely, if it’s a sheet of bark. I thought to myself: a little bit of bark is nice, but not all of it. You’d have to find things to do with the rest of the yard that wouldn’t be atrocious.
I’ve recently wanted roses again. I had them many a year ago when I lived in Florida. Recently, I have lost a desire for flowers, finding them less than useful to me. However, in reading up on foraging, I discovered a very great food value is roses: rose hips. I’d heard of these things before, but I’d never understood very well until now. So I want roses. Lots of them. I love their fragrance, the way they look, and now there’s food to be had too. How can you lose? So I’d been thinking of planting them out in front of my porch railing.
Then I thought, well, if you put a pathway through the yard, there’d be less grass there, but a pathway would look kind of stupid without a good reason for it to be there. So then came flower beds, and more, and suddenly, there wasn’t any room left for grass in the front yard or the side yard. Now I want so many flowers that I’ll look at them and feel the same kind of satisfied peace I do when looking at pictures of the same thing. The backyard is much more sketchy (which saddens me because it’s in the most ridiculous state of awful the world has ever seen.) But there is a half-formed plan there, at least.
I’ve been looking at stones for the short walls I’d like to put out front, and pavers. I’ve looked up many reference materials for putting together a cottage garden, even found a list of traditional flowers and when they like to bloom so that your garden can be blooming year round. The images in my head are quite lovely and I’m excited to do them. They are not, however, going to be in effect anytime before the holidays and my home will be a big embarrassment to me until then! Ugh, one thing at a time, and only as one can afford… I must remind myself! Until then, I doodle plans to appease myself. Hopefully I’ll have pictures of some progress on that soon, I sure hope so anyway!
I would love to have gardens like those shown in this post, but it’s going to be tough. North Central Texas….rain seems to get scarcer each year, and the ground is like concrete. Yesterday, it was 45 degrees with winds of 40 mph. The few days before that it was near 80 and it will be near 80 the next few days. For half the summer, we’ll be on watering restrictions.
Unfortunately, I don’t like the look of xeriscape gardens, so I’ll just have to start small and go slow. Right now, my main concern is my two acres of pasture for my miniature horses….there’s little out there now but weeds, because February, March and now April have been so dry.
I think I’ll go look of some pictures of gardens in Vermont…..