Spent a lot of time at the Iowa City Public Library yesterday looking at garden landscaping books. In the end it was more or less a waste of time. They had a broad selection but I didn’t find the aesthetic I was looking for. Most layouts were too formal with too many straight lines. They all seemed to start from a rectangular fenced in space (suburban backyard style). Most featured curved beds around the perimeter with an expanse of oval or rectangular lawn in the center. Too contrived, too high maintenance. That aesthetic would not fit into the surrounding landscape of rolling hills, farmscape and fields. Today I looked in the regular gardening section and had the most luck with a shelf of books on naturalistic gardening. Meadows and prairies come closer to my hazy, yet-to-be defined vision. I checked out a couple of meadow books not long ago, but must have discounted the idea. I remember reading some descriptions of the “right way” to plant a meadow and feeling like it wasn’t something I could tackle the first growing season. But now I see there are several approaches, some less ideal than others, and it is more than feasible. A couple months ago I told myself I wouldn’t give any thought to aesthetics the first year so I could focus all my attention on our plants’ needs. And now I’ve gone and planned a cottage garden in the front of the house (with Alan’s approval).

A few days later. Since this post was supposed to be about the book I’ll talk about the book now. I love this guy’s style. He creates plantings that look natural and comfortable, and at the same time intentional. He combines natives with nursery plants and selects long-bloomers, plants that look nice after they’re done blooming and structurally interesting plants. Most of the plants he uses are zones 4-5 even though he gardens in England (I think) where winters aren’t as harsh.
He talks about the importance of developing a sense of rythme and unity through the use of “theme plants”, plants with a long season of interest scattered around a planting. Examples of theme plants: digitalis ferruginea (foxglove), verbascum, knautia macedonica, solidago rugosa (rough goldenrod). The theme plant is used to “set the tone” for the planting and the other plants selected need to contrast with, complement or harmonize with its color, flower shape and habit (whether it sprawls or is neat and tidy).
Kingsbury says some of the most useful self-sowing plants are: california poppy, nigella, limnanthes douglasii, red poppies, verbena bonariensis and foeniculum vulgare (which looks a lot like dill).

We drove by the farm today and I snapped some quick images. Crudely pasted them together here in a panoramic display. Click on the image to see it closer up.

I love crocuses! Finally had some success this year – last year none bloomed. There is tons of crocus foliage on our lot (planted before we arrived) and no blooms last year or this. Would like to know why.

We planted Bloomsdale longstanding spinach, turnips, beets, Garden babies butterhead and Johnny’s Green butterhead Ermosa and chives in flats we placed outside. Planted a whole flat of chives to use as a deer barrier and plant around fruit trees. Last summer a farmer at the farmers’ market in Solon told me he plants chives around his peach trees to deter borers (I think).
Also planted purple alyssum, johnny jumpup, sage, verbena bonariensis and hollyhocks. And 4 tomato varieties: Cherokee Purple (80 days), Gardeners Delight Cherry (65 days), Sweetie (65 days), and Grape Juliet (60 days). The Sweetie seeds are 4 years old and may not germinate.

The pepper and eggplant seeds have begun to sprout. Exciting times ahead.

The Nearings grew blueberries as a cash crop in Maine. They cleared timber from 100 square feet, leaving the stumps in the ground to rot and planted directly without tilling. I assume there was no sod since the area had been forest. They mulched with a big layer of spruce dust and spoiled hay. In their chapter on berries, they discuss plant spacing and feeding requirements. Need to get that info down so I can return the damn book to the libary.
1 week later. Got an automated call about my overdue items so I guess it’s time to finish this post. The Nearings planted 228 2 year-old blueberry plants. 12 different varieties to extend the picking season. They recommend spacing them 8×8′. The first year they picked 5 1/2 quarts, 5 years later 655 qts, 13 years later 1296 qts. It took 7 years for them to produce enough to sell. They allowed bushes to reach 7 feet and consist of 6-7 major trunks. They pruned in late winter or early spring and fetilized in spring with 1 lb of soybean meal and equal parts of ground phosphate rock and granite dust. Over the meal they spread 8-15 lbs of compost, topped that off with a peck of sawdust, then spread hay or staw in the spaces between bushes.

When I began reading this I came across numerous references to Helen and Scott Nearing and knew it would be good. Logsdon talks about pastoral economics, which is what the Nearings practised but called something else. Start small, and avoid borrowing or keep it to a minimum. Live within your means and frugally. Don’t buy gadgets unless you’re disabled:)
Logsdon talks a bit about fruit trees, and says in his observation, that scattering them on the edge of forests (as they grow in nature) rather than concentrated in orchards keeps pest damage to a minumum. I’d like to check out his book called Organic Orcharding.
Books Logsdon recommends:
Trees, Why Do You Wait?
Backyard Market Gardening
Payne Hollow
Becoming Native to This Place

It’s about 7 weeks before the last frost date here in Iowa. The perfect time to start peppers and eggplant and more. I special ordered some interesting pepper varieties: Antohi Romanian, Andy F1 (hot), Serrano Del Sol F1 (also hot). The eggplants are Bambino and Rosa Bianca, both are small, very small varieties. Planting date was 3/11/2007. The tricky part will come with hardening the plants off to avoid leggy growth.

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Turns out deer don’t like a few plants we already grow and love. Any plants with fuzzy leaves or a pungent smell: cat mint, lamb’s ear, hyssop, sage, thyme…
Why not grow these around the perimeter of our vegetable beds in a double layer?

Maximilian sunflowers
Maximilians, one of the few perennial sunflowers, are a good deer-proof plant. Stems are covered in a coarse fuzz which deters deer. They grow to 5-7 feet and bloom in fall. Author uses as a hedge. A relative of the Jerusalem artichoke, shoot are edible and birds like the seeds. Hardy to -30 and very drought tolerant.

Chicken tractors
A small movable pen placed on a planting site that boosts soil fertility. We may consider something like this next year. No time for animals in year 1.

Sheet mulching
One of my favorite topics. Same as lasagna gardening but with more technical details. Hemenway suggests watering site the day before and slashing down existing vegetation (not pulling up). Next add soil amendments and poke holes in ground to aerate. Add a thin layer of high nitrogen material like manure, grass clippings, blood meal. Lay down wetted newspapers (1/4-1/2″ thick) or cardboard and follow with another layer of nitrogen-rich material. On top of this apply 8 to 10″ of loose straw, hay or leaves. Hemenway says weed seeds aren’t a concern in this layer as they seem to rot rather than germinate. Spray on water every few inches. Then add 1-2″ compost plus soil on hand to reach final thickness. Final layer is 2″ weed/seed-free OM such as staw, fine bark, wood shavings for a finished look. Can be planted immediately