Living in a mountain setting generally means having to manage storm runoff at times. Luckily for my mother, the previous owner of the property finished drainage ditches with stones. For the most part, all she needs to do is keep them clear of weeds and debris. However, she is currently recovering from a bad fall and cannot get out into the ditches to do the work. If you look at the slide show above, you can see how badly one small section of the stream and the pond filled in with forget me nots. As is with all weeds, digging them out is best and I filled the bushel basket I was using about 6 times with plants pulled out from the stream and another two or three times with the plants growing in the pond.
Once everything was cleaned out, I reopened the trench that runs down the hill to the pond and began contouring the sides of the stream bed with rocks. If there was one thing I did not need to worry about, it was having enough rocks to do this. Never in all of my years of gardening have I encountered such a large amount of rocks in the ground and it made the work challenging.
Once I had the stream bed finished, I started adding plants for color. Blue Eyed Grass, Sisyrinchium angustifolium ‘Lucerne’, is such a dainty little plant that will not reseed vigorously but will grow near stream beds. Did you know that this plant is not actually grass? True fact; it is a member of the iris family and my guess is that is why it likes to be near water.
After clearing out the stream bed, it was so muddy and barren that I decided to try some plants that I know will spread; Ajuga reptans ‘Black Scallop’ (commonly called Bugleweed) and Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’ (commonly called Creeping Jenny). Only time will tell if they also enjoy frequently moist soil. After just over a week, both are showing some growth.
Let me just say that I am not a landscaping expert. My first idea was to shingle the rocks starting at the top. The thought was that the flow of water would be slowed down from hitting the cracks and crevices created by the rocks. It did slow the water but it also created many little pools of water and as I stood out there in a down pour watching, I realized that I needed to try it in reverse order.
Because I had previously hauled all of the rocks to the stream, reversing them was a fairly quick task. For my second attempt, I started at the bottom and shingled them upwards. So far, it seems to work better but I suspect that in time, I will have to come back and truly dig out the stream bed to create a deeper channel that I can line with rocks. For now, this works.
As I gathered rocks, I tried to pick them for shape and color but also for moss.
Lichen also makes nice markings on the rocks.
Because this is a mountain stream, mosses were a must and there is also no shortage of it here.
By carefully digging out small ferns, I was also able to add them to the rocks.
Once the stream was finished, I began working on the pond area. The person who built the stream bed had it all flow down hill into a small pond which acts as a basin to hold most of the water. The area is terraced and has a dry bed as well as a wet bed where the water from the stream flows in. Almost the entire yard is shaded or has dappled sun light which makes it easy to use plants like hostas but beware, deer will eat them and the pond is fenced in to keep them out.
The flowers on shade plants generally are not as showy as their sunny counterparts. This tiny spike of pink blooms on the Tiarella Pink Skyrocket, commonly called Foamflower, it your reward for taking the time to look closely at the plants in the garden.
If you recall, about a year ago, I posted here about my mother’s garden. In that piece, I mentioned how she is a gardener of things rather than plants. This meant that I spent some time rearranging the statues in the garden as well.
In the wet area of the pond, I had the chance to plant some water lovers; Iris versicolor Blue Flag and Iris sibirica Sparkling Rose. Keeping them company is a Ligularia stenocephala Little Rocket (commonly called Leopard plant or Ragwort), Lobelia speciosa Vulcan Red (commonly called Cardinal Flower), Pulmonaria Raspberry Splash (commonly called Lungwort), Phlox divaricata Blue Moon (commonly called Wild Sweet William or woodland phlox) and Astilbe chinensis v. taquetii Purple Candles.
One of the surprises in the yard is the large quantity of native Jack in the Pulpits growing. With a small trowel, I carefully dug a few smaller specimens up and moved them into the wet area as well and near the center of the photo, you can see the trio of leaves from a single plant.
Ligularia in bloom makes a statement and is large enough to be easily seen from the deck.
The pulmonaria and the phlox have adapted well to their new homes.
The cardinal plant has show quite a bit of new growth; the bright green leaves will turn darker with age.
This is the first time I have tried gardening in my mother”s yard and everything I have planted is an experiment. Between the growing conditions and the deer, I am hoping for success. After seeing the amount of growth on this Cardinal plant in just one week, I am encouraged!
Whoever did all of the stone stacking and terracing gets the blue ribbon! When the stream empties into the pond, it comes over this pile of rocks and collects in the basin which is lined with cement. Years of water have led to lots of ferns, moss and lichens but I think I like the reflection best.
On my next visit, I hope to bring help with me along with a mattock; that hose needs to go!
will garden for cake 