I have always lived with gardens and throughout my life I’ve enjoyed an ongoing series of gardens lost and found.
The earliest memories of my childhood home revolve around the large perennial garden my mother tended in our backyard. Most of the plants had been growing there for years before our family moved in but my mother happily adopted them as well as adding many of her favorites including Lupine. My father loved planting vegetables such as green beans and tomatoes in another small garden patch. A row of large hostas that he planted in the front of the house survive to this day and still bloom every September, almost 66 years later! In addition, we had fragrant white and purple lilacs growing by the back porch and a pink rhododendron that grew so large it was the envy of the neighborhood! I can see my parents even now, planting and picking flowers and vegetables, cherishing every minute while they worked their own little bit of heaven on earth!
When my first husband and I bought a house in the same seaside town, it wasn’t long before we started gardens of our own. The yard was small but we used all the available space to create a vegetable garden and several little flower gardens. It was here that I first started planting bulbs and roses, squeezing in more and more plants every year. Although I took pleasure in other hobbies, gardening had become my first love and there was nothing I enjoyed more!
Twenty years later I moved with my second husband to another town about 25 miles from the coast. This was a very different setting with two acres of heavily wooded land and lots of room for gardens! We created a large, fenced-in area for growing vegetables but, over the years, I filled it with flowers and shrubs as well. Rubbing shoulders with the vegetables were lilacs, hydrangeas, roses, peonies, clematis, and honeysuckle. An asparagus patch filled one end of the garden while a pea trellis and tomato stakes dominated the space at the opposite end. The center was filled with nasturtiums, herbs, kale, zucchini, and eggplant amongst others. Even though the surrounding tall trees cast afternoon shadows, the garden had enough sunlight for the plants to flourish and was a sight to behold in high summer!
We continued to live in garden bliss until, late in the summer of 2016, disaster struck in the form of a new septic system. The old system dated back to 1964 and was literally crumbling in upon itself. It had to be replaced but doing so also meant digging up the entire back yard with our beloved vegetable garden situated in the exact center!
In the brief window of time before the work started, we managed to save many perennials by potting them up. Briefly, we thought of saving the shrubs we had lovingly cared for. I say “briefly” because the sheer effort and cost involved in digging up and relocating each mature shrub was daunting and more than we could handle. Sadly, I had to face the fact that many of my garden plants were soon to become casualties of war. When the heavy equipment rolled into the yard and we were left with a huge gaping hole, I mourned that garden like the loss of an old friend!
Because I simply cannot live without a garden, you might have guessed there’s a happy ending to my tale. The following spring my husband and I began a new garden to take the old one’s place. Wisely deciding against building atop the new septic system, we chose a narrow but sunny site next to our kitchen. I was able to replant the saved perennials in one area while still leaving plenty of space for a few favorite vegetables. The overall garden space was much smaller but provided easier access right off our kitchen deck; it would also be much more manageable in size for us aging Boomers.
This year I will begin replacing some of those wonderful shrubs that once filled our yard. I’ve already ordered Hydrangea paniculata “Little Lime,” Honeysuckle “Gold Flame,” and Rose “Coral Cove.” These smaller-sized shrubs won’t dwarf the new garden and will add color and texture all season. What was once lost will be found again. I just can’t wait to get planting!
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