gentle gardener: green

Buy Local Virginia

via www.buylocalvirginia.org

we are proud to be part of the 'Buy Fresh, Buy Local' movement. It's been a part of our philosophy since day one......for a Garden as Pleasing to Nature as to the Eye..........
for Weddings and Events as Pleasing to Nature as to the Eye.

Despite the rain, in May, peonies REIGN!

Thirty Orange County Virginia hospitality and event professionals host 40 wedding and event planners, photographers and media for two days of ‘speed weddings’:  showering food, flowers, wine, music, and gifts upon our guests.  Mother Nature showered 4.5 inches of rain on us in 36 hours, helping answer the perennial question from nervous brides to be:   “What if it RAINS?!” 

via web.me.com

All flowers and plants composed by Gentle Gardener Green Design are locally and sustainably grown. Thanks to my very able and generous growers for helping us showcase their talents and Nature's bounty for our guests at the Inn at Mayhurst, 22960. Next post: flowers and food at Stonefire Station 22923.

What is 'greener' than grass? Here's to Bringing Nature Home: Tallamy's Top Twenty for the MidAtlantic

Each February the Piedmont Landscape Association in central Virginia creates a Valentine to the plant world and its workers:  the growers, designers, plantsmen and plantswomen who paint in plants.   

This year's PLA winter symposium featured Dr. Doug Tallamy of the University of Delaware, author of Bringing Nature Home, a Timber Press release, and now, a re-release.  Dr. Tallamy and other stars of the horticultural world enthralled over 600 gardeners in the packed Paramount Theatre on the downtown mall in Charlottesville; in Tallamy's case, with pictures of - gasp! - caterpillars.

These action shots of caterpillars consuming native plants - most photographed in Tallamy's yard - were an unlikely inspiration for those who are often asked by clients to pick, smash, burn, poison, explode or just deter those caterpillars from eating any single leaf on 'their' plants. And as a result, many years of accumulated experience go into creating plant 'palettes' for 'low-maintenance' landscapes based on plants that have little appeal for these caterpillars; in other words, we prepare a banquet for our own human visual and sometimes olfactory entertainment that is also made to be un-appealing and dis-tasteful to these creatures.

 

Our landscape design clients who dislike the munching caterpillars often ask for 'butterfly' gardens to be composed by  us, their dutiful landscape designers.  (The notion of metamorphosis for lepidoptera has escaped some of us,  if not our children).   And, we and our clients often go to great lengths to feed birds year-round, when what is crucial to biodiversity, particularly diversity of migrating birds, is the availability of food rich in protein during nesting and fledging season. What food do birds prefer and need greatly at this critical time?  Well, the bugs and caterpillars.of course. 

Dr. Tallamy and his students research and publish the links between the food needed, and food provided in the regions where we live, particularly the midAtlantic.  Critical to the entire food chain in any ecosystem are the plant genera that support the greatest numbers of lepitoptera and other 'bugs'  in each region.  Plants, large and small, feed the critters, and they in turn feed the birds, and on and on.  Eventually, we too are fed.

At a time when food, and eating local, is tres chic, au courant, de rigeur, the zeitgeist, we often deny the birds in our flyways the same opportunity.  We lay a banquet of foreign, strange and sometimes unappetizing material for them, and tease them with 'melting icebergs' of  large expanses of foreign, clipped, never-blooming turf grasses, dotted with single 'specimen' trees and shrubs from other places, rather than a knitted-together community of native trees, shrubs, herbaceous perennials, grasses and forbs.  And of course, the berries and other snacks on the foreign shrubs  that birds DO find appetizing, end up being propagated by them.  In the right conditions, these invasives then roll like a mighty tide right over the native plants.  Think berberis (barberry) hosting increased tick populations in the woodlands of New Jersey and southern New England, and privet (ligustrum amurensis) colonizing the piedmont and coastal plains of South Carolina and Georgia. (There is a singular virtue, after all, in clipping privet hedges into rectangles:  denying birds the berry/seed to propagate an invasive pest).

So. What? you say.   So, many thanks to Dr. Tallamy and his researchers for providing a list of the top 20 woody trees and shrubs and top 20 herbaceous perennials, grasses, forbs for supporting biodiversity in the midAtlantic.  This single page handout was worth the price of the day's admission.  We now hand out this list at speaking engagements and to each client in our initial landscape design consultation.  Gardeners and designers love lists:  look at the back of any catalog. 

My teacher at Kew, the British landscape designer and writer John Brookes, opened our History of Garden Design lecture with a deceptively simple statement:  "Gardens are a product of the culture in the time and place they are made."

Your landscape designer, gardener, landscape contractor and maintenance crew may not tell you they have suddenly converted to stewards of the ecosystem in your yard.  In fact they will probably be quite reticent on the topic.  But stealthily and steadily they will begin to suggest different plants, native replacements for the Norway maples and other strangers in your midst.

A generational shift that began in the sixties and seventies will shift almost all gardens in the midAtlantic in the next decade.  Individual single family homes with individual yet identical turfgrass lawns - the archetypal American expanse - limitless, with no walls or hedges to define each suburbanite's plot, will become right-sized and sized for a purpose. 

Grass?  Who needs it?  Well, children do.  Players of sport do.  Those of us with Seasonal Affective Disorder do,  Rather than the development default, turfgrass lawns will become one design element, but by no means the most important element, of the designed landscape.  Our gardens will be designed for people, yes, as Thomas Church so rightly pointed out, but also for a more permanent, sustaining culture, not just human culture.  Permaculture speaks of forest gardening, and Bill Mollison's most exciting lectures in our permaculture design course were of 'weaving',  'stacking' or layering productive systems on land and water as Nature does. 

Could it be that we are on the verge of unifying our notions of beauty with a reawakened sense of stewardship? 

If so, we have a few important teachers to thank, and Dr. Doug Tallamy is among them.  A deep, prayerful bow seems the right expression of gratitude.

The twenty woody plants, and the twenty herbaceous perennials, grasses and forbs, will inspire us this spring in this blog and in our design work for some time to come.

Stay tuned, and walk in beauty.

 

 

 

Purdue Newsroom - Drought-exposed leaves adversely affect soil nutrients, study shows

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Chemical changes in tree leaves subjected to warmer, drier conditions that could result from climate change may reduce the availability of soil nutrients, according to a Purdue University study.

via www.purdue.edu

Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. This research is actually an argument FOR using these precious leaves to protect and build your soil on site.

Composting leaves with grass clippings together accelerates the decomposition process. All you have to do is mow and leave in place, and/or mow and bag and place contents on garden beds in autumn. It is more sustainable to use on-site inputs than purchased fertilizer, even in drought years.

This sobering additional effect of climate change is another argument FOR replenishing your soils with last year's composted leaves, grass clippings and food waste.

Rain Garden Design Templates

Rain Garden Design Templates [BETA v1]

via www.lowimpactdevelopment.org

great templates not just for rain gardens, but for native plant designs that can withstand Virginia's notorious weather extremes - from inundation to drought. Great service to all by LID Center and grant funding by NFWF.

Green Matters: BRHBA Home Show April 8-10 | Latitude 38

Friday, April 8

via latitude38llc.com

Thanks to Blue Ridge Home Builders Associaton for keeping the "Green Matters" series of talks going in #Cville. See you 5pm Friday afternoon at the JPJ for native plants & sustainable landscapes discussion. Eye Candy will be served by Gentle Gardener Green Design.

Dishing the Dirt on Soil: Virginia's Guest Blog for 'Plant More Plants'

Understanding what lies beneath what we see in our gardens is the critical step to successful planting. Not only do we want to plant more plants to cover and protect the soil to keep it from eroding and washing into streams, we want to boost the soils to help plants flourish.

via www.plantmoreplants.com

Visit plantmoreplants.com to learn how your personal stewardship to 'grow some good' in your own garden can help protect and heal streams and the Chesapeake Bay.

Media Release:Gentle Gardener to launch campaign-Is Grass always the 'Greenest' Choice?

Virginia R. Rockwell of Gentle Gardener Green Design, will launch an educational campaign entitled 'Is Grass always the “Greenest” Choice? Sustainable Alternatives to Turf Grass for Healthy Gardens, Waterways, Rivers and Bay' via a lecture on Wednesday, March 16 at 7 p.m. at the Central Regional Rappahannock Library, 1201 Caroline Street, Fredericksburg, VA. The free event is hosted by the Master Gardener Association of Central Rappahannock Area and open to the public.

Rockwell will discuss beautiful, sustainable options for turf grass, design elements and new legislation concerning phosphorous levels in commercial fertilizers. Good gardening choices and practices have a positive impact upon waterways. Rockwell will show attendees how to achieve a garden as pleasing to nature as the eye.

Virginia R. Rockwell is a certified landscape designer, horticulturalist, Association of Professional Landscape Designers member, Virginia Society of Landscape Designers member and LEED* Green Associate. For more information about Rockwell and Gentle Gardener Green Design, please visit http://www.gentlegardener.com/green. To learn more about MGACRA, please visit http://www.mgacra.com. Media inquiries can be directed to Ann P. Reid via e-mail at Annpreid@gmail.com.

*Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design

 

PRUNING WORKSHOP on the grounds of historic Tudor Place Saturday, March 26th, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

PRUNING WORKSHOP
Tudor Place, Georgetown, D.C.
Saturday, March 26th, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.


Join members of the APLD DC-MD-VA Chapter, for a hands on pruning workshop with Peter Deahl co-founder of The Pruning School.

Can this plant be saved? How many times as a designer are you asked by a homeowner whether a particular plant can be drastically reduced in size without killing it? Or, can this green blob be transformed into something more interesting? And of course, can the 'growing out' period be minimized as much as possible so they don't have to look at a disfigured plant? Here's your chance to learn the answers to these questions and improve your pruning skills.


Back by popular demand, we are once again offering a hands-on pruning workshop with Peter Deahl. Peter, an Interpretive Naturalist and ISA Certified Arborist, has spent over twenty years practicing his craft and sharing his knowledge and experience with garden clubs, schools, municipalities, Master Gardeners and Tree Steward groups. He is co-founder of The Pruning School, located in Sterling, Virginia (http://www.thepruningschool.com/main.htm).


For this workshop, we will gather at historic Tudor Place in Georgetown where Peter will start us off with a brief introduction to pruning biology before taking us outside to spend the remainder of the time getting hands-on pruning instruction. Tudor Place, a 5 1/2 acre late 19th century garden in the heart of Georgetown (www.tudorplace.org/about.html), has a large variety of mature evergreen and deciduous shrubs and small trees. Peter will instruct us in how to prune ornamentals in a biologically correct and aesthetically pleasing manner. There will be plenty of time for you to practice exactly where to make the cut and to ask all your pruning questions.



Bring your sharpened hand pruners, pruning saws and gloves. Wear your work clothes and dress for the weather. APLD will provide mid-morning refreshments, but please eat breakfast before you arrive. NOTE: It is not possible to prune in the rain. If weather forces us to reschedule, the rain date will be April 9th, 2011 and if needed the reschedule will be posted on the APLD DC.MD.VA Chapter website (dcmdva-apld.org/events.php) by 9:00 pm the night before. So if you have any doubts, check the website on Friday night March 25th.



The cost for this workshop is $55 for APLD DC.MD-VA Chapter members and $65 for non-APLD members. This is a hands-on workshop so space is limited.

If you're interested in joining us please fill out the registration form and return it with your check made out to APLD DC.MD.VA Chapter as soon as possible. If you have any questions please email Derek Thomas at Derek@thomaslandscapes.com.



For this and many other educational and networking opportunities check out the chapter website Events page at dcmdva-apld.org/events.php


Pruning Workshop with Peter Deahl
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Registration Form
Sponsored by the APLD DC-MD-VA Chapter

Please enroll me in the March 26th Pruning Workshop:

Contact Information

Name: __________________________________________________________

Company: __________________________________________________________

Address: __________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

City/State/Zip: __________________________________________________________

Phone: __________________________________________________________

E-Mail: __________________________________________________________


The above information will be used only if we need to contact you with regards to this event, and will not be given to any other organizations or used for any other purposes.

Payment

Please check the appropriate category below:

___ APLD DC.MD.VA Chapter members - discount rate $55.00
___ APLD members $60.00
___ Non-APLD Members $65.00

No refunds will be given after March 14, 2011

Please make your check payable to APLD DC-MD-VA Chapter and mail it to:

Marty Hays
APLD DC-MD-VA Chapter
8817 Burbank Road
Annandale, Virginia 22003

 

'YOU SAY YOU WANT A REVOLUTION...." ASLA residential landscape design survey: What y'all say you want now - 2011

LAND Article.

Residential Design Survey Respondents Look Ahead

Despite a down economy, landscape architects anticipate strong interest in outdoor living and designed residential landscapes, according to ASLA’s 2011 Residential Trends Survey. The survey asked 245 residential landscape architecture professionals questions on the relative popularity of a variety of design features and elements for the year.  The most popular outdoor living features this year include lighting, with 96.2 percent indicating the feature as somewhat or very popular for 2011. Rounding out the top five are fire pits (94.2 percent), seating/dining areas (94.1 percent), grills (93.8 percent) and installed seating (89.5 percent). At the other end, only one in ten (10.4 percent) rated outdoor bedrooms and sleeping areas as a popular amenity for 2011. Among landscape and garden elements, interest continues to focus on low maintenance landscapes (94.2 percent), native plants (87.2 percent) water features (81.0 percent), and food/vegetable gardens (80.3 percent). Respondents also indicated wide interest in several sustainable design features, such as water-efficient irrigation (83.1 percent) permeable paving (77.0 percent) and reduced lawn (72.6 percent). Outdoor Living Features (Percent rating somewhat or very popular for 2011) Lighting – 96.2% Fire pits/fireplace – 94.2% Seating/dining areas – 94.1% Grills – 93.8% Installed seating (benches, seat walls, ledges, steps, boulders) – 89.5% Weatherized outdoor furniture – 83.6% Counter space – 74.2% Utility storage – 61.3% Stereo systems – 58.3% Sinks – 54.7% Refrigerators – 50.2% Wireless/Internet connectivity – 46.3% Televisions/projection screens – 45.4% Outdoor heaters – 44.4% Showers/bathing – 42.1% Outdoor cooling systems (including fans) – 36.7% Bedrooms/sleeping spaces – 10.4% Outdoor Recreation Amenities Decorative water elements such as ornamental pools, splash pools, waterfalls, grottos, water runnels or bubblers – 84.7% Spa (hot tub, Jacuzzi, whirlpool, indoor/outdoor sauna) – 75.9% Swimming Pools – 69.4% Sports/recreational spaces (tennis courts, bocce ball, etc.) – 47.7% Landscape/Garden Elements Low maintenance landscapes – 94.2% Native plants – 87.2% Fountains/ornamental water features – 81.0% Food/Vegetable gardens (including orchards/vineyards etc.) – 80.3% Organic gardens – 65.5% Ponds/streams – 62.5% Rain gardens – 56.6% Xeriscaping or dry gardens – 56.3% Sustainable Design Elements Native/adapted drought-tolerant plants – 88.8% Drip/water-efficient irrigation – 83.1% Permeable paving – 77.0% Reduced lawn – 72.6% Recycled materials – 64.5% Rainwater/graywater harvesting – 63.6% Compost bins – 49.4% Solar-powered lights – 48.8% Geothermal-heated pools – 23.2% Structures Fencing (includes gates) – 85.1% Arbors – 83.8% Pergolas – 82.6% Steps – 79.3% Ornamental water features such as fountains or splash pools – 77.5% Decks – 74.4% Porches – 72.3% Art (sculpture etc.) – 60.7% Utility shed (tool shed, garden shed etc.) – 59.3% Play structures (tree house, swing set, etc.) – 58.9% Pavilions – 52.9% Awnings, including retractable – 49.6% Gazebos – 49.6% Columns – 40.9% ADA-accessible structures (ramps, bars, accessible shelving etc.) – 23.5% Here are the results in graph form: