Keep Your Friends Close

Keep Your Friends Close

We're always making decisions in the garden: plant this over by the fence or in front of the tree; put that by the patio or in the glazed pot.

Many years ago a philosopher named Danny Hillis proposed making a clock which would run, almost maintenance-free, for 10,000 years. He called it the “Clock of the Long Now.” One of his intentions was to develop long-term thinking in people, rather than their normal focus on the next few minutes or, if you're in finance, the next quarter. As I understand it, the clock is being built though, in keeping with its concept, it will be a long time before it is finished.

Have you thought about the difference between planting for “now” and planting for “later”? I know several gardeners who have.

A couple of them have planted their azaleas far apart with the idea that they will look great in 5 or 10 years. Neither of them were pre-retirement when we talked and one said that he expected to live to 100. The good news is the gardeners are still doing well, as I write this, and the plants have indeed covered up a large portion of the mulch around them. Congrats to them!

One of the above gardeners keeps his individual plants in large, 55 gallon drums. These are too big to move and not too close to each other, but the tops have started growing together and, from a little distance, they look fine. An interesting side note on those drums: they have drain holes on the sides near the bottom. The roots of his oak trees will not grow up into the drum and compete for resources.

This bed of early blooming azaleas, shown from May 4, 2018, demonstrates my idea that mulch should be used, but rarely seen.

I don't like to look at a bed and see a pile of mulch with a few plants, whose lives are all promise. A bed of plants, with maybe a little mulch showing through, is preferable. My view is that I am planning for now and later. It's true that this requires more work, but spread out over a period of years, it isn't really stressful. Azaleas should be planted relatively close together, and when they become closer than you wish, simply dig them up and move them apart, or move them elsewhere, or eat them. Your choice. [You know that's a joke, right? Right? Please don't name me in a wrongful death suit.]

Many azaleas look fine with their branches mixed through their neighbors, so they don't have to be moved the instant a branch touches the next plant. Azaleas, ferns, heucheras and hosta are relatively shallow rooted and can be transplanted easily. It takes occasional attention, but your garden can always be ready for the show!