Smaller is more Beautiful - Gardens


If small is beautiful then....smaller must be more beautiful.

At least that is what I tell myself as I survey my postage stamp of a backyard. I remind myself that some of the sweetest of serene spaces are small gardens, tucked away, out of sight.

I add touches in summer like this flowering lantana among rocks

My small verdant retreat is where I can place a chair or two, sip a cup of tea, tend to the garden, admire my planters of foliage or even write my blog, ‘pleine aire’, so to speak …

Small gardens call for small plants – although normal size plants look great when first planted, in the years that ensue they may grow to overwhelm the space… To prevent that I have a few suggestions for some hardy, compact and delightful perennial plants.


The following diminutive plants are perfect for small gardens, in containers, along walkways, in rock gardens or as low growing ‘filler’ plants in plant beds.

Sedum is a sun loving, easy to grow succulent. Sedum rupestre 'Angelina' is one of my favorites. It rows about 6 inches high and spreads out among rocks, pavers, in flower beds. It is a chartreuse yellow- green that spreads and spills out. Easy to grow and quite the eye catcher!
                          

 Sedum Angelina by Jan Johnsen
             
Hostas, known for broad foliage and tolerance to shady conditions, have miniature varieties such as the Mouse Ear collection. These pocket sized hostas have wonderfully textured, heart shaped leaves. Two of the blue mouse ear hostas are H. ‘Country Mouse’ which has blue leaves, edged in white, growing to 4” tall and 9” wide and Hosta ‘Blue Mouse Ears’, the 2008 Hosta of the Year, which grows to 6” – 8” tall and 18” wide and has lavender flowers.



(Blue Mouse Ears - Shady Oaks Nursery)


 
‘Pandora’s Box’ Hosta is the top choice of the American Hosta Society for miniature hostas. It has tiny leaves (2" x 1½") with a creamy-white center and a contrasting, blue-green margin. Lavender flowers appear in early summer. Mature size is 4" ht x 10" spread.

(Pandora's Box Hosta - Contrary Mary Nursery)

Hosta 'Stiletto' is named for its striking, narrow, lance-shaped, leaves. The foliage has a cream or gold tinged margin and it sports lavender striped flowers in late summer. Mature height is 8” tall and spreads about a foot. Its eye catching narrow leaves look great in pots.


(Hosta Stiletto - Park Seed)

Miniature Roses are also perfect for a small space serenity garden but they need at least 6 hours of full sun in summer. The hardy Lavender Jewel (Moore, 1978) grows no higher that 24” tall and has shapely, lavender blooms all summer long. Dark glossy green foliage is disease resistant. Height 18 to 24 inches. (Zone 4)

(Rose 'Lavender Jewel' - High Country Roses)

The miniature Starla rose (Chaffin, 1990) is a pure ivory-white rose with pointed buds, a fruity fragrance and large, shapely blooms on cutting-length stems. It grows no higher than 20 inches (Zone 5).

(Starla Rose - High Country Roses)

My own particular favorites are the compact varieties of  Carex or sedge. These grasslike plants offer an amazing choice of colors, stripes and textures - there are over 1000 species.  Natives of bogs,  they like wet to moist soil.  In my small garden I grow several cultivars by a dry stream and they look great, even now in March.

I like Goldband (or Evergold) Japanese Sedge, (Carex morrowii 'Variegata') which  has droopy, graceful white and green striped grassy foliage. It looks fantastic when used as ground cover or planted in groups.
My backyard - Jan Johnsen

This is my small garden. I planted Gomphrena 'Buddy Purple' next to the Carex morrowi and across the stream is 'Ice Dance' Sedge.  It is a my 'tucked away' joyful space. Smaller is definitely more beautiful.

I write about this garden in my book, Heaven is a Garden .














Comments

  1. Jane RutkowskiSeptember 5, 2015 at 9:32 AM

    Jan, what a lovely post. I have one small garden or two tucked away in my yard. I have a rather small garden that runs the length of my front walkway, about 3/1/2 feet wide by 6 feet long. In the spring it's filled with daffodils and a few bleeding hearts. This year after they bloomed and the leaves started to brown and get straggly, I trimmed them down and planted some annual vinca (dark pink) for spots of color. I was delighted that they did so well and looked so pretty. To my surprise, some viola popped up here and there in the garden bed as an added bonus. SMALL spaces can be so charming.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jan JohnsenSeptember 5, 2015 at 9:34 AM

      Jane, I love annual vinca...it must be beautiful right now. Thanks so much for sharing!

      Delete
  2. AnonymousSeptember 5, 2015 at 2:31 PM

    I like the idea of hostas in pots, but what about winter? In zone 3 - 4, would I need to plant them in the ground, or bury the pot?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jan JohnsenSeptember 14, 2015 at 8:28 AM

      yes dig into the ground for winter! do it now in the early fall....

      Delete
  3. UnknownSeptember 9, 2015 at 9:21 PM

    These are definitely amazing looking plants and I'd love to put something like these in my garden. I have been gardening at my house for nearly a year now and I can't stop doing it! I really do hope I can get it to look a lot more beautiful and I think these flowers might do the trick. http://landscapesbydesigninc.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Jan JohnsenSeptember 14, 2015 at 8:27 AM

      another one becomes obsessed...join the club, Christopher!

      Delete
  4. UnknownSeptember 23, 2015 at 5:53 AM

    I appreciate honestly because the simplicity of this blog is great! http://www.yardcaregurus.com/

    ReplyDelete
  5. UnknownDecember 21, 2015 at 2:29 AM

    This is really a remarkable topic close to my heart thanks. Keep up the good working! hans kommentar er her

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Hi there! I would love to hear from you....

Popular Posts of all Time

Angelface Blue and Dark Violet Angelonia - a Flower that Keeps Giving

Image
(Angelonia with Helichrysum, petunia, Johnsen Landscapes) Blue is everyone's "favorite color."  It is, hands down, the most popular color worldwide and is the least "gender specific" color, having equal appeal to both men and women. Now Purple is giving blue a run for its money as the second favorite color.... Blue is the favored color for toothbrushes, so that says it all!  ( this info is from a great website: Sensation Color ) but can purple be far behind? Scientists have found that the color blue causes the body to produce chemicals that are calming. This may be why we all like to be around blue....stare at this square and see if it calms you. In fact, over the past decade, scientists have reported the successful use of blue light in the treatment of psychological problems such as addictions, eating disorders, impotence, and depression. Moreover, a deep blue/purple such as Indigo or Deep Violet symbolizes mystical wisdom and spiritual insight. It incr
Read more

Planting Design for Dry Gardens by Olivier Filippi

Image
Do you garden in a dry area?  I love this teaching approach by Olivier Filippi. 1: Salvia chamaedryoides 2: Rhodanthemum hosmariense 3: Artemisia abrotanum 'Silver' 4: Phlomis 'The South' 5:  Senecio vira-vira 6: Salvia fruticosa 7: Salvia leucophylla 8: Artemisia lanata This photo and information is from a French website that I cannot translate into English. It is by the authority on dry gardens, Olivier Filippi, and is very good. Check it out:    http://www.jardin-sec.com/ Also he wrote a great book called 'Planting Design for Dry Gardens'.  Nigel Dunnett says,  "In  Planting Design for Dry Gardens  Olivier Filippi has charted a future for garden and planting Design. Combining authoritative practical advice with deep ecological insight, Olivier shows how learning from nature can give us the best of all worlds: beautiful and sustainable gardens with a unique sense of place. I challenge anyone
Read more

'Purple Smoke' - The best Baptisia

Image
Try  planting  Baptisia 'Purple Smoke'.  And pair it with Baptisia Cherries Jubilee. A deer resistant, native, drought tolerant, purple, long lived perennial! Wow! Photo - Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden - Puple Smoke Baptisia and Carolina Moonlight Baptisia It is a hybrid of  B. australis  and  B. alba and is a vigorous grower.   Discovered by Rob Gardener of the North Carolina Botanical Gardens, it has charcoal-gray stems and is purple.   Baptisia is a native perennial that has a long taproot, loves sunny sites with lean or poor soil. Average to dry soil is best.  Its deep tap root allows it to survive long dry periods, making it a challenge to move once it is established.  Purple Smoke from Bluestone Perennials The flowers resemble lupines and are smoky violet. Numerous flowers open first at the base of the flower stalk in May and ascend upwards, topping out at 4.5' tall. It has fine textured, blue-green foliage.  The flowe
Read more

No-Fail Tips for Turning Hydrangeas Blue!

Image
(photographer - unknown) Everyone wants Blue Hydrangeas.  The rarity of naturally blue flowers is an irresistible draw to gardeners.  How to Turn Your Hydrangeas Blue?  Here are a few tips from Proven Winners: Nikko Blue Hydrangea from Missouri Botanical garden 1. Be sure you’re working with the right kind of hydrangea.  You must have a Hydrangea macrophylla or H. serrata to have pink or blue flowers.  (photographer -unknown) 2. Aluminum availability determines flower color. The availability of aluminum makes the flowers turn blue. Without aluminum the blooms will be pink.  Soil pH must be low or acid (5.2-5.5) for the plant to absorb the aluminum. from nely.bluehortensia blogspot.com 3. Color changes need time to take effect.  Consistent treatment is necessary to  turn your hydrangeas blue:  Plant your hydrangeas in a phosphorous-free medium, and use a phosphorus-free fertilizer with lots of potassium (i.e. 25-5-30). PHOTO BY DEBOR
Read more

Repurposed and Recycled - Creative Ideas for Garden Design

Image
Nothing like piano keys to liven up a garden space....(above photo from Stone Art Blog) Recycling can be many things to many people... or, in other words,   " One man's trash is another's man treasure" from Stone Art Blog This piano was placed here in the garden. Here is what Sunny Wieler of Stone Art Blog wrote about this: "Besides being a passionate gardener, my dad is also a passionate piano player, so a few years back we got him a new piano for his birthday. So the old piano spent a while in the shed before he had the great idea to put it out in the garden..." Little did Sunny's dad know that he was at the forefront of the conceptual art movement:...they would say something like this is a testament to the natural decomposing processes, a statement of the fragility of life, the impermanence of existence... his dad would say, 'Hey, why not put it in the garden?" photos of broken concrete from Bourget Bros web
Read more

The Magnificent Purslane - Edible Landscaping at its best!

Image
What was one of Mahatma Gandhi's favorite foods?  and what did Henry Thoreau eat while residing at Walden Pond?  PURSLANE . Purslane, long considered an obnoxious weed in the U.S., is, in fact, full of vitamins, minerals and fatty acids!  And now this overlooked gem - considered 'one of the most nutritious greens in the world' -  is receiving the attention it is due. Usha Palaniswamy of the Department of Plant Science, University of Connecticut, reports that, "Purslane is receiving much attention for cultivation by the United States Department of Agriculture as part of their effort to bring about a modification in the western diet with increased intake of fresh fruits and vegetables." Purslane contains a high concentration of alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), one of the highly sought-after Omega-3 fatty acids. It has several times the concentration of ALA than is found in spinach.  So throw away those fish oil capsules and grow your own Omega-3 fatty acids! It
Read more

My one day Class Wednesday April 16 in NY - Jan Johnsen

Image
I am teaching a one day class on Wednesday April 16 at the NY Botanical Garden  It is a fun, eye opening and fun class!            (class size is limited.) I  share my insights into landscape design and how to use various cultural and ancient traditions in a garden. I discuss how to use the compelling duality of Yin and Yang in a setting, explain how each of the four cardinal directions (north, south, east, west) affects us differently, which proportions create a more harmonious setting.  I also show how to place rocks in the landscape according to the Japanese understanding. Everyone loves this. and of course, I discuss Color and its effects on our wellbeing... I show 2 beautiful powerpoint to illustrate my talk..  Handouts reinforce the information I provide. Here is what students have written: No wonder you were instructor of the year! Your talk was delightful, Jan. You gave us all a thoughtful, colorful start to planting season. I have some great
Read more