In a front yard setting where more of a landscape look is desired (vs. the back yard garden of a plant collector), I would take out at least a third of the plants. But planting density aside, my purpose in posting is to allow people to see the approach I've taken and how the plants behave, because what we are all after in a narrow bed, irrespective of our taste, is plants that have the form and the behaviour that will fit the space.

I do have a fair bit of spillage at foot to knee level, but the plants that will grow taller are all thin and grow upright, and will stay against the fence of their own will or can easily be kept that way with pruning.

I use hardscape, especially containers placed in the beds, for several purposes. One is to add immediate height while most of the plants are small. Another is to just add bones to the mass of foliage, and besides, I just like pots. Finally, as part of this bed is at the foundation of the neighbour's house, I don't want to push my luck by putting too many trees in the ground. Some of these trees will likely have to be culled when they outgrow the pots, as I doubt I can find homes for them all. The pots do make watering more complicated.

Early June or so:

July, the long view down the yard (burgundy pot is just in transit):

Plant portrait:

Backstory and plants:
I've been struggling with this particular bed for 16 years. It's 21 inches wide along the fence, and then widens to 32 inches where my neighbour's house wall forms the fence (it's an old, odd neighbourhood), and it's something like 40 feet long. It faces west, so gets sun from noon, remaining more shaded by trees further down the yard.

I initially just planted what I liked, or what I had. This included Lavatera 'Barnsley', Cornus alba, Akebia quinata, a rampant species clematis, tomatoes, and other things that I'm happiest to have forgotten. If these plants had grown upwards, they might have been fine. But my experience here and along other fences and walls was that deciduous shrubs will grow away from the wall towards the light, leaning and reaching insatiably for the sun - even against a south-facing wall, and even when sun is coming over the fence for part of the day. It drove me nuts, and my husband, who rolls a motorcycle down this path from time to time, much more so. I kept pulling out the biggest disasters, and pruned and tied like mad, but the overall problem persisted. I couldn't find anything that would leave us shoulder room.

The day I thought of conifers for this space was like being released from torture (I had only one conifer to begin with, a Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Boulevard' that is now almost too big to be next to the neighbour's foundation but still barely overhangs the bed. It has been pruned a bit, and will have to come out soon). I began to collect conifer cultivars that were dwarf, and especially narrow ones. Some of the plants will grow bigger than I want, but are amenable to pruning or can be replaced when they get too big. Selections here include Juniper 'Wichita Blue,' a gold Chamaecyparis whose name I can't recall, Cupressus sempervirens, Picea abies 'Frohburg," Thujopsis something or other, and a Chamaecyparis 'Wissel's Saguaro' that is still so small that it is sheltered by a fern. I have several other narrow conifers that would work here, but as they are all columns they would have looked odd marching down the fence - I looked for a variety of forms as well as of foliage. (eg columnar Taxus and Cephalotaxus, and Thuja 'DeGroot's Spire' - I have other narrow beds for them!).

Since I also developed a mania for Rhododendrons at about that time, I eventually expanded to include evergreens of various sorts, all of which are more amenable to growing upright, simply against gravity, than is deciduous shrubbery (or perennials for that matter). Rhodos seem to lean a bit, but to a manageable extent, and you can manage their shape with pruning. Another plant in the mix is an Osmanthus (can't remember at the moment which one), which is similar to Ilex.

There is still deciduous material, like the one Japanese maple and a Ribes and all the perennials low down, and one reason it looks pretty disastrous at the moment is that some of the evergreens are still only about the height of a hosta. But they will continue their controlled upright growth, which I'll amend with judicious pruning and tying in where necessary, and will eventually form a varied green tapestry against the fence.

Sorry the photos don't cover everything mentioned.

KarinL

PS: see those paving stones with the grass trying to grow between them? Don't ever do that, it's twisted ankle city.

It appears that to avoid being too dull, the conifers need to be special ones and not the run-of-the-mill garden center choices for the most part. I did scan a few of the threads on the conifer forum -and got a chuckle out of the 'buns on a stick' comments on one of them! If you ever are in this area, you should check out Vineland Nurseries in Beamsville. They specialize in dwarf evergreens, Japanese maples, rhododendrons, and rare and unusual plants. It's where I got my 'Waterfall' Japanese maple a couple of years ago and a 'Butterfly' Japanese maple this spring. I actually thought of you when I was there in May when I saw this plant:

I have no idea what its name is or how big it will grow but, based on the comments you've made here in the past, I figured it might be something you'd like! The picture didn't do it justice. The new growth was almost pure white and the older stuff was very blue.

From you comments above, it sounds like even a dwarf evergreen garden will eventually outgrow the space. One of the drawbacks to many coniferous evergreens is that you can't rejuvenate them by pruning or cutting back. One of the things that gets mentioned from time to time but I don't think is absorbed by a lot of people is that it is quite acceptable - in my opinion at least - to plant something that you know will outgrow its space if you are prepared to later remove it or extensively rejuvenate it if it is a type that you can do that to. I think too many people are reluctant to remove things - especially woody things - if they're healthy but just too big for the space.

Great examples of narrow beds. I have one I am going to try to photograph tomorrow to add to this discussion - if i remember :)

Woody, you're right, that is just the kind of plant that I like. As both you and Catkim noticed, it is the interplay of foliage that I garden for. So I do use "garden variety" plants but I always plant close and plan for layers of foliage. It is true that conifers can't be rejuvenation-pruned, but if you keep them pruned to within boundaries from the outset, they can stay functional for many years - hedges being the prime example! The point, I think, is one that applies to growing all woody plants - you have to have a plan for them and pretty ruthlessly enforce it, because if you don't, they'll follow their own plan, which may not suit your needs at all (and with a fence in the picture, their plan often has them following the sun). Your Rodgersia bed, Woody, is an example of the serendipity of a plant whose plan happens to meet your needs perfectly. It does look great, and that Euonymus obviously either grows nicely upright or is well trained. That's what "right plant, right place" is all about.

Some conifers, incidentally, resent having their foliage shaded out by other plants, and are not as co-operative of my gardening style as others. Spruces, for example, which I think that one you posted is, are like that.

By the way Holley, the main reason our spaced pavers don't work is that we didn't fill the gaps with enough dirt before planting grass, and honestly, I think the soil is getting gradually washed away too. But even if you can keep the surfaces dead even, there are limitations - chair legs have to be carefully placed, and if you put something like a pot on the patio across a gap and then move it, there goes the grass and here come the weeds. So you may be able to make it work... I can't! Also, ours happens to be where we walk a lot, it's a defacto pathway. Perhaps on a destination patio where you weren't always charging across it wouldn't matter so much. My mistakes needn't be a complete dissuasion; perhaps they can help you to get it right.

As for removing plants when they've outgrown their space, I couldn't more heartily agree that it's hard and I have a lot of trouble doing it. Sometimes you can move things around, or find new homes for them. But we've seen overgrown landscape disasters so often that we do, I think, realize that no installation in a yard is ever permanent - if nothing else, the next homeowner will often tear out plants treasured by the resident before. It helps when one of the plants is actively bullying others, you feel like a hero for rescuing the underdog :-)

OK, drtygrl, your turn!

KarinL

This is a 24 in wide bed mainly designed to soften this drainage area. It was strange project because the gravel area was mandated by the town when the red building was built. Although you can't tell from the picture this is the side of the building that faces the road and is the main approach to enter and park. The owners wanted to soften the appearance of all the gravel, boulders and parking.

Surprisingly, it has turned out to be a really nice part of the oveall landscape of this building complex.

I think in a narrow bed either a repeating pattern or a massing of elements is key to making it work. It is interesting that in Karin's bed the large leaves of the Rhodies becomes the repeating element that pulls it all together.

Anyone else have an example?

Drtygrl, you may be right about having repetition and that the Rhodos are it in my case. It certainly works in your bed - and for me the hostas are what the eye moves to and stops at. And it may not even be necessary for it to be the same hosta but I must say it makes a calmer impression when it is. I often wish I could make enough of a commitment to a single plant to use it more than once, but the drive for variety is the plant collector's demon.

What I find intriguing in what you've done is the strip of gravel at the wall, which forces you to plant out further, thus giving the plants a more even lighting situation and allowing them to grow more as if in the open. Nice work!

KarinL

Bit of background:

• Suburban townhouse complex, built in 1983/84. Atypical for the time period in that the units (actually duplexes) are arranged around parking courtyards vs. the traditional rowhouse design.
• Owners are allowed to sign off on and maintain their own beds. There are some gardeners here and their places are easily identifiable. Fortunately, we all seem to live within certain clusters, which is beneficial in many respects. ;-)
• Some units still have their original overgrown foundation plantings. Typical 'builder's special' planting beds in many locations such as the ever popular 2' deep planting bed that runs between the garage and front walk.
• Over the years, mow and blow companies have come and gone. However, one thing never changes with these guys - the love of the 'amorphous blob' pruning technique. Looks particularly striking on 25 year old ilex crenatas, arbs, and pyracanthas. ;-)

Other limitations:

• No attaching (drilling) anything to the exterior siding, decks, or porches.
• Besides the usual concerns about utilities, there is also the underground drainage system and the irrigation system.

Now for the bed I want to share with you. This one is a little bit narrower than what's been discussed so far. It's 11" deep (and 4" of that is occupied by a PVC drainage pipe from the downspouts, whoopee!), and approximately 18' long. I refer to this area as my "alley bed", since the space actually is an alley that leads to my neighbor's front door. Here are the before shots:

Doesn't that just scream 'Welcome'? It's the attack of the limbed up junipers! Run! ;-)

Fortunately, if you look to the right side of the alley, you will notice that my neighbor actually did some research before he planted his side of this bed 18 years ago. Actual dwarf conifers! There are 3 of them along his side of the alley.

This made my design process easier since it broadened my plant palette as the need for year round interest was already filled. Here's the 'after' photo sequence.

Mid July 2008, 3 weeks after planting:

Mid October 2008. Perennials are filling in nicely. Clearly, the black eyed susan vine was a huge 'yuk', but it was a 'place holder' for the vertical space that year:

Mid July this year, astilbe and heuchera are doing their job well. Clematis 'Miss Bateman' isn't showing on the trellis since they were planted in June:

As for the plant list and logic to the design, here's a brief synopsis:

• Chamaecyparis obtusa 'Compacta' - I'm fond of Hinokis in general (I blame my mom), and this was a great choice to bring some repetition of my neighbor's shrub selection onto my side of the bed, as well as bring in some much needed height. Yes, it's a little too close to my foundation, but a pre-existing pipe for the irrigation system meant I had to move it closer to the house than I wanted. This is actually an area of the bed that is still 'open' to the parking court, so it has a nice impact here. Plus that basement window is where my washer and dryer are located, and it makes me smile on laundry day. ;-)

• Trellis - 2 sections, recycled from my deck area. My goal was to add height/human scale to the area. The placement is perhaps a bit too contrived, but this space isn't exactly flexible, either. Sometimes, the most obvious design choice can be the right one. As for my selection on 'Miss Bateman' for this area, that remains to be seen. At the very least, clematis aren't terribly destructive vines, and the seed heads will add winter interest.

• Astilbe x ardendsii 'Fanal' and Astilbe japonica 'Rheinland' - 3 each. Astilbes tend to do well here, and my reasoning was to add 'tidy' height to mask the foundation during the growing season. The foliage is clean, and I leave the spent blooms for interest. Given our Pacific Northwest growing season here this year, 'Fanal' went from 'sleep' to 'leap', 'Rheinland' was a little more contained. More like a toddler who has mastered walking but isn't quite sure about this whole concept of running. ;-)

• Heuchera 'Amethyst Myst' - I'll admit it, I'm a fan of heuchera in general. Nice rounded form, foliage that keeps going (have a nice flush of new leaves coming in now), and they don't go fully dormant for me in this location since it's protected. Provides a nice contrast with the astilbes. Several repeated throughout the bed to add texture variation and repetition of a rounded form to the taller plants.

• Japanese Painted Ferns (2) - Don't have the botanical name committed to memory, and I'm not looking in up. :-P Why are they here? Because I liked them. First time growing them. I may live to regret this impulse buy, but so far, so good.

And of course, there are a couple of daffodil bulbs tucked in here and there for early spring cheer. ;-)

Next year will be the interesting turning point. The clematis now have their 'feet in the ground' as they've put out new growth since these photos were taken. The astilbes, heucheras, and ferns will be in their 'leap' year - for all I know this well laid plan could become an unholy, overgrown mess. But as pointed out upthread, gardening in general is a process of constant editing. In smaller beds, the editing may just be a bit more frequent than normal. ;-)

Urban Farming at the Michigan State Fair

We did our yearly caravan to the Michigan State Fair over the weekend. Myself, my husband, the four kids, my mother-in-law, and my brother-in-law go every year together, and Sunday could not have been a more perfect day. It was in the mid 60’s, partly sunny, and just generally beautiful outside.

While my favorite things have traditionally been the livestock and the agricultural exhibits, this year I was enthralled by the Great Lakes Gardens, an example of urban farming installed right on the Michigan State Fairgrounds. It was the creation of Ryan Rowinski, who is a graduate of the Michigan State soil science program, and donated his time, experience, and obvious green thumb to the Fair this year.

I had read about the garden in the Detroit News, so I was interested in seeing it, but I have to admit that the husband and I weren’t hoping for much. We already HAVE an urban garden, how different could this one be?

Well.

Great Lakes Gardens Urban Farm

Great Lakes Gardens Urban Farm

I could have spent the entire day in the Great Lakes Gardens. The plants looked fabulous, I loved the way Rowinski laid the garden out, mixing large borders of corn with small, narrow beds for squashes, and a circular bed for pole beans. What I loved about the garden was that it was obviously bountiful, it was beautiful, and it wasn’t pretending to be anything else. This was a working urban farm, and it didn’t need any "prettying up" or ornamentation. In fact, as of last week, the plot, which was installed eight weeks ago, has yielded over 300 pounds of produce, with another three to four hundred pounds expected in the next couple weeks.

A quick survey of the farm showed that it was growing just about everything: corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, peppers, eggplant, wheat, lettuces, brussels sprouts, sunflowers, and herbs all had a home there. I did notice that none of the corn had been demolished by squirrels, though Rowinski told the "Grosse Pointe News" that bunnies have been a bit of a problem.

Ideas I’m Going to Copy

There are three things Rowinski did that I’m totally ripping off next year. The first was this awesome cucumber tunnel trellis:

Emily and Sarah under the cucumber arch.

Emily and Sarah under the cucumber arch.

The second is the way Rowinski supported some of his pole beans. He calls this type of staking "Detroit-style" (you would find rebar in many of the vacant lots in the city — may as well use it!)

Love these bean supports.

Love these bean supports.

The third thing I’m going to copy is Rowinski’s use of narrow beds. This is something that would definitely benefit those of us with small, irregular, or partly shady lots who are always saying "just one more bed!" I have a few areas I am already planning to use narrow beds in. I don’t have a photo of it, but there were several long, twelve to eighteen inch wide, beds along the edges of the garden. A simple idea, but a very useful one.

I was totally inspired by this urban farm, and more determined to increase our growing space next year. As a side note, due to funding issues, this was the last year for the Michigan State Fair. At 161 years old, our Fair was the oldest in the United States. We signed petitions at the Fair to save it, and I really hoped something would be worked out. But, Michigan Public Radio reported this morning that the last minute reprieve so many of us had hoped for hasn’t happened. It’s over. I hate to think that my youngest kids will never have the experience of feeding goats and alpacas, seeing giant pumpkins, or watching the pig races at the State Fair. This is a huge loss to so many families, and to our entire state.

This entry was posted on Friday, September 4th, 2009 at 12:19 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
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Organic guy says:
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September 9, 2009 at 7:10 pm

I agree. I also attended the state fair this year and was completely amazed. I hope it is not our last fair. I consider myself a knowledgeable grower but could not believe the amount of knowledge I was able to obtain from the creator Ryan Rowinski, he is a graduate of Michigan State University crop and soil science program. He had such simplistic but innovative techniques. This young man broke down details of our food sources and soil components that made my mind spin. I found some youtube videos of the garden this morning. I hope the group will enjoy. Its amazing what could be done in the city of Detroit, if not for all the bureaucracy. All of the city’s vacant and blighted land could be so productive. Well…good day to all! I have some weeds to pick. youtube video links below.

part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH3TVOS7QT4

part 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtix0E_jGcw

part 3:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIS19BFKDo8

Urban Farming at the Michigan State Fair

We did our yearly caravan to the Michigan State Fair over the weekend. Myself, my husband, the four kids, my mother-in-law, and my brother-in-law go every year together, and Sunday could not have been a more perfect day. It was in the mid 60’s, partly sunny, and just generally beautiful outside.

While my favorite things have traditionally been the livestock and the agricultural exhibits, this year I was enthralled by the Great Lakes Gardens, an example of urban farming installed right on the Michigan State Fairgrounds. It was the creation of Ryan Rowinski, who is a graduate of the Michigan State soil science program, and donated his time, experience, and obvious green thumb to the Fair this year.

I had read about the garden in the Detroit News, so I was interested in seeing it, but I have to admit that the husband and I weren’t hoping for much. We already HAVE an urban garden, how different could this one be?

Well.

Great Lakes Gardens Urban Farm

I could have spent the entire day in the Great Lakes Gardens. The plants looked fabulous, I loved the way Rowinski laid the garden out, mixing large borders of corn with small, narrow beds for squashes, and a circular bed for pole beans. What I loved about the garden was that it was obviously bountiful, it was beautiful, and it wasn’t pretending to be anything else. This was a working urban farm, and it didn’t need any "prettying up" or ornamentation. In fact, as of last week, the plot, which was installed eight weeks ago, has yielded over 300 pounds of produce, with another three to four hundred pounds expected in the next couple weeks.

A quick survey of the farm showed that it was growing just about everything: corn, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, peppers, eggplant, wheat, lettuces, brussels sprouts, sunflowers, and herbs all had a home there. I did notice that none of the corn had been demolished by squirrels, though Rowinski told the "Grosse Pointe News" that bunnies have been a bit of a problem.

Ideas I’m Going to Copy

There are three things Rowinski did that I’m totally ripping off next year. The first was this awesome cucumber tunnel trellis:

Emily and Sarah under the cucumber arch.

The second is the way Rowinski supported some of his pole beans. He calls this type of staking "Detroit-style" (you would find rebar in many of the vacant lots in the city — may as well use it!)

Love these bean supports.

The third thing I’m going to copy is Rowinski’s use of narrow beds. This is something that would definitely benefit those of us with small, irregular, or partly shady lots who are always saying "just one more bed!" I have a few areas I am already planning to use narrow beds in. I don’t have a photo of it, but there were several long, twelve to eighteen inch wide, beds along the edges of the garden. A simple idea, but a very useful one.

I was totally inspired by this urban farm, and more determined to increase our growing space next year. As a side note, due to funding issues, this was the last year for the Michigan State Fair. At 161 years old, our Fair was the oldest in the United States. We signed petitions at the Fair to save it, and I really hoped something would be worked out. But, Michigan Public Radio reported this morning that the last minute reprieve so many of us had hoped for hasn’t happened. It’s over. I hate to think that my youngest kids will never have the experience of feeding goats and alpacas, seeing giant pumpkins, or watching the pig races at the State Fair. This is a huge loss to so many families, and to our entire state.

This entry was posted on Friday, September 4th, 2009 at
part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IH3TVOS7QT4

part 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtix0E_jGcw

part 3:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIS19BFKDo8

I hope the plants continue to perform as planned.

KarinL