Thank you for the invitation for eBird garden for birds. I do a checklist every morning. I received a grant to remove turf and replace with native plants for birds two years ago, and I haven’t looked back. (Tracking birds was a requirement of the grant fulfillment.) We continue to fill in with additional native shrubs and forbs especially. It has given us a great deal of joy. I was so pleased when Cornell launched this program, and I look forward to participating.
So glad you're joining the eBirds project, Kristine. And what a wonderful project you've got going in your yard. So glad--but not surprised:)--it brings you joy.
The entryway looks so much better. Love the shutters on the side and the bright orange. Inspiring me to improve my own, though my storm door has to stay for the cats (and the Wisconsin bugs).
I do love your entry's before and after transformation. I ended up removing a lot of pollinator flowers from my front walkway because what do you do with the empty beds in the spring before the flowers emerge? Empty beds don't look appealing as you walk to the front door. And then potentially scorched flowers during drought periods at the end of the summer are also unattractive for months. And what is there to do for accessibility when I still want my somewhat unsteady 90-year-old mother to be able to walk into the house?
Great points, Michelle. Our secret is we often travel in spring when the forbs are growing in. I agree evergreen balls and other shrubs along the walkway may be necessary for the look you want. Personally, I like the look of the stalks and seedheads. (For Piet Oudolf's list of native flowers that "look good dead," see https://www.designyourwild.com/p/how-to-create-a-gorgeous-piet-oudolf-winter-garden) And your mom does deserve a rail! Hopefully one not as flimsy and rickety as the one we inherited. Thanks for commenting!
I loved reading this. How others see our home is a very different angle from how we experience arriving at it.
Most design advice is organized around the gaze of a stranger. Yours starts from the body of the person walking in. It's an entirely different and essential design philosophy. And I think it applies to far more than front gardens. I took out overgrown shrubs at my place in Portugal for the same reason: they were blocking the view, darkening the room. Once they were gone, our whole relationship between inside and outside changed. And I felt the space and my mind, could finally breathe.
Your point about native entry gardens and the bird species data is the kind of evidence that makes the case without needing a lecture. Change the conditions, and life shows up. It's that straightforward 💚.
As for getting your hands dirty, there's a great book, Never Home Alone, that talks about microbes, their benefits, and their presence in all walks of life. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KPLHYJZ
Dunn talks about how the good microbes in your shower heads kill the bad pathogens, how native plants help prevent asthma, and a bunch of other goodies. Each chapter covers a distinct topic, so you can treat it as a series of separate essays that don't need to be read all at once. Highly recommended.
Thank you for that recommendation, Laura. The Amazon description says we share our homes with 200,000 species! I forward to reading or listening to it.
Glad to know I am not the only one who doesn’t like foundation shrubs! My front entrance is similar to yours - native plants and herbaceous perennials. The only problem: it lacks umph in the winter. I probably need to work some evergreens in somewhere.
Newbie question. What do you mean by not removing the stump? Won’t the foundation evergreens (yews) come back? And how does one plant other plants in the same spot with stump where there are likely deep roots? Ty
Good question, Angie. Some plants will sprout from the stump, but if you keep cutting the sprouts, they will eventually stop, because they need to photosynthesize to live. The cedars I cut down did not sprout. The exotic azaleas in Florida did, and I'm considering letting some of them grow and keeping them trimmed. You can't plant in the same spot, but you can install plants around the stump that will hide it as they grow in. You may have to start with small plants (e.g., plugs or one gallon) that you can wedge among the large old roots; you can cut the smaller ones. The stump will rot and its roots will provide the soil with valuable organic matter and microbes.
A reader emailed me: FYI Looks like inkberry has a high flammability rating so I probably wouldn't put it too close to the house. It does generally look like a good native alternative shrub though.
The source she quotes recommends a distance of 30" from any flammable structures (e.g., wood siding, fences). Phew, my evergreen balls just about make it.
Thank you for the invitation for eBird garden for birds. I do a checklist every morning. I received a grant to remove turf and replace with native plants for birds two years ago, and I haven’t looked back. (Tracking birds was a requirement of the grant fulfillment.) We continue to fill in with additional native shrubs and forbs especially. It has given us a great deal of joy. I was so pleased when Cornell launched this program, and I look forward to participating.
So glad you're joining the eBirds project, Kristine. And what a wonderful project you've got going in your yard. So glad--but not surprised:)--it brings you joy.
The entryway looks so much better. Love the shutters on the side and the bright orange. Inspiring me to improve my own, though my storm door has to stay for the cats (and the Wisconsin bugs).
Thank you! ❤️
I do love your entry's before and after transformation. I ended up removing a lot of pollinator flowers from my front walkway because what do you do with the empty beds in the spring before the flowers emerge? Empty beds don't look appealing as you walk to the front door. And then potentially scorched flowers during drought periods at the end of the summer are also unattractive for months. And what is there to do for accessibility when I still want my somewhat unsteady 90-year-old mother to be able to walk into the house?
Great points, Michelle. Our secret is we often travel in spring when the forbs are growing in. I agree evergreen balls and other shrubs along the walkway may be necessary for the look you want. Personally, I like the look of the stalks and seedheads. (For Piet Oudolf's list of native flowers that "look good dead," see https://www.designyourwild.com/p/how-to-create-a-gorgeous-piet-oudolf-winter-garden) And your mom does deserve a rail! Hopefully one not as flimsy and rickety as the one we inherited. Thanks for commenting!
I loved reading this. How others see our home is a very different angle from how we experience arriving at it.
Most design advice is organized around the gaze of a stranger. Yours starts from the body of the person walking in. It's an entirely different and essential design philosophy. And I think it applies to far more than front gardens. I took out overgrown shrubs at my place in Portugal for the same reason: they were blocking the view, darkening the room. Once they were gone, our whole relationship between inside and outside changed. And I felt the space and my mind, could finally breathe.
Your point about native entry gardens and the bird species data is the kind of evidence that makes the case without needing a lecture. Change the conditions, and life shows up. It's that straightforward 💚.
Exactly!!! You get it, Alexandra :)
As for getting your hands dirty, there's a great book, Never Home Alone, that talks about microbes, their benefits, and their presence in all walks of life. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KPLHYJZ
Dunn talks about how the good microbes in your shower heads kill the bad pathogens, how native plants help prevent asthma, and a bunch of other goodies. Each chapter covers a distinct topic, so you can treat it as a series of separate essays that don't need to be read all at once. Highly recommended.
Thank you for that recommendation, Laura. The Amazon description says we share our homes with 200,000 species! I forward to reading or listening to it.
Glad to know I am not the only one who doesn’t like foundation shrubs! My front entrance is similar to yours - native plants and herbaceous perennials. The only problem: it lacks umph in the winter. I probably need to work some evergreens in somewhere.
Sounds lovely, but you can probably use some balls ;) evergreen, I mean
100% 😂
Newbie question. What do you mean by not removing the stump? Won’t the foundation evergreens (yews) come back? And how does one plant other plants in the same spot with stump where there are likely deep roots? Ty
Good question, Angie. Some plants will sprout from the stump, but if you keep cutting the sprouts, they will eventually stop, because they need to photosynthesize to live. The cedars I cut down did not sprout. The exotic azaleas in Florida did, and I'm considering letting some of them grow and keeping them trimmed. You can't plant in the same spot, but you can install plants around the stump that will hide it as they grow in. You may have to start with small plants (e.g., plugs or one gallon) that you can wedge among the large old roots; you can cut the smaller ones. The stump will rot and its roots will provide the soil with valuable organic matter and microbes.
A reader emailed me: FYI Looks like inkberry has a high flammability rating so I probably wouldn't put it too close to the house. It does generally look like a good native alternative shrub though.
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/ilex-glabra/
The source she quotes recommends a distance of 30" from any flammable structures (e.g., wood siding, fences). Phew, my evergreen balls just about make it.