Rethinking the Townhouse Garden

There’s no denying that townhouse communities are popping up like weeds across the land. Townhouses are popular and often more affordable than single family homes, and with a bit of horticultural slight of hand, they can provide almost as many satisfying garden options as larger yards.

The trick to mastering these smaller, confined landscape areas is to realize the inherent limitations of your site, and to create the illusion of more space.

First of all, remember that this is not a normal landscaping project. Your 500 to 1,000 square foot patch of earth, possibly with neighbors on each side, is not going to accommodate a towering oak. In fact, large trees can make small spaces seem even smaller.

That’s not to say that trees are not welcome in your miniature back-forty. In fact, smaller trees, or shrubs trained into tree-form, can and should provide visual anchors or structure for your overall design. Choose species which feature open “scaffolding,” as well as year-round appeal, such as serviceberry, flowering crabapple, fringe tree, redbud, or some of the exquisite Japanese maples, with their intricately fine-cut leaves and colorful foliage.

Espaliered trees can also become vital elements in a sunny yard encompassed by a tall fence. A host of fruit and ornamental species are available at area nurseries, already trained to grow vertically with formally-spaced branches stretching out across a flat surface. Instead of a dull expanse of fence, you could enjoy a living wall of tasty apples, pears, plums, and apricots, or colorful magnolias, hollies, junipers, and yews.

Of course, the goal is not merely to camouflage fences and fill in empty space. A townhouse garden should strive to appear larger and more varied than it really is. One of the most successful approaches is to divide the yard into several “garden rooms,” each with a unique character.

For example, plant a free-flowing hedge along the outside edge of a patio using ornamental grasses. Select up to several species of the taller grasses to provide variety in color and texture. Plant the grasses in odd-numbered clumps, all of the same species, and, for additional color and contrast, surround each grouping with masses of colorful perennials, such as daylilies, black-eyed susans, joe-pye weed, and coneflowers.

These plantings will physically and visually separate your patio or outdoor living area from the rest of the garden, and cleverly tease the eye into thinking that the yard goes on quite a bit further. Moreover, these graceful grasses, gently tossed by a breeze, also provide a delightful sense of motion, which will make your landscape seem larger.

A second-story deck need not serve as merely a viewing platform. Along the outer edge place one of more trellises in or against decorative containers or tubs. These structures can then sport a dazzling collection of clematis or other ornamental climbers. Properly arranged, these vertical elements can similarly separate your deck from the rest of your garden, providing a colorful frame for gazing outward, while also adding a welcome bit of privacy from the neighbors.

And don’t forget that your deck structure itself can be visually softened by training colorful climbers and vines against the otherwise stark supporting posts and railings of a second-story deck.

Beyond the deck and patio, you can further separate your yard into unique areas with the addition of structures such as pergolas, garden arches, and arbors. Any of these can provide living windows to the rest of your garden, an incomplete glimpse of the whole, which implies mystery and inspires curiosity.

In smaller spaces, traditional wooden gazebos might seem well out of place and scale, but townhouse gardeners can turn to a number of recently available metal and wrought-iron gazebos, which are little more than attractive frameworks onto which perennial or annual vines can be trained. Quickly and inexpensively, another garden room is created, as is a secondary destination for entertaining or relaxing. Just add a bistro table, chairs, and bottle of wine, and you might forsake your deck altogether.

Small spaces have other advantages for gardeners on a budget. Ponds and other water features can frequently cost a great deal in both money and maintenance responsibilities. Yet for a townhouse garden, one can easily manage a smaller, prefabricated pond, pre-planted whiskey barrel wetland, or solar-powered fountain.

Even a single Victorian gazing ball, faux-gothic concrete statue, or gleaming copper birdbath can become a unique and dramatic centerpiece in your garden. Exercise restraint, however, and employ these elements sparingly. In a small space, too many “artistic” elements can quickly become clutter.

The divisions you create in your yard using trees, planting areas, and foliage-draped structures should be joined together with a free-flowing pathway meandering around the plantings and through structures and other garden rooms. Strive to create a route wherein each turn will reveal a new and interesting view. Avoid straight paths which will unfortunately create an impression of cells, rather than the illusion of an unfolding series of gardens.

And don’t forget about the plants! Small space gardening requires more planning and care in plant selection. If your townhouse or a neighboring fence casts a deep shadow over your garden, you will need to think of plants best suited for shade.

Select plants with extended bloom periods, and interweave plants with varied flowering periods so that no bed is ever without interesting color or texture. Also use layered plantings, such as placing spring bulbs under later-blooming perennials.

Add distinctive wrought-iron hanging baskets and richly glazed containers overflowing with annuals to add spots of color to drab areas. Containers also allow you to use exotic tropical plants and tender perennials outdoors during warmer weather; just bring them inside before late season frosts.

Clearly, the challenges posed by a townhouse lot are offset by using the site creatively. For most homeowners, a yard is just a yard. For townhouse gardeners, it’s an opportunity to create a world (or worlds) in miniature, with vine-covered entertaining spaces, a pleasant path toward a gurgling fountain, a kitchen garden thriving beneath an espaliered apple tree. In reality, the only limiting thing about a townhouse garden is the imagination.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Time for a Water-Wise Landscape

During the hottest summer months, our lawns and gardens face a number of environmental challenges which threaten their health and beauty. Wilting and discoloration of lawns and foliage is a common example, as are flowers dropping buds, or tomatoes succumbing to blossom-end rot. And yet these symptoms also herald additional complications, as voracious insect pests and fungal diseases find an easy prey in plants under stress. The root of the problem is soil moisture and whether plants are getting enough to drink during cloudless, 90 degree days.

The solution to dry soils and drought, however, is not simply to run a hose and run up a huge water bill. Watering is very often the most wasteful and expensive of solutions -- with improper watering or overwatering leading to even more short and long-term problems for the landscape. To keep your corner of the globe green, it is best to become water-wise.

Liquid Lawn Care

Lawns are the dominant part of most landscapes. Grass is easy to put in, especially over a large area, but keeping grass green and lush is another story. Lawns are notorious water hogs, with most doting homeowners applying much more water than a lawn really needs, often squandering as much as 100,000 gallons on a typical quarter-acre suburban lot. Fortunately, there are a number of simple water-wise practices that can actually improve the health of your lawn, while saving money, time, and tens of thousands of gallons of precious water.

Stop watering. Although it sounds like lawn care heresy, most grasses (except bluegrass) can safely be allowed to enter a period of dormancy during the driest part of the summer. In fact, dormancy is a natural mechanism to help grass survive drought and heat. Your lawn will recover with the return of rain and cooler temperatures.

Stop fertilizing. The worst possible time in the year to apply fertilizer is in the summer. That jolt of nutrient pushes grass plants to grow unsustainably, risking health and vigor, and interrupting root development when it is most needed. Wait until fall before even thinking about fertilizing.

Grasscycle. Let grass clippings remain on the lawn when you mow, and cut your grass no lower than 3 inches. Clippings are over 90 percent water, and, as they filter to the soil surface, they provide a temporary layer of mulch to conserve soil moisture; taller grass also shades the soil, reducing surface heat and evaporation.

Watering do's and don'ts. If you must water, do it right. Water only in the early morning, never during the day or in the evening; improper watering can lead to fungal diseases or scalded foliage. Do not water on windy days, as breezes only hasten evaporation. Do not water driveways, streets or sidewalks; in addition to wasting water, runoff entering stormdrains can elevate stream temperatures and harm or kill sensitive fish and other aquatic life.

Water lawns only when they need it, normally when foliage appears dull, bluish-grey, or when walking on grass leaves footprints. Avoid frequent and shallow waterings which can cause thatch and shallow, drought-sensitive roots. Lawns require about one inch of water, although no more than once a week. To measure, place a flat pan under the sprinkler until one inch of water has accumulated, then move to a new location. Ensure that soil is moistened to a depth of four to six inches by pushing a screwdriver into the ground as your indicator. Turn off your hose if water starts to spill onto paved areas; wait 30 minutes, and resume watering.

The Water-Wise Landscape

As lawns require about five times more water than other plants in the landscape, the best water-wise practice is to reduce the amount of space dedicated to turfgrass, while also improving the quality of the soil and its moisture-holding ability.

Eliminate the competition. Lawns often run right up to and under trees and shrubs. However, grass roots easily "steal" water from these other plants, while still struggling to survive in the shade. Instead of grass, substitute an organic mulch, such as wood chips, shredded leaves or leaf mold, or plant ground covers -- you can even combine the both options for a low-water, low-maintenance, and attractive planting area.

Expand planting beds. Increase privacy and landscape value by developing "planting islands" in your sea of grass. Plant trees and shrubs in spacious, sweeping beds, rather than individually. Existing trees and shrubs can also be linked together as planting islands by adding an additional tree or two and replacing the lawn area between them with mulch or ground covers. In sunnier spots, "mulch islands" can be established, utilizing ornamental grasses, showy perennials, and hardy native plants. Eventually, over a period of time, these individual "islands" can become the dominant landscape feature, with lawn areas now serving as easily-managed green lakes and open spaces among a more natural, graceful, and beautiful setting.

Mass plantings. Similar to planting islands for trees, it is best to mass plants together, rather than spreading them across a broad area. Massed plantings have a stronger visual impact than a row of annuals dotted in front of shrubbery. Moreover, by grouping plants together according to similar water needs, they can be cared for much more easily, and can more readily care for themselves. A thick, established group of plants will keep out weeds and will shade the soil around their root zones, thereby conserving precious moisture and reducing drastic changes in soil temperature.

Xeriscaping. Although xeriscaping (xeros = dry) originally related to landscaping in extremely dry climates, its principles, which include using water-efficient and drought-tolerant plants, fit well with our water-wise goals. For example, using regionally adapted plants, such as the growing variety of natives, ensures that the plant can handle this area's seasonal temperatures and rainfall, along with other environmental and soil conditions. But non-natives can also be used to add color and texture to the garden, especially those which are suited for dry, sunny locations, like many of the Mediterranean herbs: rosemary, thyme, etc. Generally speaking, silver-grey plants, such as Dusty Miller, Artemisia, Santolina, and so, feature foliage which reflect sunlight, thereby keeping the plant cool and reducing water loss. However, xeriscaping does not mean using only colorless plants, Yuccas and Prickly pear cactus -- it does mean using the right plant in the right place. See below.

Mulch, mulch, mulch. Mulching with organic materials is one of the easiest methods for conserving soil moisture and providing long-term soil improvement. Mulches can be placed on soil up to four inches deep, except over shallow-rooted plants like azaleas. After applying mulch, especially when using wood chips or materials which appears dry, it is advisable to water both mulch and plants thoroughly at first. Dry mulch might otherwise keep moisture from percolating into the soil. Woody mulches are best used around permanent plantings, like trees and shrubs, while finer textured mulches, such as untreated grass clippings, compost, shredded leaves and leaf mold, are preferable for tender plantings, such as annual and perennial flowers and vegetables.

Compost, aerating, topdressing. Improving soil quality will also improve its soil retention ability. Garden beds can be amended by adding compost, either by digging it in manually or rototilling it into the soil, which is best done in autumn or early spring. Existing beds can be improved by using compost as a mulch or sidedressing anytime of year. Aerating a lawn allows air to reach grass roots, helps microorganisms break down organic matter to feed the lawn naturally, and facilitates water penetration. Topdressing is the practice of applying compost to the surface of the lawn up to one-half inch deep, increasing the soil's organic content, enhancing earthworm activity, and serving as a mulch to protect shallow grassroots.

Becoming water-wise can be as simple as changing some everyday practices -- or as involved and comprehensive as changing the face of your landscape. Like most endeavors, your success depends upon a program which matches your interests, abilities, and available resources -- although the ultimate goal of the water-wise landscape is to safeguard our existing water resources, and to provide more time for your other interests.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Your Pathway to Fragrance

There is something special about pathways. Some lead directly to the welcome mat of our homes, while others lead to secluded patios and gardens. Pathways can extend an invitation to friends and guests or lead us away on new adventures. Unfortunately, most of the paths we typically design are sterile ribbons of concrete. However, with some alternate paving materials and a nose for fragrant ground covers, we can transform those lifeless, static pathways into a welcome treat for the senses.

To begin, we should avoid the whole notion of paving itself. Instead of treating our path like a public sidewalk, with rigid lines and precise curves, we ought to realize that we are creating a walkway, a place for strolling or occasional foot traffic. We will not need steel-reinforced concrete here. A more desirable path ought to become an extension of the garden or landscape. To create a much more natural impression, the path can be constructed with multicolored flat or rough-textured stepping stones, which will provide an air of rustic simplicity.

For heavily used paths, consider using mountain or Mojave flagstones, or bluestones, which are often available either tumbled or irregularly cut. Other options include granite cobblestones, precast cement pavers with open spaces at their center, or even bricks, with the bricks laid in a somewhat open and meandering pattern. All of the materials should be arranged to allow for openings between the actual "stepping stones," into which we will plant a variety of foot-friendly and aromatic ground covers.

Between and around our stepping-stones we can work some real horticultural magic. Forget about grass, gravel, and mulch! Our fragrant pathway will feature a living tapestry of herbs in shades of green, gold, white and silver, with a succession of blooms from pink and red to lilac and dazzling white. Best of all, our path will provide a haunting tapestry of rich aromas, each of which will add yet another sensual dimension to the garden. With each step you will discover that these natural perfumes can stir warm memories, invigorate the senses, and soothe the soul.

One of the most readily available ground-hugging herbs is Corsican mint (Mentha requienii), a tough, fast-spreading favorite whose tiny peppermint-scented leaves form a dense mat less than one inch high. Corsican mint can even send tiny shoots between the smallest cracks in a brick path, and will splash up against stepping-stones like waves from a bright green sea. Corsican mint produces Lilliputian white and purple flowers and reseeds rapidly each spring. You will almost have to stop yourself from rolling around on top of your walkway.

Another seductive ground cover is sometimes called lawn chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile 'Trenegue'), a non-flowering species similar to Roman chamomile, the daisy-like flowering chamomile sometimes used in teas, as is the unrelated German or sweet false chamomile (Matricaria recutita). Lawn chamomile seldom grows much taller than two inches and its soft fern-like, apple-scented leaves welcome light foot traffic. In fact, in Britain it is sometimes used to create an entire lawn (25 plants per square yard), perhaps a useful suggestion for townhouse owners who want a lush and fragrant green yard without mowing. However, this perennial chamomile sometimes requires a bit of patching after a couple of years, and might best be kept within a pathway setting. The plants may also be started from seed.

Without question, the most versatile of fragrant herbs for walkways and alternative lawns is thyme. Thyme is ideal for hot, sunny locations, although it can tolerate some degree of shade. There are also scores of different varieties, with new selections added every year. Best of all, you can easily establish an ever-changing tapestry effect by planting a dozen or more different varieties in your pathway or "thyme lawn" area, mixing them up, and allowing no more than about one foot between each plant. You will probably want to spend a little time planning your planting scheme to provide an even distribution of plants by foliar and flower color, avoiding keeping all of the silver-hued thymes in one area and the emerald greens in another. You should also be mindful of sequential blooming order. You do not want all of your flowers appearing in one part of the walkway in spring and another in the summer or fall. Select plants which will give you a wide range of blooming periods for year-round enjoyment.


Most garden centers will offer a couple different varieties of ground cover thymes, but for best effect you will probably need to visit a specialized herb nursery or consider the large number of Internet and mail order sources. Herb sellers will easily offer dozens of different varieties for your garden, both as grown plants and seed packets.

Here are some suggestions, all of which are lavishly scented and grow between two and three inches in height: Aureus 'Creeping Golden' thyme, offering bright gold-colored foliage; caraway thyme, with dark green, caraway-scented leaves; creeping lime thyme, combines a bright chartreuse color with a citrus aroma reminiscent of margaritas in mid-summer; creeping red thyme, with deep reddish purple flowers in spring; creeping white moss thyme, with delicate white flowers, creeping woolly thyme, with soft, fuzzy foliage inviting to bare toes and finger tips; lemon frost thyme, offering glossy green leaves and tiny white flowers between May and June; mountain thyme, which offers deep reddish-violet flowers; pink ripple thyme, with light green, lemon-scented foliage and an abundant mass of salmon-pink flowers; and silver thyme, a classic creeping thyme with silver-green leaves and cream-colored margins.

As is the case with all gardening, you may find that some species are not as hardy as others, and some of your plantings may die after an especially cold winter. Do not look on these losses as failures so much as opportunities. Once you get the "thyme bug" you will probably find yourself scouting around for new varieties to add to your scented kaleidoscope, and will welcome an opportunity to squeeze in yet another addition.

Finally, you may want to consider defining the edge of your pathway to set it off from a lawn or other garden area. Keeping within the fragrant theme, you might enjoy developing a mixed border using English lavenders, particularly the 'Hidcote' and 'Munstead' varieties, which have compact growth habits, and hug the ground at about 12 inches. Also, employ some of the larger mounding thymes, such as lime or variegated golden lemon thyme. Other border species could include silver mound artemesia (wormwood), which will add silver-grey accents, sweet woodruff (Galium odoratum), which offers emerald green herb used flavor May Wine, and honey-scented sweet alyssum, an annual whose profusion of white flowers make it worth replanting each year.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Going Native With Native Grasses

The introduction of ornamental grasses to the American landscape is one of the defining moments in modern garden design. These grasses, planted in clumps or large masses, recall elements of the nation's vanishing prairie, while adding sophistication and panache to even the most groomed garden.

Regrettably, many of the grasses frequently used, especially those with ostrich feather-like plumes or stylish zebra-stripes, are both exotic and invasive, especially when planted near open fields, and can pose serious problems for our local ecosystem. For a more habitat-friendly approach, gardeners can and should turn to the abundant inventory of native grasses which will provide the same elements of year-round color, texture, and graceful, swaying motion.

One of the most widely available and popularly used native grasses is big bluestem (Andropogon gerardi), or "turkey foot," affectionately dubbed "monarch of the prairie" by some horticultural boosters. Big bluestem was the dominant species of grass which formed our fabled tall grass prairies, as well as the sod used by homesteaders (sodbusters) and pioneers to build sod huts.

Sod dwellings don't show up very much in most parts of the country, but big bluestem does, both in habitat restoration plantings and in backyards, where they are frequently clumped in mulched planting beds or "grass islands" which decoratively float atop a trimmed lawn. Formal plantings also use these seemingly untamed specimens to dramatically frame a front entrance or serve as sentinels at the end of a driveway.

Big bluestem can reach up to ten feet in height and prefers full sun, although it is tolerant of partial shade and either moist heavy, or sandy, drier soils. Like most native grasses, it prefers being left alone, and fertilizing or unnecessary watering will simply lead to floppy growth. This is a tough plant, let it prove itself! The plant's common name comes honestly from its vertical height and the subtle blue tint of the stem. And while the leaves remain bluish-green during much of the year, autumn frosts help transform that foliage to a mellow bronze or copper shade which will last throughout the winter.

The plant's less common name originates with the three-fingered prongs or "rames" of the purplish-blue seed head, which resembles a turkey's foot, and which begin forming in late summer, and provide seed to a host of migratory and native songbirds through early winter.

A close cousin to big bluestem is little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), which shares many of its relation's best characteristics, although it is best planted in masses for best effect, especially considering the beauty of watching a whole miniature sea of grass swaying their silver seed heads in the breeze.

Also a sun lover, the fluffy, tufts of this species mature on a clump-forming plant destined to stay between two and three feet in height. Like most sod-forming grasses, little bluestem does most of its growing underground, sending roots eight feet deep, which makes it equally adaptable to periods of drought or flooding. These qualities make it ideal for erosion control and mower-free hillside stabilization. It is also salt-tolerant, which nominates it for use as en edging plant along sidewalks and curbs.

For gardeners looking for a mid-size grass, there are few more noteworthy than switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), a full sun plant that can adapt to partial shade and either moist or dry conditions. It is wonderfully useful as either a specimen plant, or in small, bush-like clusters, or even planted en masse. Maryland-based garden writer Carole Ottesen favorably compares these massed plantings to a field of wheat. Staying somewhat between three and eight feet tall, depending on soil conditions, the rich green foliage slowly takes on a buttery-cream complexion in fall.

Another attractive and adaptable option for yards with light to moderate shade is bottlebrush grass (Hystrix patula). This species is modest in most respects, averaging only two to five feet in height, and producing only moderately attractive, medium-green foliage, turning straw-colored in autumn. However, the bristly seed heads are quite remarkable, resembling by turns an actual bottlebrush or the long quills of a hedgehog, from which the genus name Hystrix (porcupine) is taken.

And while almost all grass seed heads make for wonderful dried or cut flower arrangements, bottlebrush flowers are incomparable when placed in a window for a striking bit of backlighting.

A close rival for flower arranging - and garden use - is northern sea oats, or river oats (Uniola latifolia), a low-growing, shade-tolerant species whose 30 inch height makes for an excellent ground cover or placed along a perennial boarder, where visitors can fully appreciate its drooping clusters of oat-shaped seeds and rusty-orange fall foliage.

In the same vein, broom sedge (Andropogon virginicus), another cousin of the bluestems, works well as a ground cover or for erosion control, with bluish-green clumps keeping to about 20 to 30 inches in height, with another foot or two more for its inflorescence. Like many of our favorite native grasses, autumn brings on a rich orange color, with seeds for meadow birds and the occasional migrant.

Clearly, the range and application of native grasses is limited only by the size of the garden bed or landscape, and its desired use. Taller and medium sized grasses can serve as hedges or screens, to hide unattractive fences or foundations, or more properly as a backdrop for other garden plantings. Typically, these individuals are best spaced two to three feet apart.

Medium to low-growing specimens often work best in larger groupings, planted one to two feet apart, and are used successfully as ground covers, especially those shade-loving or shade-tolerant grasses which can fill in nicely under mature trees with open scaffolding or along the edge of a wooded area.

A key to making the most of native ornamental grasses is combining them with other flowering natives, or non-invasive annuals and perennials, which will compliment the structure and form of the grasses, while providing color during the spring and summer, as well as a low-flowing, spreading appearance.

Lastly, to truly transform your grass islands or prairie shrubbery into an outdoor bouquet, try to marry the bronze, orange, and copper hues of fall foliage, to say nothing of their crimson-purple flowers and rusty-brown seed heads, with the floral display of late-summer and autumn show-offs like joe-pye weed, sunflowers, asters, ironweed, and goldenrods.

With any luck, the memory of your grassy garden, along with vases filled with bold sprays of seed heads, will keep you smiling all winter long.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Transforming a Townhouse Garden

There’s no denying that townhouse communities are popping up like weeds across the land. Townhouses are popular and often more affordable than single family homes, and with a bit of horticultural slight of hand, they can provide almost as many satisfying garden options as larger yards.

The trick to mastering these smaller, confined landscape areas is to realize the inherent limitations of your site, and to create the illusion of more space.

First of all, remember that this is not a normal landscaping project. Your 500 to 1,000 square foot patch of earth, possibly with neighbors on each side, is not going to accommodate a towering oak. In fact, large trees can make small spaces seem even smaller.

That’s not to say that trees are not welcome in your miniature back-forty. In fact, smaller trees, or shrubs trained into tree-form, can and should provide visual anchors or structure for your overall design. Choose species which feature open “scaffolding,” as well as year-round appeal, such as serviceberry, flowering crabapple, fringe tree, redbud, or some of the exquisite Japanese maples, with their intricately fine-cut leaves and colorful foliage.

Espaliered trees can also become vital elements in a sunny yard encompassed by a tall fence. A host of fruit and ornamental species are available at area nurseries, already trained to grow vertically with formally-spaced branches stretching out across a flat surface. Instead of a dull expanse of fence, you could enjoy a living wall of tasty apples, pears, plums, and apricots, or colorful magnolias, hollies, junipers, and yews.

Of course, the goal is not merely to camouflage fences and fill in empty space. A townhouse garden should strive to appear larger and more varied than it really is. One of the most successful approaches is to divide the yard into several “garden rooms,” each with a unique character.

For example, plant a free-flowing hedge along the outside edge of a patio using ornamental grasses. Select up to several species of the taller grasses to provide variety in color and texture. Plant the grasses in odd-numbered clumps, all of the same species, and, for additional color and contrast, surround each grouping with masses of colorful perennials, such as daylilies, black-eyed susans, joe-pye weed, and coneflowers.

These plantings will physically and visually separate your patio or outdoor living area from the rest of the garden, and cleverly tease the eye into thinking that the yard goes on quite a bit further. Moreover, these graceful grasses, gently tossed by a breeze, also provide a delightful sense of motion, which will make your landscape seem larger.

A second-story deck need not serve as merely a viewing platform. Along the outer edge place one of more trellises in or against decorative containers or tubs. These structures can then sport a dazzling collection of clematis or other ornamental climbers. Properly arranged, these vertical elements can similarly separate your deck from the rest of your garden, providing a colorful frame for gazing outward, while also adding a welcome bit of privacy from the neighbors.

And don’t forget that your deck structure itself can be visually softened by training colorful climbers and vines against the otherwise stark supporting posts and railings of a second-story deck.

Beyond the deck and patio, you can further separate your yard into unique areas with the addition of structures such as pergolas, garden arches, and arbors. Any of these can provide living windows to the rest of your garden, an incomplete glimpse of the whole, which implies mystery and inspires curiosity.

In smaller spaces, traditional wooden gazebos might seem well out of place and scale, but townhouse gardeners can turn to a number of recently available metal and wrought-iron gazebos, which are little more than attractive frameworks onto which perennial or annual vines can be trained. Quickly and inexpensively, another garden room is created, as is a secondary destination for entertaining or relaxing. Just add a bistro table, chairs, and bottle of wine, and you might forsake your deck altogether.

Small spaces have other advantages for gardeners on a budget. Ponds and other water features can frequently cost a great deal in both money and maintenance responsibilities. Yet for a townhouse garden, one can easily manage a smaller, prefabricated pond, pre-planted whiskey barrel wetland, or solar-powered fountain.

Even a single Victorian gazing ball, faux-gothic concrete statue, or gleaming copper birdbath can become a unique and dramatic centerpiece in your garden. Exercise restraint, however, and employ these elements sparingly. In a small space, too many “artistic” elements can quickly become clutter.

The divisions you create in your yard using trees, planting areas, and foliage-draped structures should be joined together with a free-flowing pathway meandering around the plantings and through structures and other garden rooms. Strive to create a route wherein each turn will reveal a new and interesting view. Avoid straight paths which will unfortunately create an impression of cells, rather than the illusion of an unfolding series of gardens.

And don’t forget about the plants! Small space gardening requires more planning and care in plant selection. If your townhouse or a neighboring fence casts a deep shadow over your garden, you will need to think of plants best suited for shade.

Select plants with extended bloom periods, and interweave plants with varied flowering periods so that no bed is ever without interesting color or texture. Also use layered plantings, such as placing spring bulbs under later-blooming perennials.

Add distinctive wrought-iron hanging baskets and richly glazed containers overflowing with annuals to add spots of color to drab areas. Containers also allow you to use exotic tropical plants and tender perennials outdoors during warmer weather; just bring them inside before late season frosts.

Clearly, the challenges posed by a townhouse lot are offset by using the site creatively. For most homeowners, a yard is just a yard. For townhouse gardeners, it’s an opportunity to create a world (or worlds) in miniature, with vine-covered entertaining spaces, a pleasant path toward a gurgling fountain, a kitchen garden thriving beneath an espaliered apple tree. In reality, the only limiting thing about a townhouse garden is the imagination.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Topiary Treasures

Since the early 1970s, garden enthusiasts have flocked to Ladew Topiary Gardens in Monkton, Maryland, for a view of horticulture taken to a fanciful extreme. Of course, with a little effort, most patient gardeners can create their own topiary displays, whether to adorn a doorway or grace a dining room table.

Traditionally, topiary has been the art of training and pruning small trees and shrubs into a variety of ornamental shapes, ranging from the geometrical to the whimsical, with moments of pure inspiration, such as the manicured collection in Columbus, Ohio’s Topiary Park, which recreates the impressionist figures in Georges Seurat's “A Sunday On The Island Of La Grande Jatte.”

Topiary found it origins principally with the Romans more than two millennia ago, flourished during the Elizabethan period, languished somewhat during the 18th century, and once again found renewed interest with the Victorians, whose industrial mania enjoyed reshaping every aspect of the natural world.

Today, topiary has moved from grand public parks and palaces to kitchen countertops and coffee tables. In fact, during the holidays, it was not surprising to see most local grocery stores and garden centers offering miniature “Christmas trees” shaped from rosemary.

One reason for the increased popularity is the modern use of herbs, such as rosemary, whose smaller growth habit and fragrant leaves permit the same degree of artistic trimming and shaping, while yielding culinary cuttings and a rich, satisfying aroma, all in a very manageable size.

In addition, formal standards have readily become as popular as sculpted topiary forms. A standard has a straight and usually single upright stem, initially trained to a stake, and supporting a head or “crown,” which is often spherical, consisting of carefully manicured smaller stems and leaves. Almost as common are “poodles,” multi-tiered standards featuring three to five pompom-like heads.

Herbal standards are perhaps the easiest introduction to the art of topiary for most aspiring gardeners, at least those with patience. Bear in mind that it will take approximately two years to train a simple standard and another two for the plant to fully mature.

To begin, select a favorite herb, considering how large a standard you want in the end. Your topiary must observe elements of proportion, meaning that the smaller the leaf-size, the smaller the standard. Assorted lavender species, curry plant, and the more than 40 species of rosemary can readily produce handsome tabletop standards ranging from eight to 18 inches or more, while larger-leaf species like sweet bay (Laurus nobilis) or fast-growing scented geraniums should be trained to between four and six feet.

Your plant should be well-rooted and straight, with its initial growing tip intact. Be sure not to trim or damage the apical tip until your standard reaches its desired height. Most garden centers offer herbs in four inch pots ideal for starting out.

To start training your topiary, use a 10 to 12 inch plastic or metal stake. Wooden stakes can easily rot within a year or so. Herb specialist Elise Felton also recommends wrapping metal stakes with florist’s tape, both to dress up the stake and provide a stickier support for the ties needed to secure the plant during training.

Secure the stem every half-inch or so, using a flexible tie. Do not use metal twist-ties, as they can damage the stem and ultimately girdle the plant. You will want to remove any leaves or needles between the stem and the stake, and also prune any side shoots that appear as the plant grows. When, or if, the plant reaches the top of the stake, remove the ties and stake and replace it with a stake 20-24 inches tall.

When the plant reaches its desired height you can pinch the growing tip and start allowing two to four pairs of side branches to develop. At the same time, remove any remaining leaves on the “trunk” and, if the stem has become woody, once again secure the stem with soft ties one or so inches apart.

As the side shoots grow, pinch them back about every two inches or two nodes of growth. You will continue with this process every week or so, until those stubby stems take on the regal form of a globe. When complete, carefully remove the stake.

For ongoing care, be sure to provide adequate light during the cold months, when most herbs should be brought inside. However, whether indoors or out, rotate your herbal standard to ensure even growth. And inspect regularly for pests, especially mites and mealy bugs who might try to enjoy your topiary as much as yourself. And do not slack off on your pruning regimen. To keep your topiary shapely, you will need to keep routinely pinch back new growth, although those clippings can be added to potpourri or stew pots as an added dividend – or incentive.

Of course, there is more to topiary than formal standards. Fortunately, the growing interest in topiary has led to the wide availability of unique forms and frames onto which plants can be trained. The range of shapes is almost inexhaustible, with everything from traditional cones, spirals, and spheres, to dancing teddy bears, dinosaurs, Degas-inspired ballerinas, and letters of the alphabet, for people obsessed with monograms.

Many of the larger frames offered are actually filled with green moss, and ornamental ivy and other climbers are encouraged to cover the surface. However, for the herbal-inclined, many of the smaller basic shapes, such as wreathes and hearts, are ideal for training santolina, dwarf myrtle, prostate rosemary, and a host of other fragrant or flavorful species.

For topiary fans anxious for quick results, there are standards, poodles, and other shapes available at nurseries and through mail-order suppliers. They may lack the investment of energy and care of a do-it-yourself project, but it might be the necessary first step to inspire you to designs of your own.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Bring the Bard to Your Yard

In a world where we are most often reflected in baseline demographics, gardening becomes a rare opportunity to express personal interests and creativity. Perhaps all that is wanted is a touch of inspiration. For that, what better source than Shakespeare? The bard’s works overflow with flowers and botanical allusions, with magical moonlit glades, and with gardens as both settings and metaphors.

Shakespeare’s lines have inspired composers, graphic artists, and garden designers for centuries. Today, Shakespeare Gardens appear across the globe, and in many forms, from the extensive 57,000 square foot garden at Wynton M. Blount Cultural Park in Montgomery, Alabama, to the more modest and secluded Elizabethan Garden on the east side of the Folger Shakespeare Library behind the U.S. Capitol and Library of Congress.

A central element shared by all these gardens — and perhaps by yours as well — is a keen interest in the plants and plantings cited by the bard. Many of the plants are rich in cultural significance: from the plucking of the true white or blood red roses by the Plantagenet and
Somerset forces in Henry VI - Part 1, to poor Ophelia’s weedy trophies: the bitter nettles and "dead men’s fingers" of Hamlet. Start your Shakespearean garden by identifying plants mentioned in the plays and sonnets, and then research how and why they were selected. Books and websites abound with herbal lore, plant and garden history, and so forth. You will soon find that most all of the bard’s "plant selections" have played important roles in medicine, history, religion, and literature.

Put Ophelia’s rosemary ("that’s for remembrance") in your garden and you are planting an herb valued by Egyptian priests, the classical physicians Dioscorides and Galen, monastic herbalists, and modern sous chefs. Each plant is endowed with centuries of meaning; let inspiration spring from Shakespeare and it will continue to flow into your garden.

To begin, select a basic design. For example, you could follow the lead of the Folger Library and create an Elizabethan knot garden: a formal arrangement, usually rectangular, with a bust of Shakespeare, a sundial, birdbath, or other sculptural component, surrounded by a interwoven pattern (a knot) of rosemary and lavender, with Johnny-jump-ups and other violet species, iris, saffron crocus, and chamomile filling the spaces between the knotted rosemary and lavender array. For a king’s ransom, you might also include a low boxwood border.

Alternately, you could develop a Shakespearean herb garden, using some of the herbs already mentioned, as well as calendula, rue, fennel, hyssop, lemon balm, parsley, mint (in pots), savory, marjoram and much more. Or you might prefer a sunny flower garden, perhaps designed as an old-fashioned rose garden, or simply incorporating bard-related plants into an existing border.

Favorite roses from Shakespeare’s period include Damask and Gallica (French) or "apothecary’s rose," and Musk and Eglantine (Sweetbriar) roses. Flowers include columbine, poppies, dianthus (clove pink or gillyflower), nasturtium, daffodils, calendula (pot marigold), and primula species, such as English Primrose and cowslips, which are often found throughout the works of Shakespeare.

For the truly inspired and literary-minded, you might want to develop a dedicated garden spot: perhaps "Titania’s Bower" from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Add a simple trellis, cover it with non-invasive honeysuckle (woodbine), some musk roses and other fairy plantings, and you’re ready to sit, read, and ponder with Puck over the meaning of life and love.

You might also consider a bitter-sweet "Ophelia’s Garden," focusing more on her bouquet of rosemary, pansies, fennel, and daisies (IV,v), than the crow-flowers and nettles of her fantastic, watery garland (V,vii). Though for good measure — and silver color — you could add Hamlet’s wormwood (artemesia).

For more of a kitchen garden, you might borrow from Perdita’s saucy lines at the shepherd’s cottage in The Winter’s Tale (IV,iv). The first several hundred lines are a pastoral shopping list, again reflecting some of the most common plants listed above. To add special meaning to your planting, you might even consider adding unique plant labels or homemade signs quoting from Perdita: for example, "Marigold [calendula], that goes to bed wi’ the sun/And with him rises weeping," "Rosemary and rue; these keep/Seeming and savour all the winter long," and so on. Such signage can make your garden a poem itself, or transform a school, church, or public garden into an inspired educational experience.

In reflecting on your Shakespeare Garden, before selecting plants and garden motifs, remember that the experience will not only enrich your landscape and your appreciation of it, but will also, hopefully, introduce you to a larger cultural milieu. You should derive as much pleasure in thumbing through and reading the plays and poetry, as in actually planting the garden and enjoying its color, fragrance, and flavor. Understanding the plants in their literary context will help you better understand the civilization which created the literature itself. And suddenly, the Muses permitting, you will discover that your garden has become a doorway to a larger, older world.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Shakespeare’s Plants

The following reflects plants cited in the Bard’s writings provided as either common or botanic names; (spp) indicates numerous species within a genus.

Anemone
Aster (spp)
Astrantia
Basket of Gold
Borage
Broom
Chamomile
Clematis
Climbing Hydrangea
Columbine
Cowslip
Crocus (spp)
Cuckoo-Flower
Cupid's-dart
Curled Mallow
Dianthus (spp)
English primrose
Euphorbia (spp)
False Blue Indigo
Fennel
Fritillaria (spp)
Fulvous Daylily
Foxglove
Geranium
Hyacinth
Ilex (spp)
Iris (spp)
Lavender
Lungwort
Marigold
Meadow Buttercup
Mint (Mentha spp)
Monkshood
Narcissus (spp)
Oriental Poppy
Pansies
Peony
Rose (Rosa spp)
Rosemary
Rue
Sage (Salvia spp)
Santolina
Savory
Scabiosa
Spurge
Star-of-Bethlehem
Sweetpeas
Tarragon
Thyme
Tulips
Viola (spp)
Woodbine
Wood Fern
Yarrow
Yew (Taxus spp)

Sage Advice for Your Garden

Few plants have commanded such a central role in human history as common garden sage. First revered for its medicinal properties in antiquity, this unassuming member of the mint family was held sacred to the Greek and Roman gods, traded by the Dutch for tea from China, and has been revered by herbalists for millennia, from Dioscorides and Galen to your local GNC outlet.

Common sage (Salvia officinalis) is, however, but one member of the substantial genus Salvia, which actually takes its botanical name from the Latin salvus for “well” or “sound” (also salvere “to be in good health”), echoing its earliest association with curative and life-extending abilities.

Today, thanks to plant hunters and hybridizers, there are roughly 900 species of salvia found worldwide. And while few of them can genuinely promise immortality – or favor with the gods – there are probably a dozen or so which can liven up your garden, spice up your kitchen, and generally provide a healthy bit of habitat for butterflies and hummingbirds.

Limiting your choices is the hard part. My friend, garden writer and herb guru Kathy Fisher, once noted that of the 900 or so species of salvia, about 899 are worth growing. And why not? Consider a flower palette ranging from lipstick red and magenta to salmon, pink, white, and luscious blues which mirror the sky and deepen to violet and inky-blackish. The foliage on varied species can be lime or dark green, creamy white, or a mixture of pinks, purple, white, and green.

And while you might think that common sage is important enough for its culinary and medicinal applications (now a valued antioxidant), there are outstanding varieties which combine flavor and aroma with pure artistry. Golden garden sage (S. officinalis ‘Icterina’) features a swirling variegated pattern of golden yellow and green; purple sage has matte purple leaves which age to a soft green color; ‘Berggarten’ sage has very large silvery-gray fuzzy leaves; and ‘Tricolor’ sage with gray-green foliage splotched with pale pink, purple, or cream.

Most culinary sages feature lilac-blue flowers, some with dark purple sepals, save for ‘Albiflora,’ a real show-off with pure white flowers. Best of all, the scent and flavor of sage bestirs delicious memories of Thanksgiving, family, turkey and stuffing – although the herb is well-suited and renowned for use in tea, or with pork, soups, sausage, duck, cheese, various egg dishes, and savory breads. Remember that fresh leaves are appreciably stronger in flavor than dried, and that harvesting in the early morning provides the highest level of essential oils. For drying purpose, harvest in spring before flower stalks appear.

All of the officinalis sages are tolerant of heat and humidity, especially ‘Berggarten,’ and most should survive all but the harshest winters. True garden sage is the hardiest of the lot, but all will become leggy after several years and are best replaced at that time.

In the wider world of salvia, you will find species suitable as ground covers and edging plants, hanging baskets, and even annual shrubs or hedges. As most ornamental salvias come to us from Mexico and South America, they are too tender to survive the winter, and can either be treated as annuals, or they can be planted in containers and moved to an indoor location prior to frost.

Personally, I do not have the space to overwinter my favorite salvia, blue anise sage (S. guaranitica), a cobalt blue hummingbird magnet, which becomes a five feet bush by midsummer, but as salvias propagate easily from tip cuttings, I simply snip off three or four shoots in the fall, root them in water or a sterile medium, and care for these offspring through the winter care until they return to the garden.

Among some of other deservedly popular varieties are grape-scented sage (S. melissodora), whose pale blue blossoms exude an almost intense grape soda-like perfume aroma, unique in a genus where most flowers have a negligible scent.

‘Cleveland’ sage is heralded as the most fragrant variety of all sages. While most sages release their aroma after brushing against the foliage, “Cleveland’ readily wafts its scent with the slightest of breezes. Buckeyes beware! The plant was actually discovered in California, not Ohio, and was named after the nineteenth century plant collector, Daniel Cleveland, who first spotted the silvery-grey foliage on an expedition.

Pineapple sage (S. elegans) is one of the most popular salvias owing to the fresh-cut pineapple scent released whenever its leaves are bruised. It also sports brilliant -- and edible -- red flowers, appearing in late summer through fall. Pineapple sage is also one of the last great hummingbird plants to bloom in late autumn, and provides the balance of vital nectar needed by migrating ruby-throated hummers as they head south. Scarlet pineapple sage has larger, deeper colored blooms, and the cultivar 'Frieda Dixon' has pink flowers.

Autumn sage (S. gregii) provides an abundance of drought-tolerant cultivars with non-stop and profuse blooming habits. Easily found examples are Maraschino’ (like the cherry) with scarlet flowers; ‘Wild Watermelon’ in fuchsia; aptly named ‘Plum Wine’ and ‘Raspberry Royale’; ‘Moonlight’ with pale yellow blooms, and ‘Desert Blaze’ which contrasts fire engine red flowers against creamy-white and green variegated foliage.

From ancient Greek physicians to a solitary planter on your patio, there’s a world of salvias just waiting to enhance your life and gardening enjoyment. Now that’s sage advice!

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Sunlight Will Set Your Soil Straight

Everybody knows that sunlight makes plants grow. But did you know that solar energy can help you “grow” healthier soil? If not, welcome to the solar-powered world of soil solarization!

Solarization is a safe, non-chemical, and effective method for controlling the host of pests and diseases which might be lurking in your garden soil -- harmful bacteria, fungi, and nematodes, as well as insect eggs, root-gnawing larvae, and weed seeds.

Of course, most of your landscape gets along just fine without special intervention, but for vegetable gardeners and folks with specialized garden beds, such as dahlia collections or an annual cutting garden, going solar can help prevent problems, while enhancing any site’s horticultural performance.

Solarization is a creative spin on the greenhouse effect, which uses simple plastic sheeting and the sun’s radiant energy to help sanitize the top six to eight inches of garden soil. And although the process does require setting aside a garden area for about two months during the summer, it is far safer and less expensive than using toxic soil pesticides or other fumigation methods.

Experienced gardeners know that they should rotate their vegetable crops each year and select disease-resistant varieties to control soil-borne diseases. However, this is not always a practical option for some gardeners with limited space, and after a while, any soil used and planted repeatedly with similar crops will be still be infested with damaging populations of the most persistent pathogens, like verticillium and fusarium wilt, as well as parasitic nematodes, along with other weed and pest problems.

By using solarization to dramatically elevate soil temperatures up to 140 degrees for a period of weeks, you can essentially bake those problems away. Moreover, solarized soil is rapidly re-colonized by beneficial bacteria and fungi, such as those which help fix nitrogen in the soil, while yet other beneficial microorganisms will fill the void to help fight off pathogens in the future. In short, your soil will be healthier and better able to enhance plant growth and crop yields.

To begin, select a garden bed or planting area at least 30 to 36-inches wide, which is normally the most practical width for planting. Smaller strips probably will not generate or retain enough heat to be effective.

Remove all visible vegetation and other plant debris, and then cultivate the soil to a depth of six inches or more. It is generally preferable to use a rototiller to break up any clumps and provide a smooth, friable medium. Keeping the texture of the soil smooth is essential to prevent the formation of air pockets which will interfere with heat generation and conduction. Also, carefully rake over the surface of the planting area to ensure that it is completely free of stones or other coarse materials which might tear or puncture the plastic sheeting.

During cultivation, be sure to add any desired organic amendments such as compost, or any fertilizer or lime, which might have been called for by a soil test. If you are planning to use soaker hoses or drip irrigation, you should put those elements in place now. Please note that after solarization, you do not want to till or disturb the soil, as that will only expose buried weed seeds. Finish by digging a trench approximately six to eight inches deep and wide around the perimeter of your garden bed.

Next, water the planting area thoroughly. Use a sprinkler or soaker hose system and let it soak the prepared soil for at least several hours, penetrating almost to a depth of one foot. Every square inch of soil must be moistened for adequate heat generation.

Afterwards, cover the area with a clear plastic sheet made from UV-stabilized or resistant polyethylene or PVC. Untreated plastic film will degrade in sunlight, and neither black nor opaque plastic will generate sufficient heat.

Selecting the proper thickness of plastic tarp is important. While very thin film (.5-1 mil) is less expensive, it tends to rip very easily, and would only be suitable for one use. Thicker plastic (4-6 mil) is tougher and lasts longer, but does not allow as much more sunlight to pass through. Instead, try to find a medium sheet (1-3 mils), and stretch the plastic tight and smooth across the planting surface.

In addition, for increased effectiveness, consider using a double-layer of plastic with an insulating air space between the layers. You can easily separate the two layers using empty aluminum cans. The extra layer can increase soil temperatures by another six degrees, while also retaining more heat on overcast days and at night.

After getting your plastic firmly in place and tucked down into your trench, backfill with soil to bury the ends of the sheet – and just wait for the sun to do the rest. If your solarized bed is in an especially windy location, you might want to place some bricks or rocks on top of the trenched area as an additional anchor.

For the most part, solarization should be undertaken anytime during the hottest, brightest months, from June through August. It can be done earlier or later, but additional time under wraps would be required, up to three months. Traditional summertime treatment requires four to six weeks, and as much as eight, if the skies were particularly cloudy, or if you have been plagued with stubborn, noxious weeds for years.

After solarizing, carefully remove and store the plastic for another use in a subsequent year. You garden bed is now ready for planting. If you do not plan to plant for several months, with a cool weather crop, for example, be sure to cover the bed with a weed-free mulch.
Lastly, remember that solarization only eliminates or reduces pest organisms and weed seed from the top several inches of soil. Do not disturb your sanitized soil any more than is necessary to slip in your new plants.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Bringing Toads to Your Abode

This year, to combat an onslaught of creepy, crawling critters, many homeowners will spend a small fortune on toxic chemicals, pheromone lures, and even propane-powered mosquito traps. Interestingly, there’s a simple solution that’s just a short hop (and croak) away.

In the world of natural pest control, one of the brightest players is the humble toad. Toads have a phenomenal appetite for insects and other invertebrates that go squish in the night, especially undesirable and rapacious creatures such as slugs, gypsy moths, and tent caterpillars.

In fact, up to 90 percent of a toad’s diet includes the most common garden pests, such as earwigs, sowbugs (a.k.a. woodlice), millipedes, crickets and a wide assortment of beetles, and otherwise helpful predators like spiders and centipedes. A recent U.S. Department of Agriculture report actually estimated that one adult toad may consume 10,000 pest insects in a 90-day period.

Admittedly, with the possible exception of Mr. Toad of Toad Hall in Kenneth Grahame’s 1908 classic, The Wind in the Willows, toads fail to gain the respect and appreciation afforded to Kermit the Frog and his amphibious kin – including those strangely popular beer spokes-frogs (mascots).

Fables bring us fair maidens kissing frogs and freeing princes from evil spells; the Japanese consider frogs good luck; the French consider them good eating. But toads are simply shunned for fear of transmitting warts. Something needs to be done about this irrational Bufonophobia (toads belong to the genus Bufo).

There are two species of toads in our area, the most common being the American Toad (Bufo americanus), and Fowler’s Toad (Bufo fowleri). Should you find yourself strolling through a natural area from spring to mid-summer and hear a good deal of melodious trilling, you’re probably listening to the call of the American toad. They actually have a lot to sing about. During the peak reproductive season, from March through July, female toads are briskly busy in shallow pools laying ropy strings and coils containing up to 6,000 individual eggs. Soon after, those eggs will hatch producing ravenous hoards of tadpoles or pollywogs, which will devour mosquito larvae until they emerge onto land as adults.

While not all of the thousands of offspring from thousands of ponds will survive, the numbers of toads moving about our region is truly astonishing. With such a boffo population of bufo available, it is relatively easy to encourage one or more toads to take up residence in your backyard, where they will immediately add your most troublesome pests to their cuisine.

To create your own toad habitat, often called toad abodes, you need only locate a damp location on your property. Sometimes a shady area in the yard, perhaps a natural depression which remains somewhat soggy most of the time, will provide the perfect setting for your toad hall. Alternatively, areas near a downspout or next to the dripping drain from an air conditioning unit will provide a suitably moist environment.

Your toad abode itself allows for plenty of creativity, especially if undertaking this project with children. Personally, I like to recycle old or damaged terracotta pots into habitats. Often, larger clay pots (nine inches or more in diameter) left outdoors during the winter will crack in half. By simply turning each half on its side and slightly burying it in the soil to provide stability, you can create two separate abodes.

Other cracked or chipped pots can be transformed by creating a two-inch high “entrance” at the top edge of the pot. Simply score a semicircular section in the top of the pot and gently tap it out with a hammer. Invert the pot, and toad hall is ready! Children can help with amphibian aesthetics by decorating the finished pot or potshard with colorful non-toxic paints: perhaps depicting windows, flowers, helpful ladybugs, dancing toads, or other fanciful critters.

Be sure to line the inside of the toad abode with a few handfuls of leaf litter or leaf mold from your compost pile. Toads can hunker down under this cool organic blanket during the hottest days of summer, coming out to feast at night.

For bufophiles willing to invest in upscale – or kitschy -- toad housing, there are numerous on-line sources for wooden, terracotta, and plastic resin toad abodes. Some represent toadstools with columned entryways, ruled over by a toad king and queen, while others represent colorful cottages or barns. One of the most expensive actually looks like an inverted clay flowerpot, of all things!

These toad abode options are primarily fair weather affairs, suitable for spring through fall. To encourage larger resident toad populations, you might want to consider developing a winter palace. Because toads hibernate during the winter, they will need a safe environment in which to snooze away until the world warms up and food becomes available.

A toad hibernaculum can be created using clay drainage tile or even standard plastic drain pipe (four-inch diameter). Starting with one 12 to 14 inch section of pipe or tile, dig a shallow hole in your sheltered, damp garden site and bury the pipe on a 30 degree angle, so that only five inches at the top side of the pipe are exposed. The entryway should be about two to three inches high. Fill the bottom half of the winter residence with sand, and fill the rest with leaf mold. The toad will use this habitat like any other abode during three seasons, and will climb down deeper under leaves and sand to sleep through the winter.

You can also cover the surface of the hibernaculum with compost during the winter to provide additional insulation against extremely cold temperatures. Clear the surface by March to allow both toad and abode to warm up in the early spring sun.

One final note: toads, like many of the most beneficial inhabitants of our yards and gardens, are sensitive to pesticides and other synthetic chemicals. Your chances of attracting toads to a property featuring only lawn area, or which is treated with lawn and garden chemicals, are extremely low. If you want to encourage natural pest controls, you will need to abandon the toxic alternatives. The GreenMan thanks you - and Mr. Toad thanks you.

Copyright 2014, Joseph M. Keyser

Communications Volunteer Sought

The Chesapeake Conservation Landscaping Council seeks a qualified and creative volunteer to coordinate communications and outreach efforts. The successful candidate will work to educate people about the benefits of conservation landscaping and to strengthen the public’s understanding of environmental stewardship. As a member of our program staff, this position helps to create partnerships and initiatives that enhance the engagement of citizens and businesses in the Bay restoration effort.

For more details, visit:   Position Announcement: Communication Intern