The Green Scene

236 Pages·1994·30.2 MB·English

by  Ed: Byrne, Jean

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2016
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https://archive.org/details/greenscene2316edby

GREEN SCENE
THE PENNSYLVANIA HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY • SeptJOct. 1994 $2.00
Thissilvergarden began with a gift ofa blue spruce.
(See page 22.)
&) Grow with us
in this issue
3. Networks That Connect 19. Choose Shrubs for Fall
Us Color in the Mixed Border
Jean Byrne RichardL Bitner
4. Dry Walls & Perennials: 22. Silver Shines in the
A Heavenly Combination. Garden
Part I WalterChandoha
Kath Duckett
25. The Power ofOne
7. Dry Walls & Perennials: Kathleen A. Mills
How to Build Dry Stone
27. Garden Art: Sculpture
Retaining Walls and Plant
. . . Created from Recycled Metal
Them with Perennials. Part II
Judith Simpson
Kath Duckett
30. Site Design after the
11. Back to School for
Fact
Horticulture: Adult Education
Linda Corson
Enriches Students’ Lives and
Offers Possibilities for Life 33. Letter to the Editor
Changes
33. Plantfinder
LizBall
33. An Invitation to Plant
16. Herb Shortcuts: Easy
Societies
Ways to Save Favorite Herbs
for Winter Cooking 34. Classified
AnneS. Cunningham Advertisements
CORRECTION:
Weregretthephotocreditalongsidethebrilliantyellowsugarmapleonpage
34 of the July 1994 Green Scene was incorrect; Gary Smith took that
photograph, and a nicejob he did too.
The Editor
Volume23,Number 1 September/October 1994
THEPENNSYLVANIAHORTICULTURALSOCIETY
325WalnutStreet,Philadelphia,Pa. 19106
Telephone: [phone]
HorticulturalHotline: 215-922-8043
MondaythroughFriday 9:30amto 12Noon(HotlineisclosedinDecember)
MembershipInformation: LindaDavis,625-8265
MorrisCheston,Jr./PHSChair JosephP Robinson/PublicationsAssociate
JaneG Pepper/PHSPresident JeanByme/Editor CarolC.Lukens/EditorialAssistant
PUBLICATIONSCOMMITTEE:
AKantnheryS.nCSunAnnidenrgsheanm/Chair JChuadrylFeoslWey Heuser MRoabreyrtLoMucCWroalcfkeenPeck
WalterG.Chandoha GeneJackson L.WilburZimmerman
AnthonyA.Lyle
Designer: JulieBaxendell,Ba Graphic Printer: HowardPrinting
TheGREENSCENE,(USPS955580),Volume23,No. 1,publishedbimonthly,January,March,May,July,
September.November,bythePennsylvaniaHorticulturalSociety,anon-profitmembershiporganizationat325
WalnutStreet,Philadelphia,PA 19106.Subscription:$9.75—SingleCopy:$2.00.Secondclasspostagepaidat
Philadelphia,PA19106 • /’OSrA/AS7’£'R:SendaddresschangetoTHEGREENSCENE,325WalnutStreet,
Philadelphia,PA 19106
® PennsylvaniaHorticulturalSociety, 1994
Green Scene subscriptions are part ofthe membership benefits for:
Blithewold Mansion & Gardens, Bristol, Rhode Island
Botanical Gardens at Asheville, North Carolina
Cox Arboretum, Dayton, Ohio
Frelinghuysen Arboretum, Morristown, New Jersey
FrontCover:Slenderleavesofribbongrassand Hershey Gardens ofHershey, Pennsylvania
bulbousoatgrassareseparated byround,mouse- Maryland Horticultural Society, Baltimore, Maryland
earedleavesoftrailinghelichrysum andtiny leaf
Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
silversantolina. Lamb’searsin background add
still anothershapeandtexture. Phipps Conservatory, Inc., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
The San Antonio Botanical Gardens, Texas
Frontcover:photobyWalterChandoha Staten Island Botanical Garden, Inc., New York
thegreen scene/September 1994
Networks That Connect Us
Theconceptofnetworkinghascreateda as well. Walt comes to the Flower Show
cottageindustryamongorganizationalpsy- every March to photograph that Show in
—
chologists yet people united by a com- brilliant, living color for publicity all over
mon interest, say horticulture, writing or the country and in our own Flower Show (jM) byJean Byrne
photography, have an intuitive, even pas- Program.
sionate understanding ofthe necessity and Richard Bitner, who writes in this issue
value of networks when they bond to about fall color in the mixed border, also
pursue their interests. wrote the Green Scene story that appeared
In lateJune,about225 people,members lastNovemberabouttheeffectbookshave
ofthePennsylvaniaHorticulturalSociety’s had on gardeners; that story drew a large,
Flower Show family, gathered at Flower enthusiastic response from our readers.
Show chair Diane Allen's house to relax Bitner,a physician,isadedicated horticul-
and celebrate the remarkable Show’s suc- turistandfiguresinLizBall’sstoryonpage
cess this year. They were only a small 1 1 about the courses given at Longwood
percentage of the people who gather to- Gardens and the Arboretum ofthe Barnes
gether throughout the year to put on the foundation. Although after 12 years,
largest,mostbeautifulindoorFlowerShow Richard Bitnersteppeddown as Preserved
in the world every March. Ifyou count the Products chair at the end of last year’s
exhibitors, volunteers, sponsors, Market Harvest Show to add a teaching assistant-
Place exhibitors, staff, we number well ship at Longwood Gardens to his avoca-
over 3,000. tional responsibilities, we look forward to
On each staff person’s desk is a list of seeinghiscontinuedexhibitsatourHarvest
Pennsylvania Horticultural Society Com- Show.
mittee members, who number 353; this Well,you get the point. Ifwedrew lines
numberin nowayreflectsthe true number connecting between people, tasks, associ- 3
of volunteers who show up through the ations, we’d surely have a very dense,
year to help achieve the Society’s mission. tangled and highly energized web of net-
I was mindful ofour extraordinary net- works.
work as I worked on this issue. Kath Which brings me to our new logo that
Duckett,whohaswrittentheleadstory,has youmayhavenoticedonthefrontofGreen
written for us before; in 1989 she wrote Scenethismonth.Thatlogo,atreewiththe
about her beautiful self-seeding perennial date 1827,issymbolicofThePennsylvania
borders in Green Scene. In 1990 hercondo Horticultural Society’s strength, its out-
landscapestoryinFineGardeninglaunched reach, accessibility and ability to inspire
her nationally. When she teaches at the people,itscontinuedgrowth and itslink to
Society about walls and perennials her history and horticulture.
courses arejam-packed. We’re proud to include the logo on our
AnneCunningham,who wrote the story cover and hope its symbolic message and
about saving herbs for winter use, may be invitation to belong and participate will
seenworkingattheFlowerShowsetupsin inspireyou,ourreaders,toconsidersharing
the horticultural section as well as at the yourwonderfulstorieswithusaswelaunch
HarvestShow.Herwritingsalsohavebeen our 23rd Volume with this issue.
published nationally. Wewanttohearfromyou;letusknowif
AnnechairsthePublicationsCommittee, youwanttowriteforusorifthere’sastory
andWalterChandoha,whowrotethestory you’rejustdying toread. Write,orcall me
about his silver garden in northwestern at 215-625-8254; Fax: [phone]; E
NewJersey,alsoservesonthatCommittee mail: [email protected]
•
thegreen scene /September 1994
DRY &
WATTS
PERENNIALS:
a heavenly combination
®
PARTI by Kath Duckett
N
ecessity forced me into dry stone joined the house to three feet at the front withstand pressure without moving for-
wall construction. edgeofthehillside,creatingasunkenpatio ward.
The old plastered stone farm- approximately20by25 feet.Wesavedthe Aftercompletingthepatiowewentonto
house we purchased 19 years ago sitson a biggest stones for steps on each side to rebuildallthederelictwallsonourproper-
hillside. While its three front doors faced reachthe level ofthe lawn androlledthem ty, then we started on new ones. We
directly onto the nearby road, the land in intoplacewithlogs.Thefarrightcornerof bisected the backyard about a third ofthe
thebackmetthehouseatwindowsilllevel. thewallcurvedinwardsoanoldcherrytree way upwith a low retaining wall about60
To create a back entrance we removed couldremainundisturbed.Alasthetreedid feetlongandplanteditwithgroundcover-
tonsofsoil and were left with the problem not survive, but I still like the curve. The ing and low perennials. Parallel to this we
ofretainingtheencroachinghillside.Ihave baseofthepatiowascompletedbyspread- built another wall to retain Alex’s daylily
never been fond of landscape or railroad bed and then extended both ends of the
ties. Their symmetry offends me; I prefer original wall at the back ofthe property.
curves and a more rustic feeling. That left The area where we live seems togrow AtthistimeIwasalreadyinvolvedinmy
stone asthe natural choice. A stoneretain- stone, since looseningthesoilbringsa businessdesigning andinstallingperennial
ingwallwouldalsotieinwiththeoldfield- new crop to the surface eachyear. No gardens. Since I love perennials and stone
stone wall that transversesthebackofour doubt this is why the early farmers equally, combining them is my idea of
property. We laid out lines where we builtso manystone homes, barnsand gardeningheaven.MiddleBucksCountyis
thought the wall should go. miles ofwalls to edge theirfields. certainly the perfect place for this. There
Notsureofhowtoproceed,my husband arethreeactivequarrieslocatedwithinfive
Alex and I began by gathering stone from milesofmyhomeandmanymorewithina
the edges of surrounding farm fields. The ing4 to6 inchesofsandandtightlylaying 20-mile radius. Almost everyone in this
area where we live seems to grow stone, large flat stones into it. At that point we area has stone beneath theirland,theonly
since loosening the soil brings a new crop gaveupscavengingandorderedsixtonsof exception being those fronting the Dela-
to the surface each year. No doubt this is stone from a local quarry. Itfeltasthough ware River where years of erosion have
why the early farmers built so many stone wewerelayingalargejigsawpuzzle,andI deposited soil from upstream. The stone is
homes, barns and miles of walls to edge began to imagine that each stone had a usuallysomeformofshaleinred,brownor
their fields. At first we chose only the correctplace.Alex’sareasshowhisobvious grey tones. Sometimes it is compacted by
flattest near-perfect stones, which quickly preference for larger pieces. nature with minerals to form a harder
disappeared into the wall necessitating a version called argilite, which is ordinarily
second and then a thirdtrip. Soon we were Learningfrom mistakes flat enoughtobe perfectfordry walls. Ifit
using every stone we could get our hands We used about 15 tons of stone in our hasbeen blasted ataquarry andhand split
on. The hero of the day was whoever wallandpatioandmadeeveryconceivable the resulting rectangles can create a wall
brought six stones from the roadside on mistake. Wedid nottrenchoutbut laidthe that is uniform andquite formal in appear-
their way home from work. Even mis- base directly on the earth, nor did we ance. MotherNature is notquite soexact-
shapen or smaller stone could be used as always use the biggest stones for the base. ing and the stone collectedfrom fieldsand
backfill.Onedaywespottedalargepileof We used the smallest stone as backfill but hedgerows often have a bit of a belly, so
stones on a streambank, which required neglected to add gravel to make it tight. overlappingthemcreatesascallopedeffect.
that we go from door to door until we Andsomewherearoundsixinchesfromthe Their weathered look is much more rustic
receivedpermissionfromtheownertohaul top we decided it would be a great idea to and natural.
them away;three carloads,a real treasure. start using mortar. At least we laid the It is often possible to find enough stone
The wall just seemed to eat stone. We majority ofstones with overlappingjoints onapropertytoconstructalowdrywall.If
worked on it every free moment for six and made sure they were level and did not the land was farmed it may have dilapi-
months. At the time I was pregnant with tip back and forth. Still last year some dated hedgerowsorpilesofstonepulledto
ourdaughterandbecameconcernedenough omniousbulgesforcedustotearoffthetop the sides of fields over the years. Many
to ask thedoctorhow much exercise I was few layers,regrade andconstructa second longtime gardeners accumulate enough
allowed. Hearing I could continue with low wall higher up the hillside to take the stonejust in the processofplanting. Ifyou
whatever I was used to doing I kept on pressure offthe original wall. It’s ajoy to order stone from quarries or suppliers the
building though it became increasingly compare the two walls and to recognize rangeofcolorsand typestochoosefrom is
awkward since we were nearing the topof what an improvement in technique 17 much broader. There is a yellow and grey
the wall. Stoneshad togo up,out andover years ofexperience can make. By now we sandstone native to the lower end of the
before they were placed. had learned to partially bury the base, use county, or stone gathered from the moun-
Eventuallythewallwascompletedrang- gravel as backfill and slightly taper each tains and stream beds as far away as New
ingfromtwofeethighateachsidewhereit layer back into the soil so the wall could York or Kentucky. This stone usually
thegreen scene/September 1994