Defining your space - Anne Boulton

Giving your yard a sense of definition takes some planning and a little bit of foresight.

According to Judith Adam, a well-known Canadian landscaper and horticulturalist, using shrubs allows you to create a sense of ornamental privacy and distinction in a way that no other plant can.

When you define a space with well-chosen shrubs, you can achieve an overall sense of organization, imparting a sense of peaceful pleasure. When there is order in the garden, there is a palpable sense of stillness. All good stuff.

Paths

If you’ve got a walkway, you might consider lining it with hedging to give the “meanderer” a sense of security and purpose. My ideal hedge is taken from the south of France, where I imagine thigh-high borders of lavender that brush up against wandering daydreamers, releasing its rousing perfumes under a terracotta sun.

But if a few stepping stones are all you’ve got, consider Lavender for sun, Hostas for shade. They’ll help to define even a short path and provide the wanderer with some pleasure, however short-lived.

And consider: if you have children, a well-placed hedge, even a short one, will keep them on the path, and not tramping through the garden. Low-growing false cypress, like the ones I’ve installed this year, provide the sense of decorum a border gives, without feeling too imposing.

In a small space, I’ve installed three, since they grow a metre wide. In the meantime, I’ve got caramel heuchera (coral bells) interspersed between the cypresses. Not only does their colour contrast nicely with the lime dreadlocks of the cypress, they can be removed when the slower growing evergreen needs more space.

Hedges

If you want to divide your space from your neighbours, but are less a fence-type, try the softening definition of a hedge. Boxwoods make another practical medium-height hedge, but if you’re looking for some privacy, in a living, green kind of way, try some emerald cedar; grown closely together, they’ll get nice and tall.

Black and white cedars also grow quickly, but are less pencil-shaped. With them, you’ll get some berth, so consider that when planting a row of them. A row of black cedar divides my neighbour’s yard with mine.

They were planted 30 years ago or more, and so I have great privacy with a home for the birds.

If you are interested in pruning, you’ll need to determine how the light falls over your hedge. If your hedge is squared on all sides, you’ll want to maximize the way the sun hits all sides, which will give your hedge the voluptuousness you see in the magazines.

A wider bottom ensures the sides of the plant are receiving their fair share of the sun. If the sun can’t reach the sides, then you’ll get sparse growth and, essentially, an ineffective looking border.

If you’ve got a less formal hedge, such as my newly planted row of crimson barberry, then perhaps it will need little to no pruning. A lop off the top once in a while may be enough, but then you’re free to let the sides grow naturally.

Hedges are easy to care for if you get the right ones for your environment. So do a bit of research. It’ll pay off in the end.

Anne Boulton is an avid gardener who lives in Sudbury. Visit her blog at greenboots.ca or contact her at [email protected]. 

Posted by Vivian Scinto