The second section of our Restore Life to Your Landscape series is Planning Your Garden. In these articles we will:
- Determine what you want your garden to be
- Establish your own Garden Aesthetic
- Determine which species to plant in your garden
- Get your Planting Plan down on paper
This is the first article in the Planning Your Garden section – We’ll go over setting the foundation for for your garden, paving the path to future sustainability and success. Getting started with a nature-inspired, sustainable landscape requires a paradigm shift from the typical idea of a garden, and establishing your “why’s” will help ground you and give you something to constantly return to as you go forward in your garden journey.
Establish Your Garden’s “Why”
When you first start viewing your landscape as a potential reservoir for biodiversity, it can really change your perspective on the function of a garden. Establishing a solid “why” for your garden can keep you grounded and help as you make decisions on design and planting.
Borrowing from the business world, I find it helpful to establish a Mission, Vision & Values for your garden. These may seem simple, but for an organization, these act as the grounding anchor, something to go back to in every decision. For your own garden, having a mission, a vision, and values to go by establishes the principles that will guide you.
Mission
A “Mission” in an organization defines its purpose – For a garden, having a mission statement gives you a purpose. Do you want a garden that specifically helps specialist pollinators? Or will you focus on Lepidoptera host plants? Do you want lots of seeds and berries for birds? What will be the primary focus?
Our mission at Paddle Creek Gardens is “to realize the potential in every landscape to support life” – That is the primary reason we’re here. In our own landscape, I apply this when selecting plants: How does this plant (or proposed planting) align with our mission?
Take out a notebook and start jotting down ideas for your mission – What is the driving purpose of your garden?
Vision
The “Vision” in an organization states what it wants to become, a desired future state. Our vision is “an abundance of life and diversity in every garden” – While practically and realistically this is unlikely to happen any time soon, it nonetheless is what we desire to accomplish through sharing our information and resources.
In our own garden, I could write a vision – “To be a 4-acre oasis in a desert of green.” Apart from a few woodlots, most of the properties that surround us are conventional landscapes with mown, irrigated, frequently chemical-washed turfgrass lawns with a few bradford pears or Norway spruce. Across the street is a farm field, lovely and green in the summertime – Just watch out for the crop dusters spraying fungicides and insecticides!
Though the whole area is verdant, it is basically a biological desert. My hope is that our landscaping choices will catch on along our street, but until then, I am focusing on realizing that full potential in our landscape to support life.
Keep writing in your notebook – What is your vision for your own landscape? What do you want your landscape to be?
Values
In business, the Values are (Or should be!) the ethos behind the operations of the organization. Every transaction, interaction, plan, and decision, is made with the values in mind.
Our 3 main values are:
- No garden too small, no landscape too large – Whether we’re dealing with 1/8th of an acre or 500 acres, every landscape has the potential to support an abundance of life and biodiversity. Our principles apply no matter the setting.
- A garden full of life is intrinsically beautiful – While traditional landscaping has always focused on visual aesthetics, there is an intrinsic beauty in a native landscape full of life. Picture your favorite park or nature preserve – Chances are there’s an abundance of naturally-existing plant communities. The balance and biodiversity has its own beauty apart from the visuals.
- Gardens aren’t just for humans – We might spend a couple hours a day in our gardens, but for the local wildlife, many live out their whole lives in our gardens. Taking the time to consider this means that our personal sensibilities take a back seat to the needs of the wildlife that lives its life cycle in our gardens.
Looking Ahead – Setting 1, 3 and 5 Year Goals
Now that you’ve written down your Mission, Vision & Values, it’s time to set some goals for your landscape. While it can be overwhelming at first, especially if you’re dealing with a typical new suburban lot, breaking your vision down into chunks that you can tackle will make it more likely that you achieve your vision.
I find it helpful to set 1, 3 and 5 year goals. In the first year, maybe you’re removing a section of lawn and installing a new plant bed. Setting a first year goal helps to manage your expectations.
In 3 years, herbaceous perennials will have filled in to their mature size, and for some faster-growing or self-seeding species, you may be able to divide mature clumps or transplant seedlings to fill in new areas.
In 5 years, trees and shrubs, even if they were planted from seedlings, will begin taking a noticeable presence in the landscape.
By envisioning what your landscape will become, your goals will help you to make better decisions when it comes time for planting. I started out with a somewhat haphazard approach to planting when I first began growing plants, but now I can definitely see the benefit of planning and goal setting.
Next Article: Establishing Your Own Garden Aesthetic