Adapting the Garden to the Gardener

- no drifts, but a lot of disparate dots. But when one plants big drifts of healthy, hardy plants they suddenly get a sort of unity and impact that was impossible before.

And when you deal with big drifts of plants you have less detail to worry about. Plus mass plantings tend to choke out weeds and so cut down even more on the workload.

The irony of it all is that my first accidental garden is one area that not only survives but thrives. The daffodils and crocuses turned out to be keepers - no hassle plants that spread nicely into beautiful clumps of spring flowers, plus hostas that obligingly spread themselves out just in time to cover the ripening foliage.

I had learned to adapt my garden to my changing abilities and lessening stamina. And it worked to give me a better garden than the one I had when I labored ceaselessly just trying to keep up.

I guess everything happens for a reason - accidental gardens, droughts, mistakes that we profit from. And some things are inevitable - the changes of season, the eternal cycle of life, death and rebirth, the turning of night into day and back into night.

Like getting older. Not something we can control - but something that we can learn to adapt to.

The Quick Version

• Don't naturalize tall spring bulbs in your lawn unless they are in a spot that you can get away without mowing until the foliage ripens.
• Mulch is a great way to get rid of unwanted lawn and to create a new garden area. A big thick heaping in fall will be plantable soil the next season. Plus it will help suppress weeds and hold in moisture. Mulch is a great, labor saving adaptive device that eventually makes even poor soil fertile
• It pays to invest in good garden tools, preferably those designed with ergonomic comfort in mind. In the end they are easier on both the gardener's mental and physical health and on the gardener's wallet.
• Even a bad gardening season isn't a total loss. You can learn a lot by taking note of the plants that survive without pampering.
• Plants with colorful foliage not only look good all season but are less work than those that flower. You get color and interest without having to deadhead much.
• Plant easy care, low-maintenance flowers in abundance - in drifts. They are easier to care for when grouped, and they inevitably make
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