Linda Tilgner - Tips for the Lazy Gardener

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July 12, 2016

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The best part of writing this book was visiting the gardens of many green-thumb enthusiasts who have achieved some measure of laziness with their hobby and talking with others who shared their tips for more efficient gardening. I am indebted to: Marcia Barber, Ruth and Art Dewey, Closey Dickey, Kit and Tom Foster, Michael Hawks, Charles Hayward, Lesley Howell, Michael Jamieson, Deirdre Kevorkian, Joan Kevorkian, Bob and Eleanor Kolkebeck, Helen and Fabian Kunzelmann, Raymond Lambert, Kathy Link, Alice Moir, John Page, Marjorie Peff, Sally Robinson, Mary Sears, Ann Silverfarb, Nora Stevenson, Betty Vander Els, Philip Viereck, and Reg Young.

Who are lazy gardeners? Most are busy people who nevertheless want time in their lives for the feel of cool earth, the solace of planting, the joy of bloom, the satisfaction of producing food, and the taste of fresh picked. They want the most from their gardens with the least effort. Most of us are lazy gardeners.

The secret to leisurely gardening is good organization. If you tend a garden for the joy of it, you dont want to be a slave to it. Gardeners who are successfully lazy have planned effectively the layout of the garden, the choice of plants, and a schedule of seasonal jobs and regular maintenance, which, timed properly, saves later grief. Five minutes now will save an hour in the future.

First, decide what you want from your land. Whether youve lived with your landscape for years, have inherited a garden from previous owners, or are planning a new plot, take time to weigh your choices. Paradise is a garden, so when you create a garden make sure it is, for you, more paradise than punishment.

Although the primary focus of this book is vegetable gardening, some information on landscaping and flower gardening is included, in the belief that as a wise lazy gardener you will maintain your entire yard and make changes that simplify your gardening chores.

As you think about those chores, ask yourself a few questions: How much time do you want to spend working the land? Do flowers give enough pleasure to justify their maintenance? Would you prefer to devote your limited time to growing only fruits and vegetables? How large a garden can you keep under control? Have your needs changed over the eras, and have you had the courage to change the garden?

In seeking answers, consult the experts and avoid costly or time-consuming mistakes. Use your Agricultural Extension Agent, a rich source of general gardening information, literature, and guidance. He or she can give you tips on what varieties of trees, shrubs, flowers, and vegetables grow well in your climate and soil type. Call the County Forester for information on recommended trees or advice on maintaining or improving those you already have. The Soil Conservation Service representative will tell you about local soils. A soil survey can be helpful in making decisions about land use. Some government personnel will even visit your land on request.

A Master Plan for the Perfect Plot

Whether you are creating a general landscape plan or designing a flower bed or a vegetable garden, lay it out on paper first. Use tracing pads of graph paper, available at stores that sell engineering and drafting supplies; it comes in two sizes, 8 by 11 inches or 11 by 17 inches. You can choose from several grid sizes, but four squares to the inch is most practical for laying out a garden to scale.

One advantage of this method is that you can overlay this years vegetable garden on last years to plan crop rotations easily. Note each vegetable variety in the layout and, after you plant, the date of planting. The plan will ensure proper spacing in the garden and will make it possible to calculate how much seed to purchase.

It is particularly important to plan flower gardens on paper if you interplant perennials and bulbs: you dont want to dig up bulbs after their foliage has ripened and disappeared. Use colored pencils to help visualize the color scheme.

One gardener keeps a blank sheet of tracing paper over her flower garden plan, and during the summer, as plants bloom, she indicates changes to be made. For instance:

• Move yarrow to back (it grew taller than expected).
• Trade places of coral bells and purple sage (for better color placement).

Plan the moves when color shows and do the moving at optimum time for planting.

Time-Saving Routines

Keep a month-by-month schedule of reminders to make your work in the garden more efficient. In a looseleaf notebook, with a section for each month, list all the general jobs that need to be done, as well as the care particular plants require. The looseleaf format makes it simple to add or change information. For instance:

April

• General: work soil when possible.
• Asparagus: Fertilize and cultivate.
• Currants: Cover with nylon net.

I just leave the notebook lying out in the kitchen. It saves time. Before I started this system, I was always flipping through books to find out what needed to be done. It was just so frustrating to remember what to do. This makes it so easy, explains an advocate of this method.

Stroll around your garden daily, shears or knife in hand. As you savor the sights, snip off dead blooms and pull out obvious weeds.

One gardener has divided her landscape into seven sections. I never spend more than thirty minutes in any section, she says. When the thirty minutes are up, I move on either to another section or to the tennis court. I may spend only thirty minutes in the garden or a couple of hours, but everything receives some attention regularly, and I never feel behind.