Stephanie Cohen - The Perennial Gardener’s Design Primer

The Perennial Gardeners Design Primer

Stephanie Cohen Nancy J. Ondra

FOREWORD BY ALLAN M. ARMITAGE
PHOTOGRAPHS BY ROB CARDILLO

The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by publishing
practical information that encourages personal independence
in harmony with the environment.

Edited by Gwen Steege and Sarah Guare
Art direction, and cover and text design by Kent Lew
Text production by Cynthia McFarland

Photographs Rob Cardillo, with the exception of the following: Adam Mastoon, back cover authors photo; Gary Campbell, right

Watercolor illustrations Lois Lovejoy
Garden plans created by the authors and drawn by Alison Kolesar
Indexed by Susan Olason, Indexes + Knowledge Maps

Copyright 2005 by Stephanie Cohen and Nancy J. Ondra

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate credits; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other without written permission from the publisher.

The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. All recommendations are made without guarantee on the part of the author or Storey Publishing. The author and publisher disclaim any liability in connection with the use of this information. For additional information please contact Storey Publishing, 210 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, MA 01247.

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Printed in Hong Kong by Elegance Printing
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

Cohen, Stephanie, 1937
The perennial gardeners design primer / Stephanie Cohen and Nancy J. Ondra.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 1-58017-543-0 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN 1-58017-545-7 (hardcover : alk. paper)

1. Perennials. 2. GardensDesign. 3. Landscape gardening. I. Ondra, Nancy J. II. Title.

SB434.C63 2005
635.932dc22

2004020306

Dedication

To my husband, Dick, who encouraged me every step of the way in my career;
I thank him for helping to create a true plantaholic.
To my long-suffering children, Abby, Doug, and Rachel,
who were dragged to more gardens as children than they ever cared to see.
And to my new granddaughter, Chelsea, who I have visions
of making into a gardener and nature lover.

STEPHANIE COHEN

To my aunt and uncle, Nona and Mike Ondra.
Who knew that three people with a pot of coffee and a couple of hours to kill
could come up with solutions to all of the worlds problems?
If only we had kept notes!

NANCY J. ONDRA

ALTHOUGH I AM SELDOM CALLED UPON for assistance with garden design, I do enjoy the topic. Both Stephanie and Nancy know that I am somewhat design-challenged and books on the subject usually leave me cold. Not so with this one! It is not only a pleasant read, but also informative and educational, making it easy even for someone like me to put its basic tenets into practice.

From Getting Started to Its All in the Details, Stephanie and Nancy keep things simple but informative. One of the things I most appreciate is that although this book is about perennials, the authors understand that man does not live by perennials alone. Including a chapter on Exploring Perennial Partners shows that while they appreciate perennials in the design, they acknowledge that a fine garden consists of more than one group of plants. Readers will also be pleased with the diverse palette of perennials they discuss, which reflects their attitude that not all gardeners are master gardeners, nor are they witless garden novices. It is obvious that a good deal of thought about the diversity of plant material appropriate for American gardens went into their choices.

The before and after sections in part 3 are another plus for so many of us as our gardens get older or shadier or simply more tired. I am ready to steal Stephanies and Nancys ideas with the hope that my after will be half as good as theirs. This book should make you smarter and happier: What else is there?

Allan M. Armitage
Author and Professor of Horticulture University of Georgia

WE HAVE TO CONFESS IT at the beginning of our book: Were both obsessed by gardens and gardening. Gardens are our work and our play, and we love to share our passion, along with what weve learned from years of gardening and teaching others about gardening. We recognize that people garden for many different reasons, from the fun of simply being outdoors and getting fresh air and exercise, to watching things grow, to treasuring a quiet time to just think about things. Gardening helps us beautify our homes, enhance our environment, and make our communities better places in which to live. Gardens even add to the value of our homes, though for most gardeners thats just a side benefit. Our hope is that what we offer in the pages that follow will give you the confidence to experiment and explore. Although we believe youll soon be able to create your own beautiful gardens, we hope that youll also understand that you cant really fail, for even garden mistakes can turn into opportunities to learn. After all, you dont really know a plant until youve killed it!

WHETHER YOURE A BRAND-NEW GARDENER or a veteran of the spade-and-trowel brigade, starting a perennial garden project can be both exhilarating and overwhelming. The key to making the process go smoothly is knowing the right questions to ask yourself, because when you ask the right questions, the answers are sure to follow. Lets take a look at the basics of getting any design off to a great start, from identifying your wants and needs to evaluating your site and soil.

THE BEST WAY TO BEGIN the creative process is to think about what you want from your perennial garden. Sounds obvious, perhaps, but when you concentrate on all of the potential purposes your planting can serve, you can get lots of helpful design clues. Not sure of the possibilities? Here are some ideas to get you started.