Today we’re visiting with Judith.
After 25 years of living in my home in Pines Lake, a lake community in Wayne, New Jersey, my garden is still a work in progress with constant challenges.
I have a tiered property, and the upper woodland area area was once filled with hemlocks (Tsuga canadensis, Zones 3–7), but the woolly adelgid decimated this area. I now have the area covered in moss with azaleas (Rhododendron hybrids, Zones 5–9), mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum, Zones 3–8), and Hosta.
Within the last few years, the deer have brought another challenge. My hostas and other deer delicacies in the front yard were being obliterated. Slowly I have transplanted deer candy (assorted varieties of hosta) to a fenced-in backyard and replaced them with hellebores (Helleborus hybrids, Zones 4–9), yucca (Yucca filamentosa, Zones 4–10), ‘Everillo’ sedge (Carex oshimensis ‘Everillo’, Zones 5–9), Coreopsis, and Chinese fringe flowers (Loropetalum chinense, Zones 7–10).
The hillside in my backyard was the ideal place for a waterfall, which I added three years ago. I surrounded it with azaleas, Astilbe, hostas, ‘Everillo’ sedges, Heuchera, turtleheads (Chelone obliqua, Zones 5–9), Hydrangea, and even jack-in-the-pulpits (Arisaema triphyllum). I added lights in the waterfall for nighttime enjoyment.
Backyard shed area: hostas, Japanese painted fern (Athyrium niponicum var. pictum, Zones 3–8), gold dust plant (Aucuba japonica, Zones 7–10), Hakone grass (Hakonechloa macra, Zones 5–9)
Hillside with Hakone grass, hostas, azaleas, and a dry river bed
Mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia, Zones 4–9) is getting ready to bloom in my front yard.
This hillside includes birdhouses, azaleas, and hostas. I put in two railroad-tie paths to get to the woodland area.
This is the “woodland” area, with hostas, ferns, and a rose bush. Moss has naturally covered, the area which I welcomed.
I removed the grass from the sides of the house and made a flagstone path. I put a corner garden near the deck with heuchera, a sedum, and annual begonias. I had to add the gate and fence because deer would walk up the path and into my back gardens!
Because of the deer pressure, I replaced all my hostas with different varieties of hellebores (Helleborus viridis, Zones 4–8) in the front yard.
At this waterfall—which is lined with sedge, azaleas, heucheras, hostas, and. Japanese iris (Iris ensata, Zones 5–9)—I often see cardinals bathing in the afternoon.
At night, the hillside in spring and autumn looks magical, with blooming azaleas and Carex in spring and bursts of color in fall.
My front yard has a semi-circular garden and features yuccas, ‘Everillo’ sedges, Hakone grass, columbine, Chinese fringe flowers, allium, daffodils, and coreopsis.
The backyard: when I bought my home the hillside was covered with anemic grass and was difficult to mow. Azaleas anchor the hillside now.
Have a garden you’d like to share?
Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!
To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.
Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening!