Outdoor decor
Living in a colonial farmhouse, Jan Stirling-Kelly has a difficult time entertaining. The rooms are small, which deters her from hosting parties indoors. But by extending her living space to her yard, parties are possible in summer months.
"It needs to be your personality," said the 54-year-old landscaper, whose gardens contain much more than plants.
"What you're doing is taking your inside out: Decks, patios, gardens — you're making them into rooms, per se."
Once owned by Stirling-Kelly's grandfather, the property encompassed 57 acres, which included a stable and feed and garden store. With much of the land now subdivided, she sought to retain a country feel on the remaining 1½ acres.
Like many smart gardeners, Stirling-Kelly first assessed her location, planting with soil and sunlight in mind. But she also considered other things to create the perfect gardenscape.
A flagstone "widow's walk" circles the house, taking visitors past an antique pedestal sink emerging from a bed of flowers. The path continues toward a vintage bicycle with petunias growing from its basket.Not far away, a weathered Adirondack chair is nestled into a stand of columbines, a teacup and saucer perched on the arm.An eclectic placement of wash tubs, wheel barrows, baskets and bins brim with pine cones or bird seed through February. Colorful annuals are planted in spring."I usually decorate for spring/summer and fall/winter," Stirling-Kelly said."You spend so much money and time doing those things, you want it to last a little longer."Other winter decorating items include old sleds, ice skates and 60-some wreaths on the house. In summer, the 12 bird houses become a focus. "There's something living in all of them," she said.<b>Heirloom Heaven</b>Across town in Butler, Cindy Murphy's garden also compliments her historic home. With no need for additional living space, the part-time legal researcher instead concentrates on heirloom flowers popular in the late 1800s, when her downtown Victorian was built.Old English roses, a topiary lilac, peonies and gladiolus are among the perennials that grow inside a picket fence. There, diverse flower beds run the perimeter of the yard — and in many spots flank the fence outside.Within the beds, lush perennials already monopolize their share of the soil, but soon, a host of heirloom annuals will be happily wedged among them.
"It's supposed to be crowded," said Murphy, 45, explaining how cottage-style gardens are more dense and less manicured than the alternative formal gardens, also found near Victorian homes.Because of the cottage garden's density, Murphy said weeding is only a chore in early spring, before the seedlings become established.Until that time, she relies heavily on mulch to keep the unwanted weeds at bay. In Murphy's case, mulch made from cocoa shells is the product of choice."When it gets wet it smells like chocolate," she said. "It's good for the soil, and it's nice after it rains: People walk by and smell the chocolate smell."Although weeds require less work as the season progresses, Murphy's abundance of plants — many in containers — necessitate much watering. Her husband, Tom, is usually a willing participant, spending about 1½ hours on that job each day.For Murphy, time is spent planting and sometimes moving the flowers, trying them in various spots before she finds a more permanent arrangements.
"I get a Victorian homes magazine, and they have gardens in those, but mainly it's just plopping it in the ground and seeing how it does," Murphy said."I like to have a mix. I like to always have something blooming."When outdoor gardening comes to an end, Murphy begins pouring through seed catalogs looking for new heirlooms to try."I go through them all winter, and I circle things that look interesting to me," Murphy said."I always add. There are new things out every year."Murphy gets a jump on the season by starting the seeds under basement grow lights, later transplanting them outdoors.Though the flowers are beautiful to view, Murphy derives much of her joy from the many hours spent tending them."It's a sickness," she laughed."There are a lot of people that stop and ask us about the garden, but they would never want to maintain it."<br>
Justine Brown maintains a lush garden behind her home in Butler Township, but flowering plants are not the centerpiece. Instead, Brown has installed an array of perennials that thrive beneath the canopy of her yard's tall maples.A typical shade garden, Brown's property includes columbines, lily of the valley and other modest blooms, with green plants comprising the bulk of her palette."You get your interest by mixing foliage, texture and color," said Brown, 56, who intersperses some 40 varieties of hosta among ferns, shrubs and other greenery."You don't really need lots of big bursts of color."Although many novice gardeners might assume all hostas are all similar, Brown has come to understand the subtle differences — planting each variety accordingly.Hostas with darker green leaves can handle full sun, for instance, while lighter-leafed species tend to burn. The darker leafed plants are also more slug resistant, Brown noted.
Many of Brown's beds are enclosed by borders of stacked sandstone, and the plantings are mulched with shredded bark — reducing the need to weed and water.Ground covers like ivy and pachysandra also help to control weeds."I love to garden, but I also have too many things going on to spend a whole lot of time keeping it looking nice," she said.As much as Brown's plantings reflect her practical attitude about maintenance, they also reflect a degree of sentiment.Her faith comes forward as the occasional statue of St. Francis emerges from the foliage, which includes assumption lilies passed down by Brown's grandmother.White roses near the house were relocated from the home of a deceased friend, and a more hearty rugosa rose descends from a woman named Ada, who once lived near Brown's mother."It's just kind of nice to share plants with other people ... to remember people by the plants you get from them," Brown said.Bricks that line the cement pathway in Brown's front yard also hold sentimental value: Her father had long ago salvaged the bricks from a demolished building in Kittanning."They were cheap and you had to take the cement off them," Brown said. "But I really liked them because they had character."
Brown said the trees that shield her garden from sun open it up in other ways. Along with offering shade and privacy, the maples and evergreens provide a habitat for birds and other wildlife, which enhances her garden with sound.Along with the resident robins, blue jays and cardinals, come woodpeckers and a red-tailed hawk. Brown said her family became aware of the hawk after a neighbor identified the bird by sound. Now, those who gather in the garden can appreciate the bird as a welcome friend."It was really cool," Brown said. "Now we recognize the sound of his voice."
