Timing is critical: renew too early and there might be some leftover seeds that the birds would have loved to eat. Too late, and you’ll be removing new growth as it starts at the end of winter. Then there’s rain: this meadow doubles as a rain garden, so if you cut too soon after aContinue reading “Renewing the meadow”
Tag Archives: rain garden
Trimming the meadow
The goal is to remove last year’s vegetation before it starts to grow back. The asters’ seeds have long since been picked over by the finches, and the sedges have not yet begun their spring growth spurt. Likewise, the grasses and other plants are just beginning to think about emerging from dormancy. It’s trim backContinue reading “Trimming the meadow”
The meadow at it’s messiest: butterfly paradise
After summer’s growth, the asters have come into flower, bringing clouds of hungry butterflies. This is when the meadow is tallest, where it starts looking wild and unkempt. Asters arc in all directions, visited by multiple species of butterflies: skippers, buckeyes, blues, sulfurs… Beneath the asters, native goldenrod blooms following earlier waves of flowers nowContinue reading “The meadow at it’s messiest: butterfly paradise”
Big storm tests the rain garden
There’s nothing like a few minutes of heavy downpour to check that the garden’s ecological systems are doing what they’re supposed to. Today brought pounding rain and hail to the garden. There’s standing water over the gravel in one area, the rain garden is filling up, and the pervious paving is definitely working hard. OnceContinue reading “Big storm tests the rain garden”
Time to trim the meadow
The asters are dry and non-ornamental, the sedges will soon start their growth cycle, and the other herbaceous perennials will join them – so this was the time to cut everything back. The clippings are left in place to break down, keeping nutrients in the meadow so we don’t need to add fertilizer. The perennialsContinue reading “Time to trim the meadow”