Hayefield

Posted on February 5, 2009January 7, 2011 by Nan Ondra — 20 Comments

Structural Integrity

Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra

My ability to appreciate forms and stems and seedheads fizzled out way too soon this winter. Usually, I’m good until late January, at least, and then there’s seed-sowing to distract me from the boring outdoors for a few weeks until spring starts making an appearance. But then, we usually slide into winter a bit more gradually, unlike the seemingly endless cycle of ice events every few days from December through much of January. It’s almost a relief to get snow now as a change.

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Posted on August 24, 2008January 7, 2011 by Nan Ondra — 20 Comments

The Screening Test

Text and photos ©Nancy J. Ondra

One of the biggest challenges of creating a new garden on a relatively flat, featureless field has been figuring out how to break up the view a bit. Partly, I wanted to create some privacy from the roads that border two sides of my lot. I also wanted to add some screening within the garden, so the whole thing wasn’t visible from one spot, and to create some sheltered sitting areas as well. I needed to find a way to screen the area under the raised porch, too, so the junk-storage space underneath wasn’t visible.

My previous garden was very small, so it wasn’t a big deal to invest in some special trellises and screens, or to have Mom build them. This place is so much larger, though, that even buying enough lumber for Mom-made structures really isn’t an option. Sizeable shrubs and trees are pretty much out of the budget too. So I’ve turned to another option: perennials that are eye-high or taller.

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Posted on August 1, 2008March 21, 2022 by Nan Ondra — 18 Comments

Three Neat Plants – Late July

First, I’d like to welcome all of the new readers to Hayefield. As some of you who have been here before guessed, the special garden visitor I mentioned in my last post was Anne Raver of the New York Times. It was such a surprise that she wanted to write an article (Where Foliage Eclipses Flowers); I figured she and my two editors from Storey were just looking for an afternoon of garden touring. You can imagine what a lot of plant talk four garden nerds can fit into just a few hours.

While the attention has been fun, it’s also great to finally have some time to get back to blogging – especially blogging about neat plants. As usual, it was hard to choose just three, but I’ve ended up with something old, something sort of new, and something I think will be very new to most of you. Continue reading Three Neat Plants – Late July