A Garden in Balance

As a gardener a lot of my job is to keep the garden in balance. The soil, the amount of water, the plants and the creatures can all go out of balance. Some plants (often called “invasive” species) can get out of control if they are ignored, and will eventually strangle their neighbours.  They need to be reined in (pruned or divided) regularly to give the plants around them some breathing room.  When you’re looking for new plants at the nursery, always read the fine print to see if there are any cautionary words.  Words like “robust grower”, or “spreading plant” contain a warning you’ll ignore to your chagrin. Always check the maximum measurements that the plant could reach so you’ll know whether to leave it at the store.

If the garden gets too much or too little water there will be a lack of balance.  Some plants (again, check the tags when you buy them!) will not survive even a short drought, particularly when they’re first planted.  You’ll notice on many plant tags the stipulation, “Needs well-drained soil”.  In other words, like us, most plants do not like having wet feet for too long.  If your soil is clay-like it will not drain well, so you may need to break it up with a garden pitchfork and amend it with a mixture of good quality garden loam, sand and compost.

Do you have an excess of nasty creatures in your garden? If you ignore lily beetles, they will very quickly strip your lilies and make a horrid slimy mess in the process.  Going through the garden daily, if possible, armed with gardening gloves, pruners and maybe some insecticidal soap in a spray bottle, you can keep the creatures under control.  Pick off and squash the lily beetles and leaf-cutter caterpillars (they love roses), and spray off the white flies, etc..

It’s during that daily walk that you’ll notice when things are out of balance. Does the bird feeder or bird bath need filling? Is the grass too long to be pleasing to the eye? Is the ornamental garlic or the oregano getting out of control? Do you have an infestation of red lily beetles? You have to be a bit ruthless sometimes to keep the garden in balance, but the results are worth it. In these cases, getting in there promptly will make all the difference. Of course, it’s also a good excuse to enjoy your garden! I can’t wait to start being able to do just that!

I just received my shipment of praying mantis larvae!  I can’t wait to see what will happen with those.  The directions are a little scanty, so I’m not sure what to expect.  I’m to keep them in a resealable, white(!) paper bag in a warm window, misting them daily until they hatch, and then free them into the garden.  They are supposed to feast on all the insects we don’t want.  Probably a few we do want, as well, though.  I hope they don’t eat bees!  

If you want to attract bees, (and who doesn’t?)  you can’t go wrong with bee balm.  I’ve only had it in the garden for a couple of years but I find it a fantastic plant.  It is an “enthusiastic grower” though, so it needs to be kept in check.  If you deadhead the spent blooms it will re-bloom for a couple of months, so it’s really worth checking out.  I have a lovely red one that was a gift from a good friend (thank you, Linda!). I posted a photo of it above.

Please enjoy this wonderful recording of Chopin’s nocturne in C sharp minor.  It is played by W. Szpilman, the inspiration for the movie, “The Pianist”. Dedicated to my friend, Maureen M.

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