Apart from a builder's diagram drawn to guide the men who constructed our front garden walls, steps and terraces in 1994, I have never had a landscaping design drawn up for my garden. The men were quite keen to draw up a planting plan for me as well, with specimens of their own choice, but the idea filled me with horror. I wanted the garden to be my very own creation, and so it has been. The rest of the garden I have made myself, digging each border by hand with a mattock, until physically incapable of doing so, at which time a small rotary hoe was hired and used to do the job. I've selected and put in all the plants.
Garden plan by Edna WallingThe garden has thus just grown, in a fairly random way, over the past 23 years. If a complete master plan had been drawn up at the start, it would have ended up being crossed out and recrossed out over the years, as so much has changed over time -- plants moved around, new shrubs and trees put in, new borders dug where lawn used to be ... I love the look of those beautiful Edna Walling-esque professional plans, with their softly tinted representations of plants, but it would never have worked for me, as I wanted my garden to evolve with me on my gardening journey.
A view of my Cubby GardenHowever, I do have a map that I have made of my garden, a roughly sketched, basic thing, not to any sort of proper scale, showing, in an aerial view, the layout of the whole: where the major trees, borders, lawns, paths and steps are. To make it big enough to write and draw on, there are three A4 pages: each one representing one of the three major parts of the garden, and showing the subsections within them. I have made multiple photocopies of the original map (which itself is occasionally updated to reflect permanent changes) and find them incredibly useful. Each individual section of the garden has been given a name on the map, so that when I am writing notes in my garden diary about random ideas of things to do in the garden, I can refer to the particular area. 'Golden Garden', 'Cubby Garden', 'Chook Area' and 'Brian's Path Garden' may mean nothing to anyone else but to me they indicate instantly what I mean! Often I write notes on the actual map copy itself. When planning a whole new border, I draw labelled bubbles on the map to show where each chosen plant will be sited.
Bags of cane mulch and cow manure from last springI use a copy of the map as a way of recording my progress round the garden at different times of year. Having the garden divided into discrete, named areas allows me to focus JUST on that part for a gardening session: I know I don't have to feel frantic about trying to do the rest of my plot that day. In late winter, for example, I get out a new copy of the map and mark off each section as that bit is pruned, fertilised and mulched. This is the busiest time of the gardening year for me and can seem very daunting. Being able to tick off each task on the map as a section is 'done' is incredibly heartening; I can keep track of my progress and feel chuffed each time as I gradually get the whole job done. Last year I also wrote on the map how many bags of cow manure and cane mulch I used on each section, as a guide for how much to buy this year. I also keep previous years' maps showing that I did actually do the same tasks, to prove to myself that, however daunting it may all seem, 'it can be done'. Breaking a big job down into small, achievable parts is a time-honoured method of tackling seemingly overwhelming tasks.
Plotting sun and shade in your garden can show the best place for a sun-loving lemon treeA map of a garden can also be helpful in identifying areas of sun and shade within it. I am notoriously hopeless at knowing north, south, east and west, but if these directions are marked on your garden map, along with the position of your house, major trees and walls that cast shade, it can be useful to show where you may wish to place more trees or shrubs for shade (deciduous ones if you want winter sun), or alternatively, where to site plants that need lots of sun. There are websites you can consult to get an indication of how to do this, even using online tools that show how the transit of the sun through the year impacts on your actual property! This online article give some great tips for doing all this sort of mapping.
Your map can be valuable for drawing ideas for new garden areas or features. I'm no garden designer, but I've discovered that is better to doodle on my map first than to launch impetuously into my vaguely formed plans with a mattock. It is a way to see how the lines of a proposed border or path will look and whether they are too 'fussy', how the new feature fits into the existing garden, and whether the overall plan is aesthetically pleasing. So I pencil in my ideas onto one of my spare photocopies of my garden plan and it seems a great way to explore my ideas. Another very practical use of a garden map is to show the position of various underground drainage pipes. I am well known for damaging these in my enthusiasm for digging a new border, so if they are marked in on a map, it does sort of help to preclude such potentially expensive accidents!
I can recommend mapping your garden - there are lots of uses for such an apparently simple diagram. If you keep all your copies of your map, you also have a lovely record of how your garden has developed over the years!
Enda Walling"s garden designs are works of art - so are her gardens - she is one of my garden heroes. I map my garden as I add plants I write the botanic name and common name in the margins - I find it a great help when someone wants to know what a particular plant is. It also helps if the plant doesn"t do well to look at an alternative position that might suit it better and I mark the move and see if it was worth the effort. I really enjoy your blog - it"s like a chat with a friend :) That all sounds really helpful for the garden. Thanks for your kind feedback! Deirdre
I"m relieved it"s not just me with compass points, Deirdre! Hee hee; I barely know left from right either! Deirdre
I have often thought about a professional map of my garden, but have never proceeded with it, and probably never will. I have my own garden book, in which I record all which occurs, in my garden. Each area has a name to aid in my placement of plants. Looking back through the yearly entries, it is amazing how the garden and plants have changed. A record of plants, bought or given,their performance, planting times and any treatments required, is really beneficial, for future plans. Your book and reference to named areas sounds a great record and a wonderful aid for future planting ideas, Margaret. Deirdre
Gardening on paper is a nice thing to do:-) I am not as detailed, but do have a box divided into garden areas in which I keep all plant details,labels etc. - its amazing to see changes in the different areas over the years. Love the Solar tracker link - want one. With fast growing neighbour"s trees(lillypilly)shade is cast quite differently in summer than winter. Two of my raised veggie beds are now completely in shade in winter and I use a sunny flower bed for winter planting of veg. The box for all the labels etc is a great idea. It is so interesting to see the effect of sun and shade in the garden through the different seasons. Deirdre
I am amazed how every time I view your blogs I could be having the same conversation with myself. I am just a home gardener who enjoys the ups and downs that a gardeners life brings. I don"t feel so alone reading your blogs knowing that I have the same trials,tribulations and successes as any other person. Thank you. Thank you for your lovely comments, Dianne! Deirdre
I don"t think I could ever have the same emotions for my garden if I hadn"t kept diaries since moving here to SEQ in 1990. Reading back through them is amazing to see how plants/trees have flourished or not if they were the wrong plant for the wrong place. Gosh, I have learnt so much over the years and now with the internet, I have no excuses for lack of knowledge. I love reading your blog as it is like talking to a friendly knowledgeable green thumb. So many ideas I have taken on. Thanks. Thanks so much, Anne, for your kind comments. I think all forms of garden diaries or maps are so helpful. I can laugh aloud reading my very early gardening diaries and what grand visions I had! Deirdre
Gee I"d love to have a garden big enough to map. Im only on 715sm block. What i have done though is make a book listing all the plants with care instructions & pictures. Your book sounds great. I have always kept a garden diary and stick in photos of my garden and photos torn from magazines etc plus lots of notes about what is going on in the garden at any one time. Deirdre
I am a newcomer to your wonderful blogs - I am always curious to know what your feature plant of the day is - . My garden is very simple - and the "bones" I have planted have not really been in long enough to make a difference - especially a crepe myrtle - which is still years away from providing the shade that is badly needed for the house. I always look forward to all the knowledge you pass on. Thank you Joan Thanks so much, Joan. It will be lovely for your to see your garden develop over the years. Deirdre
So glad I"m in good company with my maps, notebooks & box of plant labels. Even have mapping software "Garden Planner". Got this when I moved to our current garden in 2013. Its a large old established garden with lots of treasures collected by previous owners over 50 yrs. The map really helped me get my head around the garden design & remember what was where ( lots of unusual bulbs & decidous shrubs I didnt know. Only just really finished identifying everything in last 12 months. All those records sound so useful. Your garden sounds a delight. Deirdre
Thanks so much for link on mapping sun & shade. This can be quite tricky. have some very large trees ( evergreen & decidous) & sun/shade regime changes a lot through the year. The link will be extremely useful. That is great, Helen! Deirdre
Hi Deidre, thanks for your wonderful blog! I always look forward to reading your observations, tips and suggestions. I have a question: where do you buy the many bags of compost and mulch I see in the photo in this blog? Do you get them delivered and is there an online supplier I could use? Many thanks for your help Kind regards Jennifer
I heartily agree with your ideas for mapping and recording your garden and all the details and changes that go on over the seasons. Having a careful list of all botanical names is necessary too. They go straight out of my head. As I"m planting up new areas at the moment I"m drawing plans from above and side view adding colour where I can. Doing a side view of a bed with shrubs and trees of different heights is very helpful and rewarding. It gives one a good idea of what to look forward to. Thanks, Kathy. Your plans sound great! Deirdre
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